Allen Brooks
October 13, 2025: After decades of marginalisation, the Adivasi and tea tribes of Assam have demonstrated renewed collective strength through massive rallies in Dibrugarh and Tinsukia in October 2025.
These mobilisations, which evoked memories of the tragic Beltola mayhem in 2007, signal the community’s resolve to press for long-standing constitutional and welfare demands ahead of the 2026 Assam Assembly Elections.
With an estimate of around 20% of the state’s population—the Adivasi community is poised to play a decisive role in the electoral outcome, making their demands a crucial political issue.
Core demands at the forefront:
The Adivasi community’s demands are clear and comprehensive, focusing on identity, dignity, and livelihood:
Scheduled Tribe (ST) Status: This is the community’s most significant and long-standing demand. Despite migrating to Assam over a century and a half ago to work as indentured labourers in tea gardens, they have been denied constitutional recognition as an ST, unlike in their states of origin. The All Adivasi Students’ Association of Assam (AASAA) argues that the government has demonstrated a lack of political will to grant this status, a demand promised by the BJP in its 2014 campaign. Granting ST status would provide safeguards and benefits essential for their socio-economic upliftment.
Fairer tea worker wages: Following years of low pay, the community is demanding a significant hike in the daily wage to ₹550. Despite recent increments, the current wage of ₹250 for workers in state-run gardens and ₹250 for Brahmaputra Valley workers falls far short of ensuring a dignified life and keeping up with the rising cost of living.
Secure land rights: Many Adivasi families have lived for generations on surplus ceiling, government, and forest lands without legal ownership. The demand for land deeds (pattas) seeks to end the fear of eviction and grant them secure tenure, ensuring stability for thousands of families.
Improved welfare provisions: Beyond land and wages, the community is pushing for better education and healthcare, including specific provisions for retired tea workers. This highlights a holistic need for social security that goes beyond their labour.
Political calculations and electoral significance.
The timing of these rallies, just months before the 2026 elections, is no coincidence. The Adivasi community’s collective action puts immense pressure on all political parties, forcing them to address these demands seriously or risk losing a substantial vote bank and the elections too with 5 other cummunities demanding ST status.
Political promises vs. action: The community has historically been used as a vote bank, with leaders from various parties making unfulfilled promises regarding ST status and wages. Their shift in allegiance from the Congress to the BJP since 2014, driven by promises of ST status, shows their willingness to reward parties that address their concerns. The unfulfilled promise, however, has led to growing distrust.
Impact on electoral dynamics: With millions of votes at stake, the Adivasi community’s united front can determine electoral outcomes in numerous constituencies. By focusing on shared concerns and exercising their voting power strategically, they can hold parties accountable and make their demands a central issue in the election discourse.
Warning against internal discord: The rallies also bring to the fore a crucial need for the community to maintain vigilance over their leadership. History shows instances where internal and external political forces have exploited the community’s aspirations for personal gain. By actively rejecting and boycotting leaders with questionable integrity, the Adivasis aim to protect their collective voice and rights.
A new chapter of assertiveness
The recent mobilisations in Dibrugarh and Tinsukia, backed by organisations like the AASAA, AATTSA and Assam Chah Mazdoor Sangha (ACMS) and others, mark a new and determined chapter in the Adivasi community’s struggle. No longer content with empty promises, they are asserting their political relevance and demanding tangible progress on their core issues. As Assam heads towards its 2026 Assembly Elections, the Adivasi community’s united pursuit of rights and recognition will be a pivotal factor, forcing all political players to take notice and act decisively.
“Adivasi and tea tribes” is a collective noun for tea workers of the Terai, Doors and beyond to Assam, used in English language news portals including newspapers.
The first sentence of the report addresses the tribal people as “Adivasi and tea tribes”. As per the history the tribal people from Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh migrated (or taken by the British) to Assam to work in the tea gardens. They belong to different tribal communities like Santhal, Oraon, Munda, Kharia etc. We should never address them as “tea tribes”.