Jobless India

AS THE ECONOMY GOES INTO A TAILSPIN, JOBS ACROSS INDUSTRIES ARE BECOMING A CASUALTY.

In the textile town of Bhiwandi, 35 kilometres from Mumbai, dingy, winding, swampy lanes lead to localities humming with noise from power looms.

Here, Riten Gada runs Arihant Weaving Mills, a dilapidated two-storied structure with wooden floors and staircases. Gada’s father started the mill 50 years ago. The power loom business did well for the next several decades – the factory’s 16 looms weaved 2.5 lakh metres of fabric a month, directly and indirectly employing 25 people per loom.

But with the economic slump, most of Gada’s looms have fallen silent. Less than 10 workers attend to those that are still running. From weaving 2.5 lakh metres of fabric a month, the factory now barely manages 70,000 metres. More than a lakh metres, already woven, are stocked up in a godown, on the factory’s second floor. Even in the midst of the festive season, there were hardly any orders from garment makers who earlier procured woven fabric from Kalbadevi in Mumbai, Surat and Ahmedabad. The payments cycle, for those who still procure Gada’s fabrics, has stretched to 240 days from 30-90 days earlier. His troubles may have begun in December 2016 after the Government of India announced demonetisation of all ₹ 500 and ₹ 1,000 banknotes, but the slowdown has truly taken Arihant into its grip. Soon, Gada plans to exit the weaving business and try something new.

Gada’s isn’t an isolated case. Many power looms in Bhiwandi have seen a sharp erosion of business, leading to loss of employment.