Consider the following statements about the early trade unions in Ind…

Consider the following statements about the early trade unions in India:

(A) The first trade union was established in Madras by B.P. Wadia.
(B) Mahatma Gandhi founded the Textile Labour Association.
(C) The All India Trade Union Congress was formed in Calcutta.
(D) The communists in the AITUC were led by S.A. Dange and M.N. Roy.

Choose the correct answer from the options given below:

Answer & explanation

Correct answer: option 2

The correct answer is Option (2) → A, B and D only

(A) The first trade union was established in Madras by B.P. Wadia. — Correct. B.P. Wadia, a social worker and member of the Theosophical Society, set up the first trade union in Madras in April 1918.

(B) Mahatma Gandhi founded the Textile Labour Association. — Correct. In the same year, 1918, Mahatma Gandhi founded the Textile Labour Association (TLA).

(C) The All India Trade Union Congress was formed in Calcutta. — Incorrect. The All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) was formed in 1920 in Bombay, so the city given here is wrong.

(D) The communists in the AITUC were led by S.A. Dange and M.N. Roy. — Correct. The AITUC brought together diverse ideologies, and its communist group was led by S.A. Dange and M.N. Roy.

NCERT (2026-27): “Workers’ Movements …
The first trade union was established in April 1918 in Madras by B.P. Wadia, a social worker and member of the Theosophical Society. During the same year, Mahatma Gandhi founded the Textile Labour Association (TLA). In 1920, the All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) was formed in Bombay. The AITUC was a broad-based organisation involving diverse ideologies. The main ideological groups were the communists led by S.A. Dange and M.N. Roy, the moderates led by M. Joshi and V.V. Giri and the nationalist movements which involved people like Lala Lajpat Rai and Jawaharlal Nehru.”