OUR CORRESPONDENT
DIGBOI: A workplace accident involving a 26-year-old woman worker at M/S New Hapjan Tea Factory in Hapjan, Tinsukia district, has triggered a dispute over medical expenses and raised questions about workplace safety, women’s security during late-night shifts, and the response of the authorities concerned.
Rubi Baruah, wife of Raju Baruah and a resident of Nazirating under Digboi police station, reportedly sustained multiple fractures and a head injury after falling from a height of approximately six feet at around 11 pm on October 10. She also suffered a waist injury requiring two stitches, while the accident site reportedly witnessed profuse bleeding.
In her account on Tuesday evening, Rubi Baruah alleged that the management had agreed to pay only Rs 20,000 against a medical bill exceeding Rs 40,000 for three-and-a-half days of treatment at a private nursing home in Tinsukia. She demanded full settlement of the bill, transportation, and the medicines prescribed by her treating doctor.
Utpal Baruah, the security contractor engaged at the factory at Longsoal under Doomdooma police station, who also oversees the establishment’s affairs, offered a contrasting account. Speaking on Tuesday evening, Baruah said that he had personally visited the hospital several times and offered Rs 20,000 to the injured worker’s husband, Raju Baruah, who allegedly refused to accept the amount. He questioned the hospital bill, describing it as suspicious, and said that the management could not afford what he termed excessive treatment costs.
Meanwhile, Tarpan Deka, a member of the factory’s management committee, said that Rubi Baruah was discharged from Assam Medical College & Hospital (AMCH), Dibrugarh, on Sunday morning, and taken home before being readmitted to a private nursing home in Tinsukia later that afternoon. Deka maintained that the management had not been informed about the subsequent admission.
Meanwhile, the security contractor, Utpal Baruah, alleged that the accident occurred due to the worker’s negligence, claiming that she had entered an unauthorised area through the tea-processing unit. He maintained that she had not been assigned to work at an elevated location and that her designated duties were in the workshop.
Significantly, Baruah reportedly acknowledged that the accident site lacked CCTV coverage.
The accident, reportedly occurring after 11 pm in an industrial setting involving machinery and tea-processing operations, raises concerns about the safety arrangements for women working late-night shifts. The nature of the worker’s duties, the adequacy of supervision, and the protective measures in place warrant scrutiny by the competent authorities.
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