Hit Hard In 2nd Covid Wave, 1% Of Assam Tea Workers Have Got Both Jabs

According to official data, between April 1 and June 28, nearly 15,000 tea garden workers in Assam tested positive for Covid and 105 of them died.

The drive to vaccinate tea garden workers in Assam, which is among the groups hardest hit in the second wave of Covid infections in the state, is progressing at a slow pace. Only 1 per cent of the nearly 7 lakh tea workers in Assam have received both doses of the coronavirus vaccine so far, as per official data. Nearly 2.17 lakh tea garden workers have received at least one dose of the vaccine till June 28. This assumes significance as the community is particularly vulnerable to the pandemic owing to low wages, illiteracy and unhygienic living conditions. The tea workers account for 18 per cent of Assam's population. According to official data, between April 1 and June 28, nearly 15,000 tea garden workers were infected and 105 of them succumbed to the infection. Out of these deaths, 81 were reported from tea estates in the Upper Assam region.