Which of the following is correct about unorganised sector work in India?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → Lack of proper wages and other working conditions.
Option (1) Less number of people work in this sector. — Incorrect. The reverse is true. In India over 90% of the work, whether in agriculture, industry or services, is in the unorganised or informal sector; it is the organised sector that is small.
Option (2) It is independent of personal relationships. — Incorrect. Most Indians work in small workplaces, where personal relationships determine many aspects of work: if the employer likes you, you may get a raise, and if you quarrel with him or her, you may lose your job.
Option (3) Lack of proper wages and other working conditions. — Correct. Units of the organised sector are registered with the government so that their employees get proper salaries or wages, pension and other benefits. Unorganised workers have no such protection: very few have secure jobs, and few belong to unions, so they do not have the experience of collectively fighting for proper wages and safe working conditions. In practice they are left to the whims of the employer or contractor.
Option (4) It is only for women and unskilled labourers. — Incorrect. A sector that holds over 90% of all work in agriculture, industry and services cannot be limited to women or the unskilled; it covers most Indian workers.
NCERT (2025-26): “5.2 Industrialisation in India … Economists and others often make a distinction between the organised or formal and unorganised or informal sector. There is a debate over how to define these sectors. According to one definition, the organised sector consists of all units employing ten or more people throughout the year. These have to be registered with the government to ensure that their employees get proper salaries or wages, pension and other benefits. In India, over 90% of the work, whether it is in agriculture, industry or services is in the unorganised or informal sector. What are the social implications of this small size of the organised sector?” “First, it means that very few people have the experience of employment in large firms where they get to meet people from other regions and backgrounds. Urban settings do provide some corrective to this – your neighbours in a city may be from a different place – but by and large, work for most Indians is still in smallscale workplaces. Here personal relationships determine many aspects of work. If the employer likes you, you may get a salary raise, and if you have a fight with him or her, you may lose your job.…” “…Third, since very few people are members of unions, a feature of the organised sector, the unorganised or informal sector workers do not have the experience of collectively fighting for proper wages and safe working conditions. The government has laws to monitor conditions in the unorganised sector, but in practice they are left to the whims and fancies of the employer or contractor.…” |