INDUSTRIES

section i-LARGE AND SMALL INDUSTRIES

The following description of large and small industries in the district is based upon a sample survey conducted in the district during 1967-68.

Oil Mills.

Almost all the oil mills surveyed with the exception of one were seasonal in character and worked for about 180 days in a year. The only unit that was perennial in character worked for about 300 days in a year.

The fixed capital was mostly invested in plant and machinery. The unit that worked perennially had the maximum fixed capital to the tune of Rs. 4,71,000. Of the seasonal units, the maximum investment in fixed capital was Rs. 4,50,000 and the minimum was Rs. 11,000 giving an average of Rs. 2,20,000 as fixed capital investment. However, in case of three units the fixed capital investment was below Rs. 60,000 and in respect of other three units it was about Rs. 4 lakhs each. The perennial unit required a working capital of about Rs. 5 lakhs. The average working capital required by other seasonal units was about Rs. 2,50,000. In case of two units the working capital was around Rs. 10,000; in case of one unit around Rs. 40,000; in case of one unit around Rs. 4 lakhs and in case of the remaining two around Rs. 5 lakhs.

Of the seven units surveyed three employed 10 and less than 10 skilled workers and the remaining four provided employment to between 11 and 18 skilled workers. This gave per unit an average of over 11 skilled workers. Only five units provided employment to unskilled workers. Only one unit provided employment to 20 unskilled workers, one to 10 unskilled workers and the remaining three units employed less than seven workers each. Three units provided employment to five or more persons each, other than workers while the same was less than five each, in case of other units. This gave a per unit average of personsother than workers of 5. The skilled workers were paid between Rs. 3 and Rs. 4 per day, unskilled workers between Rs. 1.50 and Rs. 2.50 and those other than workers were paid between Rs. 5 and Rs. 10 per day.

During the year under review the total output of oil was estimated to be valued at about Rs. 30 lakhs by all the seven units surveyed, oil-cake at about Rs. 40 lakhs and other products at Rs. 50,000. Of the seven oil mills surveyed, four were found to be exporting their products bringing invaluable foreign currency.

Cotton Ginning and Pressing

The district being a cotton cultivating district, cotton ginning and pressing is an old occupation in the district. The following extract reproduced from the old Wardha District Gazetteer published in 1906 provides an interesting account of the occupation as it existed then.

" Many of the ginning and pressing factories are owned by the proprietors of the mills and by the Empress and Swadeshi Mill Companies at Nagpur. Several are owned by Raja Gokul Das and other Marwari Banias and a few by Maratha Brahmans and Kunbis. Ten of the ginning factories are located at Hinganghat, seven at Wardha, seven at Arvi, five at Pulgaon, three at Sindi and one at each of several other villages. Of the presses four are at Hinganghat, four at Wardha, three at Pulgaon, three at Arvi, one at Pohna and one at Sindi. Two ginning factories have 50 gins or more and the others contain from 12 to 42, the average number being 27 and the total number of gins in all the factories 1065.. The collective capital of the ginning and pressing factories is taken as something over 25 lakhs. Roughly it is said that a ginning factory requires Rs. 1,500 of capital per gin and a cotton press Rs. 70,000. Ilie collective profits of the ginning and pressing factories in 1904 were nearly Rs. 3½ lakhs, which is a very handsome return. The ratio of ginned to seed cotton is generally 35 per cent. The rate charged to outsiders for ginning cotton comes to Rs. 3-4 per khandi or an average of 6 annas per maund of seed cotton. In presses the work is given on contract, the rate charged for a bale (of 400 lbs.) being Rs. 3 to Rs. 4. Presses are of various kinds. The old compound press turned out about 150 bales ' a day. The press in common use at present is called the half press and finisher, the operation being completed in two stages. This is said to produce 200 bales a day. A new revolving press which has now been introduced is much more effective. About 3,500 hands are employed in the ginning and pressing factories; these, however, only work for from five to seven months in the year. The wages of unskilled labour are from 4 to 6 annas a day for a man and 2 to 3 annas a day for a woman. The total capital invested in the mills and factories is thus more than 50 lakhs and they employ in the busy season more than 6,000 operatives ". [ Central Provinces District Gazetteers, Wardha District, Vol. A, 1906, pp. 144-45.]

The following account of the industry is based upon the findings of a sample survey of cotton ginning and pressing units in the district during 1967-68.

The industry was a seasonal one and worked on an average for about 180 days in a year. The average fixed capital investment of a unit was about Rs. 75,000 most of which was locked up in machinery besides buildings and furniture and fixtures. The working capital investment was to the extent of about Rs. 40,000. Each unit on an average employed 35 skilled workers, 23 unskilled workers and 5 persons other than workers. The skilled labour was paid at about Rs. 3 to Rs. 3. 50 per day, unskilled labour about Rs. 2 to Rs. 2.50 per day and those other than workers about Rs. 5 to Rs. 8 per day.

Most of the ginning and pressing units in the district work on contract basis and they charge for the cotton ginned or pressed on piece rate basis, which is fixed by the Collector of the district.

Textiles.

The factor that led to the development of cotton spinning and weaving industry in the district was the availability of the raw material, i.e., cotton which was plentiful besides other factors of production. The following extract taken from the old Wardha District Gazetteer, published in 1906 gives the information about the cotton mills in existence in the district then.

Cotton mills.

" The rapid construction of cotton factories is the most striking feature of commercial development in Wardha in recent years. The District contained in 1904, 2 spinning and weaving mills, 1 spinning mill, 16 cotton presses and 39 ginning factories. The bulk of the ginning and pressing factories have been opened since 1890 and 26 of them since 1900. The oldest mill in the District is the spinning mill at Hinganghat which was opened in 1881 with a capital of Rs. 3½ lakhs. It was formerly owned by a joint stock company, but it is now the property of Rai Bahadur Banshi Lal Abirchand who obtained it on foreclosure of mortgage. It contains 31,000 spindles and employs over 700 operatives. The outturn of yarn in 1904 was 35,000 maunds valued at Rs. 11½ lakhs. The nominal capital has since been increased to Rs. 6 lakhs. The counts of yarn spun are from 4's to 32's. The spinning and weaving mill at Pulgaon is the property of a joint stock company with a capital of Rs. 5 lakhs, which takes its name from the town. In 1904 it contained 165 looms and 17,000 spindles and produced 29,000 maunds of thread valued at Rs. 10 lakhs and 7,500 maunds of cloth valued at nearly Rs. 4 lakhs. The average number of operatives employed was nearly 900. The new mill at Hinganghat was opened in 1900 and is the private property of Rai Sahib Rekhchand Mohta.[This gentleman died in 1906.] Its working capital is Rs. 18 lakhs. It contained 160 looms and nearly 15,000 spindles in 1904 and employed on an average nearly 1,000 operatives daily. In 1904 its out-turn of yarn was 30,000 maunds valued at Rs. 8.7 lakhs and of cloth 8,200 maunds valued at Rs. 3.6 lakhs. The three mills contained in 1904, 325 looms and 63,000 spindles, and about Rs. 29 lakhs of capital were invested in them. In 1903, it was stated that the old mill at Hinganghat worked at a loss, while the profit of the Pulgaon mill was Rs. 87,000 and of the new mill at Hinganghat Rs. 45,000. In 1904, it is reported that both the Hinganghat mills worked at a loss and that the Pulgaon mill only cleared Rs. 9,000. In cleaning cotton before spinning a proportion of the weight is lost which may amount to 15 per cent, or more. Some of this is sold as waste cotton and used for stuffing quilts and pillow-cases. But in weaving, weight is gained owing to the sizing process with starch, and the finished cloth may weigh 25 per cent, in excess of the thread used ". ['Central Provinces District Gazetteers, Wardha District, Vol. A, 1906, pp. 143-44.]

Inspite of cotton booms during the triennium after 1921, the industry suffered a set back as a result of 3.5 per cent, excise duty imposed on mill cloth coupled with labour troubles, depression, currency difficulties, etc. The abolition of excise duty in 1926 alongwith the continued tariff protection helped the mill industry. A further impetus was provided by the Swadeshi and non-co-operation movement in the thirties of the century.

As per 1961 census there were three textile mills in the district with total installed spindlage of 77,952 and 1,301 looms. They were the Pulgaon Cotton Mills, Pulgaon employing nearly 2,000 workers; the R. S. Rekhchand Mohta Spinning and Weaving Mills Ltd., Hinganghat employing nearly 2,300 workers and the R. S. Bansilal Abhirchand Spinning and Weaving Mills Ltd., Hinganghat employing about 800 workers.

The production statistics for three years from 1961-62 to 1963-64 for these mills shows an upward trend in both the yarn and the cloth production. During the year 1963-64 the three textile mills together produced 77.67 lakh kilos of cotton yarn and 341. 18 lakh metres of cotton cloth.

The following statement gives the production statistics of these three mills from 1961-62 to 1963-64:—

Electricity Generation.

Prior to 1956, electricity was supplied to Wardha, Hinganghat, Arvi, Karanja, etc, from private generating stations. Wardha, Arvi and Hinganghat were electrified at the beginning of the First Five-Year Plan. The places in the district having private generating stations as well as new ones were connected witn the grid system when the power station was established at Ballarshah in Chanda district in 1956 with an installed capacity of 22,500 kw. Three more towns and thirty-five villages were electrified during the Second Five-Year Plan. At the end of the Second Five-Year Plan the number of towns and villages electrified was 74. As there are very few irrigation schemes in the district and the cultivation by lift-irrigation is rather costly, the introduction of village electrification scheme has given impetus to setting up of electric pumps for irrigation. During the Second Five-Year Plan, 550 pumps were set up in the district.

Table No. 4 gives the tahsil-wise list of 92 electrified towns and villages in the district as per the 1961 census.

TABLE No. 4.

ELECTRIFIED TOWNS AND VILLAGES IN WARDHA DISTRICT.

TABLE No. 4—contd.

The per capita electricity consumption is much lower than the State average. Tabic No. 5 shows the consumption of electricity on different items from 1953 to 1958-59:—

TABLE No. 5.

CONSUMPTION OF ELECTRICITY ON DIFFERENT ITEMS, WARDHA DISTRICT.

During 1963-64, the electric consumption increased by 25.2 per cent, the consumption of electricity for industrial purposes being 53.3 per cent, of the total electricity consumption during the year. By the end of March 1966, 198 villages in the district were electrified under the rural electrification programme.

Table Nos. 6 and 7 give statistics regarding generation and consumption of electricity and number of towns and villages electrified and population covered in the district by the end of March 1966.

TABLE No. 6

GENERATION AND CONSUMPTION OF ELECTRICITY IN WARDHA DISTRICT

(In ’000 K.W.)

*Denotes the Units purchased by the private companies for distribution.

@The data for the year 1964-65 is revised.

TABLE No. 7

NUMBER OF TOWNS AND VILLAGES ELECTRIFIED AND POPULATION COVERED
IN WARDHA DISTRICT

At the end of 1965-66, the percentage of electrified villages in the district increased by 173.8 over that of 1960-61. The following statement gives the per capita consumption of electricity in the district and the percentage increase for 1961-62 and 1965-66 over 1960-61.

By the end of 1967, 261 villages in the district were getting electric supply from the Maharashtra State Electricity Board.

Mechanical and Engineering Workshops.

With the expansion of industrial activity especially in the urban areas adoption of cultivation on an intensive scale in the rural areas of the district, an appreciable rise was visible in the demand for services rendered by mechanical and engineering workshops that undertake repairs to machinery and agricultural equipment. Many of these units are engaged in ancillary manufacturing activities. A few specialise in repairing agricultural implements. The following account of these mechanical and engineering workshops is based upon the findings of a sample survey of these establishments conducted in the district in 1967-68.

All the units worked throughout the year, a few working for about 300 days in a year and a few for about 240 days in a year. Of the capital investment Rs. 12,000 on an average were locked up in machinery, the maximum in one of the establishments being Rs. 18,000 and the minimum being Rs. 6,000. In case of only four units located in their owned premises a part of the fixed capital with an average of Rs. 15,000 with the maximum of Rs. 20,000 and the minimum of Rs. 10,000 was locked in buildings. In case of three units, Rs. 16,000 in aggregate were locked up in furniture and fixtures the break up being Rs. 10,000 in case of one unit and Rs. 3,000 each in case of two units. The average working capital required by a unit was about Rs. 8,000 per annum with a maximum of Rs. 15,000 and a minimum of Rs. 2,000.

Every unit on an average employed two skilled and one unskilled labourer, the managerial work in respect of all but one unit being done by the owner. Only one unit employed a person for managerial work. The skilled worker was paid between Rs. 3.50 and Rs. 4.00 per day while the unskilled labourer was paid between Rs. 1.50 and Rs. 2.00 per day. The only person employed by a unit for doing managerial job was paid about Rs. 200 per month.

One unit was a co-operative venture engaged in repairing and manufacturing of agricultural implements. It was paid Rs. 1,000 by the Government as grant-in-aid. Of the remaining units one unit got Rs. 10,000 and another Rs. 19,000 from the Government as grant-in-aid. All these units generally used hard coke, coal and electricity as fuel and power.

Besides these mechanical and engineering units, there was only one unit that was engaged in the production of steel furniture and cupboards. It was a perennial industry working for about 300 days in a year. Its fixed capital of Rs. 3,500 was locked up in machinery and fixtures and fittings and it required about Rs. 2,500 per annum towards working capital. It provided employment to three skilled workers and one person other than workers doing managerial job. The skilled worker was paid about Rs. 4 per day while the person doing the managerial job was paid about Rs. 250 per month.

Printing and Book Binding

The industry is of a recent origin. The district has very few concerns of this type. As per 1961 Census, 167 persons including 4 women were engaged in printing and publishing. Of these, 38 males worked in rural areas. Of the total of 167 persons employed in the industry, 155 men and 4 women were working in non-household industry. Of these 167, 8 were engaged in printing works, 136 in lithography, engraving, etching, block making, type cutting and other works connected with printing industry, 18 were engaged in book binding, stitching, sizing and other work connected with printing and publishing of news papers and periodicals.

It was a perennial occupation and almost all the presses worked throughout the year with about 240 working days in a year. The average fixed capital investment which was Rs. 7,000 was mainly locked up in machinery and equipment. The average annual requirement of working capital was placed around Rs. 3,000. Each press on an average provided employment to two skilled and two unskilled workers. The skilled worker was paid around Rs. 5 per day as against the daily wages of about Rs. 3 paid to unskilled workers.

The value of the printing work done by a press during the year was placed around Rs. 30,000. Two of the printing presses surveyed had received a loan from the Government to the extent of Rs. 10,000 each.

Saw Mills.

The 1951 Census reports 60 persons, all men, as sawyers in the district whereas the 1961 Census reports 180 persons including 2 women as engaged in sawing, milling and planing of wood. Of these 180 persons, only 20 men are reported to be working in rural areas and the remaining 160 including 2 women working in urban areas. Of these, 4 men, one in rural areas and three in urban areas are reported working at household industry while the remaining 174 men and 2 women are reported working in non-household industry of whom 19 men work in rural areas and the remaining work in urban areas.

As per the Annual Survey of Industries in Wardha district, 1961, there were three registered saw mills with a productive capital of about Rs. 1,62,000 providing employment to 35 persons. The gross output of these saw mills was put at Rs. 4,57,000.

Besides the three saw mills mentioned above, there were a few other saw mills in the district which were not registered under the Factories Act. The following account of saw milling industry is based upon a small survey of these saw milling units in the district, conducted in 1967-68.

All the saw mills were perennial in character working for about 240 days in a year. Of the mills surveyed, only one was located in the premises owned by it and the remaining were located in rented premises. The fixed capital was mainly invested in tools and machinery and furniture and fixtures and the same was placed at about Rs. 6,000 per unit.

A unit, on an average, provided employment to four skilled workers and 2 unskilled workers. Very few units employed a person for doing managerial jobs. A skilled worker was paid about Rs. 4.50 a day as against a daily wage of about Rs. 2.00 paid to an unskilled worker. In case, where a hand was appointed for clerical and managerial jobs, the person was paid on monthly basis, the pay generally amounting to about Rs. 200 or Rs. 225 per month.

Most of these units were engaged in wood cutting and they worked on contract basis. The average annual turnover of a unit was placed around Rs. 20,000. Only a few of the units surveyed undertook making of furniture and wooden containers.

Mining and Quarrying,

As regards mining and quarrying the old Gazetteer of Wardha district published in 1906 has to say the following:

"No mineral products are known to exist in the District, the whole area of which is covered with a sheet of trap rock. Stone quarries are worked in Saongi, Borgaon, Nachangaon and Injhapur in the Wardha tahsil from which the black basalt is extracted. It is used for building purposes but is extremely hard to dress."[ Central Provinces District Gazetteers. Wardha District, Vol. A, 1906.]

The position has not undergone any considerable change during the past half a century or so.

The following statement gives the number of persons engaged in mining and quarrying as per the 1951 Census.

The Census Handbook of Wardha district, 1961 has to say the following about this industry.

"Large areas in the district are covered by Deccan Trap which is used for building purposes. Deposits of any minerals have not been found so far anywhere in the district. Mining activity in the district is, therefore, restricted only to quarrying of stones. Quarries are worked in Sawangi, Borgaon, Nachangaon and Inzapur in Wardha tahsil from which black basalt is extracted. It is used for building purpose but the stones are very hard to dress. Granite and syenite are reported to be available near about Dahegaon and Nachangaon but the mining is not profitable.

In 1961 Census 424 persons are reported as working in quarrying or stones, clay, sand, etc., 256 of them are males and 168 females. Four females are also reported as engaged in other mining activities." [ District Census Hand Book, Wardha District, 1961, p. 41.]

Soap Manufacture.

The soap manufacturing industry is of recent origin. As per the Census of 1951, only one person in the district was employed in the manufacture of soaps and other washing and cleaning compounds. The figure rose to 21, all males, with 17 engaged in non-household industry and 4 engaged in household industry in urban areas.

The following statement [ Bureau of Economics and Statistics, Government of Maharashtra.] gives the production statistics in kilograms concerning two units not registered under the Factories Act from 1961-62 to 1963-64.

Industrial Estate,

The industrialisation in the State is mostly centred around Bombay and Poona regions and to some extent around Nagpur. Barring Bombay, Thana, Nasik, Nagpur, etc., only a few more districts in the State could be regarded as sufficiently industrially advanced. With a view to achieving a balanced industrial growth of all the districts of the State and doing the spadework in this regard by providing facilities for the supply of power, water, industrial sheds, transport facilities, etc., the Government embarked upon the scheme of establishing a few industrial estates in all the districts of the State.

Accordingly an Industrial Estate was established in the village of Borgaon on the outskirts of Wardha town during the Third Five Year Plan on a co-operative basis with a membership of 15. A society created for the purpose would be in overall charge of the estate and the facilities would be provided to the members for establishing industries in the estate so as to enable small entrepreneurs to start the industry. The society has acquired land admeasuring about four hectares (about ten acres) at a cost of Rs. 10,000. In the industrial estate, facilities will be provided for sheds and plots, roads within the estate, electricity, water supply and sanitation.

The layout and completion of an industrial estate involves an investment of about Rs. 10 lakhs. It is proposed to raise the same in the following manner:

(1) An amount of Rs. 2 lakhs to be raised by the society.

(2) Rs. 2 lakhs will be contributed by the Government in the form of loan free of interest to be recovered in 15 years.

(3) Rs. 6 lakhs to be secured as a loan from the Life Insurance Corporation on Government guarantee.

The cost of development of different items will be as follows:—

After the completion of the proposed industrial estate it is proposed to establish the industries as enumerated below:—

(1) Cotton-seed processing, crushing and solvent extraction plant.

(2) Manufacture of Polythene Products.

(3) Ice plant.

(4) Manufacture of automobile parts and truck body building.

(5) Hosiery plant.

(6) Cold storage and fruits and vegetable preservation plant.

(7) Manufacture of brass, copper and aluminium utensils.

(8) Manufacture of surgical instruments out of stainless steel.

(9) Manufacture of fractional electrical meters and electrical accessories.

(10) Dal Mills.

(11) Automobile servicing workshop.

(12) Engineering workshop.

Other Small Industries,

Besides the various large and small industries enumerated above, there are various small scale industrial units in the district. These units are engaged in the manufacture of lime, aerated water, pen ink, drugs, dal mills, wooden furniture, etc. These units have not been discussed in details as the employment provided by them as also their production is negligible.

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