The Gazetteers Department

Two different types of washermen are found in the district-those having fixed establishments of their own and those having no such establishments. The latter type of washermen who render home service take away clothes from individual customers and deliver them back at their residences. These types of establishments are not governed by the Shops and Establishments Act. The number of such washermen is decreasing as they find the home service system uneconomical and also inconvenient. The account given here relates only to the former type.

At the time of the survey, there were 47 establishments in the two towns, employing 94 persons, of whom only 30 were paid employees. Most of these establishments were managed by the owners with the help of family members. In Satara, all establishments except two were managed by the owners. Out of 28 establishments in Satara, six were located in ward No. III, five each in ward Nos. VII and VIII, four each in ward Nos. IV and VI, and two each in ward Nos. II and V. In Karad, 11 were located in Guruwar peth; four and three in Shaniwar and Raviwar peths respectively and one in Mangalwar peth. Seven shops were surveyed in the three towns, out of which four were newly started and the remaining three were hereditary. Laundering was the principal occupation in all of them and provided employment throughout the year.

A few pieces of furniture like one or two tables, a cupboard and an iron constituted their equipment. In Satara, two shops had two irons each and one shop had three irons. In Karad, two shops were having four irons and one iron respectively. The cost of equipment was round about Rs. 300. Special machines for dry cleaning were not used in these shops. The initial capital was raised from their own resources. The total investment in one of the biggest shops in Satara was Rs. 2,000. In the other two, it was Rs. 400 and Rs. 700 respectively. In Phaltan and Karad, the investment in the establish-ments varied from Rs. 600 to Rs. 1,000.

The total employment in all these concerns was 42 out of whom 12 were paid employees. Three shops, one in Karad, the other in Phaltan and the third in Satara were managed by owners without any paid employees. Employees were paid at piece rate. They were paid Rs. 1.50 to Rs. 2 for washing 100 clothes.

Washing soda, soap, bleaching powder, indigo, petrol, tinopal, which were purchased from local market and Bombay, were the materials used in washing. The expenditure on these items varied from Rs. 60 to Rs. 400 per month according to the size of the unit. All these establishments were situated in rented premises. Besides rent, they paid water charges and other taxes in Satara and Karad. One shop which used electric iron, consumed electricity worth Rs. 50 Per month. Others used electricity for lighting the premises.

These establishments worked for 8 to 10 hours a day. Their business was brisk usually during winter and summer. Two establishments, one in Satara and the other in Karad, had specialised in washing silk and woollen garments. The net income of these shops varied from Rs. 90 to Rs. 300 per month. At the three places mentioned above persons belonging to the rich and middle classes were regular customers of these shops. Other persons from lower middle class washed their clothes at home and got them ironed in laundries. The business was profitable particularly for the large establishments.

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