Which of the following describes the textile mill workers of Ahmedabad before the mills began to close in the early 1980s?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → They had secure jobs with a living wage and a strong trade union
Before the closures, Ahmedabad’s mill workers had income security. They had secure jobs with a living wage, social security for health and old age, and a strong trade union.
After the mills closed, many of them were pushed into the informal sector and into poverty.
NCERT (2026-27): “Box 6.2: Informalisation in Ahmedabad Ahmedabad is a prosperous city with its wealth based on the produce of more than 60 textile mills with a labour force of 1,50,000 workers employed in them. These workers had, over the course of the century, acquired a certain degree of income security. They had secure jobs with a living wage; they were covered by social security schemes protecting their health and old age. They had a strong trade union which not only represented them in disputes but also ran activities for the welfare of workers and their families. In the early 1980s, textile mills all over the country began to close down. In some places, such as Mumbai, the mills closed rapidly. In Ahmedabad, the process of closure was long drawn out and spread over 10 years. Over this period, approximately over 80,000 permanent workers and over 50,000 non-permanent workers lost their jobs and were driven to the informal sector. …” |