Child-and-adult-labour-in-the-export-oriented-garment-and-gem-polishing-industry-of-India

96
Child and adult labour in the gem polishing export industry of Jaipur
──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
manufacturing unit without the need of a license and registration. The only thing the manufacturer
needs to do is to 'mention' his new unit'.
The number of unregistered units is much higher and has to be added to the number of registered
units. No one has ever conducted a survey on the number of manufacturing units which are involved
in the gem polishing industry.
Mr. Singh (GJEPC) said that '60% of the polished gem stones is directly exported by the exporters
from Jaipur. The rest goes to exporters and traders in Delhi and Bombay and other port cities
who export the stones from there'. But it is also said that official figures regarding the export of
polished gem stones from Jaipur do not account for even a third of what is illegally exported out
of India 139 . It is therefore very difficult to assess the total production of polished gem stones and
thus it is very difficult to assess in how many units and by how many artisans the total amount of
gem stones is manufactured.
Traders
The traders 140 are mainly, and sometimes primarily, involved in the trading of rough gem stones
and finished products. They act as a source of supply to buyers in addition to catering to segments
of the large retail markets on local, state and national levels.
Dalals
The dalal, as brokers or commission agents are the crucial link between the trader/exporter and
the manufacturer. They have knowledge of the whole market: where business is done and by
whom. He takes the raw stones to the manufacturer. He picks up the finished goods and makes an
accepted profit margin of 4%. The manufacturer does not have the time to find buyers for their
finished stones. The broker travels everywhere in the city and makes deals with exporters, jewellery
shopkeepers, manufacturers etc. while he does not manufacture one single stone. Everybody
is totally dependent on him.
During this study in Jaipur in 1996, manufacturers often complained about the brokers because
they did not pay good prices. The broker 141 , often says to the poor manufacturers, who are
illiterate and do not have knowledge of the market, that the stones are not polished properly or
that too much of the rough stone has been polished away, which reduces the price. Another problem
often heard from manufacturers is that the money is not paid in time; workers have to
contract loans from others and have to pay high interests as well. Often manufacturers said that
they would make higher profits if they were not dependent on the dalal. But because 142 most of
the manufacturers do not know the tricks of the trade or how to negotiate, or lack a certain level
of education, they are not able to do the purchasing and selling themselves.
People from the industry estimated that there are around 2,000-3,000 brokers in Jaipur. The
139 Neera Burra, 1995, Born to Work, Child Labour in India, p. 82.
140 Kanchen Mathur, 1991, ibid, p. 9.
141 The price paid per polished stone is in carat weight. First the rough stone is weighed, then, after processing, the stone is weighed again
and the price is fixed per carat weight. If too much stone is polished away the price is lower.
142 Kanchen Mathur, 1991, ibid., p. 11.