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A quick summary of Change and Development in Industrial Society (Book 2, Chapter 5) for revision right before the exam: every definition, the named facts, and the key figures. Read the full notes separately for detailed explanations and examples.
1 Images of Industrial Society
3Classical sociologists: Marx, Weber, Durkheim
↓Caste distinction on trains, buses, cyber cafes
↑Income inequality, even as some social inequality falls
2 Industrialisation in India: The Key Numbers
| Figure (2018-19) | Value |
|---|---|
| Primary sector employment share | About 43% |
| Secondary sector employment share | About 25% |
| Tertiary sector employment share | About 32% |
| Self-employed workers | Over 52% |
| Regular salaried workers | About 24% |
| Casual labour | About 24% |
| Work in the unorganised/informal sector | Over 90% |
| Organised sector (one definition) | Units employing 10 or more people throughout the year, registered with the government |
3 Liberalisation: Facts to Remember
1990sLiberalisation begins: foreign investment allowed into telecom, aviation, power; licenses no longer required
Parle & Coca-ColaCoca-Cola buys Parle Drinks: turnover ₹250 crore vs Coca-Cola’s ₹400 crore ad budget
Modern FoodsFirst company privatised; 60% of workers forced to retire within five years
Land acquisitionAbout 40% of those displaced by industrial land acquisition are adivasis
4 How People Find Jobs
1
Self-employed
Rely on personal contacts, mobile phones widen their client reach
2
Factory route
Kanpur mill jobbers (“mistris”); today, management and unions recruit; badli workers substitute for permanent staff without gaining status
3
Government schemes
MUDRA, Aatmanirbhar Bharat, Make in India: widen employment and self-employment
5 How Work Is Carried Out
| Example | Key fact |
|---|---|
| Ramcharan (Kanpur weaver) | Textile workers described themselves as extensions of the machine; Ramcharan: “When four machines run all four must move together, they must not stop” (Joshi, 2003) |
| Gandhi (1924, quoted in Activity 5.2) | Against the “craze for machinery”; 1934: adopting the spinning wheel solves unemployment and ends exploitation |
| Maruti Udyog Ltd | 2 cars/minute; 45 minutes’ total rest; most workers exhausted by 40 and take voluntary retirement |
| Box 5.1, “Time Slavery” (Carol Upadhya, 2005) | 10-12 hour IT workdays, “night out,” “flexi-time” |
| Harry Braverman | Deskilling: argues that the use of machinery actually deskills workers (architects and engineers no longer need to be skilled draughtsmen) |
6 Working Conditions and Home-based Work
5.5 lakhWorkers in coal mining alone
1952 / 2020Mines Act, now under the OSH Code
100Tendu-leaf bundles (50 leaves each) a person can collect in a day, on average
7 All Definitions in One Place
All definitions in one place
AlienationNot enjoying work, seeing it only as something to survive by (Marx)
Organised (formal) sectorOne definition: units employing 10+ people throughout the year, registered with the government
Unorganised (informal) sectorWhere over 90% of India’s work takes place, in agriculture, industry or services
DisinvestmentGovernment selling its share in public-sector companies
Badli workerSubstitutes for a regular permanent worker on leave; many work for years for the same company but are not given the same status and security
DeskillingBraverman’s argument that the use of machinery actually deskills workers
StrikeWorkers do not go to work, often in response to harsh working conditions
LockoutManagement shuts the factory gate and keeps workers out
8 The 1982 Bombay Textile Strike
1982Strike begins, led by Dr Datta Samant, demanding better wages and the right to form their own union
~2.5 lakhWorkers and families affected
~2 yearsDuration of the strike
~1 lakhWorkers who lost their jobs afterward; many moved to Bhiwandi, Malegaon, Icchalkaranji
9 End-of-chapter Q1: the four lines
a
Social composition
Caste, gender, age, region of the work force
b
Labour process
How the work takes place
c
Wages and benefits
Wages and other benefits
d
Working conditions
Safety, rest times, working hours, etc.
Quick Revision: read this the night before the exam
- Marx, Weber, Durkheim: industry brings urbanisation and anonymous professional relationships; alienation is Marx’s term
- India 2018-19: about 43% primary, 25% secondary, 32% tertiary; over 90% of work is informal
- Liberalisation (1990s onward): Parle-Coca Cola, Modern Foods disinvestment, outsourcing
- Badli workers, mistris, MUDRA/Aatmanirbhar Bharat/Make in India schemes
- Maruti Udyog Ltd shows machine-paced work; Box 5.1 shows Taylorist labour processes in IT; Braverman’s deskilling argument
- Mining: 5.5 lakh coal workers, Mines Act 1952/OSH Code 2020
- Bidi industry: chain from tendu leaf to pan shop, through contractors, the manufacturer, a distributor and wholesalers
- 1982 Bombay Textile Strike: Dr Datta Samant, ~2.5 lakh workers, ~2 years, ~1 lakh jobs lost
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