Passage Based Questions: Change and Development in industrial Society | Sociology Class 12 - Humanities/Arts PDF Download

Passage  - 1

Direction: Read the following text and answer the questions based on it:

Passage:
“Jayprakash Bhilare, ex-millworker, General Secretary of the Maharashtra Girni Kamgar Union: Textile workers were getting only their basic wage and DA and no other allowance. We were getting only five days of Casual Leave. Other workers in other industries had started getting allowances for travelling, health benefits, etc. and 10-12 days Casual Leave. This agitated the textile workers… On 22 October, 1981, the workers of Standard Mills marched to the house of Dr. Datta Samant to ask him to lead them. At first, Samant declined, saying the industry was covered by the BIRA and he did not know enough of the textile industry. These workers were in no mood to take no for an answer. They kept a night-long vigil outside his home and in the morning Samant finally relented.

Lakshmi Bhatkar, a participant in the strike: I supported the strike. We would sit outside the gate every day and discuss what was to be done. We would go for the morchas that were organised from time to time, the morchas were huge – we never looted or hurt anybody. I was asked to speak sometimes but I was not able to make speeches. My legs would shake too much! Besides I was afraid of my children- what would they say? They would think here we are starving at home and she has her face painted in the newspapers. There was a morcha to Century Mills showroom once. We were arrested and taken to Borivali. I was thinking about my children. I could not eat. I thought to myself that we are not criminals, we were mill workers. Fighting for the wages of our blood.

When Rama Naik died, Bhujbal who was Mayor then had come in his official car to pay his respects. These forces were used at one time or other by many people in politics.

Kisan Salunke, ex-millworker: Those were very difficult times. We had to sell all our vessels. We were ashamed to go to the market with our vessels so we would wrap them in gunny bags and take them to the shop to sell… There were days when I had nothing to eat, only water. We bought sawdust and burnt it for fuel. I have three sons. Sometimes when the children had no milk to drink, I could not bear to see them hungry. I would take my umbrella and go out of the house.

Sindu Mariane, ex-millworker: The RMMS and goondas came to me too, to force me back to work. But I refused to go. There were rumours going around as to what happened to women who went to stay and work in the mills. There were incidents of rape.”

Q1: How do the perspectives of different participants illustrate the 1982 textile strike?
Ans: Labourers of a Cloth Mill did strike in 1982 by taking up the issues of pay, bonus, holidays, etc. According to Jay Prakash Bhilare, the mill workers got their basic wages and DA but no other benefits related to health and travelling, Lakshmi Bhatkar was fighting for wages, Kisan Salunke was fighting for the dignity of mill workers and for Datta Walker, it was a matter of life and death.

Q2: What were the main reasons behind the workers' strike?
Ans: Workers of Mill were on strike on the demand of pay, dearness allowance, other resources and perks.

Q3: In what ways did the mafia establish control in these regions?
Ans: The government freed many goondas of mafia from jail like Baba Rashim, Rama Nayak and Arun Gavi. All of these pressurized the others and made their foothold at these areas.

Passage  - 2

Direction: Read the following text and answer the questions based on it:

Passage:
Gandhi on Machinery, in Hind Swaraj

1924: “What I object to is the craze for machinery, not machinery as such. The craze is for what they call labour-saving machinery. Men go on ‘saving labour’ till thousands are without work and thrown on the open streets to die of starvation. I want to save time and labour, not for a fraction of mankind, but for all. I want the concentration of wealth, not in the hands of the few, but in the hands of all.”

1934: “When as a nation we adopt the spinning-wheel, we not only solve the question of unemployment but we declare that we have no intention of exploiting any nation and we also end the exploitation of the poor by the rich.”

Q1: Provide an example where machinery has negatively impacted workers.
Ans: It is a fact that machinery creates a problem for workers. We can take the example of a cottage industry of earlier times in which a number of family members were required to make a piece of cloth. Even then it required a lot of time to make a small piece of cloth. But when machines were invented then machines started to make cloth with great speed, in less time and with less cost. In this way, work of cottage industry went over to machines of a textile mill and thousands of workers had to change their occupations.

Q2: What was Gandhi's proposed alternative to machinery?
Ans: Mahatma Gandhi was against the use of machines. He was of the view that labour-oriented modern industries should be set up in India.

Q3: How did the adoption of the spinning wheel address exploitation?
Ans: If we will adopt the spinning wheel then everyone can spin cotton. We can weave cloth for our personal requirements. We can also spin cloth for the market. If everyone will adopt the spinning wheel then the production of the mechanical industry will be of no use. Everyone will get work at home and no one will be able to exploit others.

Passage  - 3

Direction: Read the following text and answer the questions based on it:

Q1: How do a strike and a lockout differ? (CBSE, 2010)
Ans: In response to harsh working conditions, sometimes workers use a method against mill owners which is known as a strike so that their demands could be met. But a lockout is a method used by management against the strike in which they shut the gate and prevent workers from coming into the factory.

Q2: Describe the home-based industry with suitable examples. (CBSE, 2010, 2013)
Ans: The home-based industry is an important part of the economy. This work is mainly done by women and children. Homeworkers are paid on a piece-rate basis, depending on the number of pieces they make. We can take the example of carpets, zari or brocade, bidis, agarbattis, etc.

Q3: What was the lifestyle of the planters like? (CBSE, 2013)
Ans:
(i) The planters are in huge bungalows, set on sturdy wooden stilts to save and guard the inmates against wild animals. They lived in luxury and comforts.
(ii) A number of barhis, malis, and bearers were trained by the planters to serve them to perfection.