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APCLC – PATANCHERU

PERIPHERY OF HYDERABAD (MAP)

ANDHRA PRADESH CIVIL LIBERTIES COMMITTEE

HYDERABAD

JUNE, 1984.

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INDEX

1. INTRODUCTION

2. PROFILES OF LABOUR

2.1 BONDED LABOUR

2.2 WOMEN LABOUR

2.3 FARM LABOUR

2.4 CASUAL LABOUR

2.5 CONTRACT LABOUR

2.6 PERMANENT LABOUR

3. LAW AND LABOUR

4. CONCLUSION

5. APPENDIX

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THE PRINCIPAL EMPLOYER SHALL MANTAIN A REGISTER OF CONTRACTORS

ENGAGED IN HIS SERVICE – Clause 74, AP Contract Labour (A&R) Rules, 1971.

There are a lots of contractors with us. I don’t remember how many.

– General Manager, Partap Steel Rolling Mills Ltd.

We cannot disclose sensitive information like the number of registered contractors in this

(Patancheru) area.

– Deputy Commissioner for Labour, Sangareddy Division, Hyderabad.

‘Vo chalu log hai saab, Kalam ka roti khate hai.’

(They are clever people sir, because they earn their bread by their pen)

– A terminated Bihari worker, Partap Steel Rolling Mills Ltd.

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Reports of violation of labour law is leading to frequent conflicts and police intervention

in Patancheru Industrial Area prompted APCLC to send a fact-finding team to investigate

life, living conditions of labour in this area. The team consisted of Dr K Balagopal, Dr

Phaliguni Sen, CV Subba Rao, Mallik, Bucchireddy, Krishnamohan, Rama Rao and Ms

Ratnamala. The eight member team spent two days in the area in the second week of

June. The team met officials concerned, managers, workers and their representatives and

visited some factories.

Following is the full text of the report.

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1. INTRODUCTION

As one proceeds towards the north of the city on the Hyderabad-Bombay national highway,

25 kilometers later, one touches Ramachandrapuram. It boasts of the country’s premier public

sector organisation, Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd., (BHEL). With over Rs 150 crores

investment and 10,000 workers, it is one of the biggest industries located in the state.

Attached to it is the Ramachandrapuram ancillary Industrial Estate which houses about 35

ancillary units of BHEL. Together the township has about 21,000 population. Just next to it is

Patancheru with a population of 12,000. Together with 20 villages surrounding (sic) it, the

Patancheru area consists of Patancheru Industrial Development Area. The

Ramachandrapuram- Patancheru Industrial belt is the biggest of the five industrial zones

surrounding (sic) Hyderabad city.

Administratively it falls in Sangareddy taluq of Medak district, one of the most backward

districts in the Telangana region of the state. Among other things, it is also the parliamentary

constituency of the present Prime Minister. Although the river Manjira and smaller streams

like Haldi and Kuderu flows through the district, the area itself has acute water shortage. But

it is well connected with a major rail and road routes. These factors together with its

proximity to the state capital have made it one of the fastest developing industrial areas of the

state.

The administration claims that there are 52 medium and large scale industries and 750 small

scale industries in the area. It is difficult to ascertain how many of them are in actual

existence. The AP State Finance Corporation (APSFC) has a list of 614 units in the area. AP

Industrial Infrastructure Corporation Ltd., (APIIC) has a list of 290 small scale units. Our

own enquiries revealed 18 medium and large scale industries and 225 small scale industries

in operation. A number of industrial units especially in the small scale could be bogus units.

The administration itself is yet to make investigations into the existence, operation or

otherwise of the units it is financing. Besides APSFC, APIIC and commercial banks, two

other state agencies, AP Industrial Development Corporation (APIDC) and AP Small Scale

Industrial Development Corporation (APSSIDC) also finance the units set up here. The

district Industrial Centre supervises the overall development.

A decade ago there was virtually only BHEL in this area. Later on, in early 70’s, other

industries started coming up. In the period 1977-83, the area was given preference as the 15%

Central Government subsidy area. Presently, the State Government is making all out efforts

to develop the area. There are, reportedly, 100 medium and large scale industries and over

700 small scale industries in the pipeline. A new railway line that connects Lingampalli

(adjoining the area) on the Hyderabad-Bombay line to Peddapalli (Karimnagar District) on

Kazipet-Delhi line, is coming up.

The chemical, engineering industries, followed by plastic and forest based industries here are

highly capital intensive with little scope for employment generation. In the 18 medium and

large scale industries listed in the district plan, for instance, a total of over Rs 37 crores if

investment generated merely 4000 permanent jobs. Altogether there are not more than 5000

permanent workers (excluding BHEL) in this area.

Almost all of the permanent workers, which includes managerial, supervisory and clerical

staff and certain categories of skilled workers are from outside. They are from either coastal

Andhra districts or from outside the state such as Maharashtra, UP and Bihar. One reason for

it could be the fact that most of the owners are from outside and bring their own labour. But

the more important reason seems to be the fear of unionisation since it is perceived that local

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labour will be difficult of deal with. (It turned out to be a wrong perception in the most

famous case of trade union struggle). When these preferences were pointed out to the general

manager of district industrial centre, he glibly remarked that preference to local population is

only a moral binding and not legal in this by and large state financed industrialisation. It

sharply (sic) contrasts the bulk of casual and contract labour are from Telangana districts like

Medak and Mahabubnagar.

Most of the workers live in the twenty odd villages surrounding the area while some of the

come all the way from the city. A substantial section of them lives in the growing

unauthorised colonies which house about 2000 families. Needless to add water, drainage,

electricity and such other facilities in these shanty towns are absent. [Emphasis original]

The most striking aspect of the industrialisation in this area is the working conditions of

labour. In all small scale industries, the labourers are perennially under the threat of losing

their jobs. In many cases frequent lay-offs due to lack of orders renders though effectively

jobless for months together. Even BHEL, that pride of India’s industrialisation is not free

from these tendencies. In the last six year, contract labour in BHEL has increased by six

times to become now 3,000. All the 35 ancillary industries that feed BHEL engage either

casual or contract labour. The daily wage rate for them is around Rs 8-10. Invariably the

contractors take commission from their salaries. Medical, canteen, leave and other facilities,

for them are completely denied.

The owners of these industries are more or less new comers to the scene from outside the

region. They all engage a formidable security staff. A number of private agencies, who

employ retired army and police personnel, are engaged for maintaining security. These

agencies take as high as 40-50 % of the salary as commission. In one factory we found that

the wage of bill of security staff is almost equivalent to that of workers. In most cases these

security staffers act as on the job hoodlums to intimidate workers. In addition most of the

phenomenally large contractors are usually local dadas whose presence ensures complete

subjugation of workers. This kind of environment also enables the management to indulge in

a wide range of malpractices from misuse of state finance to unrecorded production. In one

factory we visited the general manager’s office is located just inside the gate in the place

usually reserved for chowkidars. We were told that he personally ensures the delivery of

goods and payment in case of at least half of the day’s production, which is presumably an

underhand deal. In another big factory, we witnessed a personnel (sic) manager standing

inside the locked gate and bargaining about the wage rates with groups of workers.

Behind these unusual spectacles that greet the visitors to the developing industrial area (A

major achievement of the last decade, according to state planners) lies an untold story of

abominable working conditions. We present below six such cases, which speak for

themselves.

2. PROFILES IN LABOUR

2.1 BONDED LABOUR: Ranka Cables Private Ltd.,

Ranka Cabloes, which manufactures cables was established in 1980. The Rajasthani owners

also own another unit at Cuddappah. The cables are marketed all over India including a major

bulk to National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC).

There are total of 120 employees in the factory, of which 10 are security staff (belonging to

Sai Industrial Security Service), 10 are under a contractor who is in-charge of maintenance of

the factory and the rest of the workers are engaged in production.

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Almost all the labourers here are Rajasthani labour and most of them are from one district

Nagaur in Rajasthan. They are paid an average of Rs 350-400 a month. Child labourers are

paid Rs 150 – 200 a month. Two months in a year they visit their native place. The company

does not pay them either salary for the period or even travel expenses. Along side the wall

inside the premises, small rooms are constructed in which labourers are kept. They are not

normally allowed to go out of the premises, except to a film once a week. Since all of them

stay within premises the official eight hour shift usually extends to twelve hours. Thus though

the factory has officially only two shifts, it works round the clock. We also discovered an

indigenous way of maintaining quality control. As the knitted cables come out of the machine

they pass through the tender palms of a young boy. If the boy’s hands are bruised, it is taken

as an indication of faulty cable, which is then rectified.

There seems to be an atmosphere of fear in the factory. As we approached the labourers, they

went off. Even the few we managed to interview, spoke in faltering terms. The information

they gave us concerning about their wages and the two month leave did not tally with other

information. The manager also refused to see us. However, the contract labourers and the

security staff spoke to us freely. It appears that the labourers are advanced loans when they

go home every year, which they are expected to clear by labouring for the factory.

2.2 WOMEN LABOUR: Cable House

Cable House is a captive unit of the multinational firm, Indian Detonators Limited (IDL).

IDL supplies PVC wire which is given plastic coating, cut and made into bundles of small

fuses by the Cable House. It was established in 1977.

There is something mysterious about the factory. Inside the premises there are two separate

buildings. Only in one of the buildings there is the official board, office etc., It appears that

they are functioning as two separate factories. In the first shed, power operated machine is

used with less than ten workers (which makes it, incidentally, an unregistered factory). Here

the plastic coating is given. In the second shed, a hundred workers cut the wire and make

them into small bundles of detonator fuses. All the workers are women.

About hundred women work in this shed from morning to evening for eight hours, under the

supervision of a male supervisor. He is assisted by a woman. Operating with a foot pedal

which releases the wire through a wheel, they cut it by a hand operated device. Thus all the

eight hours both their hands and legs have to be continuously in operation.

Almost all the women come from adjoining areas. From the age of 14 to 30 and above

women of all age groups work here. A substantial number of them are married but they do

not bring their children since that will not enable them to complete the day’s work. Needless

to add there are no crèche facilities.

All the women are casual labourers. Since the amount of fuses manufactured is completely

dependant on IDL, fluctuations in the parent company results in frequent lay-off in this

factory. In 1984, for instance, already two months they were without work.

The women are paid Rs 150-175 a month. Their casual status denied them not only medical,

canteen and other benefits but even leave facilities. The women are expected to make 100

bundles of 25 fuses each in a day. Although the wage is time rated one, there seems to be a

stipulation that they should make one hundred. There are conflicting accounts about the lay-

off period. Some women workers said that they are paid half salary while others said that

they are not paid at all.

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2.3 FARM LABOUR: ICRISAT

International Crop Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), an institute

managed by five western countries, engages in agricultural research to make technological

breakthrough in dry crops. In 1972, it acquired 4000 acres of land in Patancheru area

displacing two villages Manmul and Kasireddypalli completely and Ramachandrapuram

partly. As an international body it claims complete immunity from all Indian Labour Laws.

Low wages and bad service conditions have led to agitation among the workers since 1976.

Eventually in 1979 the management allowed a kind of staff council to represent the workers

but without any trade union rights. But two years later it was dissolved and the present staff-

management council came into existence. One important factor here is the ease and frequency

with which armed police are deployed against the workers. On one occasion the district

magistrate participated in the staff-management council meeting. An extremely crude form of

racism and a violent suppression of any democratic activity marks the character of this

predominantly foreign management.

The institute has 1600 scientific staff most of whom are Indian and 800 permanent workers.

They in turn consists of Constant Farm Labour (CFL) and Regular Work Force (RWF). Due

to the persistent efforts of the representative bodies, which includes a strike, they have

improved their wages and service conditions in the last five years.

But the worst category are those called Temporary Labour Force (TLF). They are engaged on

a day to day basis and are recruited at the gate. They are not represented in the council.

Presently they are paid Rs 14 a day. But since they are engaged only give days in a week,

effectively the wage becomes Rs 10 a day, which is lower than the prescribed minimum wage

in the region. Almost all the daily labourers are women. The institute engages about 2000

workers in heavy season. But on any day of the year it recruits about 600 workers. Yet these

600 vacancies are treated as ‘temporary’. Apart from their wage they are not given any other

kind of facility or benefits.

Normally weeding and disposal of the weeds are done by two separate sets of people in our

country. But here both have to be done by the same worker. There are no water facilities

provided on the field and the irrigation is through ground level closed pipes. Thus in the heat

of eight hour long duty women are forced to work without a drop of water. During the team’s

discussion with the women labour that the persistent complain was that they are not allowed

to drink water. Young mothers are not allowed to feed their babies during working hours. Nor

are there any crèche facilities, for temporary labour. Recently, one of the supervisors,

involved in a molestation incident, was suspended only after the workers threatened with a

strike. They women who spoke to our predominantly male team hinted at occasional sexual

exploitation.

The most agonising sight of this temporary farm labour is the recruitment at the gate, every

morning. Over a thousand women come every night after their dinner and sleep with their

children in queues at the gate. Even unmarried girls, despite social restrictions on their

movement after the dust, also join them. There is no specified time by which the recruitment

begins and ends and sometimes they stand in the queue till noon. Nor is the number of people

taken fixed as a result of which hundred return home empty handed. The recruiting officer at

the gate seems to be following no norms. Often queues are ignored to favour women of his

choice. It often leads to a violent and pathetic quarrel among the women themselves. One can

seen the bruises inflicted by the women on each other in their quarrels. The initial promise of

the institute that people from the displaced villages of Manmul and Kasireddypalli will be

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preferred seems to have gone completely awry. In fact these days are not preferred as they:

management suspects that they are more prone to the influences of the union. In the end after

having spent all night and most part of the day in a most debased form in which their self

respect is deliberately destroyed in the long queues outside the gates, majority of these

destitute women return home rejected and dejected. Anyone with any sense of dignity about

this country and its people cannot but feel shocked at the way this foreign management treats,

with impunity, the citizens of this country as stray dogs, thirty six years after the colonial

rulers have left the country.

2.4 CASUAL LABOUR: Sonar Caps and Lamps

Sonar Caps and Lamps Ltd (SCL) is a small scale industry that manufactures lamps and caps

for lamps. Established in December 1982, it is yet to start production of lamps. Its managing

director is one of the executive directors of AP Lightings to which most of the caps are sold.

A part of the production is mechanical while most of it is manual. In the pressing unit of

tube-light caps, for instance, a single worker in one shift manually presses 13,000 caps. On an

average the factory produces 50,000 bulb caps and 20,000 tube-light caps in a day.

The factory has about 80 workers. All of them are Casual labour. There are 20 clerical,

security (belonging to BASF agency) and skilled staff. Of the 80 workers, 13 are women.

They are all kept perpetually in casual status as normally no worker is allowed to complete

240 days that would make him permanent. As the workers approaches 240 days of

continuous service, he or she is thrown out of the job. Sometimes they are re-employed after

the break in service.

They are paid a consolidated sum of Rs 250 a month. Since they are casual workers, they do

not get paid leave. Needless to add they do not enjoy any other benefits. Despite the fact that

the work involves working with ‘melted glass’ at a temperature of 350 degrees Celsius, the

workers are not provided with any preventive and cure facilities. As a result, hands of many

workers regularly get burnt.

The attempt to form union is being nipped in the bud. The services of leading figure of the

yet to be formed, Chandrayya (who incidentally is the press operator who produces 13,000

caps manually in one shift) were terminated. Later, due to intervention of local elders he was

taken back. But the management called all the important five workers and forced them to sign

blank sheets, under the threat of termination. The day the team visited the area Chandrayya

was threatened again with a criminal case if he does not voluntarily resign from his job. As

we write this report we learnt that his services were terminated and the workers have gone on

strike.

2.5 CONTRACT LABOUR: Partap Steel Rolling Mills Ltd., (PSRM)

PSRM is one of the units to come up in initial phases in Patancheru area and was established

in 1974. It is part of a group which has five other units in different parts of the country. The

Mils buy scrap iron, melts it and makes rods out of it. Thirty percent of its produce is sold to

specified large contract while the rest is sold to individual buyers, essentially house builders.

According to the management, there are only two furnaces and one rolling mill, and on an

average the furnaces and rolling mills produce about 70,000 tons a year. The rest of the

product according to them is sold off to individual buyers at the gate illegally, under

immediate cash payment.

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Altogether, there are 1100 workers in the factory of which only 400 are permanent. Most of

the permanent workers are from outside the state such as from UP and Bihar and they are

paid Rs 400-800 per month.

There are phenomenally large number of contractors under whom the rest of the 700 workers

work. None of the contractors seem to be having more than 20 workers (which will enable

them to take a contract work without the registration required under the act). The

management told us merely that there are ‘lots of contractors’ since it is their policy to

encourage small people. Pressed, they told us that it might be around 20 or 30 but the workers

told us that there are 40 contractors. The contractors are engaged not only for loading and

unloading but also for twisting and finishing of steel and they even operate a furnace and a

rolling mill!!

Total number of contract workers is usually 700 of which 70 are women. All of them are

from adjoining areas. They are paid Rs 10 a day but the contractor takes a commission of Rs

2 from women’s wage and Re 1 from men’s wage (A queer way of defeating the eual

remuneration act!). They do not get any kind of other benefits.

Lack of facilities inside the premises seems to be common to both permanent and contract

workers. In recent years, two workers lost their limbs while one died in accidents. They are

not give any compensation. In fact in case of the killed worker, it is the workers who donated

their one day wage.

The efforts to organise the workers in this factory have a long and violent history. A major

strike took place in March-May 1981. Incidents of firing by the hoodlums engaged by the

management took place. The workers also seem to have retaliated. Even after the strike was

over, the management continues to suppress all democratic activity by the union. Altogether

about 35 people were terminated, 150 workers were involved in 36 criminal cases in the last

three years. A case of sixteen terminated workers after having referred to the labour tribunal

and kept pending there for three years, has just reached high court.

Most of the contractors, according to workers, are in fact local dadas. This will enable them

to circumvent the Contract Labour Act on the one hand and provide them goondas inside the

premises to control the workers.

2.6 PERMANENT LABOUR: Dexo and Novopan

In case of permanent labout, we have taken two cases, Dexo laboratories and the famous

Novopan Company.

Dexo Laboratories Pvt Ltd., was established in the year 1980. It manufactures basic six drugs

(anti-TB, antibiotic and anti-diarrhoeal). It is a unit separated from a larger concern, Standard

Organics Ltd., which also is situated in Patancheru next to the Dexo Laboratories. It is

financed by APSFC, APIDC and commercial banks.

Dexo began with one product and a turnover of Rs 2 crores in 1980. In a short span of three

years it increased fourfold to become Rs 8 crores. The factory works in all the three shifts.

Raw materials are imported under Open General Licence (OGL). The product is sold to

various drug manufacturers including Sarabhai Chemicals and the public sector’s Indian

Drugs and Pharmaceuticals (IDPL), one of whose former employee is the owner of this

concern.

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Information given to us by the management regarding labour, wages and working conditions

is in conflict with that given by the workers.

In total there are about 120 workers in the company of which 20 are staff and the rest are

workers. Only one employee among the clerical staff is a woman. The management told us

that there are 25 casual workers but the workers told us that there are 31 which seems to be

correct since the announcement pasted outside the gate in connection with on-going strike

terminated the services of 31 casual workers.

The management told us that any worker who complete 240 days of continuous work is

automatically made permanent. But we came across at least four casual workers who have

been working from 440 to 550 days.

The wages are in the range of Rs 330-500 for the permanent workers while the casual

workers receive Rs 10 a day. Technically the permanent workers receive ESI benefits but not

in effect. Though there is a subsidised canteen, there are no other facilities. The casual

workers, from whose wage contributions for ESI are cut, are not aware of any such benefits.

We could not ascertain whether the management is actually remitting the amount to ESI.

The most serious problem here is the workload. The meagre increases in labour force do not

commensurate with the ever expanding capacity of the factory. For instance, in 1980 when

the company began production, one operator has to operate four reactors. In fact it is the

increasing burden of the operators that served as the immediate cause of the present strike.

On May 30, workers conducted a signature campaign against the increasing workload. 98 out

of 103 workmen have signed it and submitted it to the management. One worker was

promptly suspended. The workers went on strike. The management imported workers from

its sister concern and when we visited the factory [number missing] of them are camping

inside the premises. Needless to add, they are not allowed to leave the premises till the strike

is over. As the strike was otherwise a success, services of all the 31 casual workers were

terminated. Five permanent workers were suspended. At the time of writing the report the

strike is still in progress.

NOVOPAN: Novopan is one of the well known factories in the area and was established in

1977. It manufactures particle and laminated boards. It is owned by a well connected Reddy

family from Nellore. The factory receives about 100 tons of wood from Nirmal forests of

Adilabad district everyday.

The factory has about 60 staff, 170 permanent workers and in addition engages about 100 to

200 contract labourers. Contract workers are divided over five to six contractors. In addition

they are also recruited at the gate.

The permanent workers in the factory receive a total of Rs 470-800 a month. The increments

are not given automatically on the seniority basis but on the personal whims of the

management. For instance, we came across two fitter who have the same qualifications and

experience and joined the job on the same day and are similar in every other aspect. But one

of the received two increments while the other did not receive any.

There is a subsidised canteen inside the factory where only tea and snack but not meals are

available. The workers do not receive any other benefits like festival advances etc., leave

alone, dearness allowance (DA) and bonus from this highly successful forest based industry.

The workers do have ESI medical facilities but it has no practical meaning as they have to

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take leave and got to Erragadda ESI hospital for any serious ailment. Most of the workers

who come from city are not provided with any transport arrangement.

Within the factory, medical facilities are inadequate. In recent times one worker lost his limbs

and other was burnt down the waist due to bursting of a steam pipe. They did not receive any

compensation but were terminated as unfit for the job.

In June last year, workers elected a new union which gave a charter of demands to the

management. Subsequently, management suspended about 25 workers and declared a lock-

out. The lock-out was lifted after two months. But the workers went on strike demanding the

withdrawal of the suspension orders. They also demanded public display of Standing Orders

under which the workers are suspended or terminated.

During the strike management mobilised workers from outside and housed them inside the

factory in make-shift dwellings. Since many of these workers are unqualified, a number of

accidents tool place, in which at least four were seriously injured and one worker was killed.

Eventually, the strike was over after four months. The matter was referred to Deputy

Commissioner of Labour. But the conciliatory meeting never took place since the

representatives of management were consistently absent from these meetings. As yet neither

the standing orders are on display nor was the president of the workers’ union allowed inside

the factory.

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3. LAW AND LABOUR

Almost all the legislations related with labour are applicable in Patancheru area. There a total

of 24 central and state labour legislations. (see appendix for the complete list). The Factories

Act, 1949 which makes it obligatory on the part of any factory which employs 10 or more

workers with power or 20 or more workers without use of power is in force through the AP

Factories Rules, 1950 (which was amended four times so far). The act has 52 provisions

concerning health, 10 provisions concerning safety, 14 provisions concerning welfare, 6

provisions concerning working hours and 7 provisions concerning leave. The Act also

provides for a factory inspector in Patancheru area seems to be not visiting the factories at all.

Almost in all of them provisions are being violated with consistency as our above account

indicates.

The Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946 together with the AP Industrial

Employment (Standing Orders) Rules 1953, gives among other things a model standing

orders which lays down the procedures to be followed in appointment, service conditions and

termination of workers and also governs the conduct of workers. It is obligatory on the part of

the managements to adopt the orders and sully the workers with a copy of it. In many of the

factories in Patancheru area, the Standing Orders were not adopted in the first place which

also explains the arbitrary manner in which workers are appointed and terminated. Even

where the orders are in existence as in the case of Novopan, the workers are not informed

about them.

The Standing Orders also divide the workers into seven categories in each of which it lays

down these vice conditions; permanent, probationers, ‘badlis’ or substitutes, temporary,

casual, apprentices and seasonal workmen. But these finer distinctions are completely lost in

Patancheru. In overwhelming majority of the industries there are only two categories,

permanent and contract. There are also instances where probationers are kept in that status for

more than one or two years. In another factory the apprentices are periodically thrown out to

ensure a large proportion of workers towards whom the company will have no long term

obligations. So is the case of perpetual casual workers of Sonar Caps and Lamps Ltd.

The workers of Ranka Cables who are being kept in captivity and are also working under a

kind of indebtedness clearly come under the category of bonded labour which the Bonded

Labour Act, 1976 prohibits. The daily wage of the most of the labourers in this area is Rs 10

(which also includes middlemen’s commission), much less than stipulated minimum wage

under the Minimum Wages Act. In at least three factories we noticed that there are no

provident fund facilities, thus denying the benefits of the Employees’ Provident Fund &

Family Pension Fund Act, 1952. Both in Novopan and Partap, Workmen’s Compensation Act

was violated when workers died in accidents. The Employees State Insurance (ESI) facilities

in this area are a bit of fraud. There is only a skeleton of a hospital with one doctor in

Erragadda, 15 km away. In any case, only permanent workers are beneficiaries of it. We have

not come across a single instance of a woman worker receiving the statuary maternity

benefits.

Even when some of the smaller industries fall outside the premises of factories, they still

come under the AP Shops and Establishments Act. None of its provisions related to health,

safety, leave etc are in force in this area.

The Contract Labour Act makes it obligatory to register the contractor with the Deputy

Commissioner of Labour if they work involves 20 or more workers. To circumvent the law,

work is given to a large number of small contractors, some of whom are benami contractors.

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We have already referred to Partap Steel Rolling Mills Ltd. Contrary to the law, even

production work and other work of a perennial nature is given on contract. Even where they

are registered, neither the contractor nor the principal employer provides them with the

benefits and facilities which the Act guarantees. Thus they are no canteens in many units,

leave alone a canteen which shall consist of at least dining hall, kitchen, store rooms, pantry

and washing places for workers and utensils (Clause 42). In many factory premises there is

no scope for restroom which according to the Rules (41) “shall have adequate protection

against heat, wind, rain and shall smooth, hard and impervious floor surface.

Finally, the Industrial Disputes Act, which provided for a series of mechanisms to deal with

the matters, related to workers grievances including conciliation officer, Labour Courts,

tribunals and arbitrators, is violated by the managements. In Novopan, the Deputy

Commissioner for Labour is abetting the managements’ continued absence from conciliatory

meetings. In Partap, a case of 16 terminated workers which was referred to Labour Tribunal

was kept in abeyance for three years and has now gone to High Court to languish there. The

complete indifference, if not actual help to the management of the Deputy Commissioner

coupled with the inordinate delay in judicial process, makes any normal settlement of

workers’ grievances practically meaningless. In such cases unionisation is the only effective

alternative left to the workers.

But unfortunately majority of workers in Patancheru area are not organised. In 18 large and

medium scale industries, we came across unions in 11 units. Nominally Indian National

Trade Union Congress (INTUC) seems to be the largest union, if one includes BHEL. There

are also stray unions affiliated to Centre of Trade Unions (CTU), Hindu Mazdoor Sabha and

All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC). But it is only Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS)

and some independent trade unions which are major unions in this area, having a substantial

following. In any case wherever there are unions, they are only confined to permanent labour,

a minority section in any factory. Thus in Partap only 400 out of the total 1100 belong to the

union.

In small scale industries a few exceptions apart, there are virtually no unions. In the 225 small

scale industries that we came across only in 80 units there are unions.

As indicated in each case recorded above, the managements’ attempts have been to disallow

any kind of union activity. Termination of services is the most common weapon used. In

ICRISAT, armed police from AP Special Police (APSP) camp stationed at BHEL are

deployed a number of times in the last few years. Section 144 was promulgated around the

gate. ICRISAT workers were not allowed to meet even in Ramachandrapuram. In case of

Partap, police while abetting the firing by the hired hoodlums of the management arrested a

number of workers. Over 150 workers were arrested and implicated in a number of cases. In

Novopan, three workers were arrested, taken to the police station and were beaten up. About

15 workers were detained illegally in Sangareddy police station and were eventually sent to

jail. In many factories whenever the managements suspects that workers are organising a

union or likely to organise a union, they employ police at the gates and together with goondas

to terrorise them. We fail to understand how the very formation of union per se becomes a

law and order problem.

This routine disregard for labour laws, coupled with attempt to kill unionisation is the bud, it

should be noted are flourishing under the very nose of the State Government in the outskirts

of State capital.

CONCLUSION

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The attitude of the state government is best revealed by the fact that even while it set up all

industrial and financial agencies is the area and pumping large sums of money under

ambitious programmes, it is yet to create a post of Deputy Commissioner of Labour (DCL)

for the area. Presently, the DCL in-charge of Rangareddy division, and who sits in Hyderabad

is also in-charge of Patancheru area. There is no attempt to set up ESI hospital, labour

tribunals or anything related with labour. All attention is confined to financing

industrialisation and production.

The office of the DCL concerned (and there are many allegations against the present

incumbent) seems to be completely indifferent to the large scale violation of all labour laws.

So is the case with the factory inspectors. Unfortunately, even the labour courts and tribunals

are helping this process by the inordinate delay. In its obsessive concern with impressive

figures, the state government is aiding and abetting the circumvention and violation of labour

laws. In the end the fundamental rights of these workers as citizens and the directive

principles of the Indian Constitution are violated.

It is in this context that the fact finding committee of the APCLC demands:

1. Regularisation of service and improving the conditions of women farm labourers of

ICRISAT.

2. Abolition of contract labour in all jobs of perennial nature and compulsory

registration of all contractors irrespective of the number of labour employed.

3. Establishment of a separate Deputy Commission for Labour in Patancheru area, and

separate labour tribunal to be located in the area.

4. A thorough and independent inquiry into the violation of labour laws in Patancheru

area.

5. APPENDIX: LIST OF RELEVANT LABOUR LEGISLATIONS:

Labour is in the concurrent list of Indian Constitution where both central and state

governments pass legislations. Almost every central act comes into force only when the state

government makes appropriate rules to enforce it. Following is the list of such central and

state acts relevant to Patancheru industrial area.

1. The Factories Act, 1948.

2. The AP Factories Rules, 1950.

3. The Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946.

4. The AP Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Rules, 1953.

5. The Payment of Wages Act, 1956.

6. The AP Payment of Wages Rules, 1936.

7. The Minimum Wages Act, 1948.

8. The AP Minimum Wages Rules, 1960.

9. The Employees State Insurance Act, 1948.

10. The Employees Provident Fund and Family Pension Fund Act, 1952.

11. The Workmen’s Compensation Act, 1923.

12. The AP Workmen’s Compensation Rules.

13. The Equal Remuneration Act, 1948.

14. The Inter-State Migrant Workmen Act, 1979.

15. The Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976.

16. The Maternity Benefits Act, 1961.

17. The AP (Telangana area) Maternity Benefits Act, 1394 Fasli.

18. The Shops and Establishments Act, 1966.

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19. The AP Shops and Establishments Rules, 1968.

20. The Contract Labour (Abolition & Regulation) Act, 1970.

21. The AP Contract Labour (Abolition & Regulation) Rules, 1971.

22. The Industrial Disputes Act, 1947.

23. The AP Industrial Disputes Rules, 1953.

24. The Trade Union Act, 1926.

OUR OTHER PUBLICATIONS

1. Repression on Rural Poor.

2. NTR’s one year (with PUDR, Delhi).

3. Encounter Killings – The post-emergency period.

4. ఆన్నా వచ్చిండు. 5. అప్రకటిత కల్లొ ల్ పర్ ింతము! – వరింగల్ జిల్లొ ల్ల పొ లిసు నిరభిందము.

Published for Andhra Pradesh Civil Liberties Committee

By KG Kannabiran, President.