Women from Garganda Tea Garden in Alipurduar district, who are trying to set up a cooperative to operate the sick tea garden. | Photo Credit: Shiv Sahay Singh Basanti Naik, the widow of tea garden worker Gunjan Naik, who died in June 2025 in Garganda tea garden of West Bengal’s Alipurduar district, survives solely on food grains provided under her Antoday Anna Yojana (AAY) card. The 51-year-old tea garden worker is too weak to work. Wages at the garden, run by the Merico Group, have been irregular. But officially, the garden is not closed, and workers do not get any assistance under the Financial Assistance to the Workers of Locked Out Industries (FAWLOI) scheme, which workers of closed tea gardens are entitled to. The only cash Basanti Naik receives is ₹1,500 under the West Bengal government’s Lakshmir Bhandar scheme. Published – April 21, 2026 10:15 pm IST Share this: Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window) WhatsApp Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook Click to share on Threads (Opens in new window) Threads Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X Click to share on Telegram (Opens in new window) Telegram Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email More Click to print (Opens in new window) Print Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Tumblr Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window) Pocket Click to share on Mastodon (Opens in new window) Mastodon Click to share on Nextdoor (Opens in new window) Nextdoor Click to share on Bluesky (Opens in new window) Bluesky Like this:Like Loading... Post navigation SEBI panel asks NSE to pay ₹1,800 crore to settle cases: report Amnesty warns that ‘predator’ leaders seek to impose new ‘world order’