Historic Land Bill Transforms Assam's Tea Gardens

The Assam BJP hails the Assam Fixation of Ceiling on Land Holdings (Amendment) Bill, 2025, as a transformative victory for tea garden workers. The legislation, passed during the Winter Session, ends decades of deprivation and grants land rights to over 3.33 lakh families, promoting empowerment and dignity.

The Assam State BJP has declared the passage of the Assam Fixation of Ceiling on Land Holdings (Amendment) Bill, 2025, as a pivotal moment for the state's tea garden communities, bringing an end to nearly two centuries of land deprivation. According to the party, this legislation is a significant boost to over 3.33 lakh families across 825 tea estates, providing them with long-denied land rights.

Chief Minister Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma introduced and passed the bill during the Winter Session of the Legislative Assembly. The BJP's statement on Friday emphasized that the enactment will terminate a painful era where tea garden workers, essential to Assam's economy and global identity, lacked land ownership from the British era through the Congress regime. Previously, generations of workers inhabiting these estates had no legal claim to the land they lived on.

The party outlined the hardships faced by these workers, noting that they needed permission for basic home repairs and risked eviction if family members did not work in the gardens. The new law empowers tea workers, ending years of exploitation during both colonial and post-independence periods. It grants them freedom to seek jobs outside the tea industry and build homes of their choice, with no interference from garden authorities.

Assam BJP leaders assert this legislation is far from ordinary and marks a historic moment of liberation for tea workers, whose rights and dignity have long been ignored. They commend the BJP Government of Assam and Chief Minister Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma for what they call a landmark reform, promising that their efforts will be celebrated in the state's history.

(With inputs from agencies.)