Mukadam Report

Mukadams are the labour contractors who procure labourers for the sugar factories. They employ labourers from their own village or from nearby villages. Hence, they are familiar with the life and general situation of the workers. They may be acquainted with the workers apart from the business relationship. In fact they could even be relatives.

As we have seen, labourers have tended to work for the same mukadam every year. (Table H 22) Irrespective of the reasons why this is so, the fact remains that this is the man who provides them with a source of much needed income and with whom it is possible to negotiate the amount of remuneration even on the basis of personal problems. They work with him for half a year every year and he is the person they must satisfy in order to get work again the following year. All these factors make this relationship between the worker and the mukadam a fairly close one. The mukadams see the workers’ lives from up close and learn much about their individual as well as collective priorities and problems.

Further, as we shall see, many of the mukadams have themselves been sugarcane cutters before they became mukadams. Thus, not only have they themselves lived the life of the workers but have understood the system well enough to make use of it to their own advantage. In trying to understand the sugarcane cutters’ lives and problems the insights provided by such insiders cannot be ignored.

Also, being an important part of the entire situation of the sugarcane cutters’ lives, it is very likely that they could play a part in the solution to their problems, too. It was, therefore, necessary to understand them better and to learn from their experiences if possible.

Hence, the survey included a questionnaire for the mukadams, too

The number of mukadams interviewed was 305.

The mukadams in this sample have been working for an average of 11 years (Table M 1). The longest in the line has been a mukadam for 36 years. Two mukadams had just begun their career, 2003-04 having been their first year as mukadams.

When asked if they had been engaged as sugarcane cutters before they became mukadams most of the mukadams 274, 89.8% said they had.

However, when asked what they did before they became mukadams only 164, 53.8% have said that they went for sugarcane cutting. This means, perhaps, that at least 110 mukadams had had some other occupation as well as sugarcane cutting before becoming mukadams. (Table M 2)

115 or 37.7% mukadams had done farming (perhaps they continue to farm even now) and 13, 4.26% had been labourers.

Amongst the rest there is a teacher, a tailor, a contract labourer, and a ration shop owner.

The question whether these mukadams still continue with their earlier occupations was not asked.

In conversation with the supervisors who have collected data for this survey it was learnt that some mukadams were sarpanches of their villages or were wealthier and, therefore, the more influential people in the village.

 It would perhaps be worthwhile to study this group from the sociological point of view and also to find out how they could help with the solutions to some of the workers’ problems.

Choice of a factory

Just as we had seen with the migrant families (Table H 22) we find here, too, that 231 or 75.7% mukadams have worked with the same factories for the last three years (Table M 3). Another 61, 20% have changed a factory once in the last 3 years; only 13, 4.3 % have been to 3 different locations in the last three years.

This, as we said before, may be a favourable condition from the point of view of children’s schooling.

Table M 3: Factories selected in the last three years

Criteria for choosing factory

The first consideration influencing the decision to go to a particular factory mentioned by 88, or 28.8% of the mukadams is the payment offered by the factory. This was also mentioned 146 times out of a total of 477 responses thus making up 30.6 % of the total responses obtained.

The consideration of how long the season is expected to last at a factory was mentioned by 49, 16.1% mukadams as first option. Altogether, 74, 24.3% mukadams mention this and it forms 15.5% of the total responses obtained. It is important because it means that more sugarcane will be cut and, therefore, more work is available. However, this opportunity can be availed of only by those mukadams who have the capacity to muster a large enough labourer force. Hence, the ability to meet the demand of the number of vehicles or labourers at a particular factory is also given due importance in deciding which factory to work for. This consideration, too, was mentioned by 73, 23.9% mukadams.

In situations where work is difficult to come by there will always be a number of contenders for the same contract and a personal relation or acquaintance at a factory will naturally be a helpful connection. This was mentioned about 71, 23.2% times. Thus, each of these considerations form about 15% of the responses.

However, the first answer given by 105, 34.4% of the respondents, but not mentioned as a second or third consideration is that it depends on the factory administration. Which means that a mukadam may want to work at a particular factory, may have the capacity to do so but the decision to award the contract rests with the factory administration and that is perhaps where the utility of the acquaintance lies.

Once the mukadam is awarded the contract he is given a payment in advance as he undertakes to bring the required labourers.

Table M 4: Criteria for choosing factory *

 * Numerals in brackets indicate serial numbers of responses in the first compilation.  These detailed tables are appended to this part of the report following page -------.

Number of labourers employed in the last three years

We see from Table M 5 that over the last three years, out of our sample of about 300 mukadams, 55 to 60 have employed labourer in doki centres, 50 to 60 of them in gadi centres but the majority, 190 to 200 of them have preferred tyre centres. The average number of families employed by a mukadam is 15 at the doki centres, 8 at the gadi centres and 16 at the tyre centres. The factories decide how much labour is to be sent to the various sites, but it is possible for the mukadam to decide which families go to which sites.

Table M 5: No. of labourers is employed by mukadams

Criteria for amount of advance given to workers

204, 66.9 % mukadams have mentioned as first choice a criterion that has to do with what the worker offers in terms of capacity to work. (Table M 6) This includes the number of working people in the family, whether the worker owns bullocks or not, the

mukadam’s previous experience of the particular worker (or, how much experience the worker has) and the number of workers on a gadi. This  option forms 67.2 % of the total responses obtained to this question. We have seen that the workers, too, give the maximum weightage to this factor knowing that work is what they are paid for although some other factors weigh more with them than they do with the mukadams. (Table H 25)

 As we saw in the responses of the workers, the mukadams are also open to negotiations and factors such as the problems and the demands of the worker, his previous debts, his commitment to paying off his debt and the trust that can be put in the worker (as judged by the mukadam) are the factors that the mukadam considers. 83, 27.2 % of the mukadams mentioned such considerations as their first criterion. These were mentioned 132 times in all, thus forming 23.2% of the total responses.

The length of the cutting season is mentioned as a first consideration by only 17, 5.6% mukadams and on the whole is mentioned 54 times making up 9.5% of the total responses. In the transaction between the mukadam and the worker the length of the cutting season weighs much more with the worker (23.5% of total responses, 19% workers mentioning it first) than with the mukadam. We may interpret this to mean that a worker is seeking a mukadam who will give him the maximum possible work. Naturally, a mukadam working at a factory with a longer season is the one to look for. Hence, the length of the season matters to the worker. In giving the work the mukadam is on the other hand looking for a good worker no matter what the season at his factory. However, the length of the season is important to him when he is looking for the right factory to work with and, as we have seen, in the transaction between the factory and the mukadam this factor is given its due weightage by the mukadams (Table M 4)

Although only 76 mukadam mention that a standard amount is given, as their first answer, this answer is given on the whole 199 times and forms about 35% of the total responses obtained to this question. The standard amount given must of course have been arrived at on the basis of the amount of work that will be done by the labourer on one tyre or gadi or by an individual family. Thus, in the table it has been included under the head amount of labour offered.

Table M 6: Criteria for advance given to workers

( Table m 7: Amount of advance payment given to the labourers )

Agreement with workers

No yes-no data is available for the question, ‘Do you make a written contract at the time of giving the advance?’

However 286, 95.2% mukadams say that they require a witness or a guarantor. However, since there is no written contract made it only means that acquaintance with the family directly or through someone else is the real criterion. There is no written contract as a rule. This, too, is in keeping with the responses of the workers

Table M 8: Agreement with workers

(Table M 9 : communities of families employed by mukadams )

Amount of advance from factories

Asked about the amount of advance that the mukadams get from the factories to procure labourer, mostly some standard amounts like Rs.50 – 55000 or 60-70,000 per toli or Rs.10, 000 or 10,000-15,000 or 20 to 25,000 per gadi or perhaps Rs.5000 or Rs. 10,000 per majur, are mentioned as the criterion for the amount of advance obtained from the factory.

The actual amounts have, however, not been mentioned.

Table M 10: Criteria determining amount of advance from factories

Agreement with factories

The mukadams have not specifically answered whether they provide any document as guarantee to the factory at the time of taking the advance. However, most mukadams have mentioned the kind of document they furnish to the factory.

The guarantee is a copy of the 7/12 extract from the talathi’s records, i.e. the land title, evidence of land owned by them, in most cases. Other documents furnished as a guarantee may be the domicile certificate, registration papers of the truck or tractor, etc. 143, 46.9% mukadams mention making  a contract on stamp paper and 140, 45.9% of them mention producing a witness or guarantor.

Table M 11: Agreement with factories

Difficulties faced by mukadams

The problem mentioned most frequently in the first place is that of recovering the advance paid to the workers at the beginning of the season. Mentioned by 91, 29.8% of the mukadams it also forms 100, 32.8% of the total responses to this question.

Problems faced in obtaining the advance amount from the factory well in time is mentioned as the first problem by 74, 24.3% mukadams and forms 97, 24.7% of the total responses.

The season getting cut short causes a problem for the mukadams as they do not get time to recover, in the form of labour, the entire amount given in advance and it would be very difficult indeed to get the workers to pay back any money. Although this is mentioned by a smaller number of mukadams 65, 21.3% in the first place, over all it is mentioned most frequently, 105, or 26.7% of the total responses to the question. Of course, it can be safely assumed that a shorter season whether expected or unexpected can only be a problem for a mukadam as it means a reduction in his year’s income.

Some ways of dealing with their difficulties have been described by the mukadams in answer to this question. Some say that they charge an interest on the advance if it is not returned during the season, some oblige the labourer to sell his animals to pay back the advance, some find that the workers simply abscond when the season ends. Some have said that the factory does not help them to recover the advance given; some simply say that they recover the advance the following year.

On the whole, the recovery of the advance is a problem and especially so if the season is unexpectedly short.

Table M 12: Difficulties faced by mukadam

Mukadams’ perceptions about sugarcane cutters’ problems.

The mukadams were asked what they thought were the problems faced by the families of sugarcane cutters especially with regard to the education of their children. (Table M 13) Thus, the bias towards education was present in the question itself. Hence, not only are the responses mainly about education, but, it is probably justified if we interpret the most frequently mentioned but most vaguely worded problem ‘migration causes problems’ to mean that migration causes a disruption in the children’s schooling. This is mentioned by 66, 21.6% mukadams as the first difficulty that they perceive that the workers have to face. That sakharshalas should be started was mentioned by 55 mukadams as the second option, which implicitly points to the same difficulty that due to migration education gets disrupted. Another 91 or 27.5% of the total responses express the opinion that the government should address and find a solution to this problem. Thus, 65% of the expressed opinions refer to the disruption of school education and how it should be solved.

Another 104, 34% of the responses express some other opinions, not necessarily conflicting with those already mentioned. Some say that the sakharshalas have helped to solve the problem; some, that sakharshalas should be extended up to standard VII. Some say that there should be boarding facilities in the village. That the education that children are getting is not good enough is mentioned 17 times and forms 5.1 % of the responses. We again note that there is not much attention given to the quality of education. The reasons for this were discussed before in the context of the workers’ opinions about their children’s schooling, and probably hold true here as well. Besides, when availability of schooling is still a problem where is the question of attention to its quality?

A majority of the mukadams 205, 67.2% report that there was a sakharshala at the site to which they had gone this year (2003-04). 180 mukadams, 59% had also seen it for themselves. In view of this, and the fact that they are familiar with the needs and the situation of the workers their suggestions to start more sakharshalas should be given due consideration.

It is perhaps important to note here that no mukadam has said that the workers do not appreciate the importance of educating their children.

The problems of the workers themselves are mentioned only 12 times and form just 3.6% of the total responses. This is not surprising because, as mentioned before, the question itself was worded so as to elicit responses about education. Hence, these numbers should not be interpreted to mean that the workers’ problems are negligible. On the contrary, as the problems mentioned are of a serious nature this lead should be followed to find out their real extent and if necessary the possibilities of solutions. The problems mentioned are the lack of water and electricity at the camping sites of the workers near the factories and that the workers do not get any compensation in case of an accident.

Table M 13 :  Mukadams’ perception about workers’ problems

To summarise we may say that the mukadams have pointed out two important things about the workers’ problems. They are of the opinion that some agency should take it upon itself to provide for the education of the children of migrant labourer. The majority seem to think that this should be done by the Government and at the destination sites.

About the workers themselves the matter of providing them with better-appointed camping sites where they come to live for half the year, year after year, and of insuring them against accidents requires advocacy on their behalf with the Government and the factory managements.

Perhaps some arrangement for functional education for the workers should also be made so that they could take a more active interest in bettering their own conditions of life. Further enquiry may tell us whether the mukadams could be motivated to take the lead in such a venture and thus become the agents of the change.  

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