[Reader-list] media market and labour

[rakesh]

Dear All

Please go through the following text which is a periodic outcome of my work 
under PPHP project of sarai/CSDS. Your suggestions and comments will be 
highly helpful for my on going study.

thanks
rakesh


LALA  LAJPATRAI  BAZAAR        

THE MORPHING OF A REFUGEE BAZAAR INTO A MEDIA MARKET

      Rakesh Kumar Singh

Here runs the road flanked on both sides by Old and New Delhi .Across the road 
stands the historical Red Fort. Situated behind is Bhagirath Place-the 
biggest centre for cinema distribution in North India along with the largest 
medical and electrical market. The massive structure standing strong by 
Bhagirath Place functioned as a court during the imperial reign. It was, ten 
years before the revolt of 1857, overtaken by the Imperial Bank and later 
became the State Bank of India. The present Reserve Bank of India also 
functioned from this very building for some time. On the right is the famous 
‘Laal Jain temple’, a temple dedicated to Shiva, the Anglo Sanskrit School 
and a cluster of innumerable other shops. On the left lies the Presentation 
Convent and on the south west the Old Delhi Railway Station looks on. 
Situated among these is the Lala Lajpatrai market which is the largest 
electronics market in the country. Needless to say, despite certain changes, 
the streets and corners of the Mughal time Chandni Chowk still flourish, in 
the south eastern part of the market. Even today a considerable share of 
Delhi’s business operates from here.

>>The Establishment of the market

                                      "In the year 1947, our family moved to 
Delhi from a place called ‘mont gumri’ (now known as ‘sahiwal’) situated in 
the west of Pakistan. I was just six years old at that time. My sister was 
born on the way. On reaching Delhi, we had no place to stay and we went to 
the ‘gurudwara’ at Sheeshganj. After staying there for a while, we started 
living in the house of a Muslim who had gone off to Pakistan as a refugee. My 
father started a grocer’s shop on the streets of Chandni Chowk. About a year 
later, a rehabilitation market was started opposite the Red Fort. About 2000 
temporary shops were made for the refugees. My father too got a shop where he 
started with his grocery store. Later, in the year 1965 permanent shops were 
made and my father was allotted shop number 894……"
                                             
                  Sardaar Gurbaksha Singh( Shop no.894, Khalas Pagdi House)

   Actually, after the partition of 1947, a large number of people came to 
Delhi as refugees. The majority of these people belonged to the Punjab and 
Sindh areas of present Pakistan. Circumstances had so quickly turned them 
into refugees that they didn’t even get time to think about themselves. Their 
only shelter then was the footpaths of Delhi. They started a new life by 
running petty business around the various commercial centers of the city and 
on the footpaths. Certain special programmes were launched for these refugees 
by the Government of India. Under these schemes, the then Central Relief and 
Rehabilitation Ministry established 63 markets in the city. The Lajpatrai 
Market, formed in 1948, was also among those. The land on which the market is 
situated was formerly under the ‘Fort Area Notified Committee’ of the Indian 
Defense Ministry and was in the beginning, given out on lease to the Relief 
and Rehabilitation Ministry for a period of three years. Later when the 
Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) was formed, it took over the existing 
Lajpatrai Market from the Fort Area Notified Committee. In the beginning, 
around 1700 temporary stall were made by the Ministry behind the existing 
market. At that time, sale of all commodities was permitted. Most people took 
to grocery. Some years later, with the interference of the then Prime 
Minister, the process of the establishment of refugee markets commenced. In 
the first phase of that process, during the year 1958, the old temporary 
stalls from no.1 to no.471 were replaced with 466 permanent shops, and as 
soon as their construction got over they were allotted. In the second phase 
of establishment(1965), shop no.472  to 897 were replaced by 424 new shops 
and in the year 1966-1967, even their allotment was completed. The shops were 
allotted on rent-basis.

In this way, there came into being a total of 890 shops at the existing 
market. Shop no.14-18 and 480-81 were not constructed but even these empty 
spaces were numbered for convenience sake. Shop no.12 was kept reserved for 
the Rehabilitation Department whereas shop no.13 and 39 were given to the MCD 
for maintenance and for opening a health centre for children. Around 5 to 6 
shops are shut at present. Among these, is shop no.13 which bears a banner of 
a birth and death registration centre, whereas shop no.16-17 combines to 
become a ‘gurudwara’. The sizes of the shops were as follows: the first type 
of shops were 391 square feet in size (such shops were generally allotted to 
sweet-sellers), the size of the second type of shops was 140 square feet ( 
such shops are in the maximum in the market) and the area of the third type 
of shops was 99 squarefeet (most shops of this size were made for the purpose 
of stalls).


>>Ownership of the Shops
                         
       Till the year 1980, the question regarding the ownership of the shops 
shuttled between the MCD and the Relief and Rehabilitation Ministry. The land 
and the structures constructed over it remained under the Rehabilitation 
Ministry in the other 62 markets, but over here, the shops remained under the 
Ministry whereas the land underneath was under the MCD’s control. Right from 
the time the shops were allotted, the ‘Shopkeeper’s Welfare Association’, the 
‘Central Radio and Electronics Merchants Association (CREMA)’, along with 
other such bodies wanted the ownership of the shops to be given to the shop 
keepers themselves. In the year 1978, when the Ministry was having 
discussions on the issue of ownership in the other rehabilitation markets, 
the case of Lajpatrai market was also discussed. The Ministry had then found 
that it was not possible to implement at Lajpatrai market, the schemes for 
the handover of ownership made for the other markets. Later, in the year 
1979, a survey was done which suggested that people to whom the shops were 
actually allotted have either sold their shops off or some other person 
instead, was running his business there. By the year 1981, it was brought to 
light that only 337 shops were with the people they were actually allotted to 
and the rest of the 527 shops were with non-authorized people. In the end, 
after many meetings and on the basis of suggestions given by different 
committees, it was decided by the Ministry that the ownership would be 
bestowed to the shopkeepers after receiving the pending amount of rent and 
after charging the shopkeepers the price of the shops according to the market 
trends. But this scheme was only for those authorized shopkeepers to whom the 
shop was originally allotted. To claim the ownership of a shop, it was 
imperative for the shopkeepers to show either the letter of allotment or the 
receipt of the rent. The last date for claiming the ownership was 31st August 
1992.By the end of 1992, 500 shopkeepers furnished the essential documents 
for claiming a shop, and after completing the governmental formalities, they 
were given the ownership of the shops. Even the issue of the ownership of the 
rest of the shops was solved in the coming years. As far as the ownership 
right of the land underneath the shops is concerned, it’s still with the MCD. 
In the past ten years, this issue has been talked upon often by the MCD and 
CREMA and even steps to resolve the issue have been taken, but due to the 
massive encroachment in the market, no final decision could be made. 
Meanwhile, the issue shuttles between the shopkeepers and the MCD. 

>>Changes in the Market

      Within ten years from when the market was permanently established, it 
started witnessing different trends of changes. These changes were of two 
types – those related to the construction of the market and those related to 
the business. It’s because of the constructional changes that it is slightly 
difficult to tell the exact number of lanes present in the area. Some lanes 
still retain their original structure while some have become narrow, somewhat 
like the lanes at Chandni Chowk. It is said that in the beginning,the market 
functioned as a cloth market. Some hotels and restaurants, a few band groups, 
some tour operators and some transporters were also part of the market. Most 
eateries were situated in the first lane while the band parties along with 
the travel and tour operators were in the front side of the market. Most of 
the people who used to run hotels and restaurants have changed their business 
while a few bands, along with some of the  tour and travel operators still 
remain. According to the shopkeepers, due to the close proximity of the 
market at Chandni Chowk, the place couldn’t prosper as a cloth-market. 
Moreover, social changes were also taking place. There was an increased 
demand for transistors and radios, which made the shopkeepers switch to 
selling radios and its components. By the 80s, the popularity of radio and 
video products increased and the shopkeepers started selling such products. 
Very soon the market started supplying tape recorders, T.V sets, video 
players and audio-video cassettes throughout the country. In the 90’s, the 
field of new media witnessed changes which had never occurred before. Tape 
recorders and video players started getting replaced with CD and VCD players. 
The market once again, witnessed a pattern of change. Even the shopkeepers 
who had remained untouched earlier gave in to the change this time. After the 
popularity of  electronic goods in the entire world, the sale of ‘Indian made 
Chinese’ goods can be seen in the market, since the past two-three years. 
Apart from audio and video cassettes, CD and VCD players, the market today, 
boasts of having amplifiers, sound systems, regulators, T.V sets and all 
related components. Most of the goods sold in the market, including the 
Chinese goods are manufactured in the Eastern parts of Delhi, in the colonies 
and villages situated on the city-border and in other regions around Delhi.

>> Stalls

              Even today, apart from the well-constructed shops, are about 100 
such stalls behind the market whose owners complain that despite being there 
since the childhood days of the market, they still haven’t been allotted 
permanent shops. Apart from this, there are about 400 other small stalls 
around the market. The owners of some such stalls even have the laal parchi. 
Those who don’t, complain that ideally, they should have got the parchi by 
now and the MCD is intentionally not issuing it to them as it wants to 
demolish their stalls by proving them illegal. I couldn’t get to know the 
MCD’s stand on this, but got a chance to see some of its tactics instead. 
Once or twice in every month, the MCD employees would come with their 
hallagaadi (the name given to the MCD van by the people at the market), pick 
up some of the small stalls and take them along. As far as the business at 
the market is concerned, these stalls hold a lot of significance. Not only do 
these stalls sell essential household goods, some of these goods are also 
manufactured at such stalls.


>>Open space in the Market
                                               
   In the context of the Market, the term ‘open space’ would mean such spaces 
which are devoid of any authorized shops. The lanes, the roads around, the 
parks and the parking lots would come under this term. As far the local 
business is concerned, such spaces are no less significant than the shops 
situated in the market. All the tables and other table-like structures which 
serve as stalls are situated in such places. The pleasure of buying the 
‘Indian made Chinese’ goods mentioned earlier can be had only at these 
stalls. Apart from this, the packaging and the transportation of important 
goods is also carried out as it is only here that the cartons and wooden 
boxes are sold. All the jhilliwalas (people who carry loads) and the 
thelawalas (cart pullers) would be found here. It is only in such open-spaces 
that the sweat-soaked contractors involved in the booking of the goods, note 
down their orders, make receipts and send the goods to the transporters. 
Little children who sort out the kuda can be seen carrying bags even longer 
than themselves. It is to this place where such children retire for rest and 
it is only over here that they get their initial training of chewing tobacco 
and exhaling through the nose while smoking. The young girls who dust and 
clean the market can be found ‘passing their time’ at such places (over or 
under the subway). They hunt for ticks in each others hair and make hair buns 
for each other. It is on the roads situated in front of the market and on 
those which run towards Chandni Chowk,  that the laborers and others are able 
to find cheap ways of sexual gratification. In some such open space; you 
would see a social worker imparting literacy to one of the many child 
laborers. It is only over here that one would encounter the feriwalas (street 
vendors) with different wares stacked over their heads. Such spaces act as a 
center for the sale of bidi, cigarettes , paan and chole-kulche along with 
tea , Coke and Pepsi. It’s at such places where you can get to hear people 
whisper in your ear, “kya chaahiye bhai saahab”-“what do you want, sir?”. If 
you are interested, you can find Hindi/English pornographic VCDs from persons 
with black packets tucked in between their shirts and bellies. And after 
getting these you would, rather unwillingly, wipe off the expression of 
pleasure from your face and prefer to leave the place. 

Such places bear a universal character. Every person you see is always on the 
move and each task is carried out actively. It is highly possible that a 
person seen at a certain place today may not be found there tomorrow. Instead 
of him, you would see that someone else or no one at all is working over 
there. Someone could be seen ironing clothes at a certain place all morning, 
but by the time its 11 ‘o’ clock that same place would have a stall where the 
sale of CDs would be going on in full swing. At another place a person maybe 
seen making garlands since early morning , but the same place would get 
crowded with  the jhilliwalas by the time it’s 10 ‘o’ clock. Post lunch the 
same place would get covered by aged men playing cards and busy having a 
‘great debate’ on one particular move. Later at night, that very place would 
get covered with workers, feriwalas and beggars. In this way, we discover 
that the ‘open space’ is closely related to the functioning of the market. 
The so called cultured strata of the society which label the life at such 
open spaces useless and a hindrance to the city life, and blame it for the 
increased crime rate, often forget that it is such open spaces which not only 
play a vital role in the fabrication of city life and its patterns but also 
lend voices of opposition when attempts of detrimental expansion of such 
patterns are made.

Labor at the Media Market

    I had known that there is a place called Lajpatrai Market right opposite 
the Red Fort where one can get electronic goods at cheaper prices. Often, 
while going via this area I could see men in blue kurtas carrying on their 
heads, strange, round shaped baskets. I could also see badges tied around 
their shoulders, similar to the ones found with coolies on railway stations. 
I got to know once I entered the market that these men are called 
‘jhilliwalas’. The badges tied around their shoulders are called ‘tokens’ and 
their round shaped baskets are known as ‘jhillis’. It’s almost as if they 
bear the burden of their families in their baskets. It was also made known to 
me that there are hundreds of others who do not wear uniforms but do similar 
jobs. These are the packers, the thelawalas (cart-pullers), the people who 
carry goods to the market periphery and the booking agents. Such people can 
also be spotted in the other markets of Walled City like Bhagirath Place, the 
Cycle Market, Chandni Chowk, Khanna Market, Angoori Bagh, Naya Bazaar, Sadar 
Bazaar and Kashmiri Gate and at the Old and New Delhi Railway Station. In 
Lajpatrai Market alone, the present number of such laborers engaged in 
various errands is about three thousand five hundred. Among these, there are 
about 1500 jhilliwalas and about 200 contractors. Every contractor is 
accompanied by around five helpers. These helpers are about 1000 in number. 
Apart from this, there are about 300 thelawalas and about 200 people engaged 
in packaging. A vital share of the city’s economical structure rests in the 
shoulders of such laborers. 

The area of work for the jhilliwalas is limited to the shops and the streets. 
Their job includes unloading the good-vehicles which come into the market, 
taking the goods to the shops and loading the vehicle with goods to be sent 
out. As soon as a loaded vehicle arrives at the market, these laborers 
standing in groups on the street run towards it. One of them opens the latch 
of the vehicle and the others unload the goods onto the roadside. Then, one 
by one, putting the goods into their baskets, they take them to their 
destinations. One of them guards the laid out goods till the lot gets 
cleared. The outflow of the goods takes place in a slightly different manner. 
These goods are mainly of two types – the first type of goods is the ones 
which need to be transported within the market and the second type is that of 
those which are to be sent to places outside. transportation within the 
market, the shopkeeper or the businessman generally summons for a jhilliwala. 
Thereafter, the jhilliwala takes the goods to the vehicle either alone or 
with the help of others, as the case may be. As far as the second type of 
goods is concerned, the shopkeepers generally have a contract with one of the 
contractors. The contractor himself or with the help of his men, moves the 
goods from the shops to other places where after issuing receipts, the goods 
are handed over to the thelawalas. These men in turn take the goods to 
transporters at Sadar Bazaar, Naya Bazaar, Khanna Market, Angoori Bagh and 
Kamla market and also to  the New Delhi, Old Delhi and Nizamuddin railway 
stations for railway bookings. The transportation of goods by thelas involves 
another species of laborers - those who push the thelas. Such a laborer could 
either be the contractor’s employee, one of the thela - owner’s men or could 
be any other needy person from the street. It is imperative for the thelawals 
to get back the contractor, a receipt (bilti) of the exact number of pieces 
they had taken to the transporters. Only on that basis, a shopkeeper would 
pay a contractor and the contractor would in turn, pay a thelawala.


>> About the Laborers


                                      No matter what kind of work they do, the 
sole relationship these laborers share with the city is based on work. Search 
for employment has driven them to this city from all corners of the country. 
The jhilliwalas believe that only someone who is ‘rough and tough’ can to the 
tasks they do. There is no certain training or a particular qualification 
required to the work and the only thing which is essentially required is the 
strength to carry heavy loads. Kari Yaadav (an employed jhilli of the market) 
admits that he had taken to this work, as being illiterate, physical work was 
the strongest available option. Most people involved in this kind of work are 
between 19 to 45 years of age.  Shivan (Kari Yaadav’s co-worker) proposes 
that a person who can do this work can do all other possible physical work. 
For most jhilliwalas, this was the first job they were employed for. Less 
than ten percent of the people who take to this work shift jobs in future. 
For most people, their life in Delhi begins with this work and also ends with 
the same.

     Most of these laborers belong to Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. They have come 
from the saharsa, madhubani, samastipur, sitamadhi, muzzafarpur, seevan, 
chapra, baksar, bhojpur and aara districts of Bihar and others are from the 
gaazipur, jaunpur, aazamgadh, devaria, baliya, gorakkpur and sultanpur 
districts of Uttar Pradesh. Among them, most migrants from Bihar are involved 
in the work of carrying baskets (jhilli). Even among these, maximum numbers 
of the people are from the saharsa district. They belong to the same sect as 
the chief minister of Bihar, Smt .Rabri Devi. But looking at them, one can 
never guess that the people of their sect can also be involved in bureaucracy 
and Government services. Most people who come from Uttar Pradesh either turn 
out to be contractors or thela pullers. Among these, the maximum number of 
people belongs to the fishermen-sect known as the Bind. On the downtrodden 
condition of the people of his sect, Shiv Sagar , secretary of the Delhi 
Porters Association suggests, “ Our ancestral occupation involved fishing and 
sand extraction from the river beds. Some of us also engage in a bit of 
vegetable farming during the appropriate season. This is how we sustain 
ourselves. But we have been deceived by the leaders of our sect. Ideally, we 
should have got reservation in the Indian navy.” Apart from the Yadav and 
Bind sects, people belonging to other backward sects like the Chamar too, can 
be found working in the market. Most of these people are landless. Some men, 
although in negligible numbers, also belong to the Rajpoot and Brahmin sects.

>>Labor rates

                       In the history of the Market, the issue of labor rates 
has always been controversial. No policies regarding these rates have been 
made in the past 55 years. The shopkeepers inevitably set their own standards 
while deciding such rates, often neglecting factors like the weight of the 
load and the distance it has to be carried to. Whether the goods have to be 
moved from the roadside to a nearby shop or to a shop in the back lane; 
weather the load weighs five kgs or 55 kgs, the money given to the laborer is 
the same – a sum of Rs. 3 per round, just enough money for a cup of tea. Even 
the present rates have been prevalent only from that past ten years. The 
earlier rate was merely Rs.1.50. The present  rates are as follows: 

    Lajpatrai Market to Lajpathrai Market               Rs.3 per round.
    Lajpathrai Market to Angooree Bagh                Rs.4 per round.
    Lajpathrai Market to Cycle Market, Chandni Chowk      Rs.5 per round.
   Lajpathrai Market to Bhagirath Place                 Rs.5 per round.

 For getting goods transported to the places like the Old Delhi Railway 
Station , Khanna Market, Naya Bazaar, Sadar Bazaar and the New Delhi Railway 
Station, the contractors are given Rs.20 for each parcel. They get Rs.30 for 
transportation of goods to far off places like the Nizzamuddin Railway 
Station. From the sum earned, a contractor usually gives Rs.7 to Rs.10  per 
parcel to the thelawala and Rs.2  to Rs.5 per parcel to the Helpers. People 
involved in the packaging of goods generally get Rs. 1.50 to Rs. 2 per packet 
and those who push the thelas earn Rs.5 to Rs.10 for each round. The 
jhilliwalas usually manage to earn about Rs.100 to 150 everyday. A similar 
amount is earned by the people involved in packaging. On the other hand, the 
contractors usually earn a sum of Rs.300 to 350. But there are days when it 
is difficult to earn as little as fifty rupees. Usually, such periods arrive 
ten to fifteen days prior to and post occasions like Independence and 
Republic Day. Apart from this, whenever the country experiences a bomb blast, 
the Police, fearing an attack on the Red Fort, puts restrictions on areas 
around the market. As a result the business at the market gets badly 
affected. The close proximity of Town Hall, also sometimes proves to be 
detrimental towards the market business. Due to various reasons, the Town 
Hall remains the main centre for protests and rallies. This causes an 
interruption in the market activity and the laborers once again, face 
problems in earning. Chandni Chowk has a cluster of various religious 
centres.  The Jain Temple, the Shiva temple, the Shahi Fatehpuri Mosque, a 
church and the Sheeshganj Gurudwara , all being situated in this area, also 
sometimes prove harmful to the market. Inevitably, every month for two to 
four days, some or the other religious rallies go via this area. It is but 
natural that being situated close to Chandni Chowk, the market is forced to 
be a silent spectator to such rallies. As a result, the laborers have a hard 
time getting an earning even in two digits.


 In this article, only those aspects of the laborers’ lives have been 
discussed which are related to the market. Many aspects still remain 
untouched and many questions unasked. One such question could be regarding 
the various codes of uniform implemented at the market. Without the right 
uniform allotted by the various trader-associations of Walled City, it is 
impossible for these laborers to work in the market. There are other 
important questions which a city dweller has to deal with in his daily life. 
People from different classes have their own answers and stands on them. The 
next phase of my research would be an attempt to have a closer look at the 
lives of these laborers, in the context of such questions.