Abstract: Migration occurs often in human civilization. It has made a significant contribution to the creation and advancement of human society. Over time, people of different ethnic groups and races arrived in Assam. This flow of migration to Assam has been seen in the pre and post-independence periods. Socio-economic condition or status is the social standing or class of an individual or group. It is often measured as a combination of education, income and occupation. Examinations of socioeconomic status often reveal inequities in access to resources, and issues related to privilege, power and control. Socioeconomic status is an economic and sociological combined total measure of a person’s work experience and of an individual’s or family’s economic and social position in relation to others. In Assam, tea plants were first found in 1823. Later, the British began cultivating tea in Assam, for which a sizable workforce was required. So, the tea garden people were imported from the modern-day states of Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Orissa, West Bengal, and Andhra Pradesh. They were sent to Assam as indentured labourers by the East India Company. In Assam, the descendants of these labourers are today referred to as tea tribes. They now form a part of the larger Assamese society. Tea garden community of Assam itself is a heterogeneous group consisting of diverse castes, groups who spoke different dialects, practiced different customs and professed different religions. They are facing many problems in the social, political and economic spheres which tend to receive low priority from the government. This article is going to discuss the migration history of the tea tribes and the problems they faced over the decades.

Keywords: Tea garden communities, socio-economic aspects, problems