Assam Chah Mazdoor Sangha
Encyclopedia
The Assam Chah Mazdoor Sangha is the largest trade union organizing labourers in tea gardens of the Assam Valley in north-eastern India
. The union is affiliated with the Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC). As of the early 2000s, ACMS claimed a membership of 1.1 million (another figure, presented in 2009, put the total membership at 325,000). The organisational network of ACMS includes 846 company tea gardens.
. ACMS was set up by the Dibrugarh
Congress leader Mahabendra Nath Sharma and a grouping of tea garden trade unionist leaders. An agreement was reached between the Assam Chief Minister Gopinath Bordoloi
, INTUC and the India Tea Association (ITA). INTUC promised the plantation owners not to engage in 'disruptive' union activism whilst ITA promised INTUC free access to organising in the tea gardens. Through this agreement with the tea plantation owners, ACMS was able to establish a virtual monopoly over labour organising in the Assam Valley tea gardens.
Union office bearers are elected for three-year terms. As of 2011, Paban Singh Ghatowar (a Congress Party Lok Sabha member from Dibrugarh) served as the president of ACMS and Dileswar Tanti as its general secretary.
constituencies; Kaliabor, Jorhat, Dibrugarh, Mangaldoi and Lakhimpur (these areas also correspond to roughly half of the Vidhan Sabha
seats of Assam).
As of 2009, the membership fee of ACMS stood at 36. Moreover, each member is obligied to pay 12% of his/her gross income to the Provident Fund of the union. As of 2009 the Provident Fund stood at 27 billion, gathered through collections amongst its members.
ACMS is affiliated with the Building and Wood Workers' International
and the International Union of Food, Agricultural, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco and Allied Workers' Association.
In the Cachar, another tea producing region of Assam, INTUC has another affiliate, the Cachar Chah Sramik Union.
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. The union is affiliated with the Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC). As of the early 2000s, ACMS claimed a membership of 1.1 million (another figure, presented in 2009, put the total membership at 325,000). The organisational network of ACMS includes 846 company tea gardens.
History
ACMS was founded in the 1950s. After the Independence of India, Congress Party leaders in Assam sought to strengthen INTUC in order to counter the influence of communist unions affiliated with the All India Trade Union CongressAll India Trade Union Congress
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. ACMS was set up by the Dibrugarh
Dibrugarh
Dibrugarh is the headquarters of Dibrugarh district, Assam, India, and is the second largest city in Assam after Guwahati. It is situated on the banks of the Brahmaputra River, about north-east of Guwahati. It is the gateway to the three tea-producing districts of Tinsukia, Dibrugarh, and Sibsagar...
Congress leader Mahabendra Nath Sharma and a grouping of tea garden trade unionist leaders. An agreement was reached between the Assam Chief Minister Gopinath Bordoloi
Gopinath Bordoloi
Gopinath Bordoloi was the first Chief Minister of the Indian state of Assam, and also a leading Indian independence activist. He was a follower of the Gandhian principle of non violence as a political tool...
, INTUC and the India Tea Association (ITA). INTUC promised the plantation owners not to engage in 'disruptive' union activism whilst ITA promised INTUC free access to organising in the tea gardens. Through this agreement with the tea plantation owners, ACMS was able to establish a virtual monopoly over labour organising in the Assam Valley tea gardens.
Leadership
During its initial phase, the leadership of ACMS tended to be dominated by upper-caste Hindus who themselves were not tea labourers. However, over the passage of time an 'insider' cadre of leaders from within the ranks of the tea labourers emerged. Prominent leaders in the history of ACMS includes Simon Singh Horo, Santosh Kr. Topno, Patra Ekka, Gaisan Tiru, Dharamdas Herenz and Dalbirsingh Lohar.Union office bearers are elected for three-year terms. As of 2011, Paban Singh Ghatowar (a Congress Party Lok Sabha member from Dibrugarh) served as the president of ACMS and Dileswar Tanti as its general secretary.
Political role
ACMS is a politically important pillar for the influence of the Congress Party in Assam. Through ACMS the party is able to wield significant voters' support in five Lok SabhaLok Sabha
The Lok Sabha or House of the People is the lower house of the Parliament of India. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by direct election under universal adult suffrage. As of 2009, there have been fifteen Lok Sabhas elected by the people of India...
constituencies; Kaliabor, Jorhat, Dibrugarh, Mangaldoi and Lakhimpur (these areas also correspond to roughly half of the Vidhan Sabha
Vidhan Sabha
The Vidhan Sabha or the Legislative Assembly is the lower house or the sole house of the provincial legislature in the different states of India. The same name is also used for the lower house of the legislatures for two of the union territories, Delhi and Pondicherry...
seats of Assam).
Organisation
ACMS has 22 branch organisations. The union has its headquarters at Jiban Phukan Nagar in Dibrugarh. In total ACMS and its local branches has a staff of 265 persons (as of 2009).As of 2009, the membership fee of ACMS stood at 36. Moreover, each member is obligied to pay 12% of his/her gross income to the Provident Fund of the union. As of 2009 the Provident Fund stood at 27 billion, gathered through collections amongst its members.
ACMS is affiliated with the Building and Wood Workers' International
Building and Wood Workers' International
The Building and Wood Workers' International is the global union federation of democratic and free trade unions in the building, building materials, wood, forestry and allied industries. Established in 2005 by a merger of the International Federation of Building and Wood Workers and the World...
and the International Union of Food, Agricultural, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco and Allied Workers' Association.
In the Cachar, another tea producing region of Assam, INTUC has another affiliate, the Cachar Chah Sramik Union.