HC directs state to implement welfare measures for cane cutters | Mumbai news
MUMBAI: The Bombay high court on Monday directed the state government to implement a series of welfare measures for sugarcane cutters, as per the suggestions of amicus curae Mihir Desai, during the next harvesting season, which runs from mid-October to late March.
The government must systematically register sugarcane workers under the Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970, and the Inter-State Migrant Workmen Act, 1979, implement various laws and provisions including the Central Sector Scheme for the Rehabilitation of Bonded Laborers, and submit a compliance report by November 2025, said the division bench of chief justice Alok Aradhe and justice MS Karnik.
The court was hearing a suo moto public interest litigation (PIL) based on a 2023 newspaper report which highlighted the financial and sexual exploitation of nearly 1-1.2 million migrant workers engaged in the cutting, pruning and transportation of sugarcane in Maharashtra. The workers migrate from drought-prone regions of the state like Vidarbha and Marathwada to the sugar belt in western Maharashtra every year as they have no means of livelihood in their villages during the lean agricultural period and are trapped in cyclical debt. They endure extreme conditions at worksites, with no access to housing, drinking water, sanitation, health facilities and schools for their children, the PIL said.
“The work of cutting sugarcane is labour-intensive. It can only be done by humans as it is not feasible or cost-efficient to do the same with machines. Yet, the conditions of these migrant workers right from the time they migrate is extremely pathetic,” said advocate Desai, who submitted a report to the court enlisting various legal provisions, schemes and government resolutions addressing the needs of sugarcane workers and the lack of implementation of the same.
The report referred to provisions on workers’ housing, sanitation, access to essential healthcare services, maternity benefits and establishment of mobile schools and hostels. It cited to recurring instances of gender-based exploitation and harassment and suggested strict implementation of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 and the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005. It also highlighted several Supreme Court and high court precedents, with Desai stating in court that the workers were entitled to legal protection.
Taking note of Desai’s suggestions, the court said that once the suggestions were recorded before it, the state was bound to implement them and sugar mills were bound to provide housing, drinking water, and sanitation facilities.
“Women workers, who often lack access to toilets and menstrual hygiene products, will be provided free or subsidised sanitary napkins and access to proper washing areas. Sugar mills will also be required to provide sturdy, waterproof shelters to protect workers from extreme weather conditions,” the court said.
The state accepted all the suggestions and said that various programmes would be implemented in a time-bound manner. The court warned against future delays, saying, “March is already gone. If they fail to implement the measures, they will land in difficulty because we are going to pass an order.”
