MISCELLANEOUS OCCUPATIONS

MATTRESS AND PILLOW-MAKING

In Bhir district the shops of mattress and pillow-makers appear only in towns. The occupation is followed generally by people belonging to the Muslim community.

The Pinjari or mattress-maker hardly needs any investment by way of fixed capital. All that is required by him is the carding-bow (an instrument with which he spins cotton), a pair of scissors and some needles. The entire set costs not more than Rs. 25 and can last as many as five years.

The chief raw material used for making beds is cotton. It is available in different grades in local markets or weekly bazars, the price of each grade depending upon the quality of cotton. Besides cotton, a mattress also requires cloth. The latter is many times supplied by the customer as per his choice.

Charges for preparing mattress depend upon the quality and quantity of cotton required, the type of cloth used, and finally, the way of stitching the entire mattress. An ordinary well-stitched single mattress costs about Rs. 15 to Rs. 16. This excludes the cost of a pillow, which is stitched along with it with an extra cost of Rs. 2.

Labour charges for making a mattress constitute the income of a mattress-maker. The demand for mattresses is not persistent and continuous. But in the absence of any alternative source, he has to plod along in poverty with inherited skill and never-ending indebtedness.