Factory Legislation in India

208 Pages·1923·42.652 MB·English

by  Rajani Kanta Das, John Rogers Commons (editor)

FACTORY LEGISLATION IN INDIA
By the same author
I. Factory Labor in India
A critical and analytical study in the rise,
growth, conditions and problems of the factoiy
workers in India.
II. Hindustani Workers on the Pacific Coast
A study in the social and economic conditions
of the Hindustanees on the Pacific Coast, based
on the report made by the author as special agent
to the Department of Labor, United States Govern-
ment.
III. The Labor Movement in India
A critical and analytical study in the working
class movement in India with special reference to
its origin, development, nature and significance.
Copyright by
Walter de Gruyter a Co., Berlin.
Printed in Germany.
FACTORY LEGISLATION
IN INDIA
By
Rajani Kanta Das, M. Sc., Ph. D.
Late Lecturer in Economics, New York University;
Former Special Agent, United States Department of Labor.
With an Introduction
By
John R. Commons, M. A., LL. D.
Professor of Economics, University of Wisconsin;
Former Member Industrial Commission of Wisconsin and
United States Commission on Industrial Relations.
19 2 3
W A L T ER DE G R U Y T ER & Co.
VORMALS G. J. GÖSCHEN'SCHE VERLAGSHANDLUNG -
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/ / BERLIN and LEIPZIG / /

TO MY MOTHER

vii
INTRODUCTION.
By Dr. John R. Commons.
Mr. Das came to the investigation of Indian factory
legislation as a part of several years' investigation of the
forces that make for national efficiency. Deeply impress-
ed by the famine reports of 1900—01 and the abject
poverty of the people of India, he devoted himself to the
improvement of economic conditions by prolonged, study
of the causes. Seeing that the majority of the people of
India depended upon agriculture for a living, he came to
America to prepare himself for the study of agricultural
production. While' pursuing these studies at Ohio State
University, the University of Missouri and the University
of Wisconsin, it became clear to him that national pro-
sperity depended more upon the industrial efficiency of
the people than upon the natural resources of the country.
The real cause of India's poverty was her industrial in-
efficiency. The solution lay in becoming industrially
efficient.
This conclusion led Mr. Das to the1 study of the human
element in the production system — the labor problem»
This he followed at the University of Chicago and the
University of Wisconsin, working betimes in American
factories as an employee, and travelling extensively in
England, France, and the United States, besides in India
on a return visit.
This unusually extensive preparation for the study of
Indian factory legislation, has given to the book an un-
usual value, not only as a study of a single country, but
especially by way of the comparative legislation and
actual factory practice which he has had always before
him.
It is difficult for a Westerner to appreciate and weigh
all of the facts which Mr. Das has marshalled in this im-
viii
portant study of Indian industry, but certainly at no time
in history is it more necessary to do so. For India is
nearer to us than before, and the problems of the British
Empire are becoming the problems of America. To the
understanding of these economic, political and legislative
problems this book is a valuable contribution.
University of Wisconsin. John R. Commons.
ix
PREFACE.
"Factory Legislation in India" is a study in the legis-
lative institution relating to Indian factories with special
reference to the social, political and economic forces which
led to its origin and growth and influenced its nature and
function. Originally, it constituted only a chapter of the
treatise on factory labor in India in 1913 and was elabor-
ated into the present treatise in 1916 as a dissertation
for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at the University
of Wisconsin. Except for the addition of a chapter on
the Factory Act of 1922 and for a few other minor additions
and alterations, the present treatise is practically the
same as the1 original dissertation of 1916. A summary of
the first three legislations was published in the Modern
Review, Calcutta, January, 1921.
In presenting the treatise to the public, the author is
conscious that it is far from being1 exhaustive. Some of
the Indian documents, periodicals and newspapers, which
could very profitably have been consulted, were not avail-
able in this country. There was, however, full access to the
most important sources of information on the' subject,
namely, the British Parliamentary Papers and Debates,
the Proceedings of the Indian Legislative Council and the
Debates of the Legislative Assembly and of the Council
of State of India, and a complete file of the London Times.
Moreover, since the main object of the investigation was
not so much the collection of the detailed information on
the history of factory legislation as the analysis of the
underlying forces, the author is satisfied that although a
few ^details might have been added and some of the points
elaborated, they would not have made any essential differ-
ence in the fundamental character of the treatise.
In conclusion, the author take's this opportunity to
express his deep gratitute to Dr. John R. Commons, Pro-
fessor of Economics, University of Wisconsin, who has,
as his teacher, not only supervised the preparation of the
treatise, but has also generously written an introduction
to it. He is also indebted to Mr. Jay Bowman, Chicago,
111., and to Mrs. Victoria B. Turner of the Bureau of Labor
Statistics, for reading the manuscript and offering valuable
criticisms. He also takes this occasion to express his
thanks to the Library of the University of Wisconsin and the
Economics Division of the New York Public Library for
assistance in locating and collecting some of the docu-
ments consulted in the preparation of this volume.
Nfew York, August 1, 1922. Rajani Kanta Das.