Order on closure of mills leading to unemployment

MUMBAI: The Maharashtra government''slabour department machinery has been liberally giving permsision for industrialclosures in Mumbai in the past few months adding to growingjoblessness.A labour department official admitted that seldom beforehave so many closure applications been upheld but declined to commentfurther.In the past few months the labour commissioner has allowedclosure of several units including Nocil Petrochemicals, Voltas Air Conditioningdivision at Thane, Lallubhai Amichand at Mankhurd, Goodlass Nerolac at LowerParel and two textile units of Thackersey group at Prabhadevi; all with a largenumber of workers.Most of the units had already trimmed theirworkforce. At the time of closure Nocil had 580 workers, Voltas A.C. division161, Lallubhai 362, Goodlass 200 (down from 800 last year) and Crown700.Fortunately, the workers say, the government has just deniedpermission to the foundry unit of Mukand Industries for closure of its unit atKurla employing 400 workers..All the units control large plots ofland being eyed by the builder lobby. All India Trade Union Congress and anumber of unions demonstrated outside the labour commissioner''s office onTuesday in protest against its policy towards labour.This is for thefirst time that the government has formally permitted the closure of textileunits in the city. Most units have closed down without seeking governmentpermission following `sickness,'' disconnecting of power supply due tonon-payment of electricity bills, agreement with Rashtriya Mill Mazdoor Sangh toreduce the number of workers or other causes.With the closure ofCrown mills and processing house of Thackersey group, the number of functioningtextile mills in the private sector in Mumbai has come down to less than ten,according to industry sources. The mills now functioning include Century, Dawn,Simplex, Ruby, Prakash and Bombay Dyeing. Most of the surviving ones, includingbig names like Century, are said to be in financial difficulties.Now Bombay Dyeing proposes to commercially develop land in itscentury-old Spring Mill started by Nowrosjee Wadia. It has already begunnegotiations with the sole recognised union in the textile industry theINTUC-affiliated Rashtriya Mill Mazdoor Sangh on the issue. However, millsources declined to give details about the proposal when contacted onThursday.Labour commissioner N.J.Gajbhiye has directed that theworkers in Crown and Process House should be paid their dues in six months. Theunits belong to Hindoostan mills company headed by Mr Sudhir Thackersey, formernational table champion . The company was formerly headed by cricket stalwartVijay Merchant.Nearly 1400 workers of the two mills have accepted aVoluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS) but 700 others have refused to do so and havechallenged the decision of closure and VRS under the banner of Hindoostan CrownMill Siddhivinayak Kamgar Karmachari Sangharsha Sanghatana. Hindustan mills ownlarge properties at Jacob Circle, Lower Parel and Prabhadevi. They have alreadydeveloped the Jacob Circle property with a 42-storey building after the closureof one of its major units.The remaining workers have begun gettingtheir wage dues after securing an order from Mumbai high court judge NishitaMhatre. Meanwhile, the company has begun shifting machinery from the units andit proposes to commercially develop the properties.Private textilemill managements are not paying dues of workers even after making huge profitswith sale of mill land, said Jayaprakash Bhilare, general secretary of theMaharashtra Girni Kamgar Union, affiliated to Kamgar Aghadi.In the90s the state government cited the example of Hindoostan mill to demonstratethat workers were getting their dues with the sale of the mill land. However,subsequently, this had not been borne out, he said. The management of Hindoostanhas already informed the workers that they should not deposit cheques beyond acertain date as it had not been able to mobilise adequate funds.Thedues are to be paid in instalments upto March 2005. Workers are apprehensiveabout getting their dues over such a long period..Mr M.T.Gangadharan, general manager, said the company had acumulated losses of nearlyRs 185 crore and had moved the Board for industrial Finance and REconstruction.He said the company could raise funds through sale of `unusable'' plant andmachinery and development of mill land.