Journalism of Courage
Five days after the labourers lynched the CEO of the Northbrook jute mill, its management allegedly tried to prevent a 10-member central team from inspecting the stock of jute and jute products on the premises.
The team led by Deputy Jute Commissioner Dipankar Mahato and comprising officials from the jute commissioner’s office and the office of the directorate general of supplies and disposal reached the jute mill at at Bhadreswar in Hooghly around 11 am but remained stranded there till the evening as the management reportedly did not cooperate with them.
According to officials of the Jute Commissioner’s office, the management allegedly did not allow the team to enter the premises initially.
However, the officers from the district administration reached the spot and made way for the central team to enter the mill premises. The team, however, was not allowed to inspect the godowns inside the mill premises and verify the stock of raw jute.
A group of labourerss, armed with sticks and rods, also turned up and started agitating in the mill area not allowing the team to move to other parts.
Significantly, the management Monday reportedly told the labourers on Monday that the mill had no work orders from the government and considering the huge stock of raw jute material they were contemplating a cut in the working days. The central team was sent to verify the claims of the management that there was a huge stock of jute at the mill.
The central team finally sealed four godowns before leaving the premises. The officials were not allowed an access to other godowns. According to the sources, the labours, who agitated in front of the central team, demanded their dues of provident fund to be paid.
Significantly, the district administration and the management were duly informed about the inspection by the central team, said a senior official of the team.
Meanwhile, state labour minister Purnendu Bose is likely to visit the mill and the family of H K Maheswari, the lynched CEO, Saturday. On the same day, state Jute Commissioner Subrata Gupta would be holding a meeting with the jute mill owner’s association at the Bengal Chambers of Commerce.
