voluntary health association of india - ::: resource … in a death trap.pdf• members of gujarat...

The Story of Bidi Rollers of West Bengal and Gujarat

A Study based on primary research on home-based bidi rollers of West Bengal and Gujarat

Voluntary Health Association of India

Voluntary Health Association of India (VHAI) is a non-profi t, registered society formed in the year 1970. It is a federation of 27 State Voluntary Health Associations, linking together 4500 health and development institutions and more than 100,000 grassroots-level community health workers across the country.

VHAI’s primary objective is to “make health a reality for the people of India” through campaigns, policy research, advocacy, need-based training, media and parliament interventions, publications and audio-visuals, dissemination of information and implementation of health and development projects.


B-40, Qutab Institutional Area, New Delhi - 110016

Phones : 011-26518071, 26518072 Email : [email protected]

[email protected] Website : www.vhai.org, www.rctfi .org

Tobacco control has always been a crucial public health concern for VHAI and we have been campaigning against the tobacco industry’s nefarious practices for over a decade. Today, VHAI is implementing a comprehensive tobacco control programme across several states to strengthen the anti-tobacco movement in the country. This initiative includes policy and media advocacy, research, capacity-building, networking and coalition-building and development of advocacy materials.

caught in a death trap

Bhaskar

Sticky Note

Inside front cover

1

Caught in a DEATH TRAP


A Study based on primary research on home-based bidi rollers of Murshidabad (West Bengal) and Anand (Gujarat)


2

Research Team

Conceptual Inputs & Guidance : Alok Mukhopadhyay

Overall Direction & Coordination : Bhavna B Mukhopadhyay

Research Designed, Organized and Compiled by : Karabi M.G.Majumdar & Mithu Adhikary

Expert Review & Technical Editing : Mira B Aghi

Field Team Principal Investigator : Karabi M.G. Majumdar

Field Investigators, Anand : Chetan Bhai Patel, Kinnauri Bhatt, Ajit Bhai Parmar, Satish Bhai,

Tarpada Mahesh Bhai Parmar, Jagdish Bhai Parmar

Field Investigators, Murshidabad : Bilal Seikh, Totan Roy Pintu Ghosh, Shoma Das

Field Supervisor : Jashu Bhai Patel, Gujarat VHA Chiranjib Mukherjee, KHOJ Project,

Katwa, West Bengal

Pilotsurvey&fieldwork : MrinmoyChatterjee,KHOJProject, Coordination at Murshidabad Katwa, West Bengal

Production Team Editorial Inputs : Chandra Ramakrishnan

Design & Page Layout : Brajagopal Paul Subhash Bhaskar

Secretarial Assistance & Data Entry : Virender Singh Rohilla

Printed at : VHAI Press

© Voluntary Health Association of India, 2008B-40, Qutab Institutional Area, New Delhi - 110 016.

This document has been produced with support from the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids under the Bloomberg Initiative to Reduce Tobacco Use. The contents

of this document are the sole repsponsibility of the research team and can undernocircumstancesberegardedasreflectingthepositionsofCTFK

3

Acknowledgements

We would like to express our sincere gratitude to each one of them without whose help and support this study would not have been possible. We wish to extend our sincere thanks to:

First and foremost to all our respondents, i.e., the bidi workers of •Murshidabad and Anand district for actively participating and sharing their stories with us.

Dr. Prakash C. Gupta, Dr. Mira Aghi, Shobha John and Prof. Kamal N. •Kabra for their inputs in research design and inputs in various stages of this study.

Members of Taleem Research Foundation, Ahmedabad, especially the •Director,Dr.BinodAggrawalandResearchOfficersProf.K.K.Verma,Dr. Ajay Kr. Gharami, Pareshbhai and Maheshbhai for translating the studytoolintoGujarati,visitingthefieldareasandtrainingthefieldinvestigators.

District administration of Murshidabad and Anand for their cooperation •duringfieldwork,providingandsharingneccessaryofficialdocumentswith the team.

Members of Gujarat Voluntary Health Association and VHAI’s Khoj •Project team of Katwa, West Bengal for all their cooperation, coordinationandlogisticarrangementsprovidedforthefieldwork.

Special thanks to VHAI members including P.C.Issac, Aditi Tewari, •R.Padmaja and Noshina Rizvi for their timely support.

4 co

nte

ntscontents

Chapter 1Introduction...7The Study...20Methodology...22

Preface ...5

Chapter 2 Salient Findings from Jangipur Murshidabad...25 Case Studies...44 Focus Group Discussions...52

Chapter 3 Salient Findings from Anand...59 Case Studies...74

Chapter 4 Summary and Recommendations...81

Appendix 1: Comparative Summary Table of Jangipur and Anand...89Appendix 2: Comparative graphs of Jangipur and Anand...93Appendix 3: Copy of the Questionnaire...100 Appendix 4: Additional questions on pictorial warnings...105Appendix 5: News clippings...106

References...117

5

Preface

Till recent times, the focus on tobacco control-related activities has been primarily on cigarettes. The time has come to look in detail at the damage caused by bidi, the hand-rolled cigarettes. In this study, an effort has been made to look at the lives of bidi workers, living in select pockets of West Bengal and Gujarat. Perhaps it is not yet understood that besides the huge damage that an occupation of this nature causes to public health, it also speaks of the misery and deprivation to the thousands of workers in this industry. The study clearly shows that by converting it into a home-basedactivity,thebidi industry israkinginahugeprofit.Theworkersworking in this industry are economically exploited and forced to work in hazardous environments. The industry is exploiting thousands of children, ruining their childhood and future. The workers are paid a pittance after back-breaking work for the whole day without any social security.

The study not only captures the general setting of the bidi workers in West Bengal and Gujarat, but also highlights through case studies examples such as how a seven year old has to make 200 bidis before she can go to school and come back and roll another 200 bidis to be able to continue with her schooling. It also captures the heart-breaking story of people at the end of their lives, who have worked for several decades in this industry, and are still living on the margins.

As independent India, how long should we tolerate this situation, where millions of people, including children, have to work in such deprived and exploitative situations to make a product, which kills more than 6 lakh people annually in India ?

Through this study, VHAI and its partners are striving to bring policy focus on this major deterent of public health and also trying to implement a pilot programme on alternative livelihood for bidi workers.

Alok MukhopadhyayChief ExecutiveVoluntary Health Association of India

7

CHAP

TER

1Ca

ught

in a D

eath

Trap

Introduction

Bidis are small hand rolled cigarettes, made by rolling small quantities of tobaccoflakesintenduleaf,whichisthensecuredwithacoloredcottonthread. The tobacco, used in bidis, known as bidi tobacco, is different from the tobacco that is used in cigarettes. Bidis contains about 0.2 grams of sun-dried tobacco wrapped in a tendu leaf. Traditionally, bidis are non-filteredandnon-flavoured,thoughsomebidiarenowmadewithfiltersandflavouringsmostlyfortheexportmarket.Bidiisaverypopularformof smoking tobacco in India. Over 800 million bidis are sold in India every year, outselling cigarettes by 8 to 1 (bidi monograph, 2008). About 19% of tobacco consumption in India is in the form of cigarettes, while 53% is smoked as bidi, the rest is used mainly in smokeless form. Bidis tend to be smoked by lower economic strata and have a different level of social acceptance in different cultures. There are over 100 million bidi smokers in India and the estimated annual deaths due to bidi smoking are about 6,00,000. (Bidi and Public Health, 2008)

There are about 300 manufacturers producing major branded bidis in India; thousands of small-scale manufacturers and contractors are involved in the bulk of the bidi production and promotion. The bidi industry is an important source of revenue for the government. The estimated revenue collected last year totalled Rs 709.50crores ($165 millions) in Excise, and Rs 860crores ($200 millions) in foreign exchange. The bidi industry has always received preferential treatment as a cottage industry, and has managed to escape paying higher taxes because of its unorganized and unregulated nature. Bidi manufacturing units that produce less than 20lakh bidis per annum are exempt from paying any taxes, which leads many manufacturers to report production as being below the actual figures.Bidiexportshavedoubledoverthe lasteightyears,withbidisnow being exported to around 30 countries. Nearly 1029 tons of bidis are exported each year earning nearly Rs 35,00,000.

Bidi production has three major components and involves human resources in the form of bidi tobacco growers, tendu leaf collectors and

The bidi industry has always received preferential treatment as a cottage industry, and has managed to escape paying higher taxes because of its unorganized and unregulated nature.

8

bidi manufacturers. The manufacturing process involves procurement of raw material, bidi rolling, sorting, roasting, labeling and packing. Given below are the processes involved in the production of bidi:

Tendu leaves are collected from forests by men and women, as •well as, boysLeaves are cleaned and cut as per size required by the particular •brand of bidi Cut leaves are soaked in water for a few hours to make them more •malleableThe bidi is then rolled using the tobacco and leaf•The edges of the rolled bidi are turned in and tied with yarn•Finally, the rolled bidi are tied in bundles of 12 or 24 as required •by the contractor or middlemanTherawmaterialsareconvertedintofinalproductandreturnedto•the middleman – known by different names in different regions After checking the quality, the middleman stacks the bidi produced •by each worker separately and sends the day’s collection to the factoryThe worker in turn collects raw material for next day’s production •thus, the process goes onIn the factory, bidi brought by the middleman are checked for •qualityEach bundle, consisting of 12 or 25 bidi, is thoroughly checked for •sizeandquantityoftobaccofilledDefective bidi are removed and discarded•Then the bidi bundles are counted and stacked in mesh trays•Thisistakenasthefinalproductionofthedaytothemiddleman•

9

Rollers Rollers Rollers

Retailer RetailerRetailer Retailer

Tobacco Tendu Leaves

Plucked and sun-dried by Adivasis (tribals)

Cultivated and sun-dried by

the farmer

Tobacco Processor / Blender

Government / Department of Forestry

Bidi Manufacturers Representatives / Agent

Bidi Manufacturer

Rolling contractor

Rolled bidis

Rolled bidis

Tobacco, tendu leaves and thread

Tobacco, tendu leaves and thread

Wholesaler Wholesaler

Sorting and roasting

Packaging

Bidi Manufacturing Process

Source: Genesis Public Relations, 360 Degree Analysis of Bidi Industry (undated)

10

Bidi rollers are employed in both the organized and unorganized sectors. However, those employed in the unorganized sector are largely illiterate and paid lower wages, because of which they face a lot of deprivation. Since the requirement of technical skill is very low, that helps to keep it in the unorganized sector.

The Central Tobacco Research Institute (CTRI) has estimated that about 6 million farmers and 20 million farm labourers are engaged in tobacco farming extending across nearly 15 states. Bidi rolling provides employment to 4.4 million people. In addition to 2.2 million tribal workers involved in tendu collection, nearly 4 million people are engaged in the wholesale/retail trade of tobacco.

The bidi industry is one of the most exploitative, to say the least; It is unconcerned about those without whom it could disappear over night. The home-based bidi rollers expose their families including new–born babies and young children to harmful tobacco dust and fumes, inflictingillnessandeconomicafflictionsamongboth, users and rollers. Bidis are consumed mostly by the poor, who have the least opportunity to be informed of the harmful effects of tobacco consumption. Bidi rollers at the other end of the stick earn the lowest of wages imaginable for working in perilous environments (Shobha John, Tobacco Kills, Jan-Feb 2008).

Health Hazards of bidi Workers

Bidi rollers handle tobaccoflakes andinhale tobacco dust, as well as, the

11

volatile components of tobacco in their work environment and are at risk of genotoxic hazards (Bidi & Public Health, 2008). There are several studies to prove the evidence of health hazards of bidi workers. Swami S, et.al in their study scientifically describe that the absorption ofnicotine induces oxidative stress among bidi workers. Chronic exposure to tobacco dust causes nasal inhalation and cutaneous absorption of tobacco alkaloids, especially nicotine. There is considerable evidence that workers employed in the bidi industry are at risk of cancer and other lung related diseases. Many studies have revealed that tobacco dust exposure induces mutations, damage to DNA resulting in irreparable health problems. (Indian Journal of Public Health, 2006, Vol: 50)

Govekar R.V. and Bhisey R.A. in their study: Elevated urinary thioether excretion among bidi rollers exposed occupationally to processed tobacco, explained that bidi rollers handle 225-450 g of bidi tobacco per day and inhale tobacco dust and volatile components present in the work environment. Since tobacco is known to be mutagenic and carcinogenic, urinary cotinine was studied in bidi rollers and control subjects, as an index of tobacco specific exposurewhile the concentration of urinarythioethers was determined to ascertain exposure to electrophillic moieties. Detection of cotinine in urine samples from bidi rollers with no tobacco habits indicated that occupational exposure leads to cutaneious absorption of tobacco constituents and the resultant increase in exposure to alkylating agents, which was evident from elevated urinary thioether levels. (International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health, Vol 64, 1992)

In addition to dermal (skin) exposure, workers in the tobacco-processing facilities receive exposure to tobacco dust and volatile components in tobacco an inhalation. Among the studies reported from the workplace were instances of female nonsmokers with exposure to unburnt bidi tobacco. The duration of exposure ranged from a year to more than four decades (of employment). The primary route of exposure was through dermal contact with bidi tobacco among the bidi rollers, and in the case of workers in a tobacco-processing facility, both, dermal exposure, and inhalation of tobacco dust was present (Bidi & Public Health, 2008).

12

Respiratory impairments along with pulmonary function impairments were detected while evaluating the pulmonary functional status of male bidi workers. The tobacco dust enters the respiratory system of bidi workers through inhalation during bidi –making, causing damage to the respiratory system.

The symptoms reported included breathlessness, morning cough and chest pains. The respiratory symptoms were found higher in exposed bidi workers compared to control subjects. A trend of decrement of lung function with the increment of age and duration of work exposure was observed. The pulmonary function abnormalities found among the male bidi workers were obstructive, restrictive and ‘combined restrictive and obstructive’ type (BB Chattopadhyay et.al., Indian Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Vol 10, 2006).

Almost all bidi workers on a regular basis complain of pain and cramps in the shoulders, neck, back and lower abdomen. According to research undertaken by the Factory Advisory Services and Labor Institute in Bombay, a unit of the Labor Ministry of India, the incidence of tuberculosis and bronchialasthmaisfoundtobesignificantlyhigheramongthisgroupthanin the general population The International Labor Organization (ILO) cites ailments such as exacerbation of tuberculosis, asthma, anemia, giddiness, postural and eye problems, and gynecological difficulties among bidiworkers. Reports from as early as the 1970s relate the concerns of trade union leaders in Maharashtra that 50% of bidi workers eventually die from tuberculosis or asthma.

Diseases such as tuberculosis have been found to be transmitted more easily in places where ventilation is poor, and majority of the bidi workers work inside smoky households with open hearths, exposed to tobacco dust in addition to indoor air pollution. Tuberculosis is also associated with poor nutritional status. Bidi rollers often complain of loss of appetite, due to lack of exercise, monotony of work and smell of the raw materials used for making bidi.

Many studies have proved that workers engaged in tobacco farming, suffer from an occupational illness known as “green tobacco sickness” (GTS), which is caused largely due to absorption of nicotine through the

majority of the bidi workers work inside

smoky households with open hearths, exposed to

tobacco dust in addition to indoor air pollution

Bidi rollers often complain of loss of

appetite, due to lack of exercise, monotony of work and smell of the

raw materials used for making bidi.

13

dermal route. The symptoms of GTS include headache, nausea/vomiting, dizziness, loss of appetite, fatigue and weakness. Severe toxicity may also leadtobreathlessnessandfluctuation inbloodpressureorheartrate. Storage of tobacco in houses also leads to high incidences of nausea, headache and dizziness. Moreover, the dust generated during the processing of tobacco results in allergies among workers. The people employed in the bidi industry are mostly women and children who are constantly exposed to the harmful chemicals, leading to more complications

Children in the Bidi industry

An estimated ten million people work in the bidi industry; approximately 25%oftheseworkersarechildren.Withtheirsmallfingers,childrenarethe most skilled at rolling cigarettes, but they get paid the least.

Children are cheated out of play, education and health — effectively denied a childhood. The world of bidi-rolling could well be a never-ending story of child-abuse. The children who roll bidi are prisoners of unrelenting poverty. No one knows exactly how many children are actually bonded by this labor, majority of the children are girls who are made to stay at home. Some boys do help, but most of them have the opportunity to go to school.

Child labour for those under the age of 14 years is prohibited in India, but this legislation is not applicable to the homes where most of the bidi rolling work takes place. Children also seldom get registered at birth, and child labour is one of the burning problems of our society. The fruit of development has spread unevenly, giving rise to pockets of intolerable poverty. Child Labour in the bidi industry is one such industry where in spite of legislation, there seems to be no justice.

The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986 prohibits employment of children under 14. The constitution of India also guarantees all children an education up to the age of 14, but underprivileged sections have no choice but to send their children out to work as survival is their biggest challenge.

Child labour for those under the age of 14 years is prohibited in India, but this legislation is not applicable to the homes where most of the bidi rolling work takes place. Child Labour in the bidi industry is one such industry where in spite of legislation, there seems to be no justice.

14

Despite child labour being illegal in India, many parents have no choice but to send their children out to work. In the face of hunger and poverty, constitutional rights are lost.

The incidence of child labor in the bidi industry is partly linked to the level of socio-economic development in an area, and partly to the attitude of parents and employers. Stringent enforcements of existing laws are required to help tackle the problem. By enforcing universal primary education, the problem of child labour could be curbed to an extent (Mira Aghi, 2001).

Mankind owes the child the best it has to give. The child shall enjoy special protection and shall be given opportunities and facilities by law and by other means, to enable him or her to develop, physically, mentally, morally, spiritually and socially in a healthy and normal manner, in conditions of freedom and dignity. The child shall be protected against all forms of neglect, cruelty and exploitation. We have to aim for it and nothing short of it will have to be acceptable, says UNICEF (Rights of the Child, 2008).

The National Commission for Protection of Child rights (NCPCR) recently directed the State Governments to take immediate steps to curb child labour. In her letter to the States, NCPCR Chairperson has categorically pointed out that “Children are being engaged to work because they are a source of cheap labour and can be forced to work for long hours. It is no favour done to the child but is a factor of cutting costs for the employer” (Source: TOI, May 3 2008).

Women in bidi Industry

Bidi manufactures claim that they are performing a national service by providing livelihood to women at their doorstep. This view of the bidi manufacturers has been supported by some of our political leaders, with business interest in the bidi industry, saying that if women would not do bidi rolling,whatotherjobcouldtheydo?Theyfurtheraffirmtheirstandbysaying that, in terms of workers comfort, it is just like knitting or any other work. Such pronouncements are an insult. They sound almost profane.

15

The ILO Report echoes the observations of this report and adds by saying that the prevailing organization of bidi production is characterized by certain exploitative practices with a gender bias. Such a bias arises partly because the bidi industry is one of those industries which have a discriminatory bias against women workers. The other part of the explanation lies in the character of the bidi industry itself, which employs a very high percentage of women who are in a strategically weaker position and have very little choice but to accept this job as it does not require her to travel from home. Poverty forces her to accept this highly exploitative job.

There are a number of reports, articles and studies which echo the plight of woman to be the same as that of children in bidi industry. Bidi manufacturers outsource bidi rolling to women, who take the raw material from them to roll bidis in their homes, almost non-stop, breaking only for

16

meals. They roll around 1000 bidi in a 10-hour shift. Workers complain that they neither get the minimum wages stipulated by law, nor any compensation for the health hazards they face.

The net earnings of female bidi workers almost always are less than those of male workers, even if wage rates are the same per 1000 bidi. The reason is that the employers have less possibility of cheating men than women. Table 13 shows the ratio between the average daily earnings of female and male workers by mode of employment (Source: ILO Report).

Most families working in the bidi industry live below the poverty line. The principal employers work through the contractors who then employ workers in a village or cluster of villages. According to the Government’s welfare mesures for the bidi workers, each of them must have ID cards throughwhichtheyareentittledtoclaimtheirbenefits.Butinreality,veryfew workers possess ID cards which expose the workers to exploitations. Moreover, children are not issued ID cards, but are considered as ‘healping’ hands to their parents who are registered (not registered) as workers. About 10% of the bidi rolled by the workers are arbitrarily taken away as ‘standard deductions’ by the contractor to replace defective bidi regardless of the number of bidi actually rejected. Thus the workers lose part of their wages. Some contractors remove or change names of the bidi workers from their registers occasionally depriving workers of their legallystipulatedbenefits.Interestingly,rejectedbidiarekeptwiththeestablishments/middlemen and either sold in the market at a lower rate or broken and the tobacco given back to the rollers. Such exploitation sometimes leads to shortfalls to the extent of 300 to 400 bidi per 1,000 contracted.

Employers and intermediaries (also referred to as contractors/ traders/ sattedars/ middlemen) are known to exploit these home workers by supplying sub-standard and underweight raw materials to the rollers – a practice which leads to the rolling of fewer bidi. However, when collecting the rolled bidi the intermediaries do not make any allowances for the shortfall in rolling which might have resulted from poor quality or underweightrawmaterialssuppliedtotheroller.Thefixedquotaofbidi,which could have been produced with the entire, designated, lot of raw

Some contractors remove or change names of the bidi workers from their

registers occasionally depriving workers of their legally stipulated benefits.

Many times children are not mentioned in the

employees’ register but are considered ‘helping’ hands

to the women who are registered as workers.

17

materials supplied—had those been in perfect condition, —are demanded instead. Poor workers are not able to bargain with the middlemen for consideration on the ground of poor quality of raw materials supplied for the fear for losing out on bidi rolling jobs, if they do. They try to make up for the shortfall by buying raw materials either from the employer (or the middlemen), or from the market and roll additional bidis. They often borrow money from the market at high rates of interest and incur debt in the process. Bidi rollers also take loans from the middlemen during their emergency and repay it by rolling exra bidis.

18

Apart from the deductions due to rejections, middlemen are also reported to have taken commission from the workers. Women workers are the worst victims of such forms of exploitation because they constitute the bulk of the home-based bidi rollers. Exploitation is more severe in a system that is based on informal production relations where intermediation occurs through contractors or any type of middlemen (Source: ILO Report).

Welfare measures for bidi workers

Government of India has developed legislations and policies aimed at monitoringworkingconditionsandprovidingsocialsecuritybenefitsforthe welfare of bidi laborers. Major legislations/policies meant to protect and improve the livelihood of the bidi worker are:

BidiWorkersWelfareFundAct,1976–Meanttoprovidebasicbenefits•such as health care, education, insurance, housing assistance, scholarships for children’s education, drinking water supplies. The Government has set up 12 hospitals and 276 dispensaries across the country for bidi workers. Bidi Workers Welfare Cess (Amendment) Act, 1976 – Under the cess •collected through excise duty of manufactured bidi, workers receive benefits from a government fund. The cess is revised by centralgovernment periodically; it was Rs 2 per 1000 bidi in June 2000. This cess applies only to registered companies manufacturing more than 2 millionbidiperyear.Aswithotherwelfarebenefits,toreceivefundsworkers must have an ID card.Employees State Insurance, 1948—Provides health, medical and •cash benefits for sickness, maternity, employment-related injury,for employees making less than Rs 3000 per month. Dependents of employees may also receive pensions in the case of death or employment injury.Bidi and Cigar Workers (Condition of Employment) Act, 1966—The •act regulates factory based workers. Requires the establishment of industrial standards – for example, no overcrowding, proper ventilation, appointment of working condition inspectors. It regulates working hours, rest, leave, and prohibits child labor.

19

In reality however, these policies and legislations have done very little to improve the working conditions and livelihoods of bidi workers, who are among the most marginalized sections of society. The lack of organized productioninthebidiindustrycreatesdifficultyinregulatingtheworkingconditions of workers and in implementing welfare laws. It also helps the bidi manufacturers to evade these provisions as this industry is unorganized.Manufacturershavesignificantlyshiftedfromfactory-basedto home-based production, partly to deter bidi worker coalitions and unions, and to avoid appropriate implementation of working condition and welfare laws. In 2003, the factory sector employed just 10 per cent of workers in the bidi industry. The rest of the rolling was being carried on in homes.

Under the law, employers of bidi workers are required to issue identity cards to their employees toenable then to receivewelfarebenefits;according to trade unions, the majority of bidi workers do not have ID cards, while the government estimates that only about 15% of bidi workers do not have ID cards. For families engaged in bidi production, the standard practice is to issue an ID card to only one member of the family, even in cases of other members of the family also roll bidi (ILO, 2003). Most government run schemes for tobacco industry workers eitherremainonpaper,oraprivilegedfewdrawallbenefits.

Question of Alternative livelihood

The tobacco industry often argues that it is a significant source ofemployment, and the livelihood of millions of workers would suffer greatly if strong tobacco control legislation is passed. In India, the debate of pictorial warning has mainly taken refuge on the pretext of the ‘well being’ of the bidi workers and unemployment that would result from it. However, not many are aware of the fact, that out of the 10 million bidi rollers employed, very few have health cards which are a mandate by the cess on bidis.

The question of alternative livelihood for the bidi rollers / workers is a very major issue which is close to the heart of anti-tobacco lobby.

The lack of organized production in the bidi industry creates difficulty in regulating the working conditions of workers and in implementing welfare laws.

It also helps the bidi manufacturers to evade these provisions as his industry is unorganized.

20

Everybody dreams of providing bidi rollers with an alternative occupation that will free them of all the economic, health and social vulnerabilities and exploitations they are vulnerable to in the bidi industry. Every report, every study, every forum, is talking about providing alternative occupation. Bidi rollers themselves are not happy doing this job. Almost everybody is showing interest for a switch over, but at the same time themajorityofrollersexpressahelplessnessofnotbeingabletofindanalternate means of livelihood. This helps the bidi industry to maintain the status quo.

Itisverydifficultforthebidirollerstoventureoutthemselvesandseeknew pastures. This lack of bargaining power on the part of the rollers thrills the industry and they are happy to continue as the good guys.

The Present Study

The Voluntary Health Association of India undertook this study to get a better understanding of the working conditions of bidi workers engaged in the unorganized home-based sector of the bidi manufacturing industry. The need for a study of this nature is self-explanatory and can be understood from the description of the characteristics of bidi industry as portrayinthefirstpartofthischapter.

The study comprises of a survey of 500 bidi workers in each location, i.e., Murshidabad district of West Bengal which has a large concentration of bidi manufacturers, and Anand district in Gujarat, one of India’s

21

major tobacco growing as well as bidi manufacturing states. The study also comprises of an in-depth qualitative assessment. In addition, there are case studies on several subjects, which adds to the total picture. Along with the survey and case-studies, several focus group discussions (FGDs)havebeenconductedinMurshidabadacrossvariousgroupstofindout about their perception and attitude about bidi rolling occupation. Photographs have been taken to visually show the conditions under which bidi workers lead their lives.

Thefindingsfromthesurveyareindeedrevealing.Whilebidimanufacturersmay provide employment to many, in the form of “door-step income”, the reality is that poor women and children are being “exploited” by these manufacturers. Apart from the adverse effects that exposure to tobacco dust has on their health, bidi rolling by its very nature entails aviciouscycleofpovertyandbondage.Mostworkinginthefieldwouldlike to leave this profession, but the lack of choices prevents them from doing so. It should be taken as a wake-up call for the Ministry of Women and Child Welfare.

Through the present study, VHAI aims to bring into focus, the health vulnerability of bidi workers in different parts of India under the prevailing socio-economic conditions peculiar to this segment of society. It intends to explore the scope for to help them break the vicious cycle of this hazardous profession that they are trapped in.

VHAI’s mission is to reveal to the World, the hazards of the profession of bidi rolling, which people have been involved in for generations, with no alternative future in sight, and help them overcome their economic vulnerability. It has been observed that at any single site there are three generations engaged in bidi rolling activities, crucial to meet their basic, subsistence-level needs. All three generations are exposed to tobacco related health hazards. The older generation is dying of tobacco-related diseases like tuberculosis, throat cancer, asthma; the second generation is suffering from ailments like cough, back and body ache, while the third generation almost appears to be prepared to suffer from tobacco-related diseases like their previous generations. Their earnings augment the family income; they are totally deprived of childhood and its joys.

22

There is no reported incidence of tobacco use among women and children from the survey. However, men are reportedly found to be smokers. It is a matter of great concern that women and children must be exposed to second hand smoke (SHS) in addition to consistently inhaling tobacco dust because of their bidi rolling profession. There is an urgent need to rehabilitate women between the ages of 18-45 in the bidi manufacturing industry, as they are in the reproductive age group. They need to be made aware of their health vulnerabilities in this profession, as well as, their children’s bleak future in bidi rolling industry. They need to be guided to towards livelihood options that are healthier and provided training to acquire new skills in that direction. Through the survey, it was realized that some women do not want their children to pursue the same profession. Given the opportunity, most women would be willing to switch over to other occupations and to send their children to school or for other skill training.

To reiterate, the objective of this study is to understand the conditions of the bidi workers and sensitize the public on the issue. The study will examine the health vulnerabilities of bidi workers, as also their economic vulnerability andfind outwhether there iswillingness among the bidirollers towards alternative employment opportunities. The study also intends is to uncover the myth surrounding the people behind the industry – that they are well-wishers of the bidi rollers and their families.

Methodology

Both the sites chosen for the study are well-known bidi production areas and this was the mail criterion for selection. The main research methodology that was followed is presented stepwise below:

Methodology: Steps at a glance

Step-1• : Finalized the issues to be covered in the survey. Solicited expert’s advice/guidance to develop the questionnaire.Step-2:• Circulated the questionnaire among experts for their feedback and incorporated their inputs accordingly.

While bidi manufacturers may provide employment

to many, in the form of “door-step income”,

the reality is that poor women and children are

being “exploited” by these manufacturers

Most working in the field would like to leave this

profession, but the lack of choices prevents them

from doing so

23

Step-3• :Pretestedthequestionnairetofindoutthefeasibilityinbothlocations.Step-4• : Sent the questionnaire to the State VHAs for translation into local languages — Gujarati (Anand) and Bengali (Murshidabad).Step-5• : Training field investigators on the study tool and datacollection.Step-6• : Rapport establishing with government machinery and local Panchayat (elected people’s representatives) leaders to elicit cooperation.Step-7• : Selection of villages on the basis of information collected on the concentration of bidi rollers in the area.Step-8• : Data collection: 500 respondents from 500 households (based on non random purposive sampling) on the questionnaire.Step-9:• A few Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) were conducted to discuss various issues in an in-depth manner. These included bidi rollers from different age groups starting with children, adolescent girls, young women, elderly women and lactating mothers. In addition, in-depth research also was conducted with young boys and girls to find out about their perception and attitude towords bidirolling. All the FGDs were audio taped and later on transcribed into the local language and then translated into English for the purpose of analysisStep-10• : Unique cases were noted and detail case studies were prepared. Step-11:• To substantiate further what was being noted, a number of photographs were taken to present a visual record of the surveyed areas. Step-12:• Graphs, charts, diagrams were made for both districts for a clear graphical representation of the study which will enable policy makers, readers, researchers to have a quick and comparative analysis between two districts on several indicators.

25

Salient Findings from Jangipur, Murshidabad district, West Bengal

West Bengal is a state in eastern India that forms the ethno-linguistic region of Bengal as a whole. It shares its borders with the states of Assam, Sikkim, Bhutan, Orissa, Jharkhand, Bihar and Nepal. The British East India Company cemented their hold on the region following the Battle of Plassey in 1757 AD, and the city of Kolkata, then called Calcutta, served for many years as the capital of British India.

Located on the southern bank of the Bhagirathi, a tributary of the river Ganges, is the city of Murshidabad, — the last capital of Bengal before the British era. The population of Murshidabad as per the 2001 census is 58,63,717. Covering an area of 5,341 km2, the district of Murshidabad is very fertile and is densely populated. District headquarters are located in Baharampur town. In 1704 the nawab Murshid Quli Khan changed the seat of government from Dacca to Maksudabad, which he named after himself. The family of Jagat Seth maintained their position as state bankers at Murshidabad from generation to generation. The Battle of Plassey was decisive in establishing the victory of the British East India Company o er the Nawab of Bengal and his French allies, establishing British rule over India for the next 190 years. The battle took place on 23 June 1757 at Palashi, on the riverbanks of the River Bhagirathi, near Murshidabad, then the capital of the Nawab of Bengal. The opponents were Siraj-ud-Daulah, the last independent Nawab of Bengal, and the British East India Company. Even after the conquest of Bengal by the British, Murshidabad remained as the seat of administration for some time.

Jahangirpur (more popular as Jangipur) a sub-division in Murshidabad in West Bengal, is situated on the banks of the Ganges. Earlier, this town was said to have been founded by the Mughal emperor Jahangir. During the early years of British rule it was an important centre of the silk trade, and the site of one of the East India Company’s commercial

CHAP

TER

2Ca

ught

in a D

eath

Trap

26

West Bengal

Murshidabad

27

residencies. Presently, Jangipur is home to the largest number of bidi rollers not just in West Bengal, but in the entire country. .India’s largest manufacturers of bidis have their factories across this district, with a large concentration in Farraka, Dhulian, Aurangabad, Raghunathganj and Jangipur.

Of a total population of around 1400,000, the ratio of female population is marginally higher than the male population (M:F — 49.8:50.8). 72% of the population belong to the minority community (Muslims).

Jangipur sub-division consists of 7 Panchayat Samitis (Blocks). Out of these, the research team conducted their survey in 10 villages, namely, Jairampur, Talai, Sulitala, Umarpur, Lalpur, Samsherganj, Ratanpur, Hizaltala, Bakshirapara, and Nimtita.

28

Bidi Industry in Murshidabad:

The district of Murshidabad has a population of almost 6 million, with a density of almost 1101 persons per sq km. Over time, it became difficult for such a large population to earn their livelihood by agriculture alone. In the past, residents of Jangipur earned their livelihoods by weaving lungis and towels; Dhuliyan was famous for the weavers. However, because of the land erosion by Ganga and Padma (the two famous rivers in the area) during the rainy seasons most residents became landless laborers and soon poverty compelled them to sell their belongings. With no other alternatives to earn a livelihood, they took up the home-based profession of bidi rolling, especially the women who could do this work from within their homes. As time passed bidi manufacturing grew to such an extent, that the area became an important center for this small scale industry, in the country. As per the 2001 census report, the total bidi rolling population currently is 0.6 million, of which 85-90% of the workers are women and children.

Bidi manufacturing is classified as a small scale industry since most of those that it employs are home-based workers.

There are 52 registered, and 25-30 unregistered bidi factories in this area. Some prominent bidi manufacturers are Pataka bidi, Howrah bidi, Syam bidi, Bengal bidi, Desai bidi, Gyas bidi, Laxmi bidi, Krishna bidi, Shakti bidi, Balaji bidi and Mother India bidi, among others, with the biggest manufacturer being the Pataka bidi.

The Pataka bidi Company was established in 1952 by Gyasuddin Hussain from Murshidabad. Since then, this manufacturer has set up several units in various parts of the country and multiplied his wealth many fold. Approximately 1, 25,000 bidi rollers supply their rolled bidis through 620 Munshis (Middlemen) to this set up. On an average, 200 bidi rollers supply their rolled bidis to each Munshi. Raw materials for the production of the bidis are sourced from various places: tendu leaves are collected from Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh; tobacco is procured from Gujarat

...because of the land erosion by Ganga

and Padma (the two famous rivers in

the area) during the rainy seasons most

residents became landless laborers and soon poverty

compelled them to sell their belongings.

With no other alternatives to earn a

livelihood, they took up the home-based

profession of bidi rolling

29

and Karnataka. Bidis manufactured by this company are marketed by the brand name of 502.

This company pays Rupees 41 (less than one American dollar) per thousand bidis to the rollers, while the Munshis are paid Rs 2 per thousand bidis.

Bidi rollers who are registered with the company are entitled to certain facilities, such as Provident Fund as per Provident Fund rules of the Federal Government of India. The owner of the company has taken steps to provide additional wellfare measures like education for children and disaster management. He has also set up a free charitable dispensary for the rollers, factory workers and general public. Patients can avail of treatment by a specialist and medicines are supplied free of cost to all. As reported by some bidi rollers, the company distributes clothes to them on festive occasions and also has plans to construct pucca (concrete structures, built with cement and bricks) houses for those bidi workers who own land – This is a story of a person who stared his factory by borrowing money and in due course of time built an empire through manufacturing bidis. He had first hand experience himself of poverty and deprivation.

As the bidi industry flourished in this area, it became difficult for factory owners to work directly with the large number of bidi rollers on their own, and thus, emerged the need for middlemen to act as the link between the factories and the bidi rollers. As mentioned before these middlemen (called Munshis, in this area) have a vital role to play – They distribute the raw materials and collect the finished bidis from the rollers; they also collect the raw materials (tendu leaves and tobacco) from the factories and companies, and distribute them to the bidi rollers in distant villages. As they have to distribute the material and collect the bidis from far-flung places, the manufacturers pay the Munshis travel expenses. Despite this they collect a certain amount of additional money from the rollers of distant villages as a delivery charge, attempting to make additional money at any opportunity At the time of collecting rolled bidis from the rollers, they often reject bidis without a valid reason, apart from declaring they are not of the required quality, They then sell the rejected bidis in the local market through their own marketing chain. It has been reported that the raw materials supplied by

30

the Munshis are in most cases less than the required quantity, creating more problems for the bidi rollers.

If any registered bidi roller intends to apply for loan from his or her Provident Fund account, the signature of the Munshi is mandatory on the application form. In many cases, the Munshis have been reported to demand a commission for these loans. For small amounts, Munshis have been reported to lend money to the bidi rollers without any interest to create an image of being kind and concerned.

The flourishing business led some Munshis to appoint sub-Munshis to manage their territory. This study revealed that most of the factory owners had been Munshis in earlier days. Gyasuddin Hossain, the proprietor of Pataka bidi Factory himself was a Munshi in his early days in the industry, now he is a multi-millionaire. One thing is for sure that the Munshi is a life-line for the rollers, as well as, for the bidi manufacturers.

Gyasuddin Hossain, the proprietor of

Pataka bidi Factory himself was a Munshi

in his early days in the industry, now he is a

multi-millionaire.

Palace - like residence of a Bidi Factory owner in Murshidabad

31

Medical Facilities

The only Government hospital for bidi workers in Murshidabad is located at Tarapur, about 35 Kms from Jangipur. The hospital which is run and maintained by Ministry of Labour Welfare, Government of India, was established in 2001 to serve the bidi rolling community in the area. The 50-bedded hospital offers both, out-patient and in-patient facilities. Other facilities available at the hospital include an isolation ward for tuberculosis patients, X-ray machines, pathological laboratory, well-equipped operation theatre, separate wards for male and female patients, labor room for maternity, and a well-equipped kitchen to cater to the needs of in-patients. Three doctors, along with other support staff, have been posted at the hospital. Only those bidi workers, who have been issued identity cards by the Ministry of Labour Welfare, are entitled to avail of the free treatment facility available at the hospital for themselves and their families. Medicines required for the treatment of the patients are to be supplied free of cost from the hospital. However, bidi rollers reported that there are no provisions for free medicines, medicines have to be purchased from the market which are unaffordable for them. It was also reported that favoritism practiced by officials of the hospital led to more cards being issued to those other than the bidi workers, resulting in genuine bidi workers being deprived of the facilities. They reported that in reality this huge set up and facilities are of no use for the majority of the poor bidi rollers mainly due to distance involved as traveling to the hospital was unaffordable, in addition to their likelihood of losing the day’s pay. Therefore, most of the patients reportedly visit the nearby private clinics, run mostly by quacks.

The women who roll bidis are mostly illiterate and do not possess skills for other jobs. Most start bidi rolling either to augment the family income or just to meet the bare subsistence level. They enter into this profession through friends or relatives (who might be part of this profession or know about it) or through contractors that approach them directly with attractive offers of regular income. Teenage children often do not go to school, but instead, work for the bidi-merchants. They either earn a wage themselves or simply help their mother by sharing her work-load.

32

Given below are the background details of the participating bidi roller:

Age: 51% of respondents belong to the 26 to 45 years age group, while 22% are between 18 to 25 years. 22% fall in the 46 to 65 age group and only 5% respondents are in the 65+ age group. Thus 73% of the respondents are found to be in the 18 to 45 years of age bracket (chartJ1).

Sex: Women bidi rollers comprise 91 % of the total respondents while only 9% of the bidi rollers were men (Chart J2)Religion: Jangipur is predominantly a Muslim area. In the present survey, the majority – 72% were Muslims and 28 % were of Hindu religion (Chart J3).

Type of Residence: There are three types of housing seen in this area: Kuchha (built of mud and thatch), semi- pucca (built of mud and thatch, and also bricks and cement) and pucca (mostly cement and bricks). It is easy to gauge the economic level of dwellers from the type of houses they live in. In the survey area, 35 % of the respondents live in kuchha, 41 % live in semi pucca and 24 % live in pucca houses. In most of the cases, the houses comprised of one to two

rooms (Chart J4).

Literacy: 67% respondents are illiterate, while 33% are found to be literate, up to the primary level. The survey did find one graduate (Bachelor of Arts) rolling bidis, from home (Chart J5).

Chart J1: Age Distribution

22%5% 22%

51%

18-25 25-45 46-65 65+

Chart J2: Sex Distribution

MaleFemail

91%

9%

Muslim

Hindu

72.4

27.6

Chart J3: Religion

0 20.0 40.0 60.0 80.0

0 10 20 30 40 50

24

41

35

Chart J4: Type of Residence

Pucca

Semi Pucca

Kuccha

67

33

Literate Illiterate

Chart J5: Literacy Distribution

33

Given below is the summary table on the background:

Table J1

Distribution of the respondents by their background characteristics

Background characteristics %Age Group

18-25 22.40

26-45 51.00

46-65 22.00

65+ 4.60

SexMale 9.40

Female 90.60

ReligionHindu 27.60

Muslim 72.40

EducationLiterate 33.20

Illiterate 66.80

Type of residenceKuccha 34.60Semi Kuccha 41.00Pucca 24.40

Household Information

34

Family Size: 56% of the respondents have 5 to 8 members in their family, while 32% have a maximum of 4 members. The remaining 12% of respondents have families of more than 8 members, with a couple of respondents having 20 members in a family (Chart J6).

Number of tobacco users in a family: 26% respondents reported no tobacco users in the family. However, 66% respondents have admitted to having up to 2 members in the family who use tobacco. 7% the respondents have said there are 3 to 4 members in their family who use tobacco, while only 0.6% have more than 4 members in their family who use tobacco.

The study, since it was focused on adult bidi rollers, could not find out if there were tobacco users among children. The researchers of this study felt there were child smokers also among the families of bidi rollers. Easy access can be one of the main reasons for this. However, if there are children consuming tobacco, then they are in great danger, since they are likely to be affected by the use of tobacco, as well as, from the environment. At any rate, there are a large number of infants who are “lap-babies” and are, therefore, “passive-receivers” of the adverse effects of tobacco all through their infancy. (Chart J7).

Chart J7: Tobacco User per Family

More than 4

3 to 4

Up to 2

Nil

0.61

7.11

66.06

26.22

0.00 10.00 20.00 30.00 40.00 50.00 60.00 70.00

Chart J6: Family Size Distribution

60.00

50.00

40.00

30.00

20.00

10.00

0.00Upto 4

members5 to 8

members

More than 8 members

35

When respondents were questioned on whether they used tobacco in any form – like pan masala, guthka, Khaini or smoking bidis – the answer was mostly, “No”.

Only 11% admitted to tobacco consumption; off these 50% were male respondents

Number of bidi rollers in a family: When asked how many members of a particular household were employed in rolling bidis, 65% of respondents reported to having up to 2 members in the family in the profession; 23% of respondents said they had 3 to 4 members of their families in the bidi-making profession. 12% had more than 4 members in their families in this occupation (Chart J8).

The table below presents data in terms of family size and number of people rolling bidis:

Table J2: Percentage distribution of respondents: No. of bidi rollers for different family size group

Family Size group % of respondents in different family size-

group

bidi rollers (size-group)

1-2 members

3-4 members

>4 members

1 2 3 4 51-4 members (158) 32.0 86.1 (136) 13.9 (22) 0 (0)5-8 members (282) 56.0 63.8 (180) 26.2 (74) 9.9 (28)>8 members (60) 12.0 18.3 (11) 31.7 (19) 50.0 (30)Total (500) (327) (115) (58)Note: Figures in bracket shows actual number of respondents.

From column 2, one can observe that the majority (88%) of respondents’ family size falls in the first two groups. Thus, it looks like that in most cases only 1 to 2 members per family are rolling bidis. It was noted that most families with children did not report that the children in their

11.60

65.40

23.00

Chart J8: Bidi Makers in the family % distribution of respondents

Upto 2 members3 to 4 membersmore than 4 members

36

families also roll bidis positive responses towards that only emerged after cross checking with the question – how many children below 18 years of age helped their families in bidi-rolling. Therefore it seems fair to say that there was no intension of under-reporting, but the previous question was unclear. Based on the answers including the wages of the children are given below in Table J3.

Table J3: Distribution of respondents : Number of children below 18 years helping their families

Total Respondents : 191Number of children

Less than 2 2 to 4 5 to 6

101 89 1

Percentage 52.9 46.6 0.5

Though number of respondents who replied t o this question is less than 50% (only 191) of the total respondents surveyed, it can be seen from Table 2 that in the cases of 46.6% of those who replied, 2 to 4 children help their mothers in bidi rolling. In another 52.9% cases, at least 1 child is reported to helping their mother in this job. Even if we assume that there is no concealment of facts, no under-reporting of children being engaged in bidi rolling, a simple arithmetic shows 101x1 = 101, plus 89x3 = 267, comes to (101+267) = 368 children engaged in bidi rolling.

Starting Age: When questioned on how old they were when they started to roll bidis, the responses ranged from 20 % below age10. 71% between the ages 10 to 29 years; 8% at an age ranging from 30 to 49 years while there were 0.8% who started as late, as aged 50 plus.

The Gender Factor:Although no exact count was made but it was observed that there • are many more girls than boys helping the mother in her work of bidi rolling. Some girls who look not more than then the age of 6 or 7 were also rolling bidis.

It is indeed a serious cause for concern that a girl child is subjected • to tobacco related health hazards almost all her life as many of them

37

end up getting married in bidi rolling families.

Working condition: 99.8% were observed to be working from home. 0.2% said they worked in a factory. Out of the total respondents, 93.4% did not have any separate space at home for bidi rolling. They worked in their one, and occasionally, two-room tenements. Only 6.60% worked from separate space like a porch outside the room.

Hours of work: 57.3% worked for 5-10 hours per day; 39% worked for more than 10 hours per day and 3.7% workers worked less than 5 hours, daily (Chart J9).

Bidis Rolled per day: Data reveals that 89.8% of respondents roll up to 1000 bidis per day; 9% rolled 1000 to 2000 bidis per day and 1.2% rolled more than 2000 bidis per day (Chart J10)

Earnings: 69% of the respondents reported to earning as low as less than Rupees 1,000 per month while 28% reported their income to be within the range of Rupees 1,000 to 2,000 per month and 3.2% reported that they earned more than Rupees 2000 per month (Chart J11).

The study also found out the rate of bidi- rolling per 1000. Although the normal rate is Rupees 40 there are reports of some rollers making only Rupees 25 to 35 per 1000 bidis.

Chart J9: Distribution of working hours

100

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0 < 4 hours 5-10 hours >10 hours

3.70

57.29

39.01

Chart J10: Bidis Rolled per day100

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0>2000 1000-2000 500-1000

1.209.04

89.76

Chart J11: Earning per month: % distribution of respondents

1009080706050403020100

Upto Rs. 1000/ pe month

Rs. 1000 to Rs. 2000

per month

More than 2000 per month

69.00

27.80

3.20

38

The schedule of payment is mostly on a weekly basis. Some get paid daily and some receive payment on a monthly basis.

Table J4: Percentage Distribution of Respondents: Working Hours Vs Production Vis-à-vis Earning

The above table reveals data a bit more strategically. It indicates that bidi rollers who work less than 5 hours a day (3.70%) end up rolling less than 1000 bidis each day, thus earning less than Rs 1000 per month.

57.29% work for 5 to 10 hours a day and, 96% of them make up to 1000 bidis a day. The remaining 4% roll 1000 to 2000 bidis per day. This results in 82% of them earning up to Rupees1,000; 17% earn between Rupees 1,000 to 2,000 and less than 1% earn more than Rupees 2,000 for a month’s work.

Regularity of employment: Data shows that 83% of bidi rollers work full time throughout the year, 16% work part-time, and only 1.2% work seasonally. There is little doubt that the bidi industry has given employment to many, but the profession is laden with ruthlessness and inhumane treatment of women and children.

Leaving the occupation: Only 50% of the respondents answered this question on leaving the bidi rolling profession. Among them, only 6% answered by saying that they would like to leave this work. It is useful to note that these families already had at least one member who left this profession.

Working Hours

Respondents (percentage)

Bidis Rolled Per Day Earning per Month

500- 1000

1000- 2000

>2000 Up to Rs 1000/- per month

Rs 1000 to Rs 2000/- per month

More than 2000/- per month

< 5 hours 3.70 100.00 0.00 0.00 100.00 0.00 0.005-10 hours 57.29 96.06 3.94 0.00 82.44 16.85 0.72>10 hours 39.01 78.95 17.89 3.16 46.84 45.79 7.37

39

Effects of tobacco on Health: The following table describes the status of health of the sampled bidi workers

Table J5 : Percentage distribution of bidi-workers exposed to tobacco-related health hazards

Suffered from any illness in the recent past?

Yes 82.57

No 17.43

Suffering since when <one month 24.18

1-6 months 42.07

7-11 moths 14.11

<one year 19.65

Affected with no. of tobacco-related diseases

at least 1 type 5.26

2 to 3 types 64.91

4 or more types 29.82

Frequency of illness 1 to 2 times a year 53.87

3 to 4 times a year 23.71


Chronic 15.98

Treatment taken in govt. dispensary 68.44

private doctor/quacks 30.28

traditional method 0.43

home remedy 0.85

Can take enough test Yes 33.81

No 66.19

Chart J12: Respondents suffered from illness in recent past : percentage distribution

91%

83%17%

Yes No

40

The survey had a list of tobacco-related ailments in the questionnaire. Without mentioning them, questions were asked on what ailments the rollers suffered or had suffered from. It was found that 65% were suffering from at least 2 to 3 types of ailments, 30% suffered 4 or more different ailments, and 5% had been suffering from at least 1 type of ailment. The ailments mentioned are all tobacco related: namely coughing, persistent cough with fever, breathing problem, stomach ache, nausea, headache, lower backache, neck pain and skin irritation (Chart J13).

A few cases of TB, throat cancer, asthma, skin irritation, spondylosis and heart attack were reported. The survey found that approximately 68% of respondents go to the Government dispensary for treatment, while the rest go to private practitioners – the majority of whom are quacks.

The survey recorded 85 recent deaths in the families of the respondents which worked out to 18% - a shocking figure. Asthma and throat cancer are reported to be the main reasons for male deaths. Neo-natal complications and still births are also part of the statistics.

Health ID cards: All bidi rollers are entitled to receive health cards from bidi manufacturers. In the study sample, 49% reported to have health cards. Though, it was shocking to find that 57% of respondents had to take loans from

Chart J13: Responcents Suffering from number of ailments: Percentage distribution

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0At least 1

type2 to 3 types

4 or more type

5.26

64.91

29.82

41

various sources, including money lenders, to enable them to access medical treatment.

Awareness on tobacco’s impact on health: As mentioned earlier, bidi rollers are mostly illiterate. Not only that, they also seem to be cut off from any kind of knowledge updates or information on their own vulnerability. Although public awareness campaigns and electronic media are the easiest way to reach them, it was found that they have a low exposure to the electronic media and 90% do not watch television. This also reflects on another important aspect of their lives – they have no leisure time.

Economic base: The findings in Jangipur indicate that 87% of the respondents are not members of any self help groups (SHG). Their savings base is very weak and with a few exceptions, 86% of the respondents or their families do not have any bank account in any Gramin Bank. In case of an emergency they take loans. 57% of the respondents reported having taken loans recently – 55% took it from the money lender, while 22% borrowed from friends and relatives. 8% took loans from the Munshi at exorbitantly high interest rate.

Alternative Livelihood: The findings are represented graphically and in a tabular form below. 69% of respondents reported bidi rolling as their occupation because they had to other alternatives to a livelihood. 26% were unaware of other occupations. 91% respondents reported physical discomfort attached with the job. 86% of the total respondents said they are not happy in this profession and 97% expressed a desire to change their occupation.

Chart J15: Contentment with present occupation: % distribution

of workers

86%

14%

Yes No

Chart J16: Desire for a change in occupation

96.61%

3.39%

Yes No

Chart J14: Burden of Physical Discomfort: % distribution of

workers

Yes No

91%

91%

9%

42

Their choice of alternate occupations included tailoring (31%), food processing (21%) and handicrafts (28%) while the rest showed interest in animal husbandry (Chart J17).

Chart A17: Choice of Alternative Livelihood

2.69

0.0 5.00 10.00 15.00 20.00 25.00 30.00 35.00

Any other

I ndustrial job

Animmal husbandry

Gardening

Handicraft

Food processing

Tailoring

Weaving

3.31

6.63

27.74

5.80

21.53

21.53

30.64

43

This survey can be considered to be a baseline data to build interventions. Obviously more research is needed, but the data has clearly given an indication of areas of interventions needed to improve the situation of bidi-rollers and bring about a change in this sector. The data also indicates solutions in terms of what the bidi-rollers would like to do given the opportunity.

Table J6: Percentage distribution of respondents wanting a change in occupationChildren <18 helping their mother in bidi rolling

<2 52.882 to 4 46.605 to 6 0.52

Mother wants her Child to continue in the same profession

Yes4.95

No 95.05Mothers agreeing for child’s skill formation training

Yes 58.56No 41.44

Physical discomfort Yes 91.39No 8.61

Happy in this occupation Yes 13.67No 86.33

Why in this occupation No alternative 68.78No awareness of other occupation 26.16No skill 4.43Regular wages 0.21Any other 0.42

Alternative occupation choices

Weaving 2.69Tailoring 30.64Food processing 21.53Handicrafts 21.53Gardening 5.80

Animal husbandry 27.74Industrial job 6.63any other 3.31

Wants to switch over Yes 96.61No 3.39

44

case studies

Never Ending

Tale of Bidi

Rollers

45

I am probably the most unlucky woman in this world. Being a single earning member in the family, I am able to roll only 400 bidis a day, which helps me earn a meager wage to feed my three little children. I

should be rolling 1000 bidis a day, but my children and the household chores take so much of my time that it is not possible to roll that much bidis, ” laments Mili Bibi, , from Bagsirapar, aged 25, and a mother of three – aged 3, 1½ years. The youngest one is only 6 months old. Mili was married 5 years ago; after her marriage she, along with her husband, used to roll 1000 bidis a day, but one day, after getting deeply involved in disputes with money-lenders, her husband fled from home. This was almost 6 months ago. Her youngest son was only 4-days old when her husband disappeared. Mili feels that the income from

400 bidis is not enough to feed her three children. At the same time she also feels guilty that she does not dedicate adequate time to her children. Her daily wage is Rs 17 and is far from sufficient to fill the stomachs of her children, let alone take care of their nutritional needs. She uses this money to buy 500grams of rice and 1 Rupee worth of potatoes every day; she can only turn a deaf ear to the pleas of her children to be given rotis, vegetables, meat and fish. Money-lenders have been bothering her frequently about the money her husband owes them. She requests them to wait for his return, though no one has seen or heard from him in recent times. Her three-year-old daughter has been suffering from high-fever, but she cannot afford to buy medicines for her. It is too much trouble to take the ailing baby to the hospital, which is located far away from the village. Moreover, she believes that if she leaves her activities for even a little time, she precious bidi rolling time. She has no alternative resource, be it land, money or physical support. She weeps and says she sees no light in the future, and her plight has been unprecedented. She is helpless with three fatherless children – a great load for her to be carrying alone. Poverty hindered her education and she never studied. Mili, who is the youngest of seven brothers and sisters, started rolling bidis before she was 10 years old.

case studies

Mili Bibi

46

Anju Bibi from Bagsirapara village, aged 85, a widow, is probably the oldest bidi rolling member in the village. Married at the age of 10, she started rolling bidis straight after her marriage to support her in-law’s family. Being the only daughter of her rich parents, she never had prior the experience in bidi rolling. She brought with her 12 bhori (1 bhori = 10 grams) of gold, 3½ kg of silver, 2 sacks of utensils, a bed and a cupboard as dowry. A mother of 11 with 9 living and 2 dead, Anju has been living by herself, in a dilapidated shed. Her bad luck started when she lost her husband after 20 years of married life, followed by the death of her parents. Rolling bidis became the sole mode of sustenance. Though she

had rolled bidis all her life she did so only in her leisure time while her husband was alive. After his death she, had to put in all her time and energy into this occupation so as to earn a livelihood. Gradually she had to sell her jewelry and belongings to educate her sons and marry off her daughters. As a result she was left with nothing. Rolling bidis became a mode of survival. Anju Bibi has a lot of health problems like tumors in her stomach. She also suffers from rheumatism. Currently she rolls 200 bidis a day, earning a daily wage of Rupees 8 only. With this meager amount she barely manages one meal a day of only rice and potatoes, which is not sufficient for her advanced age. There are days when because of her ailments she is not able to any roll bidis and has to go without food. She has difficulty sitting on the floor for too long. She has 40 grand children from the large brood that she gave birth to; unfortunately, no one has come forward to take care of her. Despite this she reprimands no one but the bidi industry whom she has served all her life. She anxiously awaits her death.

case studies

Anju Bibi

47

case studies

Madhabi Khatun aged 7, from village Umarpur is one of the youngest bidi rollers with a fresh, but a gloomy outlook. She has been helping her mother

in rolling bidis since the age of 5. She goes to study in the nearby Madrassa and likes this a lot, but her mother and grandmother are keen that she learns the art of bidi rolling. Going to school is all right, but it is not going to fetch a livelihood for Madhabi and her family. With this ‘art’ her demand in the matrimonial-market also goes up and she will have security all her life. A girl is valued in her parents, as well as, her in-laws’ home, as she can help raise the family income. Bidi rolling is an ideal profession for a Muslim girl belonging to an orthodox family because it allows her to work at home. Madhabi rolls 400 bidis a day. It is not uncommon for her to miss school at times and also forgo her play time.

Kakoli Sarkar 18 years old, from Baksirapara village is a student. She has appeared for her high school exams and passed successfully this year. Like other adolescent girls of this village she also started rolling bidis from the early age of 12. Her father is a labeler in a bidi factory, her brother is an operator in a telephone booth and her little sister assists her in bidi rolling. She is very smart and efficient. Though she is well aware of the health hazards of her occupation, the lack of choice compelled her to take up this occupation. Being an identity card holder, she got financial help to go to school .She is worried that she may not be allowed to continue her studies further. She has complained of various health problems like irritation of eyes, persistent coughing, backache, headaches, to name a few. At times she gets bored with this job. She is well aware about self help groups (SHG) and their activities and is very keen to form such a group with her like-minded friends. However, she has been told that only bellow poverty line (B.P.L) card holders are eligible to form a SHG. It was felt that if guided and motivated properly, she can switch over to better options.

Madhabi Khatun

Kakoli Sarkar

48

case studies

Golapsa a cute little girl from Ghorshala village is accustomed to getting up early in the morning to go to the village mosque for prayers. She is 10years old and is a student of class V. Poverty compelled her parents to send her to live with her grandmother and maternal uncles. She goes for private coaching in the morning and rolls bidi after coming home. She is obliged to do what she is told as she is dependent on her relatives. She gets no time to play and has to roll bidis till 10 at night. She complains of pain in her eyes from working in insufficient light. She has no freedom in spending the money she earns by rolling bidis. Her parents dreamed of a better life for her, but their dreams are shattered.

Roshana Bibi a middle aged woman pioneered the bidi rolling occupation in Umarpur village. When Roshana got married 30 years ago, she was shocked to discover that no one in the village knew how to roll bidis. As she belonged to a bidi rolling family in Aurangabad, she knew the technique and felt that it would be a waste of her time and talent to abandon her bidi rolling activities. She therefore decided to roll bidis on her own. She used to insist on continuing this occupation by forcing her husband to bring the raw material from the neighboring villages where the ‘middleman’ used to regularly supply the necessary items for bidi rolling. In those days the women folk of the village used to be engaged in katha [kantha?] (a type of embroidery) stitching and production of

other handicraft artifacts. Inspired by Roshana Bibi’s bidi rolling art and the economic independence the income offered, other women got attracted to the occupation. Roshana Bibi very proudly reported that she was the one who trained all village women the craft of bidi rolling and her house used to be the training centre for the same. Ironically, while proudly reveling in the glory of those moments, she also reported a decline in her health condition – severe backache, spondylitis, skin irritation and vision problems started to surface. It is the same with the other women. Although they are thankful to Roshana Bibi for showing them a way to make money for themselves, they have suffered due to ill-health. They also feel that they are hooked on to this occupation and cannot go back to their former art, which they feel, in hindsight was better.

Golapsa

Roshana Bibi

49

case studies

Rojina Bibi of Baksirapara, Dhuliyan, and Murshidabad in West Bengal starts her day at 6 in the morning. At barely 25 years of age, she has already given birth to two children who are 4 and 2 years old and she is pregnant again. Like other women, she is simple and illiterate. Often at the time of the marriage proposal, a question is put to the girl on the number of bidis she can roll, but in Rojina Bibi’s case she asked how many bidis the prospective husband can roll. This is a reflection on her ability to roll bidis with much ease. She seems to be equally at ease rolling bidis during her pregnancy. She is totally unaware of the health hazards due to bidi rolling during pregnancy, she would roll bidis till she went into labour, she remarked. Except for TT injections, no ante-natal check ups were done on her during pregnancy. Her children look malnourished. Her husband is also engaged in the same profession. She is very keen to join a Self Help Group, but one has to have a B.P.L card before one can join S.H.G.

Abdul Bashir from Sulitala village is a 38 years old illiterate, landless laborer. He was the only son of his parents, whom he lost at the age of 10. Bidi rolling became his life very early on. He used to roll 700 bidis per day and in the process he became addicted to smoking bidis. One morning he complained about chest pain associated with fever and coughing. A couple of days later he observed blood in his sputum and went to the nearby village hospital for treatment. He was

discharged from the hospital after a few days’ treatment. At the time his wife was carrying her second baby. As a second opinion he consulted another doctor, who, after proper investigation, confirmed that he suffered from tuberculosis. The doctor forbade him to roll bidis, but to meet his family’s needs he was forced to work in a bidi factory. Despite that, his earnings fell way short of the family needs with the result that all his children are malnourished. At times he also works as a mason. His life is a story of never ending pain and sorrow.

Rojina Bibi

Abdul Bashir

50

case studies

Nasima Bibi of Sulitala village is a 55 year old hardworking housewife who lives with 4 sons, 2 daughters and her husband. All her children go to school. Her eldest son, Masood, appeared in the secondary examinations this year. Her husband can’t roll bidis; he works as a daily laborer, but is jobless most of the time. Nasima Bibi rolls bidis through day, sometimes till 11pm, earning a livelihood for her family and meeting the educational expenses of her children with her income. There were times when her family would ask her not to do such hard work as over time she had developed various physical ailments. It started with dizziness and weak eyesight, and then as she did not pay attention to her problems, one day she fell down and became unconscious. She was detected was hypertension. The very next day the left side of her body got paralyzed. After that she could not roll bidis. Now her eldest son rolls bidis in his spare time with the help of his brothers and sisters. The entire family lives in one room. They have a porch, the limited space of which is used for cooking, reading and bidi rolling. The children have no leisure time. Besides going to school and studying at home, the only other activity of the children is bidi rolling. This is a unique case of an afflicted mother and the lost childhood of her children.

Kaberun Khatun, 20, got married at the age of 18 to a boy, Zakiruddin, from her own village. Her husband used to work with the Union ‘Suraksha Bahini’ – which is connected to the police department. She lost Zakiruddin after 11 months of their marriage when her daughter Muskan was only 1 month old. Zakiruddin is said to have committed suicide by setting himself on fire. Till today she does not know what led him to do that. She suffers from pain. Her eyesight is weakening progressively. She has been rolling bidi since the age of 12 (6 years before marriage). She is one of the most educated girls in the village who completed her 10th standard successfully. She gets depressed because she is not healthy enough to roll more than 500 bidis daily, a number she achieves with a lot of difficulties. Finding no support from her in laws who have forsaken her completely she has returned to her parents

Nasima Bibi

Kaberun Khatun

51

case studies

house. She wants to do something other than bidi rolling. She would like to be an Anganwadi (village pre-school) worker since she is educated enough to do so. Her family members and relatives are asking her to get married again but she is not willing to. She has become rather weak and is unable to handle hard labor which she might have to undertake if she were to remarry. She would prefer to take care of her daughter who is very weak and malnourished.

Mamata Mondal a 40, years old childless widow, from Talai village, of Murshidabad, lives a life full of tragedy. The story began before her marriage; she was the youngest of 3 brothers and 2 sisters. Male members of their family were engaged in cultivation and the female members were engaged in bidi rolling. Mamata was disliked by others due to her inefficiency in rolling bidis. However, she got married to Subal Mondal of Lalpur village at the age of 16. Like his father, Subal was also a daily wage earner and was very hard working. After their marriage, Subal shifted to Talai village and lived in a small hut. Subal was addicted to smoking bidis. He used to smoke 35 to 40 bidis per day, consuming a large portion of the very bidis his wife was rolling. Due to hard labor, inadequate intake of food and addiction to smoking, he started suffering from chest pains. A few months later he started vomiting blood and was subsequently admitted to hospital, where he was diagnosed with Tuberculosis. It was too late and Subal passed away at a premature age leaving behind his wife in a destitute condition. Mamata was 25 when her husband passed away. For the last 15 years she has been earning her livelihood, Rs 10 per day, by rolling approximately 300 bidis per day. While other female rollers can roll much more she can. Her day begins at 6am, she rolls bidis till midday, after which she cooks, eats and rests for an hour. She has cannot roll bidis in late into the evening as she cannot afford oil for her lamp. She does not have a ration card and though her father and brothers live in the same village, they do not extend any help to her. Her bothers have grabbed the share of the land she was entitled to. Since she rolls bidis of Pataka brand, she gets 2 sarees during the festival of Durga Puja with which she manages for the whole year. According to her neighbors, she is the most distressed one in the village.

Mamata Mondal

52

Summary of the findings of Focus Group Discussions

FGD 1Target Group – Adolescent GirlsAge Group 13-19Participants 9Village - Lal Pur

The girls in this group are better bidi rollers and devote most of their time to rolling bidis. They all are educated up to primary level, except Aysha Khatoon who studied up to the 10th standard and then left her education. Some of the girls continue going to school, for the sake of going out, but are not able to pursue their studies seriously because of the work pressure at home. All the girls reported to rolling 800 to 1000 bidis for 10 hours a day Since most of them are minor (below 18 years) their employers have not provided them with ID cards, therefore they do not get any entitled facilities on their own right. Discussions with them revealed that these girls find their occupation very monotonous and boring. They have no choice, but to roll bidis. On the other hand they also reported that bidi rolling is a skill which is very much required in their community. In the marriage market bidi rolling girls are preferred by bidi rolling families. It is customary for the parents of a girl to give a

53

big dowry in marriage, and their bidi rolling helps their parents to save money for their dowry. If a girl fails to bring dowry she is mistreated by the in laws. Their mothers also tell them that they will get married only from the money they earn from bidi rolling.

When asked whether they would like to get married to a bidi rolling family, they all responded with a big,” NO”. At the same time they could not think of any alternatives for them. They remarked that it is the only occupation they know for a woman to support the family. They were open to suggestions for alternate employment. They would love to have leisure time to go out with friends and think of going to the river bank for a stroll in the evening. They also like going to the market place to buy some things for themselves, but they are unable to do all this due to time constraints. They are grateful that they are at least allowed to sit in a common place to roll bidis and not confined to their houses.

They suffer from numerous discomforts like frequent headaches, stomach aches, cough, chest pain, back ache and quite often, fever. They hardly take any medicines when they suffer from illness because the hospital is far away and private doctors located nearby are expensive.

FGD 2Target Group – Young BoysAge Group 9-13Participants 8Village - Lal Pur

This group is very enthusiastic and active and consider themselves to be expert bidi rollers who can easily roll 1000 bidis a day. They roll 100 bidis an hour and are always found competing with one another. They all study in school in different classes and enjoy going to school and playing around in the fields. Their parents discourage them from going out to places other than school. They have been told by their parents that if they want to go to school they have to roll at least 500 bidis a day. Moreover, if they have regular practice of bidi rolling it will help them in their future for earning some livelihood. These boys expressed their desires to go out on

54

outings which they are unable to do except for during the festival of Id. They look forward for the 3-day break when they do not have to roll bidis during this festive season. All these little boys complain about various ailments including irritation in the eyes (which disturbs in their studies), stomach pain, headache, back pain and a feeling of weakness. They feel that they have stomach pain because they have to roll bidi right after dinner. They all dream of eating a good meal, going to school and playing with their friends. They do know that this is unrealistic, but who knows? They say their dream might become true one day.

FGD 3Target Group – Girl childrenAge Group 9-12Participants 8Village - Lal Pur

All these young girls play an important role in their family’s economy by rolling bidis for an average of 9 to10 hours a day. They are students of 3rd and 4th standard, but going to school for them is secondary to helping their mothers with rolling bidis, which is more important. They all said that even during their illnesses they are not allowed to rest for long. They are forced to make bidis in order to manage the household. They are made to believe that this occupation is for girls only. Boys are not forced beyond a point to roll bidis and are allowed to play outside. All of them expressed their desire to play outside and take up their studies seriously, but at the same time they feel that unless they roll bidis they will not even be able to go to the school and have two square meals a day. It is simply amazing to find such young girls who say that they have to understand their family problems and support their parents. When asked what they would like the most: bidi rolling or studying, they did not know what to say. Initially they said both, but later on, very quietly, they all admitted that studying and playing would be preferred to bidi rolling any day. One could see lost childhood and suppressed dreams surfacing underneath the harsh realities of their lives. The fact that they hate to

55

have to sit constantly in the dark and dingy rooms with tobacco and tendu leaves in their hands was indeed very clear. They complain of stomach pain, neck pain and irritation in the eyes.

FGD 4Target Group – Married WomenAge Group 25-45Participants 8Village - Umarpur

The participants in this group are mostly illiterate and have been involved in bidi rolling for over 10-20 years. For them their rolling bidi is essential as a form of livelihood, as the income from the work that their husbands do is not enough to support the family. The husbands do not help them in rolling bidis. They work outside the village and their source of income is not regular. Their children do help as much as possible. According to them, although this profession looks simple, it is hard on them as they are sitting down continuously in the same posture which hurts their back, shoulders and feet. At the same time they cannot afford to rest for a single day. If they do, their children and other family members will go hungry for the day, since this is the only stable form of income they have. They said that their doctors often advised them to stop bidi rolling because of their multiple health problems, but they are afraid that they will face other life-threatening problems like hunger and deprivation if they stop this occupation.

They all know about SHG groups (they call them gosthi) and are willing to form these groups in order to learn new skills, but they have no idea how to start it. According to them there are lots of formalities involved in forming these groups and no one has the time to run around for this work as they are likely to lose precious bidi rolling time. In this particular village bidi rolling started only 25 years ago, before which, the women used to do their household work and make handicrafts in their leisure time. Men used to earn the livelihood for the family. The entire situation has changed now, and these women cannot imagine not rolling bidis for a single day, though, they all realized that despite this occupation is

56

providing them with sustenance, it is harming them in many other ways. They are in a helpless situation and seriously looking for alternatives to their predicament.

FGD 5Target Group – Young Lactating MothersAge Group 18-23Participants 6Village – Umarpur

Most of these women have been involved in bidi rolling before they got married, and have continued to carry on the profession even after marriage. Not only that, they are asked to roll more bidis when they are pregnant as they are excused from other heavy work during their pregnancy. They are unaware of the health complications of bidi rolling on the fetus with the result that many of them face serious complications before, during and after the child is born. Rolling bidis with infants in their lap is a common phenomenon here .The sad part is that even if they knew that this will harm their child, they have no choice but to continue.

They reported that their babies fall sick often, with vomiting, diarrhea and fever. They themselves complain of suffering from lack of appetite and sleeplessness. They are continuously fatigued with no energy to even speak. The effect of nursing a child on a hungry stomach is fatal both for the mother and the child. So is the experience of starting to roll bidis a week after the delivery.

FGD 6Target Group: Elderly women No. of participants: 6Age group: 55-65 years Village: Bagsirapara

This is a group of women with over 30 years of experience in bidi rolling. Some even have close to 50 years of experience. Their fingers do not know much beyond this activity. They cannot change their present form

57

of livelihood. According to them, they are destined to pursue this job throughout their lives since they come from bidi rolling households and cannot adapt to the conditions of an alternate means of livelihood in their old age. Most suffer from innumerable illnesses and are aware of the fact that bidi rolling is responsible for their condition. Because of all the health problems they cannot roll more than 500 bidis a day and they are content with this. They do complain about the lack of health care facilities and callousness on the part of their employers. When asked if they would like their children and grand children to get out of this profession, they expressed hopelessness. According to them this is the only profession that women sitting at home can pursue. Their last word was that no one can erase what is written in their fate.

59

Salient Findings of the Rapid Field Survey in Anand district, Gujarat.

Gujarat, the western most state of India, is one of the major tobacco growing and manufacturing states of the country. It produces 80% of country’s the bidi tobacco (ILO report, 2003), which is a different variety from cigarette or Virginia tobacco, and is stronger than cigarette tobacco. Due to proximity and easy availability to tobacco, a large number of bidi manufacturers started setting up their factories in Gujarat in the middle of the twentieth century, but after the Factory Act was passed in 1948, and the government of Gujarat decided to implement the provisions in the bidi factories, most bidi manufacturers started closing down their factories. However, those manufacturers remaining in Gujarat employed home-based workers and they are mostly concentrated in Anand, in Kheda district.

District Anand is located in the southern part of Gujarat. Its proximity to Ahmedabad, Vadodara and Gandhinagar has made the district an important industrial centre. Anand has a population of 16,47,759 as per the 2001 census with a sex ratio of 910 females per 1000 males. There are four rivers – Sabarmati, Mahisagar, Shedhi and Navida, flowing through different parts of the district thereby making the soil fertile for agriculture. The main industrial sectors include – food and agriculture, engineering and auto-parts, chemicals, ports and ship-building, minerals, cement and dairy products. The AMUL Dairy Co-operation has been instrumental in the white revolution of India. With a capacity of producing of 65,00,000 litres of milk per day and a turnover of Rs 43,05,00,00,000 (1,050 million USD), it is the largest dairy co-operative in Asia. About 13,141 village societies supply milk and a large number of villagers are engaged in the dairy sector.

There are eight talukas (blocks) in the district of Anand out of which three talukas – Borsad, Khambat and Anklav, are covered in the present study. Ten villages were covered from these talukas namely: Gorva, Manpura, Kalu, Badalpur, Dehavan, Khatna, Kanbha, Kalamsar, Bilpad and

CHAP

TER

3Ca

ught

in a D

eath

Trap

60

Khadodi. These villages were selected on the basis of the concentration of bidi workers. All these villages are located in the interior parts of the Anand district. The villages have a population ranging from 2000-3000 in the small villages, to medium villages with 4000-6000 people and large villages with a population of 7000-9000. Then there are villages which have 10000-11000 people residing there. On an average 20% of the population in these villages are engaged in bidi rolling, with men forming the majority of the workforce. Despite a progressive economic growth in Anand district, the villages in the study, lack basic facilities like health and education.

Focus Group Discussions, interviews with the respondents were undertaken to obtain in-depth knowledge on their living and working conditions. The major points noted through observations and interactions with the villagers are:

Bidi rolling is the primary occupation of this Hindu dominated village. • Bidis are rolled by the male members of the families.

Most families have another source of income as well. Every household • practices animal husbandry and supplies milk to AMUL dairy. The AMUL cooperative plays a pivotal role in providing alternative opportunity and supplementary income to the villagers in Anand.

Women are engaged in animal husbandry and agricultural work while • men sit at home and roll bidis.

Bidi rollers suffer from many common health problems like backache, • neck pain, cough and other bidi related health hazards. There were cases of T.B. and cancer among the bidi rollers in the surveyed area.

There is a lot of exploitation by middle-men and contactors, as reported • by the villagers, but they do not have much of an option and have to bear the exploitation to sustain their primary means of livelihood.

There is no prominent bidi union existing in the region to fight for the • rights of bidi workers.

There is no provision of provident funds, or other beneficial measures • from the bidi companies.

61

Given below are the background details of the participating bidi rollers

Age: (58%) of the respondents are between the ages of 26 and 45 years; 23% of the total respondents fall in the age group of 18 to 25 years. 17% fall in the 46 to 65 age group. Only 2% are older than 65. It can thus be said that 81% of the bidi rollers are found to be in the 18 to 45 age bracket (Chart A1).

Chart A1: Age Distribution

18-25 26-45 46-65 65+

17%

2%

23%

58%

Map of Anand District in Gujarat

62

Sex: As stated before bidi rolling is done primarily by males. Only 6.2% of the workforce is made up of female bidi rollers.

Religion: Anand is a predominantly Hindu area. There are no Muslims in this area. Hindu

Type of residence: 62 % of the respondents live in Kuchha houses while 36 % live in semi pucca structures and 2% live in pucca houses. In most of the cases, the houses are comprised of one to two rooms and almost every household has 1 to 2 cattle. The houses are clean and better- looking in comparison to the houses in Jangipur.

Literacy: Gujarat is a developed state of India. Literacy rate is high in this state. Only 16% of the respondents are illiterate. The rest are literate.

Chart A2: Sex Distribution

Male Female

2%

98%

Chart A3: Religion

Muslim

Hindu

0 20 40 60 80 100

0

100

Chart A4: Type of Residence

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70

62

Pucca

Semi Pucca

Kuccha

2

36

Chart A5: Literacy Distribution

Literate Illiterate

84%

16%

63

Background characteristics at a glance:

Table A1 : Distribution of the respondents by their background characteristics

Background characteristics %

Age Group

18-25 23.20

26-45 58.60

46-65 16.60

65+ 1.60

Sex

Male 97.80

Female 2.20

Religion

Hindu 100.0

Muslim 0.00

Education

Literate 84.40

Illiterate 15.60

Type of residence

Kuccha 61.72

Semi Kuccha 36.27

Pucca 2.00

64

Household Information

Family Size: 52% of the respondents have 5 to 8 members in their family. Another 42% of the respondents have up to 4 members. The remaining 7% have more than 8 members in their families (Chart A6).

Tobacco users in the family: 20% of the respondents reported that there are no tobacco users in their families. 71.6%of the respondents admitted to having up to 2 members in the family who use tobacco. It was found that 7.4% of the respondents have 3 to 4% members of their family using tobacco while 1% reported more than 4 members in their family who use tobacco (Chart A7).

No. of bidi makers: 86% of the respondents reported that they have only 2 members in their families engaged in this profession, whereas 11% said they have 3 to 4 members in their families in the bidi rolling profession, while 3% respondents reported they have more than 4 members in their families occupied in rolling bidis (Chart A8).

Chart A6: Family Size Distribution

60

50

40

30

20

10

0Upto 4

members5 to 8

membersMore than 8 members

42

52

7

Chart A7: Tobacco User per family

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80

20

Morethan 4

3 to 4

upto 2

nil

1

7.4

71.6

16%

Chart A8: Bidi Makers in the family % distribution of respondents

10.62 3.01

86.37

65

In order to find the relationship between number of bidi makers and family size, a cross-classification is done between these two variables.

The table below presents bidi rollers according to the family size:

Table A2: Distribution of respondents: No. of bidi rollers for different family size group

Family Size group % of respondents in different family

size-group

bidi rollers (size-group)

1-2 members

3-4 members

>4 members

1 2 3 4 5

1-4 members (208) 41.6 92.3 (192) 5.8 (12) 1.9 (4)

5-8 members (259) 51.8 84.6 (219) 13.1 (34) 2.3 (6)

>8 members (33) 6.6 69.7 (23) 15.2 (5) 15.2 (5)

Total (500) (434) (51) (15)

Note: Figures in bracket shows actual number of respondents.

It is found that

In 92% of the cases if the family has 4 members, up to 2 will be • rolling bidis. In the remaining 8% almost every member in the family is working in this profession.

When the family size is comprised of 5 to 8 members, in 85% cases, 1 • to 2 members work in bidi rolling profession, in 13% of the cases 3 to 4 members are seen to be rolling bidis and the rest, 2% have more than 4 members engaged in this profession.

When the family size is comprised of more than 8 members, in 70% • cases, 1 to 2 members work in bidi rolling profession, in 15% of the cases 3 to 4 members are rolling bidis and in 15% cases more than 4 members are engaged in this profession.

It shows that in most families, irrespective of family size, at least 1 to 2 persons are engaged in bidi rolling profession.

66

Working condition: 76% were observed to be working from home. 24% said they worked in a factory. Out of the total respondents, 59% did not have any separate space for bidi rolling. They worked in their 1 or 2 room (in rare cases) tenements. 42% worked from separate space like a common shed outside their hutments.

Hours of work: 93% work for 5 to 10 hours per day. 5% work for more than 10 hours per day. Only 2% workers worked less than 4 hours daily (Chart A9).

Bidis Rolled per day: Data shows that 99% of the respondents roll up to 1000 bidis per day. 0.4% rolled 1000 to 2000 bidis per day and 0.2% said they rolled more than 2000 bidis per day (Chart A10).

Earning: 82.2% of the respondents reported earning less than Rs 1,000 per month. 17.40% reported their income per month to be between Rs 1,000 to 2,000 while 0.40% reported they earned more than Rs 2,000 per month (Chart A11).

The survey gathered the following information too:

The going rate for bidi rolling here is 1. Rs. 60 for 1000 bidis. However they are demanding that it be raised to Rs 65.

Men are observed to roll up to 1000 2. bidis in a day by working for 12 hours. Women because of other additional chores are able to roll between 500-600 bidis a day.

Chart A9: Distribution of working hours

100

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0< 4 hours 5-10 hours >10 hours

1.60

93.20

5.20

100

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0>2000 1000-2000 500-1000

0.20 0.40

99.40

Chart A11: Earning per month: % distribution of respondents

1009080706050403020100

Upto Rs. 1000/ per month

Rs. 1000 to Rs. 2000

per month


82.2

17.40

0.40

Chart A10: Bidis Rolled per day

67

There is a middleman (dalal) in all the villages. Often he is from the 3. village itself. His job is to distribute raw material and collect the finished bidis.

An attempt was made to see how many make a specific amount by working for specific hours. The table below shows these calculations:

Table A3: Distribution of Respondents: Working Hours Vs Production Vis-à-vis Earning

Working Hours

Respondents (percentage)

Bidis Rolled Per Day Earning per Month

500- 1000

1000- 2000

>2000Up to

Rs1000/- per month

Rs1000 to Rs2000/- per

month

More than 2000/-

per month< 5 hours 1.6 100.0 0.0 0.0 87.5 12.5 0.05-10 hours 93.2 99.4 0.4 0.2 83.0 16.5 0.4>10 hours 5.2 100.0 0.0 0.0 69.2 30.8 0.0

Bidi rollers who work less than 5 hours a day (1.6%): 100% of them • make less than 1000 bidis each day, and 87.5% of them earn less than Rs1,000 per month. The remaining 12.5% earn between Rs 1,000 to 2,000 per month.

Those who roll bidis for 5-10 hrs a day (93.2%): 99.4% of them make • up to 1000 bidis a day. The remaining 0.6% makes more than 1000 bidis per day. 83% of these workers earn up to Rs.1,000 per month; 16.5% earn between Rs1,000 to 2,000 and less than 1% earn more than Rs 2,000 in a month.

Those working for 10 hrs a day (5.2%): 100% of them roll up to 1000 • bidis a day. 69.2% of these earn up to Rs.1,000 per month; 30.8% of them earn between Rs 1,000 to. 2,000 per month. There is not a single respondent reported to be earning more than Rs 2,000 per month.

Although the earnings from bidi rolling are reported to be higher in Anand than in Jangipur, the earnings per hour seems to be more or less the same. Hence it can be said that the plight of bidi rollers is same

68

irrespective of the development of the place they belong to. Data seems to suggest that bidi rollers across the country are exactly in the same pitiable condition.

Employment: Data shows 83% of the bidi rollers work full time throughout the year, while 16% work part-time throughout the year. Only 1.2% work seasonally.

It is to be noted that even though the profession of bidi rolling is far from being desirable, those who work in it get addicted to it and have hard time to weaning themselves away from the profession.

Leaving the occupation: Reports show that only 3% have left this occupation. Main reasons for leaving was shown to be health followed by the possibility of alternate job prospect.

Effect of tobacco on Health

Table A4 : Distribution of bidi-workers exposed to tobacco related health hazards


Yes 19.92

No 80.08

Suffering since when <one month 11.11

1-6 months 22.22

7-11 moths 6.06

<one year 60.61

Affected with no. of tobacco-related diseases

at least 1 type 38.37

2 to 3 types 41.86

4 or more types 19.77

Frequency of illness 1 to 2 times a year 66.35



Chronic 17.31

Treatment taken in govt. dispensary 79.82

private doctor/quacks 17.54

traditional method 0.00

home remedy 0.88

69

20% respondent said they have suffered from some or another kind of illness in the recent past. 11% of these respondents have been suffering from a month. 22% have been suffering from the last 1 to 6 months and almost 67% have been suffering for more than 6 months (Chart A12).

The survey had a list of tobacco-related ailments in the questionnaire. Without mentioning them, questions were asked on what ailments they had been suffering from. It is found that 41.86% are suffering from at least 2 to 3 types of ailments, 19.77% are suffering from 4 or more types of ailments and 38.37% had been suffering from at least 1 type of ailment. The ailments are all tobacco related; namely coughing, persistent cough with fever, breathing problem, stomach ache, nausea, headache, lower backache, neck pain, skin irritation (Chart A13).

A few cases of T.B. were also reported, as were throat cancer, asthma, skin irritation, spondylosis and heart attacks. The survey found that the majority, 79.82%, were going to the Government dispensary for treatment. The rest went to private doctors and quacks for treatment.

Table A5 : Recent death in the families of respondent bidi-rollers

No.

Child Male 3

Child Female 0

Adult Male 24

Adult Female 19

Total 46

Chart A13: Responcents Suffering from number of ailments: Percentage distribution

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0At least 1

type2 to 3 types

4 or more type

38.37 41.86

19.77

Chart A12: Respondents suffered from illness in recent past :

percentage distribution

Yes No

91%

80%

20%

70

The survey shows there have been 46 recent deaths in the families of the

bidi-rollers (that comes to 9.2%) which is shocking.

Health Support: bidi manufacturers are supposed to provide health ID card to workers. The present survey found only 5% of workers to have

received the health ID card.

Awareness: Media like TV is a powerful tool to spread awareness and change attitudes. To assess their exposure to the electronic media, they were asked whether they watched television. This was also to judge their leisure and ‘enjoyment quotient’. 88% have answered they do not watch T.V.

Economic Condition: The survey found 98% of the respondents are not members of any SHG. They do not even have any saving base to protect them. Barring a few, 90% of the respondents or their family members do not have any bank account in any Gramin Bank.

Alternative Occupation: A staggering 91% of the respondents have reported they are in this occupation because there is no alternative.


Any other

I ndustrial job

Animmal husbandry

Gardening

Handicraft

Food processing

Tailoring

Weaving

0.0 10.00 20.00 30.00 40.00 50.00 60.00 70.00 80.00

2.24

14.91

75.57

1.45

1.45

1.86

2.90

1.24



Yes No

91%

69%

31%

Chart A15: Contentment with present occupation: % distribution

of workers

80%

20%

Yes No

Chart A16: Desire for a change in occupation

96.77%

3.23%

Yes No

71

7% respondents have said they have no awareness of any other occupation. 80% of the total respondents said they are not happy in this profession. While choosing the alternative occupation from a group of choices, 3% chose tailoring, 74% chose animal husbandry. Whatever their choices may be, one thing is for sure, most of them – 97% – wanted to switch over from the present occupation.

Table A6 : Distribution of respondents wanting a change in occupation

Physical discomfort 30.99Yes

69.01No

Happy in this occupation 20.49Yes

79.51No

Why in this occupation 91.23No alternative

7.02No awareness of other occupation

1.17No skill

0.58Regular wages

0.00Any other

Alternative occupation choices 1.22Weaving

2.85Tailoring

1.83Food processing

1.42Handicrafts

1.42Gardening

74.19Animal husbandry

14.63Industrial job

2.44any other

Wants to switch over 96.77Yes

3.23No

An additional set of questions were asked to the bidi workers of Anand, majority of whom are also bidi smokers, to find out about their knowledge and views on pictorial warnings on the bidi packets. The question of pictorial warning on bidi packets has been a crucial one since very beginning. VHAI along with other partners has been actively involved with

72

various campaigns and policy level advocacy in relation to this crucial issue.

While the present study is focused on the health and related vulnerabilities of the bidi rollers / workers, the research team to the opportunity of enquiring some additional questions to the respondent to elicit information on graphic warnings.

Out of the two areas surveyed, Jangipur is the place which has maximum female bidi rollers both young girls and women. These women do not indulge in smoking. However in Anand, most of the bidi rollers are men and they are smokers too. Hence, in Anand, additional questions were

73

evolved (appendix-III) and a subset of the bidi rollers was asked those questions.

These questions rendered the following findings:

53%. of the respondents are bidi smokers 1.

51% of the bidi-rollers smoke the bidis that they roll.2.

The smokers remarked that they would smoke bidis even if they were 3. not available to them free of cost. They are addicted and will continue smoking bidis

They smoke maximum of 50 bidis and a minimum of 10 bidis a day. 4.

73% believe that bidi-smoking is harmful for health. 5.

They get such information from newspaper, television, radio, word of 6. mouth, etc.

79% agreed that a health warning given on 7. bidi packets would be of help to inform about the harmful effects of bidi smoking.

All the 79% respondents spoke in favour of pictorial warnings on 8. bidi packets—saying that they will inform and motivate the user for quitting bidi smoking.

This survey has revealed the state of affairs in the home-based sector of bidi rolling industry in the surveyed area. It seems, that in order to find a solution to the problem, additional research, which involves in-depth and formative research will have to be undertaken with an objective to tap all the stakeholders and see what they can do to achieve what will be best for the bidi rollers.

74

case studies

Laments of bidi-

Rollers: from

Anand

75

case studies

Ramanbhai Solanki 38 years old bidi roller lives in the Gorva village. His tale is very touching. He has been suffering from mouth cancer for the last two years. It is extremely difficult for him to role bidis in this state. He has difficulty sitting for prolonged periods, but financial constraints compel him to roll bidis to support his family. He has 8 members in his family and very few alternative sources of income. He works for 4 hours daily and earns about Rs 20 to 30 each day. His elder brother rolls about 500-700 bidis and earns about Rs 35 to 50 each day. To support his large family and to continue his treatment he has to borrow money from various people. He has no ID card or health insurance policy issued by his employers. He had to sell his

small piece of land for Rs 15,000 to enable him to get treatment for his cancer. He has not been able to pay back the loan so borrowing more money is very hard. Since his children are very small, his wife cannot go out for work to supplement the family income. Even though Ramanbhai knows that bidi rolling is not a healthy occupation, he continues to do it to support his family which has no alternate source of income. According to Ramanbhai, bidi rolling has not provided him with an income that is sufficient to make savings from. If bidi- rolling has given him anything, it is ill-health. He wonders when his health would be restored.

Bikram Bhai Kodabhai Makwana, aged 17, is an adolescent who often thinks of ending his life before it has the opportunity to blossom fully. A resident of Manpura in the Aklav taluka, his is a story that paints a grim picture of underdevelopment and neglect in parts of a state like Gujarat that is fast progressing in the fields. Bikram Bhai is a Hindu whose social and financial condition is miserable. He had to leave his education in his childhood to start bidi rolling to support his family. Due to the strenuous job he could not continue his study or his interest in sports. He started bidi making to assist

Bikram Bhai Kodabhai Makwana

76

case studies

his father in supplementing the family income. He learned bidi making from his friends. Bikram Bhai gets the raw material from the contractors. He works from his home and rolls about 800-1000 bidis in 8-10 hours and earns Rs 800-1000 in a month. He is sustaining the ration requirements of seven members of his family. Even though Bikram knows that bidi making is injurious to health, he continues to do the same out of necessity. He is aware of the bidi workers health card and ID card issued to employees by the Central Government. Even after repeated trials he could not get one. He had approached the government departments several times but he has been told that fresh cards are not being issued by the central government anymore because of which he has not able to get the benefit given to the bidi workers by the central government. Due to the limited income of the family he is wondering how he will marry off his two sisters.

Fathesi Banesi Solanki aged 50, lives in Khatana, in the Borsat taluka of Gujarat. He lost his parents at an early age and had to start working to support his siblings. Since he could not get any other job he had to take up bidi rolling. His family consisted of his wife, one child and his own sisters. Unfortunately his wife died, so he sent his daughter to her maternal uncle. She was later married off, but the marriage did not work out and she had to come back to her uncle and she was married off for the second time. Fathesi’s sister was married but her husband died and she returned to her brother’s house. Now, the siblings depend on bidi making to earn a living. Fathesi makes 250-300 bidis a day and earns Rs 20-25 as his daily wage. This is not sufficient to sustain this large family’s daily needs. Fathesi’s health is not in good shape either, since he has been suffering from asthma for over a year. He has the Health Card issued by the government, with which he is entitled to medicines from the hospital in the city, but it’s of no use as he cannot meet the transport expenses go to the hospital in the city. He has no other source of income and is unable to do any other job due to his advanced age

Bharti Ben Parmar aged 25, resident of Gorva in the Borsad taluka was three months pregnant at the time of this interview. She lost her husband recently and has four remaining family members that she needs to support in the absence of her husband. This compelled her to take

77

up bidi rolling even though she is rather unhappy doing this. Due to her pregnancy, she is able to make 300 to 400 bidis per day and earn Rs 25 to 30 only which is insufficient to meet the basic daily expenses of her family, let alone enable her to get proper nutrition during her pregnancy. She is not able to visit her parents or relatives because of her bidi job. Even though she owns some unirrigated agricultural land she has not been able do any farming. She knows that bidi rolling can lead to cancer and is likely to harm her fetus, but she has no option, bidi rolling is the only alternative given the circumstances. She feels bad that she is not able to care for her unborn child. Since her village is located in a remote area, the government services for pregnant women and immunization services are not easily accessible. She is not able to stick to any healthy diet suggested by the doctors. She does not have a Health Card or an ID card, and therefore is not entitled to any benefit from them. This is a case where the unborn child is in danger. Bharati Ben is ready to do any other job but she is not able to find one.

Amrut Bhai Solanki , aged 13, a resident of Gorva in the Borsad taluka, is a child with disabilities from a poor family. He wants to study and play around with his friends, but his parents cannot afford to bear the expenses and he had to start rolling bidis. Amrut’s father is also a bidi worker whose financial condition is so bad that he can not afford to provide healthy meals for the whole family. The family was self-sufficient until the birth of Amrut, but he had to sell off whatever land and property he had to pay for Amrut’s treatment. Amrut’s father is a traditional bidi worker. Now, he works for 7 to 8 hours and makes 300-400 bidis which gets him about Rs 25-35, an amount that is barely sufficient to meet household expenses. He has no money left for his personal needs and has to ask for monetary support from his father. He is not aware of the hazards of bidi rolling nor does he have an ID or Health Card. Amrut’s contribution is helping the family in meeting its day-to-day needs, but they are unable to save any money for any future needs that might be needed for Amrut’s wellbeing. This is creating a lot of unrest in the family.

Raju Bhai Solanki , aged 16, is a resident of Khatana. He has studied up to second Standard, but due to his poor financial and social condition he

case studies

78

had to give up his studies. Raju wants to study and progress in life and is ready to do any work to support his studies. He would have liked to work on a farm, but they are land less. So he learnt rolling bidis from his friends. He has been rolling bidis for the last year to support his education. He makes about 700 to 800 bidis a day and earns Rs 35 to 40 per day. With this money he has to support his family too and which leaves him with very little to spare for his studies. He is not sure how long he can go on doing this. He gets depressed thinking that he may be able to study further, the way he wanted. Raju blames government school teachers, village leaders and family members for his plight.

Vikram Bhai Solanki, aged 50, lives in Khatana. He is the eldest son of the family and is response for the welfare of the entire family. He is a disabled man due to which he is unable to look after his family well. Despite being disabled, he managed to get some education, but his financial problem compelled him to discontinue his studies and take up the profession of bidi rolling. He makes 500 to 800 bidis per day for which he earns Rs 30 to 40. His father too is involved in bidi making, but due to his old age he can make only 200-300 bidis a day for which he earns Rs 20 to 25. Vikram Bhai knows the hazards of bidi making, but he has no options. He is one of the lucky ones to get an ID card from his employer. Though he gets his medicine free, traveling expenses are too high to go that far. He wants to get rid of this monotonous occupation, but his disability and lack of experience to do anything else ties him down to this home-based profession. He has a debt of Rs 2000 which he is unable to repay.

Ravji Bhai Parmar , aged 70 years, lives in Gorva. Due to his unfavorable family and financial circumstances, Ravji Bhai had to learn bidi making from his friends at a very young age. He has been rolling bidis most of his life. At present, he manages to roll 100 to 200 bidis a day and earns Rs 10 to 20 daily. He is all alone; his family members have forsaken him. He is not illiterate and is not aware of any welfare schemes. He does not have any ID or health card. He is living a very sorry life.

Zada Behan Parmar, aged 47, lives in Badalpur. She has been involved in

case studies

79

bidi making for the last 25 years. She is a widow and this is a way for her to support her family. She makes 500 to 600 bidis a day and earns about Rs 30 to 40 per day. She has five children – four daughters and one son bidi making was a skill she picked up after her marriage. She started off as a part-time bidi maker, but after her husband’s death she was compelled to take it up as a full time occupation. Since her earnings are insufficient to meet the basic needs of her family, she had to get her children involved in bidi making. She had a small plot of land, but it was sold to finance her husband’s death rituals. Zada and her children are not getting any help from the government. She doesn’t have a health card or an ID Card. She could not give enough education to her children due to her financial constraints. She is aware of some of the dangers of bidi rolling. Her health has not been good, she suffers from back pain, eye problems and stomach pains. She worries about the future of her daughters and their marriage, as she gets older. She has no resources or any other means to meet such a huge expenditure. Her son is not old enough to shoulder her responsibilities yet. Moreover since her son could not continue with his education, he cannot find other jobs.

Kalu Bhai Parmar, aged 75 years, is a resident of Khatana. He lost his parents when he was young and being the eldest in the family all the responsibility to support the remaining family, fell on him, and he started bidi rolling from the age of 12. Kalu Bhai’s uncle was a bidi roller and he helped Kalu Bhai to learn this trade. Over time he got so used to the work, that even today, at age of 75 he continues to rolls bidis. Bidi rolling has been the main source of his livelihood for decades now; in fact his whole family is in this profession. At the start of his bidi rolling career, he used to get Rs.2 per 1000 bidis and it now fetches him Rs65 per 1000 bidis. However, one must note, that the increase in wages have not improved life as the prices for commodities have also risen many fold He is aware of the hazards of bidi making. In fact he is suffering from asthma, gastric problems and skin irritation and has complained of headaches over the last year. Moreover he has almost lost his vision. He is so experienced that he can roll without looking into the tray to fetch the raw tobacco. He and his family members do not see the industry improving in any way. The drudgery is likely to continue.

Kalu Bhai Parmar

case studies

81

CHAP

TER

4Summary and Recommendations

Till recent times, tobacco control programmes have focused on reducing the burden due to cigarette consumption. This study is an advocacy tool to examine the truth behind the arguments put forth by the bidi industry about protecting the employment and welfare of its workers. This study reveals the real and ruthless face of the bidi industry, whose workers are among the most exploited in the country. It brings to light the appalling working conditions of workers of this unorganized, home based sector from select pockets of West Bengal and Gujarat.

The Indian government has developed various laws and policies to monitor the conditions of bidi workers but the reality is that these have done little to improve their lot. Every time, civil society takes up the issue of implementation of legislations related to the COTPA, especially pictorial warnings, the bidi industry and its articulate spokespersons are quick to bring up the issue of employment and the lakhs of livelihoods that will be affected. The industry claims that bidi workers will be displaced by stricter tobacco control legislation and that tobacco control measures threaten their livelihoods.

It is important therefore to look at the actual facts that are emerging out of this study which are as follows:

Employment aspects

There are about 300 manufacturers of bidi brands and thousands of small, local-level manufacturers and 4.4 million workers, largely engaged in the unorganized, home-based sector of this industry. In the backdrop of the existing facts on bidi industry our study reinstates that there is widespread exploitation particularly, of women and children in the industry and at the hands of middlemen, sub-contractors and factory owners.

Caug

ht in

a Dea

th Tra

p

82

Poor wages

As per this study, 76% of bidi rollers earn a paltry Rs 33 per thousand bidis rolled, which may take upto 12 hours or more a day. This is much below the minimum wage fixed by the government and barely enough to support an average family of 5-8 members. Women are paid less for the same amount of work. It can be imagined that a family consisting of a single woman and her children or an aged woman must be earning far less, considering the number of hours they can put in at a stretch.

Deplorable working conditions

Exposure to hazardous substances: The data yielded by this study shows that most of the bidi workers are unhappy with their profession and working conditions. Whether young or old, men or women, the complaint is the same - the bidi industry is a merciless one with the single objective to exploit. Workers live a life of misery, constantly handling hazardous substances, exposing themselves to the risks of contracting TB, asthma, lung, skin, spinal problems among other diseases. Women and children share the greatest burden – most women work with infants on their lap who are continuously exposed to tobacco dust, fumes and other harmful substances. There is clear evidence available which states that women bidi workers have higher rates of miscarriage than the national average. Because they are poor, they are invisible in health statistics, and their causes of death remain unrecorded.

Harmful effects of bidi smoking among bidi workers

In addition, most of the male bidi workers are also bidi smokers. The nature of their job makes bidis available directly to them and eventually they all end up as habitual smokers. This is an additional job risk and women as well as children are constantly exposed to second hand smoke. Recent studies have shown that bidis are equally or more harmful than cigarettes – bidi smoking

83

increases the risk of TB, chronic bronchitis and respiratory diseases. It is a well known fact that almost 6,00,000 people die from bidi smoking in India annually. Secondhand smoke is a known cause of lung cancer, heart disease, low birth-weight babies and chronic lung ailments such as bronchitis and asthma (particularly in children).

Lack of Basic Medical Facilities

Despite innumerous health problems, the bidi workers are not provided with any primary health care services which are easily accessible to them. The only hospital, established by the Government, for the bidi workers in Mursidabad is defunct for all practical purposes as it is too far from the villages and there are no medicines available. Bidi workers can not spend so many hours, from their busy schedule of rolling bidis, to reach the hospital. Earning their daily bread is more important than spending time traveling to the hospital.

Flouting of labour laws

The bidi industry is very cleverly evading the provisions specified under the labour laws – the Child Labour Act 1986 and the Bonded Labour System (Abolition Act 1976). The bidi manufacturers have perpetuated the myth that they are providing jobs for the poor, mostly women in the “safety of their homes” and facilitating the continuity of household work along with bidi rolling. Data has revealed that in the name of “door-step”, “at-home employment”, the bidi industry conveniently exploits innocent and gullible women by not having to pay the minimum wages as recommended by government. In stark contrast are fine, successful examples of SEWA, VHAI’s Kala Aparajita and other self-help groups who are working in home-based enterprises.In a matter of 8-10 years, many of these self-help groups have accumulated shared capital worth lakhs of rupees, transforming home-based workers to proud micro-entrepreneurs

84

Childhood Betrayed

The bidi industry claims that they contribute to the country’s economy and export revenues. But underneath all this, lies a system of deceit. Child labor is rampant in the bidi industry, evident from our first hand experience in both the locations. Children pitch in to help their mothers, fathers, or relatives with rolling. They work nearly all day with no breaks on holidays and on school days – rolling 200 bidis before reaching school and resuming work after return, without any wages. Their voices are never heard. Most children, particularly girls discontinue education after primary level after which they have no access to educational or other career opportunities and certainly no way of experiencing a normal childhood. To see children lead excruciatingly tragic life of drudgery day after day and continuously exposing themselves to hazardous substances is the singlemost hard breaking finding of the study. Occurrence of asthma tuberculosis, respiratory and skin diseases among them was found to be very high.

The bidi industry is an industry that debilitates and keeps its workers in perennial poverty

The study supports the known fact that apart from the fact that bidi smoking kills 6 lakh people annually in India, rolling as a profession harms everyone associated with it. Bidi rollers, including men, women and children suffer from multiple illnesses like lung, skin, TB and other chronic ailments which debilitate them and prevent them taking any other profession later in their lives. This also forces them to remain in this occupation pushing them further into poverty and debt at the hands of middlemen.

Bidi workers want implementation of pictorial warnings

One of the important findings from Anand, Gujarat reveal that the bidi workers, majority of whom are bidi smokers, are in favour of pictorial health warnings on bidi packets. About 73% of the workers agreed that bidis are harmful to health and 79% felt that picture-based health warnings are important on bidi

85

packets, at least to protect the younger generation from its harmful effects.

Alternative livelihoods

The study’s most important finding is that over 95% of bidi workers want to shift from their present occupation provided other livelihood opportunities are available to them. The bidi workers have started realizing about the ill effects of their occupation, especially the younger generation. Most of them have complaints about physical discomforts involved in bidi rolling. At the same time they also expressed that it is difficult for them to venture into alternatives for themselves because they cannot simply imagine a life beyond bidi rolling as they have done it all their lives.

Recommendations

Transparency and accountability of bidi industry

As stated before that the study found a complete lack of transparency in the way the bidi industry operates. To begin with the workers do not even know which manufacturers are they working for. The middlemen are the only links between the workers and employers. The home-based workers do not have any ID cards issued by the bidi manufacturers through which the workers can demand their legitimate rights or benefits due to them. Due to this loophole, so far the bidi industry has been operating in a completely unaccountable manner, flouting labour laws and welfare measures meant for the bidi workers. The study recommends a fool-proof registration system and issuing of ID cards to all the workers and contractors by the manufacturers so that the stipulated benefits can reach them.

Strict enforcement of all labour laws and welfare measures

The study recommends the immediate enforcement of the provisions under the Bidi and Cigar Workers (Condition of Employment) Act 1966,

86

Bonded Labour System (Abolition Act) 1976 and the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation )Act 1986 as well as the Bidi Workers Welfare Fund Act, 1976, Bidi Welfare Cess (Amendment) Act, 1976, Employee State of Insurance, 1948 to improve the working conditions of bidi workers and provide them their rightful benefits under the prevailing laws of our country.

The National Rural Employment Guarantee Act

Implementation of poverty alleviation programmes like the NREGA of Government of India can be an immediate alternative solution for the bidi workers which will fetch at least a hundred days of employment to one member in each family at the rate of at least Rs.60/- per day. It was found out during the study that the benefits of NREGA are yet to percolate in the bidi rolling villages of West Bengal and Gujarat.

Implementation of ICDS (Integrated Child Development Scheme) and SSA (Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan) programmes

The study recommends the implementation of the above schemes of Government of India in the bidi rolling areas, which would encourage and motivate bidi workers to send their children to school, avail the free educational opportunity, Improving the nutritional status of the children and enable both women and children to derive the benefits stipulated by the government. Our study shows that there is a high level of school drop-outs, particularly in case of girls. Through SSA there should be compulsory elementary education to all and there should be additional incentives for families where children are able to complete school education. There is also an urgent need to link them with vocational training facilities such as Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) and Industrial Training Centres (ITCs) according to local market needs.

Amendment and enforcement of Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation Act) 1986

The bidi rolling industry forces the involvement of children as part of a working family. Currently, India’s child labour laws do

87

not cover children who help with family chores and this loophole allows the bidi employment of children in bidi rolling at home. But hazardous work like bidi rolling can not be considered as household chores. This study recommends that the provisions of this Act be strictly enforced with immediate effect to prevent engagement of young children in this occupation at the cost of a lost childhood.

Immediate interventions by stakeholders

The study recommends that it is the responsibility of central, state, local governments and civil society to see that rehabilitation and alternate livelihood measures are implemented for safeguarding the lives of bidi rollers. It has been observed that even in progressive states that have championed the rights of workers, like West Bengal have failed to protect and work towards the upliftment of this vulnerable, marginalized section.

Pictorial Warnings on Bidi Packets

The study strongly recommends that labeling bidi packets with pictorial health warnings should be made a top priority to inform the consumers of the harmful effects of bidi smoking. Since bidi consumers mostly belong to lower socio-economic groups with low literacy levels, they are less likely to be aware of health consequences, greater proportion of them smoke and consequently larger number of them suffer from smoking related illnesses. Ironically, every time the issue of pictorial warning on bidi packets comes up, the bidi industry makes a hue and cry arguing that millions of workers would loose their employment. In reality this argument is totally deceptive. The study clearly indicates that this occupation has only given them a life of misery in which they are trapped until rescued by death.

Tax increase on bidi

The study recommends that the tax on bidis should be considerably increased to narrow the price difference between bidis and cigarettes

88

to reduce bidi smoking, and the distinction between handmade and machine-made bidis should be abolished. The current taxation system of bidis allows the industry to freely evade paying taxes, taking advantage of the fact that manufacturers producing less than 2 million bidis a year are exempt from excise duty (Emil Sunley, 2008). To fit into this norm, large factory owners show production units and figures in fragments or as home-based units to evade excise duty liabilities and maximise their profits

Utilization of bidi cess

The bidi cess and related benefits apply only to registered companies and workers having an identity card. The findings of this study show that majority of workers do not have ID cards and hence are not entitled to welfare measures. The study strongly recommends that all bidi workers should be registered after a detailed survey process to enable them to receive their entitlements.

Safer, alternative livelihoods

The question of alternative livelihood for the bidi workers is a crucial issue. It is extremely important that whatever alternatives are suggested, it should take into account the lifestyles of the bidi rollers, their needs and constraints. It is imperative that the alternatives must keep aspirations of the community in mind, while shifting them to sustainable, more renumerative micro-enterprises and providing linkages with financial institutions. There are numerous successful examples such as SEWA, VHAI’s Kala Aparajita and other self-help groups elsewhere in the country who are working in home-based enterprises. Through series of need based vocational trainings, in matter of 8-10 years, many of these self-help groups have accumulated shared capital worth lakhs of rupees, transforming home-based workers to proud micro-entrepreneurs.

We hope that the findings and recommendations of this study would throw light on the issues and serve as an advocacy tool during interface with policymakers and implementing authorities. This will also help civil society to motivate and inspire bidi workers to become aware of the hazards of their profession, acute exploitation by the industry leading to a strong demand for a more secure future.

89

Appendix 1:

Comparative Summary Table Percentage Distribution of Respondents*

Murshidabad (West Bengal) and Anand (Gujarat)

Variables Jangipur Anand

Age

18-25 22.40 23.2026-45 51.00 58.6046-65 22.00 16.6065+ 4.60 1.60

SexMale 9.40 97.80Female 90.60 2.20

Religion Hindu 27.60 100.00Muslim 72.40

Type of ResidenceKuccha 34.60 61.72semi kuccha 41.00 36.27Pucca 24.40 2.00

Family sizeupto 4 31.60 41.605 to 8 56.40 51.80more than 8 12.00 6.60

No. of tobacco Users

Nil 26.22 20.00up to 2 66.06 71.603 to 4 7.11 7.40more than 4 0.61 1.00

Bidi makersupto 2 65.79 86.373 to 4 22.67 10.62more than 4 11.54 3.01

LiteracyLiterate 33.20 84.40Illiterate 66.80 15.60

Use of tobaccoYes 11.34 75.00No 88.66 25.00

90

Place of workHome 99.80 76.00Factory 0.20 23.80any other 0.20

Separate spaceseparate space 6.60 41.07family space 93.40 58.93

Hours of work<4 hours 3.70 1.605-10 hours 57.29 93.20>10 hours 39.01 5.20

Bidis rolled per day

>2000 1.22 0.201000-2000 9.15 0.40500-1000 89.63 99.40

Earningupto Rs.1000/- per month 69.00 82.20Rs.1000 to Rs.2000/- per month 27.80 17.40more than 2000/- per month 3.20 0.40

Nature of employment

throughout the year : full time 82.55 94.99throughout the year : part time 16.22 4.21Seasonal 1.23 0.80

Regular WageYes 97.74 98.80No 2.26 1.20

Has any family member left bidi occupation

Yes 6.12 2.83

No 93.88 97.17

Reason for leaving

Ailment 60.00 64.29better job prospect 26.67 14.29married off 6.67 7.14other reason 6.67 14.29


Yes 82.57 19.92

No 17.43 80.08

Suffering since when

<one month 24.18 11.111-6 monts 42.07 22.227-11 moths 14.11 6.06<one year 19.65 60.61

Degree of illness?

atleast 1 type 5.26 38.372 to 3 types 64.91 41.864 or more types 29.82 19.77

91

Frequency of illness

1 to 2 times a year 53.87 66.353 to 4 times a year 23.71 9.625 to 6 times a year 6.44 6.73Chronic 15.98 17.31

Treatment taken in

govt. dispensary 68.44 79.82private doctor/quacks 30.28 17.54traditional method 0.43 0.00home remedy 0.85 0.88

Enough restYes 33.81No 66.19

Any death in family

Yes 18.24 9.20No 81.76 90.80

Watch TV Yes 10.33 11.87No 89.67 88.13

SHG Yes 13.31 1.61No 86.69 98.39

Bank AccountYes 14.34 9.68No 85.66 90.32

Women wages More 0.00Same 39.64Less 60.36

Wage disparityMore 0.91 0.00Same 20.23 31.43Less 78.86 68.57

Any loan Yes 42.64 1.27No 57.36 98.73

Reason for loan

marriage of daughter 27.41 16.67child education 7.11 16.67Sickness 51.78 0.00house repairing 7.11 0.00any other 8.63 66.67

Source of loan

Employer 7.61 16.67Relatives 22.34 0.00money lender 55.84 0.00Bank 11.68 83.33SHG 2.54 0.00

92

Health card Yes 48.83 4.86No 51.17 95.14

Children <18 helping

<2 60.00 88.892 to 4 39.05 11.113 to 5 0.95 0.00

Child to continue Yes 4.95 44.44No 95.05 55.56

Skill training Yes 58.56 66.67No 41.44 33.33

Facility at school

health card 2.99ID card 0.75midday meal 58.21free tuition 32.84any other 5.22

Physical discomfort

Yes 91.39 30.99No 8.61 69.01

Why in this occupation

no alternative 68.78 91.23no awareness of other occupation

26.16 7.02

no skill 4.43 1.17Regular wages 0.21 0.58any other 0.42 0.00

Happy in this occupation

Yes 13.67 20.49No 86.33 79.51

Alternative occupation

Weaving 2.69 1.22Tailoring 30.64 2.85food processing 21.53 1.83Handicrafts 21.53 1.42Gardening 5.80 1.42Animal husbandry 27.74 74.19industrial job 6.63 14.63any other 3.31 2.44

Wants to switch over

Yes 96.61 96.77No 3.39 3.23

* per household 1 respondent

93

ANNEXURE II

Salient Findings: Comparative Graphical Representation

A Comparison of percentage distribution of respondents between districts of Jangipur (West Bengal) and Anand (Gujarat)

Chart J1: Age Distribution

Chart J2: Sex Distribution

18-25 26-45 46-65 65+

Male Female

22%

9%

5%22%

51%

Chart A1: Age Distribution

18-25 26-45 46-65 65+

17%

2%

23%

58%

Jangipur (West Bengal)


Anand (Gujarat)

Anand (Gujarat)

Chart A2: Sex Distribution

Male Female

2%

98%91%

94

Chart J3: Religion

Chart J4: Type of Residence

Chart J5: Literacy Distribution




Anand (Gujarat)

Anand (Gujarat)

Anand (Gujarat)

Muslim

Hindu

0 20 40 60 80 100

0 10 20 30 40 50

72.4

35

27.6

Chart J3: Religion

Muslim

Hindu

0 20 40 60 80 100

0

100

Pucca

Semi Pucca

Kuccha

24

41

Chart A4: Type of Residence

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70

62

Pucca

Semi Pucca

Kuccha

2

36

33%

67%

Literate Illiterate

Chart A5: Literacy Distribution

Literate Illiterate

84%

16%

95

Chart J6: Family Size Distribution

Chart J7: Tobacco User per family




Anand (Gujarat)

Anand (Gujarat)

Anand (Gujarat)

Chart A6: Family Size Distribution

60

50

40

30

20

10

0Upto 4

members5 to 8


42

52

7

60

50

40

30

20

10

0Upto 4

members5 to 8


32

56

12

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70

26.22

Morethan 4

3 to 4

upto 2

nil

0.6

7.1

66

Chart A7: Tobacco User per family

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80

20

Morethan 4

3 to 4

upto 2

nil

1

7.4

71.6

Chart J8: Bidi Makers in the family % distribution of respondents

11.60

23.00

65.40

16%

Chart A8: Bidi Makers in the family % distribution of respondents

10.62 3.01

86.37

96

Chart J9: Distribution of working hours

Chart J10: Bidis Rolled per day



Anand (Gujarat)

Anand (Gujarat)

100

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0

100

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0

< 4 hours

>2000

5-10 hours

1000-2000

>10 hours

500-1000

3.70

1.20

57.29

9.04

39.01

89.76

Chart A9: Distribution of working hours

100

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0 < 4 hours 5-10 hours

>10 hours

1.60

93.20

5.20

Chart A10: Bidis Rolled per day

100

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0>2000 1000-2000 500-1000

0.20 0.40

99.40

97

Chart J11: Earning per month: % distribution of respondents

Jangipur (West Bengal) Anand (Gujarat)

100

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0 Upto Rs. 1000/ pe month

Rs. 1000 to Rs. 2000

per month


69.00

27.80

3.20

Chart A11: Earning per month: % distribution of respondents

100

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0 Upto Rs. 1000/ pe month

Rs. 1000 to Rs. 2000

per month


82.2

17.40

0.40


Chart J12: Respondents suffered from illness in recent past :


Yes No

91%

83%17%



Yes No

91%

80%

20%

98


Chart J13: Responcents Suffering from number of ailments: Percentage distribution

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0At least 1

type2 to 3 types

4 or more type

5.26

64.91

29.82

Chart A13: Responcents Suffering from number of ailments: Percentage distribution

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0At least 1

type2 to 3 types

4 or more type

38.37 41.86

19.77


Chart J14: Burden of Physical Discomfort: % distribution of

workers

Yes No

91%

91%

9%



Yes No

91%

69%

31%

99


Chart J17: Choice of Alternative Livelihood




Anand (Gujarat)

Anand (Gujarat)

Anand (Gujarat)

Chart A15: Contentment with present occupation: % distribution

of workers

80%

20%

Yes No

Chart J15: Contentment with present occupation: % distribution

of workers

86%

14%

Yes No

Chart A16: Desire for a change in occupation

96.77%

3.23%

Yes No

Chart J16: Desire for a change in occupation

96.61%

3.39%

Yes No

75.6

1.2 2.9 1.9 1.4 1.4

14.9

2.53.3

2.7

30.8

21.55.8

6.6

27.1

100

APPENDIX-3

SAMPLE SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE

State of Health and Economic Conditions of Workers in the Unorganized Sector

Respondent No:

Name* :_______________________________________________________

Q1. Age: 1 18 -25 2 26-45 3 46-65 4 65+

Q2 Sex: Male 1 Female 2

Q3 Religion: Hindu 1 Muslim 2 Christian 3 Buddhist 4 Jain 5 Sikh 6 Other 7 Specify _____________

Q4 Caste: SC 1 ST 2 OBC 3 General 4

Q6 Nature of occupancy: Rented 1 Owned 2 Any Other 3

Q7 Type of Residence: Kuccha 1 Semi Kuccha 2 Pucca 3 (to be observed &filled)

Q8 Size of Residence 1 One Room 2 Two Rooms, 3 More

Q9. Individual Information

9.1. How old were you when you started working in the present occupation?

<10 years 10-29 years 30-49 years 50-69 years >=70 Years

9.2. Can you read or write? Only Read Only Write Both None

1. literate 2. illiterate

(*Do not insist, if not willing to disclose name)

101

9.3. How many years of schooling could you complete?

1.Primary2. Middle3.Secondary4. More (specify_____)

9.4. How did you get into this present occupation?

Traditional(Family business) Through Contractors Through Friends/Relatives Please specify__________

9.5. Do you use tobacco? Yes 1 No 2

Q10.Working Environment/Condition

10.1 Place of work (not to be asked, but to be observed and filled in by the interviewer)

Home Factory Any other(please specify_______________

10.2 If working at home is there separate space for Bidi rolling or are the workers using their family space? (not be asked, but to be observed and filled in by the interviewer)

1.Separate Space

2.Family Space

10.3. How many hours a day do you spend in this work?

<4 hours 5-10 hours more than 10 hours

10.4 How many Bidis do you roll in a day? (if they are unable to tell the exact number, put average by calculating the weekly production)

More than 2000 Bidis per day 1000 -2000 Bidis per day 500-1000 Bidis per day Any other (specify)

10.5 How much do you earn daily/weekly/monthly as a wage for your work?

Rs.______ daily Rs.______ weeklyRs._______ monthly

10.6 Are you being paid wages regularly for your work?

Yes 1 No 2

102

10.7 Have any of your family members who used to be engaged in this occupation, left working Bidi industry recently?

Yes 1 No 2

10.8 What was the reason for his/her leaving this occupation?

Ailment Better job prospect elsewhere Married off others

Q11. Impact on Health

11.1 Have you had any serious illnesses in the recent past? ( If no, skip to Q12.6)

Yes 1 No 2

11.2 If yes, you are suffering from the illness since:

a. <1 month b.1-6 monthsc. 7-11 monthsd. >=1 year

11.3 What kind of illness Coughing Persistent couth with fever Breathing problem Stomach ache Nausea Headache Lower Backache Neck pain Skin irritation Any other(please specify)____________

At least 1 illness At least 2-3 illness At least 4 illness- More than 4 illness

11.4 Where do you go for treatment when you face such illnesses? (Do not mention the options)

Government Dispensary Private Doctors/Quacks Traditional Methods/ Hakim Home Remedy Any other(please specify)

11.5 Can you afford to take enough rest while you are sick, for your recovery?

Yes 1 No 2

11.6 Has any member in your family died in the recent past? (If no, skip to 12.10)

Yes 1 No 2

103

Q12. Economic Life

12.1 Are you part of any Self Help Group (SHG)?

Yes No

12.2 Do you or any of your family members have a Grameen Bank account?

Yes No

12.3 Do you earn the more, same or less as wages than the male workers? (For Women only)

more

same

less

12.4 Have you/your family members ever taken any loan?

Yes No

12.5 What was the reason for taking the loan?

marriage of daughter

education of children

sickness in the family

repairing of house

Any other(please specify)

12.6 From where did you take the loan? 1. Employer

2. Relatives/friends

3. Money lenders

4. Bank

5. SHGs

13. Alternative Livelihood

13.1 Do you feel that your job give you physical discomforts/ you get frequent health problems?

Yes No

13.2 If yes, why are you sticking to this unhealthy occupation?

Do not have any alternative

Not aware of any other occupation

No skills for other work

Regular wages are available

Any other(please specify)

104

13.3 Are you happy/satisfied with your present occupation?

Yes No

13.4. Do you find your job monotonous? Yes No 13.5. Given an opportunity, what kind of

occupation would you like to take up?

Weaving

Tailoring

Food Processing

Handicrafts

Gardening

Animal Husbandry

Industrial Job

Any other

13.6. If you are given training in these skills, would you like to switch over to another occupation?

Yes No

Signature of the Interviewer:

Name of the Interviewer:

Date ___________________

105

Appendix 4Additional Questions on Pictorial Warnings for Bidi Rollers who Smoke in Anand, Gujarat

1. Do you smoke? Yes No

2. Do you smoke the same bidis that you roll? Yes No

3. Would you smoke even if they were not available at home? Yes No

4. How many bidis do you smoke in a day? Number……………..

5. Do you think bidi smoking is harmful for health? Yes No

6. If yes, how do you know about it? Source…………….

7. If, no, would it help if there is a health warning on the bidi packet?

Yes No

8. Would it help if there is a pictorial warning, which shows the harmful effects of smoking, on bidi packets?

Yes No

106

Roll out better life for them, says study Aarti Dhar

“Women bidi workers have no access to schemes’’

• 72% bidi workers in Murshidabad are women

• Workers not aware of legal rights

• Access to healthcare minimum

• Wages fixed on piece-rate basis

MAINSTAY: A woman worker rolling bidis near Kolkata in this file photo. Women bidi workers in West Bengal earn around Rs. 25 a day.

NEW DELHI: As the world observes Labour Day, the Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA)-Bharat has drawn the attention of the Government towards the plight of bidi-rollers in Murshidabad district of West Bengal.

It has sought registration of bidi-rollers, particularly women, as lack of identity cards prevented its members from having access to Government-funded schemes, a survey conducted by it on bidi-rollers of Murshidabad suggests.

— Photo: Reuters

Appendix 5

News Clippings

107

Self-help groups

The study titled `Hands That Roll Bidi’ is a socio-economic survey of bidi-rollers from Murshidabad where 72 per cent of the workers in the industry are women.

It also recommends that the district administration should also look for alternative jobs for them to improve their quality of life. The findings have been submitted to the Murshidabad District Magistrate.

It has pointed out that the workers were not aware of their legal rights and the Bidi Workers’ Welfare Schemes and there was an urgent need to create awareness among them.

The survey has recommended promoting Self-help Groups (SHGs), cooperatives and even association of bidi-rollers to help them to gain access to financial credit and insurance.

Major share in income

The SHGs can be linked with Government training institutions for upgrading skill of various economic activities, the study points out.

“Bidi seems to be the major source of income of the surveyed households. It was found that the percentage of working women in total population of the surveyed households exceeds men and a majority of them are in the bidi industry while the remaining in agriculture.’’ The study that also says that on an average, bidi-rollers contribute 55.41 per cent of the total income of the families studied. While the average size of the family was 6.87, average number of working members were 3.7 and average members working in bidi industry stood at 2.6.

The proportion of women in bidi rolling industry was 72.4 per cent as it was their primary occupation. As rolling could be done at their houses a woman could end up preparing 610 bidis a day.

108

But the rate of minimum wages was fixed on a piece-rate basis — the traditional measure being 1,000 bidis. Though the State wage rate was Rs. 39 a 1,000 bidis, the rollers were actually paid Rs. 35.30 as contractors rejected bidis for lack of quality and specifications.

The report also says that the bidi rollers often suffered from posture-related problems and complained of pulmonary diseases due to inhaling of nicotine.

Their access to health facilities is minimum and there is a dearth of basic infrastructure in the clusters of Shamshergunj and

Raghunathgunj blocks where the survey was conducted.

109

Other side of smoke rings: Bidi harms consumers and its makers equally

Express News Service

Kolkata, April 28 40-year-old Mastura Bewa, from Murshidabad, has had five operations in the last two years, including those of two tumours. There is no guarantee that there won’t be more such operations. Yet, she is forced to continue with the occupation of rolling bidis that has caused her so many ailments. Rukiya Bewa has been rolling bidis since she was of 12 years. It has adversely affected her health. Yet she can’t quit her job. The reason ? She has three sons to feed and educate and there is no other job she can do.

At the Bidi and Public Health Media Conference, where these two women narrated their experiences, unveiled many truths about the bidi manufacturing industry and consumption.

Bidis outsell cigarettes by a ratio of 8:1 in India. “A popular myth prevails that bidis are not as harmful as cigarettes, but it is hardly true,” said Prof. M Siddiqi, Honorary Chairman, Cancer Foundation of India, Kolkata and one of the speakers in the conference. Bidis releases more carbon monoxide, tar and nicotine than cigarettes and can thus be much more harmful and make its users more vulnerable to terminal diseases, like cancer.

The hazard lies not only for the users, but also for the makers. More than 8 million people are employed in the bidi manufacturing industry. In Murshidabad, for rolling a 1000 bidis, one is paid only about Rs.30-37. Says Rukiya Bewa, “I have admitted my children to school, but I have no money to admit them into high school.” Mastura adds, “We have lands, but no money to even build a house.” In fact the economic situation of people around the area is so pitiable, that even children are absorbed into bidi rolling, in a bid to earn some extra money.

110

Besides financial problems, these workers are often afflicted with various diseases. Bidi rollers suffer from asthma, anaemia, tuberculosis, giddiness, postural and eye problems, and gynaecological diseases. Even when bidis are stored in houses, people may experience nausea and headache.

Speakers in the conference expressed disappointment that the law, of posting visual health warnings on bidi packs to warn its largely illiterate or semi- literate consumers has been passed in 2003 but has still not been implemented.

Abul Kalam Azad, who works with an NGO in Murshidabad said that the government has recently started giving many free benefits to these people. “It is important to provide these people with an alternate source of employment, especially the women, who comprise the chunk of bidi rollers.”

111

Ministry’s paper poses threat to bidi sectorAshok B Sharma, May 19, 2008

New Delhi, May 18Bidi tobacco is cultivated in around 30% of the total area under tobacco crop and its production accounts 33% of the total tobacco production. About 2,90,000 farmers grow bidi tobacco in India and around 4.4 workers are employed in production of bidis. This employment-oriented sector has become controversial with a recent paper of the Union ministry of health and family welfare entitled – Bidi Smoking and Public Health Hazards.

The director of the Karnataka-based Centre for Multi-Disciplinary Development Research (CMDDR), RR Panchmukhi, health scientist of the US-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Trevor Woollery and SN Nayanatara of CMDDR who jointly contributed a paper on bidi economic for the report found that India alone accounts for more than 85% of the world’s bidi production. Bidi is widely used in other Asian countries like Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Singapore and Malaysia. It is a poor man’s substitute for cigarette and consists of 0.2-0.3 gram sun-cured smoking tobacco loosely packed and rolled inside a rectangular piece of dried tendu leaf and tied with a cotton thread. Tendu leaf or Diospyros melanoxylon is the main non-tobacco component of bidi.Tendu leaf is flexible, durable and widely available in Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. Around 150,000 tonne of tobacco and 30,000 tonne of wrapper tendu leaves are used annually for manufacture of bidis.

In the mid-1990s, a niche overseas market, particularly in the US, was developed for flavoured bidis (strawberry, cherry, chocolate) and has become viable and profitable for foreign exchange earnings. India accounts for 85% of the world’s bidi production. The average yield of

112

bidi tobacco is 1000 kg per hectare in Karnataka , 1800 kg per hectare in Gujarat and 1300 kg per hectare in Maharashtra. Despite lower yield, Karnataka Nippani bidi tobacco is considered to be of superior quality.

In Karnataka bidi tobacco cultivation has also increased the fertility of the soil. According to an assessment done by the study shows that 13% of the bidi tobacco growers are below the poverty line, 49% are of middle income group and 38% are of high income group.

According to the Union health ministry study bidi tobacco is a Nicotiana tobacum variety, unlike the Virginia variety used in cigarettes. The quasi-governmental body, the Tobacco Board of India regulates the production and marketing of flued-cured variety (FCV) tobacco, while production of other varieties of tobacco are governed by contracts with traders and companies. The Union health ministry’s reports comes at a time posing new problems to the higly employment-oriented bidi sector in the country.

Pranabda Sells Economics To Cowherds & Bidi WorkersApr 25, 2004

Jangipur, MurshidabadThe Sangh Parivar and Uma Bharati would be scandalised to see this perversion of their model of a bovine economy. It is a thriving business in West Bengal’s Murshidabad district, once home to Nawabs and now a transit point for cattle going to Bangladesh from India’s cow belt.

And many an Indian company would be put to shame by the size of the profits being raked by bidi-makers, another big industry in this district.

Welcome to Jangipur, a Muslim majority constituency from where Pranab Mukherjee, senior Congress leader and former Union minister, is making his third bid to the Lok Sabha. The first two failed.

Never a man of the masses, the suave and articulate, and a veteran of the Rajya Sabha, Pranab babu is not cowed down by having to address

113

election rallies of cowherds and bidi-makers. And irrespective of the audience, he speaks on his core competencies:- disinvestment, the public sector economy, pluralism et al.

His would-be voters are masters of their own economy, an economy that thrives on cattle sent to Bangladesh’s food markets than on what the World Bank or International Monetary Fund say.

The North Indian/Aust-ralian breed has high demand in Bangladesh. The attendants earn Rs 300-400 for each cow sent over the border. The cost of the cow is separate, and is collected by middlemen who organise everything.

The trade has created a black economy worth over Rs 600-700 crore a year, with 15,000-20,000 heads of cattle crossing the border daily.

This is second to the second-largest economy — the bidi industry. This reports an annual revenue of Rs 900 crore.

Pranab babu, meanwhile, lectures them on the “destruction” of the country’s syncretic culture by the BJP and the systematic demolition of the public sector economy. He reckons that these subjects will appeal to people in an area where nearly 60 per cent of the voters are Muslims, and disguised unemployment is high.

For the 6,00,000-odd impoverished bidi workers, many of whom are housewives, Pranab babu is a heavyweight candidate. For them, he is the man from Dilli, the ultimate symbol of clout and money.

Who cares if he is only the chairman of the Congress(I)’s economic reforms committee! So while he is more at ease with macroeconomic issues and national politics, he has no takes on either the illegal cattle trade or on making the bidi manufacturing an organised industry.

According to a local government official, “for Pranab babu cattle trade is a sensitive issue. If he talks of stopping it he will be antagonising the voters and if he is favours it, BJP might use it in the Hindi heartland where cow is literally a holy cow!”

114

French hand in food plant

Our Correspondent, July 17, 2005

Behrampore (Murshidabad), July 16: Chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee today said a Rs 380-crore food processing project with French collaboration would soon come up at Jangipur, about 250 km from Calcutta.

“The proprietor of Pataka Bidi Company, Mustaque Hossein, has undertaken the ambitious project in collaboration with a French concern. If everything goes according to plan, the project will come up by the end of the year,” Bhattacharjee said.

The chief minister said he had introduced Mustaque to the French agriculture minister in Calcutta last year. “During his visit (to France), he signed an MoU (memorandum of understanding) with the French.”

The plant will come up on a 70-acre plot, he said. Bhattacharjee announced that the company would produce glucose from potato, among other things. “The French government and companies will buy most of the products.”

Moving on to other projects, the chief minister said Ambuja Cement has decided to use fly ash from a National Thermal Power Corporation plant in Farakka to manufacture cement at its factory there.

“The setting up of industries at Jangipur and Farakka will change the character of the subdivision. A large number of local youths will get employment,” he said.

Bhattacharjee inaugurated a project through which the animal husbandry department will distribute 10 lakh chickens and ducklings among 1 lakh women in the district at a nominal cost.

Source: http://www.telegraphindia.com/1050717/asp/bengal/story_5000469.asp

115

Armchair challenger

Subrata Nagchoudhury

Jangipur (West Bengal): Besides, Jangipur is the core of a thriving multi-crore Bidi industry in Bengal. It generates crores of rupees as ‘‘cess’’ to the government but not much of it had ever been ploughed back into Jangipur’s development. The 600,000-odd Bidi binders, mostly women and children, are victims of a exploitative trade practice—controlled largely by middlemen—earning as little as Rs 35 for binding 1000 Bidis.

Source: http://www.expressindia.com/news/election/fullestory.php?type=ie&content_id=46390

Pictorial warnings can’t be repulsive: Pranab Express news service

New Delhi, January 16. The Union Health Minister’s ambitious plan to introduce pictorial warnings on the tobacco products seem set for more delay with External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee saying that the pictorial warning on cigarettes packets and other tobacco products cannot not be “totally repulsive”. Mukherjee, who heads the GoM looking into the issue of pictorial warning, also stressed on the need to rehabilitate those engaged in Bidi manufacturing…

...The other consideration was the fate of “lakhs of people” employed with the tobacco industry. Of the 16 lakh people in his constituency of Jangipur in West Bengal, “6 lakh people” were Bidi workers, Mukherjee said. He said efforts were on to rehabilitate them through alternative sources of employment, like agro-based industries.

Source: http://www.indianexpress.com/printerFriendly/262365.html

116

Hindustan Times Govt plans vocational training for beedi workers

Prasad Nichenametla, July 2, 2008

With lakhs of beedi workers across the country worried about their livelihood if the government strictly implements the health warnings on the beedi packs, the Ministry of Labour and Employment is coming out with vocational training programmes for such workers.

To ensure that the beedi workers don’t lose their livelihood incomes, the Ministry would provide vocational training programmes for them with which, the affected workers can easily switch over to new trades, an official of the Ministry told Hindustan Times.

According to the Ministry, the estimated number of beedi workers in the country is 50.53 lakh. While West Bengal stands first with 10,74,531 workers, Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh follow with 9,87,088 and 7,35,000 workers respectively.

Workers who have passed class 5 or above and attained 14 years can undergo training with vocational training providers like Industrial Training Institute (ITIs) and Industrial Training Centres (ITCs) according to local market needs. As most of these beedi workers are women, the Ministry even wants to take the programme to their neighbourhood. “We will work out the possibilities of imparting training through Central and State government organizations like the Central Board for Workers Education or the State Women and Child Development Board or NGOs,” the official said.

117

References

Aghi, Mira B, Women’s Participation in Health Policy Formulation in 1. India: Towards Promulgation of Cigarette and other Tobacco Products Bill, paper presented at a panel Discussion on Health Policy, Geneva, October 2001.

Aghi, Mira B, Exploiting women and children - India’s bidi industry. 2. Lifeline - Volume 6, October 2001, pp 8-10.

Aghi, Mira B, Women, Children and Tobacco, paper presented in the 3. WHO International Conference on Global Tobacco Control Law: Towards a WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, New Delhi, 2000.

Aparna N., et al., Occupational exposure to unburnt bidi tobacco 4. elevates mutagenic burden among tobacco processors, in Carcinogenesis, vol.16 (5), 2004.

Bhaisey, Rajani A., et al, Biological monitoring of bidi industry workers 5. occupationally exposed to tobacco, available online, 2000.

Chattopadhyay, B.P., et al., A study to assess the respiratory 6. impairments among the male bidi workers, in Indian Journal of Occupational and Environment Health, vol.10(2), pp. 69-73, Kolkata, India, 2006.

Chauhan Y. History and Struggles of Beedi Workers in India. All India 7. Trade Union Congress (AITUC), New Delhi, November 2001,

D. Levison, R. Anker, S. Ashraf and S. Barge: Is child labour really 8. necessary in India’s carpet industry, Labour Market Paper No. 15, ILO, Geneva, 1996,

Dervish Trust, Bhopal in collaboration with Sanket Development 9. Group, New Delhi. Identifying Alternative Employment and Income Opportunities for Women Bidi Workers in the pilot area of Sagar, Madha Pradesh, India, for the International Labour Organisation, New Delhi and Geneva, September, 2001,

Dhar Aarti, Roll out better life for them, a survey of bidi rollers of 10. Murshidabad in The Hindu, 2005.

118

Dharmalingam A. Female bidi workers in a south Indian village. 11. Economic and Political Weekly. Vol. 34: No. 16-17; 1999 pp. WS 13-20.

Efroymson Debra (ed.) Tobacco and Poverty : Observations from India 12. and Bangladesh, PATH Canada, Canada, 2002

Efroymson Debra, et al, Hungry for Tobacco: An analysis of the 13. economic Impact of tobacco on the poor in Bangladesh, PATH Canada, Dhaka, 2000.

Expressindia, Other side of smoke rings: Bidi harms consumers and its 14. makers equally, August 11,2008

Genesis Public Relations. 360 Degree Analysis of Beedi Industry. 15. Mumbai: Genesis Public Relations; undated.

Gopal M. Disempowered despite wage work - women workers in beedi 16. industry. Economic and Political weekly, April 17-24, 1999, Bombay

Govekar R.B & R.A.Bhisey, Elevated urinary thioether excretion 17. among bidi rollers exposed occupationally to processed tobacco, in International Archives of Occupational and Environment Health, Vol. 64, No. 2, pp 101-104, 1992.

Gupta PC, Reddy KS, (ed), Report on tobacco control in India. New 18. Delhi: Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, 2004,

Gupta, P.C & Samira Asma, Bidi Smoking and Public Health, 19. Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, New Delhi, 2008.

Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). Estimation of costs of 20. management of smoking related chronic obstructive lung disease and ischaemic heart disease. New Delhi: ICMR; 1999.

International Labour Organization, Child Labourer: Targeting the 21. Intolerable, 1995

International Labor Organization. Sectoral Activities Programme, 22. Working Paper. Making ends meet: Bidi Workers in India Today, A Study of four states. Geneva: International Labour Office. 2003.

119

International Labour Organisation. Annexure 1. Bidi Sector in India: A 23. Note; 2003, New Delhi: ILO.

Jadranka Mustajbegovic, et al., Respiratory Findings in Tobacco 24. Workers, in Chest, American College of Chest Physician, vol. 123, pp. 1740-1748, 2003.

John Shobha. Diversification efforts of Kerala Dinesh Bidi from tobacco 25. to other consumer products and services. Social and economic outcomes. In: Efroymson D. editor. Tobacco and poverty: observations from India and Bangladesh. 2nd ed. Mumbai: PATH Canada. 2003. p. 44-47.

Joh Shobha. 26. Strong to Softer Tobacco Labels: Compulsions from Commercial Interests or Casualty of Coalition Politics ? in Tobacco Kills, ACT India Inaugural Issue, 2008.

Karunanithi G., Plight of pledged children in beedi works. Economic 27. and Political Weekly. Vol. 33: No. 9; 1998. pp. 450-52.

Koli PP. Socio-economic condition of female bidi workers in Solapur 28. District, in Social Change, June 1990, Vol. 20, No.2, pp 76-81.

Labour Bureau, Ministry of Labour, Government of India. The Working 29. and Living Conditions of Workers in Beedi Industry in India. 1995.

Mittal,Saurbh, et al., Ocular manifestations in bidi industry workers: 30. Possible consequences of occupational exposure to tobacco dust, in Indian Journal of Ophthalmology, vol.56(4), pp.319-322, 2008.

Mohandas M., Bidi workers in Kerala: Conditions of Life and work. 31. Economic and political weekly. Septembre 1980, Bombay.

Nichenetla Prasad, Government plans vocational training for beeri 32. worker, Hindustan Times, July 3, 2008.

Panchamukhi PR, Sailabala D, Annigeri VB, Nayanatara SN. Economics 33. of shifting from tobacco. Unpublished report of the study sponsored by IDRC, Canada. Centre for Multi Disciplinary Development Research: Dharward; 2000.

Raj RD. Beady-eyed giants take aim at India’s bidi industry. Asia Times 34. Online (Hong Kong), India Pakistan; 2000 Jan 14.

120

Rajasekhar D and Sreedhar G. Identifying alternative employment and 35. income opportunities for women beedi workers - A study in Dakshina Kannada District of Karnataka. Report submitted to the International Labour Organisation, New Delhi, February, 2001,

Rajasekhar D, Sreedhar G., Changing face of the beedi industry: a 36. study in Karnataka. Economic and political weekly. 2002 Sept Oct; XXXVII (39): pp. 4023-4028.

Ratna S, Kaur R. The tobacco industry and women’s employment: Old 37. concerns and new imperatives. The Indian journal of labour economics. 1999; Vol. 42: No. 4. pp. 675-685.

Sharma, Ashok B, Ministry papers poses threat to bidi sector, The 38. Financial Express, May 19, 2008.

Sinha, Shalini; Rights of Home-based Workers, National Human Rights 39. Commission, Delhi, 2006.

Srinivasulu K. Impact of liberalisation on beedi workers. Economic 40. and political weekly March 15,1997, Bombay

Sudarshan R and Kaur R. The tobacco industry and women’s 41. employment: old concerns and new Imperatives. Indian Journal of Labour Economy, 42, 1999, 675-685.

Sudarshan R, Kaur R. The tobacco industry and women’s employment: 42. old concerns and new imperatives. Indian J Labour Econ. 1999; 42(4):675-685.

Sunley, Emil, M. India: The Tax Treatment of Bidis. 200843.

Swami S. et al., Absorption of nicotine induces oxidative stress among 44. bidi workers, in Indian Journal of Public Health, vol.50 (4), pp. 231-235, 2006.

UNICEF, Law Reform and the Implementation of the Convention on the 45. Rights of the Child, Innocenti Publication, 2008

Voluntary Health Association of India; Aparajita (Anubhav Series) 46. – Experiences in Health and Community Development, a VHAI publication, 2007


A Study based on primary research on home-based bidi rollers of West Bengal and Gujarat


Voluntary Health Association of India (VHAI) is a non-profi t, registered society formed in the year 1970. It is a federation of 27 State Voluntary Health Associations, linking together 4500 health and development institutions and more than 100,000 grassroots-level community health workers across the country.

VHAI’s primary objective is to “make health a reality for the people of India” through campaigns, policy research, advocacy, need-based training, media and parliament interventions, publications and audio-visuals, dissemination of information and implementation of health and development projects.


B-40, Qutab Institutional Area, New Delhi - 110016

Phones : 011-26518071, 26518072 Email : [email protected]

[email protected] Website : www.vhai.org, www.rctfi .org

Tobacco control has always been a crucial public health concern for VHAI and we have been campaigning against the tobacco industry’s nefarious practices for over a decade. Today, VHAI is implementing a comprehensive tobacco control programme across several states to strengthen the anti-tobacco movement in the country. This initiative includes policy and media advocacy, research, capacity-building, networking and coalition-building and development of advocacy materials.

voluntary health association of india - ::: resource … in a death trap.pdf• members of gujarat...

Documents