"Working at a tea garden in the hilly, verdant Wayanad, he did not have much time to spare as he wanted to pluck as many tender tea leaves as he could to meet the target he set for himself. We don't work for a salary. Our earnings depend on the quantity of tea leaves we collect. So no work, no payment, Jani says, gliding his harvesting shears along the top layer of the tea plants, careful to pluck only fresh, flavourful green leaves."
"The migrant workforce, as in most countries, is the backbone of India's economy. And Kerala, being among the states with the highest emigration rate in India, is largely dependent on workers from other regions to run its industries. All businesses, including the beautiful tea, coffee, rubber, spice and coconut plantations spread across the state, are heavily dependent on workers from neighbouring or northern and eastern areas of India, with Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and Odisha among the top origins."
Kerala depends heavily on migrant workers from other Indian regions to run its industries and plantations. Tea, coffee, rubber, spice and coconut estates rely on workers from neighbouring states and from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and Odisha. India recorded more than 6.63 million people migrating abroad in 2024, according to the United Nations. Recent internal migration figures are scarce because the national census was last held in 2011. Many migrants take piece-rate agricultural jobs without fixed salaries. Rajkumar Jani, a 23-year-old botany graduate from Koraput in Odisha, works in a Wayanad tea garden to support his family.
Read at www.aljazeera.com
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