Apex Court orders acquisition of ATI’s landed property, directs payment of compensation within four months.

Will the workers 13 years wait for settlement of VRS dues meet its logical end? Perhaps how the Island Administration responds to the decree would decide what the answer be.

Those who followed my earlier post on the issue might be aware more than 800 workers of the erstwhile M/S Andaman Timber Industries Ltd (popularly known as ATI) have not been paid retirement and statutory dues admissible to them since the factory closed in the fall of 2000. Estranged workers raised the issue in every available forum. Even a favourable Labour Court Award was not honoured. This article traces the issue that has been hanging fire for more than 13 years. 
Factory's two of the three sheds collapsed on 26 Dec 2004 due to the
Great Sumatra-Andaman earthquake

 M/S Andaman Timber Industries Limited had its Plywood manufacturing factory at Shore Point Village near Bambooflat Jetty in South Andaman. The factory started sometime in the early 60’s with a modest two digit workforce, soon emerged as the frontrunner providing livelihood, directly or indirectly to a large section of rural South Andaman. At its peak the factory operated in three shifts with strength of about 1200 workers. After four decades of operation, the factory was shut down on the 9th day of October, 2000 without observing provisions mandatory under Industrial Disputes Act, 1947. 
The factory that once was abuzz with workers
now stands abandoned

 Workmen, their Union etc took up the matter with the management several times, but to no anvil. Ultimately the then Hon’ble LG intervened at the instance of the Member of Parliament. A meeting was thus convened at Raj Nivas (on 08/09/2001) wherein ATI management agreed to pay workers their retirement and other statutory dues in a specified time frame, but not without caveat; payment of retirement dues was linked to liquidation of company’s movable and immovable assets. 

 Since the agreement had involvement of Raj Nivas, A&N Administration invoked emergency clause under Section 17 of Land Acquisition Act, 1894 and completed the daunting task of surveying, inventorisation, reckoning market value of company’s assets (which include trees, factory shed, landholdings etc) in a record time of 12 months and acquired 8.86 hectares of company’s immovable property at Bambooflat, for Development of Port related facilities. 

 Summarily, compensation to the tune of Rs 3,03,03,567/- (Rupees Three Crore Three Lakhs Three Thousand Five Hundred Sixty Seven) was paid to factory management during Sept 2002. This amount, according to the agreement vide company’s notice dated 17/09/2001, should have been disbursed to settle workers VRS [Voluntary Retirement Scheme] and other statutory dues. But somebody had rightly said promises are made to be broken! ATI management not only broke its promise to workers, it also breached a Labour Court Award. To make matters further worse, it slapped a lawsuit before vanishing with the compensation worth Rs 3.03 crore in its pocket.
This used to be the main entrance gate for the workers of ATI

 Incidentally after remaining incommunicado to workers plight for more than a decade, ATI management in a very rare gesture, responded to the Pradhan, Gram Panchayat Shore Point vide letter dated 01/11/2013 wherein it recalled “its commitment to its employees who were suffering for no fault of theirs” but remained silent on the moot question – Why the management despite receiving Rs 3.03 Crores [sufficient to meet its commitment] did not clear workers VRS and other statutory dues?
Anyhow, the legal wrangle [Civil Appeal No 1810 of 2009] that was cited and used as a cover to prolong settlement of the issue has culminated. The Apex Court in its latest order [dated 28 Nov, 2013] directed the appellants [Collector of Land Acquisition, A&N Administration & Ors] to make and publish an award in respect of the remaining land and pay compensation to the respondents [M/S Andaman Timber Industries] within four months. It is believed the Administration would go ahead with the acquisition and release compensation to the tune of Rs 14,20,97,426/- (less Rs 3.03 Crore already paid) to the factory management.

The workers who survived several odds during the last 13 years of wait, see a ray of hope in the Apex Court Order since it has given A&N Administration the locus standi which could be used to implement Labour Court Award published in A&N Gazette No 52/04/F No 3-356/2003-Labour dated 05/03/2004. The authorities however need to remain vigilant to the past. It could be fairly guessed that ATI management would accept the award/compensation in the first instance then knock the doors of justice (as it did earlier) seeking enhancement on the ground that the award is based on 2002 rates etc.

Therefore to ensure workers are not duped yet again, situation demands that it could be made mandatory for the management to clear VRS and other statutory dues payable (atleast by issuing post dated cheques) to the workers as a “pre-condition”for release of compensation to the factory management.

Latest development :
The issue was raised by Hon'ble MP Shri Bishnu Pada Ray in the Parliament on 04/08/2016. Here is the link to the vedio share by Hon'ble MP in his facebook page : https://www.facebook.com/bishnupada.ray.7/videos/1038785056242036/


This post was carried in the Port Blair edition of Echo of India dated Feb 13, 2014 and
in the form of a news report in the Andaman Chronicle dated Feb 24,2014

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