# BANDHUA MUKTI MORCHA v. UNION OF INDIA AND ORS

- **Citation:** [1991] 3 S.C.R. 524
- **Court:** Supreme Court of India
- **Decided:** 1991-08-13
- **Bench:** Ranganath Misra, M.M. Punchhi, S.C. Agrawal
- **Source:** https://unisonlegal.in/judgment/supreme-court-of-india/bandhua-mukti-morcha-v-union-of-india-and-ors-11105
- **Pages:** 24

## Headnote

Bonded Labour system-Creation, operation and effect of.
Constitution of India, 1950-#<rticles 23( 1), 39(c}, 41, 42C
Bonded labour in quarries of Haryana-Governmen(s failure to imple·
ment the judgment in ( 1984) 3 SCC 161-Measures to take indicated.
Constitution of India, 1950-Article 32-Letter addressed to
.5upreme Court complaining bonded labour-Treated writ petition.
D
A letter l!cldressed to tb,is Court CQmplaining about prevalence of
bonded labolll" system in the quarries of Faridabad District in Haryana
State was trqled as a writ petition under Article 32 of the Constitution.
Two Advocates were appointed as Commissioners to inquire into
the working COllditions of the stone quarry workers. Later, this Court,
E
finding the 1,1eeessity of an In-depth investigation into social and legal
aspects of the problem, also appointed two Commissioners-Dr. S.B.
Patvardhan and Mr, Krbhan M1thaj11n 111 study the working conditions
prevaJJlng In tb.e various qll!ll'ries witbi1,1 the Faridabad district with
particular reference to vlo4ttlo1,1 of provisions of the Bonded Labour
System (Abol,itlon) Act 11f l'l'71i and Inter-State Migrant Workmen
F
(Regulation or El)lployment 4 Conditions of Service) Act.
The Co!DmlssJoner furlljshed their report on 28th of June, 1982.
The 3·Judge Bench
la~IU'd the matter and in its judgment
(reported in (1984) 3 sec uti); dealt with various aspects of the proG
blem and takjpg into a<:couut ~
information collected by Advocate·
Commissioners and the rqJOft made by Dr. Patvardhan.
The C11urt 41d ,not trqt the writ petition as disposed of by its
judgment and the appll~.$W'Vived for further monitoring.
H
This Court also appoinlejl Shri ILaxmi Dhar Misra, Joint Secretary
524
j
BANDHUA MUKTI MORCHA v. U.0.l.
525
in the Ministry of Labour, Government of India as a Commissioner tci
carry out the assignments stated in the judgment.
Mr. Laxmidhar Misra, in due course, submitted his report in two
parts-one dealing with the identification oNhe bonded labour and the
second covering the inquiry into the implementation of the 21
directives.
The petitioner-Morcha, filed a petition for contempt alleging that
the directions were not being implemented.
Mr. Mahabir Jain of the Faculty of National Labour Institute was
appointed to inquire into the measures and report on the degrees to
which the 21 directives issued by the Court had been implemented and
to present to the Court a clear picture of the issues involved for enabling
it to make its own assessment and come to a conclusion as to whether the
directions had been or were being implemented and also as to whether
action for contempt was appropriate or in the matter of monitoring the
social problem, some other course was necessary to be adopted, and in
February, 1989, the report was submitted to the Court.
As the 3-Judge Bench had gone into the philosophy involved in the
matter in the judgment, what remains for consideration at this stage
was more or less a clear review of the enforcement of the directives and
assessment of the outcome for achieving the statutory purpose and the
constitutional goal and for the fulfilment of the hopes and expectations
of this Court in that regard.
..
The matter was heard for some time on the basis of these reports
A
B
c
D
E
of Mr. Jain and this Court reserved judgment on 10th of July, 1990.
When the matter was about to be disposed a communication was
F
received by the Court dated 24.1.1991 from the Director General of
Labour Welfare in the Ministry of Labour that the total number of
unrehabilitated bonded labourers was 523 nPto 30.U.1990, whereas the
number to be 3993 according to the petitioner and on 21st February,
1991, this court directed a Committee to check up the particulars and to
furnish a report, which was furnished on July 1, 1991, from which it G
.,.
was understood that the total number of identified bonded labour is.
around 2000 and not 3993.
The report indicated that the wages, the facility of schooling and
medical treatment, av

## Text

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A
BANDHUA MUKTI MORCHA
v.
UNION OF INDIA AND ORS.
AUGUST 13, 1991
B
[RANGANATH MISRA, CJ, M.M. PUNCHHI AND
S.C. AGRAWAL, JJ.]
Bonded Labour system-Creation, operation and effect of.
Constitution of India, 1950-#<rticles 23( 1), 39(c}, 41, 42C
Bonded labour in quarries of Haryana-Governmen(s failure to imple·
ment the judgment in ( 1984) 3 SCC 161-Measures to take indicated.
Constitution of India, 1950-Article 32-Letter addressed to
.5upreme Court complaining bonded labour-Treated writ petition.
D
A letter l!cldressed to tb,is Court CQmplaining about prevalence of
bonded labolll" system in the quarries of Faridabad District in Haryana
State was trqled as a writ petition under Article 32 of the Constitution.
Two Advocates were appointed as Commissioners to inquire into
the working COllditions of the stone quarry workers. Later, this Court,
E
finding the 1,1eeessity of an In-depth investigation into social and legal
aspects of the problem, also appointed two Commissioners-Dr. S.B.
Patvardhan and Mr, Krbhan M1thaj11n 111 study the working conditions
prevaJJlng In tb.e various qll!ll'ries witbi1,1 the Faridabad district with
particular reference to vlo4ttlo1,1 of provisions of the Bonded Labour
System (Abol,itlon) Act 11f l'l'71i and Inter-State Migrant Workmen
F
(Regulation or El)lployment 4 Conditions of Service) Act.
The Co!DmlssJoner furlljshed their report on 28th of June, 1982.
The 3·Judge Bench
la~IU'd the matter and in its judgment
(reported in (1984) 3 sec uti); dealt with various aspects of the proG
blem and takjpg into a<:couut ~
information collected by Advocate·
Commissioners and the rqJOft made by Dr. Patvardhan.
The C11urt 41d ,not trqt the writ petition as disposed of by its
judgment and the appll~.$W'Vived for further monitoring.
H
This Court also appoinlejl Shri ILaxmi Dhar Misra, Joint Secretary
524
j
BANDHUA MUKTI MORCHA v. U.0.l.
525
in the Ministry of Labour, Government of India as a Commissioner tci
carry out the assignments stated in the judgment.
Mr. Laxmidhar Misra, in due course, submitted his report in two
parts-one dealing with the identification oNhe bonded labour and the
second covering the inquiry into the implementation of the 21
directives.
The petitioner-Morcha, filed a petition for contempt alleging that
the directions were not being implemented.
Mr. Mahabir Jain of the Faculty of National Labour Institute was
appointed to inquire into the measures and report on the degrees to
which the 21 directives issued by the Court had been implemented and
to present to the Court a clear picture of the issues involved for enabling
it to make its own assessment and come to a conclusion as to whether the
directions had been or were being implemented and also as to whether
action for contempt was appropriate or in the matter of monitoring the
social problem, some other course was necessary to be adopted, and in
February, 1989, the report was submitted to the Court.
As the 3-Judge Bench had gone into the philosophy involved in the
matter in the judgment, what remains for consideration at this stage
was more or less a clear review of the enforcement of the directives and
assessment of the outcome for achieving the statutory purpose and the
constitutional goal and for the fulfilment of the hopes and expectations
of this Court in that regard.
..
The matter was heard for some time on the basis of these reports
A
B
c
D
E
of Mr. Jain and this Court reserved judgment on 10th of July, 1990.
When the matter was about to be disposed a communication was
F
received by the Court dated 24.1.1991 from the Director General of
Labour Welfare in the Ministry of Labour that the total number of
unrehabilitated bonded labourers was 523 nPto 30.U.1990, whereas the
number to be 3993 according to the petitioner and on 21st February,
1991, this court directed a Committee to check up the particulars and to
furnish a report, which was furnished on July 1, 1991, from which it G
.,.
was understood that the total number of identified bonded labour is.
around 2000 and not 3993.
The report indicated that the wages, the facility of schooling and
medical treatment, availability of water, provisions and scope for recreation are aspects which still require attention. No attention has been H
526
SUPREME COURT REPORTS
[1991) 3 S.C.R.
A
bestowed by the inspecting authority of the labour law enforcers to
secure improved conditions of working.
B
c
Allowing the petition this Court,
HELD: 1. For -a loan taken at an exorbitant rate of interest the
debtor virtually sells himself to tl1e creditor and gets bonded usually for
a period of life and renders service for the purpose of satisfying the
debt. The creditor anxious to exploit the situation ensures that the debt
is never satisfied and often on the traditional basis of pious obligation
the liability is inherited by the children of the original debtor. The
system thus provides a built-in mechanism for continuation of the
under-privileged section of the society by the privileged few living
therein. [537H-538B)
2. The bonded labourers a1·e paid nominal wages and often their
family members are not permitted to take remunerative jobs elsewhere
without permission of the master. Normally, such permission is not
D
granted and the impoverished condition is allowed to continue to the
advantoge of the creditor. [538B-C]
3. Quarries are located in a particular area away from habita·
tion. On account of necessity for workmen in the area people from
different parts of the country are made to live therein along with their
E
families under very insanitary and inconvenient conditions. Health care
of workmen and members of their families and education of the
children as also the adults in such exclusive locality should be of the
employer. To require a school to be built in such an area where there
may not be adequate number of children for the purpose of schooling at
the expense of the State exchequer may not be appropriate. That apart
F
these institutions should be a part of the trade. In the manner the
employer has to make provision for water and medical care, it should
also have the responsibility of providing schooling for the children of
the workmen. Today emphasis is also being given on adult education. If
appropriate facility is provided the workmen beyond their working
hours can also have scope for learning the three R's and this could be
G
through a process of adult education with State support under the
relevant scheme. [544G-54SB)
4. The State of Haryana must come forward to play its role in a
better way. These are quarries located near about the industrial belt of
Haryana and not far away from Delhi. Dust emanating from the workH
ing area in Haryana is bound to affect adversely the Delhi atmospI
j
BANDHUA MUKT! MORCHA v. U.0.I.
527
here. If adequate importance is given to the angle of pollution the
industry itself has to be regulated or may have to be stopped. [545B-C]
5. The State of Haryana has not ~en Court's intervention in the
proper spirit and has failed to exercise appropriate control though some
eight years back this Court had in clear terms laid down the guidelines .
and had called upon the public authority to take charge of the situation
and provide adequate safeguards. [545D-E]
6. The workmen engaged on full time basis, who are not prepared
to return to their States, are to be provided with a permanent base for
residenc~ at or near the work site. This would necessit;ite reasonable
housing, supply of water, a reasonable provision store at bud, schooling facility, facility of a hospital, recreational facilities and attention to
the law and order problem. Perhaps near the area a police station or an
outpost could be located. If the workers were insufficient in number, a
doctor could be taken as a visitor to the area at frequent intervals and
instead of a regular school one single teacher could be provided to look
after the hel'llth of the people. [545G-546B]
7. Court's judgment .to regulate such matters has inherent limitation. These are not schemes which could be conveniently monitor,ed by a
Court-far less can the apex court keep track of the matter. Its Registry
has congestion. To get attention for a matter of this type from the Court
A
B
c
D
is bound to take some· time. Human problems in their normal way do
E
not wait for a time schedule for attention. In such circumstances, it
stioutd lie the obligation of the State which on account of running stone
quarries within its area must in various ways be getting benefits to look
after these aspects. As a welfare State it is now the obligation of the
State ofHaryana to cater to these requirements of the area. [546B-D]
8. In these circumstances the State of Haryana was called upon to
attend to the needs of the workmen in a well-considered and systematic
way. Since those workmen who will be working there have to be protected from the vagaries of employment and the anxiety of the employer
F
to draw work without adequate payments, the authorities of the State of
Haryana must take care to protect the workmen from the hands of the G
employer by ensuring compliance with thdaws if there be any vacuum
in the laws, the State of Haryana should rise to play the role of a welfare
State and play it well. In fact there could be a special cess raised against
the quarry activities to be specifically utilised by way of return to the
industry and there could be a special fu11d out of which all the amenities
could be provided. What is wanting is not power but the mind and
H
alert11ess regarding one's duty. [546E-G l
A
B
c
528
SUPREME COURT REPORTS
[1991] 3 S.C.R.
9. The State of Haryana shall now ensure that the people who
have been idenlified numbering abouUOOO are continued in work with
the improved conditions of service and facilities and such o( them who
want to go back to their n~ve areas be treated as released froni
bondage and appropriate action must be taken in accordance with
Government oflndia's scheme forthwith. [5470-E]
S.P. Gupta v. Union of India, [1982] 2 SCR 365, referred to.
ORIGINAL JURISDICTION: Writ Petition (Civil) No. 2135 of
1982.
(Under Article 32 of the Cons1titution of India).
S.K. Bhattacharya for the Petitioner.
Mahabir Singh, K.B. Rohtagi, S.K. Dhingra, L.K. Gupta, S.K.
Verma, B.D. Sharma, Mrs. S. Dikshit and Ms. A. Subhashini (N.P.)
D
for the Respondents.
The following Order of the Court was delivered
A letter addressed to this Court complaining about prevalence of
bonded labour system in Cotton, Anangpur and Lakkarpur areas of
E
Faridabad District in Haryana State wherein the stone quarries workers are living in most inhuman conditions, was treated as a writ petition under Articl« 32 of the Constitution. This Court appointed two
Advocates as Commissioners to inquire into the working conditions of
the stone quarry workers with particular reference to the cases .
mentioned in the writ petition. This Court finding the necessity of an
F
in'depth investigation into social and legal aspects of the problem also
appointed Dr. S.B. Patvardhan and Mr. Krishan Mahajan to study the
working conditions prevailing in the various quarries within the
F aridabad district with particular reference to violation of provisions
of the Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act of 1976 and Inter-State
Migrant workmen (Regulation of Employment & Conditions of
G
Service) Act. The Commissioners furnished their report to the Court
on 28th of June, 1982.
""
Several questions were raised before the Court apart from merit
of the dispute; the important ones being (i) whether an application
under Art. 32 of the Constitution was maintainable, particularly when
H
no allegation of infringement of petitioner's fundamental right was
-'
BANDHUA MUKTI MORCHA v. U.0.l.
529
made; (ii) whether a letter addressed to the Court could be treated as a
writ petition and be proceeded with in the absence of support by
affidavit or verification; and (iii) whether the Court had power to
appoint Commissioners or an investigative body to inquire into allegations made in the petition and by affidavits and require reports to be
made to tl)e Court for facilitating exercise of its jurisdiction under Art.
32 of the Constitution.
The concept of public interest litigation had not then adequately
developed and its contoPrs sufficiently delineated; the practice of ·
accepting letters as a foundation for a writ petition had not also been
cleatly established; in writ petitions the practice of appointing Com-
...,.. missioners or investigating agencies had not been precedented; the
traditional concept of ddence of locus standi has not been wiped away
notwithstanding the decision in S.P. Gupta v. Union of India, [1982] 2
SCR 365.
A
B
c
A 3-Judge Bench heard the matter at considerable length and
each of them delivered a separate judgment. Though the main judgD
ment was delivered by Bhagwati, J. (as he then was) and Justice A.N.
Sen concurred with it by a separate judgment and Pathak, J. (as he
then was) while concurring with Bhagwati, J. on some issues gave his
own views. The judgment of the Court was pronounced on 16th of
December, 1983 [19643 SCC 161].
This Court dealt with various aspects of the problem; referred to
available literature on material aspects; took into account the information collected by Advocate-Commissioners and the report made by
Dr. Patvardhan. The Court also took note of the position that the
E
"
Presidential Ordinance of 1975 for abolition of bonded labour and the
subsequent Parliamentary legislation in 1975 were seeking to impleF
ment the mandate of Art. 23 of the Constitution but while statutory
provision had been made, taking into account the fact that the pernicious practice of bonded labour had prevailed in this country for
centuries; the then current social atmosphere had been tolerating this
practice without any serious objection; the concentration of wealth in
the hands of a few and the majority being poor it became convenient
G
for the owners of property and wealth to exploit the poor and in India
" a social change opposed to traditional methods was difficult to implement, the Court did not treat the writ petition as disposed of by its
judgment and the application survived for further monitoring.
In paragraph 39 of the judgment of Bhagwati, J. with whom on
that aspect the other two learned Judges agreed, it was said:
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530
A
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SUPREME COURT REPORTS
[1991] 3 S.C.R.
"We accoroi.ngly allow this writ petition and issue the
above directions to the Central Government and the State
of Haryana and the various authorities mentioned in the
preceding paragraphs of this judgment so that these poor
.....
unfortunate workmen who lead a miserable existence in
small novels, exposed to the vagaries of weather, drinking
foul water, breathing heavily dust-laden polluted air and
breaking and blasting stone all their life, may one day be
able to realise that freedom is not only the monoply of a
few out belongs to them all and that they are also equally
entitled along with others to participate in the fruits of
freedom and development. These directions may be sum-
'fl'
marised as follows:-
(1) The Government of Haryana will, without any
delay and at any rate within six weeks from today,
constitute Vigilance Committee in each sub-division
of a district in compliance with the requirements of
Section 13 of the Bonded Labour System (Abolition)
Act, 1976 keeping in view the guidelines given by us
in this judgment.
(2) The Government of Haryana will instruct the district magistrates to take up the work of identification
of bonded labour as one of their top priority tasks and
to map out areas of concentration of bonded laboilr
which are mostly to be found in stone quarries and
brick kilns and assign task forces for identification
and release of bonded labour and periodically hold
labour camps in these areas with a view to educating
the labourers inter alia with the assistance of the
National Labour Institute.
(3) The State Government as also the Vigilance
Committees and the district magistrates will take the
assistance of non-political social action groups and
voluntary agencies for the purpose of ensuring
implementation of the provisions of the Bonded
Labour System (Abolition) Act, 1976.
(4) The Government of Haryana will draw up within
a period of three months from today a scheme or
progra~e for rehabilitation of the freed bonded
BANDHUA MUKTI MORCHA v. U.0.1.
531
labourers in the light of the guidelines set out by the
Secretary to the Government of India, Ministry of
Labour in his letter dated September 2, 1982 and
implement such scheme or programme to the extent
found necessary.
·
(5) ·The Central Government and the Government of
Haryana will take all necessary steps for the purpose
of ensuring that minimum wages are paid to the workmen employed in the stone quarries and stone
crushers in accordance with the principles laid down
in this judgment and this direction shall be carried out
within the shortest possible time so that within six
weeks from today, the workmen start actually receiving in their hands a wage not less than the minimum
wage.
A
B
c
(6) If payment of wages is made on truck basis, the
Central Government will direct the appropriate
D
officer of the Central Enforcement Machinery or any
other appropriate authority or officer to determine
the measurement of each truck as to how many cubic
ft. of stone it can contain and print or inscribe such
measurement on the truck so that appropriate and
adequate wage is received by the workmen for the
E
work done by them and they are not cheated out of
their legitimate wage.
·
(7) The Central Government will direct the Inspecting Officers of the Central Enforcement Machinery
or any other appropriate Inspecting Officers to carry
F
out surprise checks at least once in a week for the
purpose of ensuring that the trucks are not loaded
beyond their true measurement capacity and if it is
found that the trucks are loaded in excess of the true
me~surement capacity, the Inspecting Officers carrying out such checks will immediately bring this fact to
G
the notice of the appropriate authorities and necessary action shall be initiated against the defaulting
mine owners and/or thekedars or jamadars.
(8) The Central Government and the Government of
Haryana will ensure that payment of wages is made
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SUPREME COURT REPORTS
[1991] 3 S.C.R.
directly to the workmen by the mine lessees and stone
crusher owners or at any rate in the presence of a
representative of the mine lessees or stone crusher
~
owners and the Inspecting Officers of the Central
Government as also of the Government of Haryana
shall carry out periodic checks in order to ensure that
the payment of the stipulated wage is made to the
workmen.
(9) The Central Board of Workers' Education will
organise periodic camps near the sites of stone quar-
-11"
ries and stone crushers in Faridabad District for the
purpose of educating the workmen in the rights and
benefits conferred upon them by social welfare and
labour laws and the progress made shall be reported
to this Court by the Central Board of Workers' Education at least once in three months.
(IO) The Central Government and the Government
of Haryana will immediately take steps for the
purpose of ensuring that the stone crusher owners do
not continue to foul the air and they adopt either of
two devices, namely, keeping a drum of w~ter above
the stone crushing machine with arrangement for
continuous spraying of water upon it or installation of
dust sucking machine and a compliance report in
regard to this direction shall be made to this Court on
or before February 28, 1984.
(11) The Central Government and the Government
of Haryana will immediately ensure that the ·mine
lessees and stone crusher owners start supplying pure
drinking water to the workmen on a scale of at least 2
litres for every workman by keeping suitable vessels
in a shaded place at conveniently accessible points
and such vessels shall be kept in clean and hygienic
condition and shall be emptied, deaned and refilled
every day and the appropriate authorities of the
Central Government and the Government of
Haryana will supervise strictly the enforcement of
this direction and initiate necessary action if there is
any d.,fault.
\
BANDHUA MUKTI MORCHA v. U.0.I.
533
{12) The Central Government a.nd the Government
of Haryana will ensure that minimum wage is paid to
the women and/or children who look after the vessels
in which pure drinking water is kept for the workmen.
( 13) The Central Government and the Government
of Haryana will immediately direct the mine lessees
and stone crusher owners to start obtaining drinking
water from any unpolluted source or sources of supply and to transport it by tankers to the work site with
sufficient frequency so as to be able to keep the
vessels filled up for supply of clean drinking water to
the workmen and the Chief Administrator, Faridabad
Complex will set up the points from where the mine
lessees and stone crusher owners can, if necessary,
obtain supply of potable water for being carried by
tankers.
{14) The Central Government and the State Government will ensure that conservancy facilities in the
shape of latrines and urinals in accordance with the
provisions contained in Section 20 of the Mines Act,
1950 and Rules 33 to 36 of the Mines Rules, 1955 are
provided at the latest by February 15, 1984.
( 15) The Central Government and the State Government will take steps to immediately ensure that
appropriate and adequate medical and first aid
facilities as required by section 21 of the Mines Act,
1952 and Rules 40 to 45-A of the Mines Rulrs, 1955
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are provided to the workmen not later than January
F
31, 1984.
(16) The Central Government and the Government
of Haryana will ensure that every workman who is
required to carry out blasting with explosives is not
only trained under the Mines Vocational Training
G
Rules, 1966 but also holds first aid qualification and
carries a first aid outfit while on duty as required by
Rule 45 of the Mines Rules, 1955.
( 17) The Central Government and the State Government will" immediately take steps to ensure that
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SUPREME COURT REPORTS
[1991] 3 S.C.R.
proper and adequate medical treatment is provided
by the mine lessees and owners of stone crushers to
the workmen employed by them as also to the
members of their families free of cost and such medical assistance shall be made available to them without
any cost of transportation or otherwise and the
doctor's fees as also the cost of medicines prescribed
by the doctors including hospitalisation charges, if
any, shall also be reimbursed to them.
(18) The Central Government and the State Government will ensure that the provisions of the Maternity
Benefit Act, 1961, the Maternity Benefit (Mines and
Circus) Rules, 1963 and the Mines Creche Rules,
1966 where applicable in any particular stone quarry
or stone crusher are given effect to by the mine
lessees and stone crusher owners.
( 19) As soon as any workman employed in a stone
quarry or stone crusher receives injury or contracts
disease in the course of his employment, the concerned mine lessee or stone crusher owner shall
immediately repot this fact to the Chief Inspector or
Inspecting Officers of the Cenral Government and/or
the State Government and such Inspecting Officers
shall immediately provide legal assistance to the
workmen with a view to enabling him to file a claim
for compensation before the appropriate court or
authority and they shall also en~ure that such claim 'is
pursued vigorously and the amount of compensation
awarded to the workman is secured to him.
(20) The Inspecting Officers of the Central Government as also of the State Government will visit each
stone quarry or stone crusher at least once in a fortnight and ascertain whether there is any workman
who is injured or who is suffering from any disease or
illness, and if so, they will immediately take the
necessary steps for the purpose of providing medical
and legal assistance.
(21) If the Central Government and the Government
of Haryana fail to ensure performance of any of the
J
BANDHUA MUKTI \IORCHA v. U.0.I.
535
obligations set out in clauses 11, 13, 14 and 15 by the
mine lessees and stone crusher owners within the
period specified in those respective clauses, such obligation or obligations to the extent to which they are
not performed shall be carried out by the Central
Government and the Government ofHaryana."
The Court went on to further say:
"We also appoint Shri Laxmi Dhar Misra, Joint Secretary
in the Ministry of Labour, Government of India as a Commissioner for the purpose of carrying out the following
assignment:-
(a) He will visit the stone quarries and stone crushers
in Faridabad District and ascertain by enquiring from
the labourers in each stone quarry or stone crusher in
A
B
c
the manner set out by us whether any of them· are
being forced to provide labour and are bonded
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labourers and he will prepare in respect of each stone
quarry or stone crusher a statement showing the
names and particulars of those who, according to the
enquiry made by him, are bonded labourers and he
will also ascertain from them whether they want to
continue to work in the stone quarry or stone crusher
E
or they want to go away and if he finds.that they want
to go away, he will furnish particulars in regard to
them to the District Magistrate, Faridabad and the
District Magistrate will, on receipt of the particulars
from Shri Laxmi Dhar Misra, make necessary
arrangements for releasing them and provide for their
F
transportation back to their homes and for this
purpose the State Government will make the requisite funds available to the District Magistrate.
(b) He will also enquire from the mine lessees and
owners of stone crushers as also from the thekedars
G
and jamadars whether there are any advances made
by them to the labourers working in the stone quarries or stone crushers and if so, whether there is any
documentary evidence in support of the same and he
will also ascertain what, according to the mine lessees
and owners of stone crushers or the jamadar or theH
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kedar, are the amounts of loans still remaining out·
standing against such labourers.
( c) m: will also ascertain by carrying out sample
check whether the workmen employed in any particular stone quarry or stone crusher are actually in
receipt of wage not less than the minimum wage and
whether the directions given in this order in regard to
computation and payment of minimum wage are
being implemented by the authorities.
{d) m: will conduct an enquiry in each of the stone
quarries and stone crushers in Faridabad District for
the purpose of ascertaining whether there are any
contract labourers or inter-State migrant workmen in
any of these stone quarries or stone crushers and if he
finds as, a result of his enquiry that the Contract
Labour Act, and/or the Inter-State Migrant Workmen Act is applicable, he will make a report to that
effect to the Court.
( e) He will ascertain whether the directions given by
us in this judgment regarding effective arrangement
for supply of pure drinking water have been carried
out by llhe mine lessees and stone crusher owners and
pure drinking water has been made available to the
workmen in accordance with those directions.
(f) He will also ascertain whether the mine lessees
and owners of stone crushers in each of the stone
quarries and stone crushers visited by him have complied with the directions given by us in this judgment
regarding provision of conservancy facilities.
(g) He will also ascertain whether the directions given by us in this judgment in regard to provision of
first aid facilities and proper and adequate medical
treatment including hospitalisation to the workmen
and the members of their families are being carried
out by the mine lessees and stone crusher owners and
the necessary first aid facilities and proper and
adequate medical services including hospitalisation
are provided to the workmen and the members of
their families.
BANDHUA MUKTI MORGIA v. U.0.1.
537
(h) He w\11 also enquire whether the various other A
directions given by us in this judgment have been and
are being carried out by the mine iessees and stone
crusher owners."
This Court indicated its expectation in paragraph 40 of the judgment
thus:
"We have no doubt that if these directions given by us are
honestly and sincerely carried out, it will be possible to
improve the life conditio.ns of these workmen and ensure
social justice to them so that they may be able to breathe
the fresh air of social and economic freedom."
The proceedings thereafter continued with a view to fulfilling the
fond hope and expectation of the Court.
B
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Mr. Laxmidhar Misra, in due course, submitted his report in two
parts-one dealing with the identification of the bonded labour and D
the second covering the inquiry into the implementation of the 21
directives. The petitioner-Morella came before the Court with a petition for contempt action alleging that the directions were not being
implemented. That led to the appointment of Mr. Mahabir Jain of the
Faculty of National Labour Institute to inquire into the measures and
report on the degrees to which the 21 directives issued by the Court
E
had implemented and to present to the Court a clear picture of the
issues involved for enabling it to make its own assessment and come to
a conclusion as to whether the directions had been or were being
implemented and also as to whether action for contempt was appropriate or in the matter of monitoring the social problem, some other
course was necessary to be adopted. In February, 1989, Mr. Jain gave
F
a very detailed report to the Court which is on record and to which
reference has to be made in a later part of our order.
The Union Territory of Delhi housing the capital of the country
is surrounded on three sides by the Haryana State and on the other lies
the State of Uttar Pradesh. The stone quarries of Faridabad have G
thrived for almost half a century now on account of building activity in
the industrial belt of Haryana particularly Ballabgarh and Faridabad
and in the Union Territory of Delhi. The quarrying process involves
substantial manual labour and the need of continuous availability of
labour at cheap rate has led to the growth of the system of bonded
labour in that trade. For a loan taken a1 an exorbitant rate of interest
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the debtor virtually sells himself to the creditor and gets bonded
usually for a period of life and renders service for the purpose 9f
satisfying the debt. The creditor anxious to exploit the situation
ensures that the debt is never satisfied and often on the traditional
basis of pious obligation the liability is inherited by the children of the
original debtor. The system thus provides a built-in mechanism for
continuation of exploitation of the under-privileged section of the
society by the privileged few living therein.
The bonded labourers are paid nominal wages and often their
family members are not permitted to take remunerative jobs elsewhere without permission of the master, Normally, such permission is
not granted and the impoverished condition is allowed to continue to
the advantage of the creditor. The Constitution-fathers were aware of
this prevailing inhuman practice and in Art. 23( 1) provided:
"Traffic in human beings and beggar and other similar forms
of forced labour are prohibited and any contravention of
this provision shall be an offence punishable in accordance
with law."
So powerful was the rich men's lobby that it took 25 years after
the enforcement of the Constitution to provide a definite law for the
purpose and the Presidential Crdinance was the first positive measure
E
in this direction. That got replaced by the Act entitled Bonded Labour
System (Abolition) Act, 1976. We may point out that the directives in
Arts. 39(c), 41and42 are also relevant in this regard. It is perhpas not
necessary to delve into the philosophy involved in the matter as the
3-Judge Bench has gone into it in the judgment of December 1983, and
what remains for consideration at this stage is mme or less a clear
F
review of the enforcement of the directives and assessment of the
outcome for achieving the statutory purpose and the constitutional
goal and for the fulfilment of the hopes and expectations of this Court
in that regard and if it is necessary to take further action and if so, what
such action should be. This will require an analytical study of the
reports furnished by Mr. Laxmidhar Misra and Mr. Mahabir Jain.
G
Mr. Laxmidhar Misra in his letter to the Registry of this Court in
January, 1984, indicated that the inquiry entrusted to him had two
phases-the first relating to the inquiry into the implementation of the
Bonded Labour System (Abolition) Act, Inter-State Migrant Workmen (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act and
H the Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act etc. and the
)
j
BANDHUA MUKTI MORCHA v. U.0.I.
539
second related to ascertaining the extent of compliance of the direcA
tions of this Court by the concerned authorities. On 4th February,
~
1984, this Court directed:
"So far as the consideration of the report.of Mr. Laxmidhar Misra is concerned, the same does not brook any delay
involving as it does the release and rehabilitation of the
B
bonded labourers and amelioration of the lives and working conditions of the large number of stone quarry workers,
we would direct that the matter be expeditiously taken
...
up."
Mr. Laxmidhar Misra submitted his report on the second a~pect c
too. His report gave the ultimate indication that the enforcement of
the Acts covered by the first part of his report had not been adequate.
In regard to the second part, namely, steps for implementation of the
Courr"s directives, he also came to hold that nothing very substantial
had been done though some steps had been taken.
D
On 3.5.1988, this Court required Shri A:K. Srivastava, Director
General of Labour Welfare in the Ministry of Labour to inquire into
the matter- again and furnish a report on the degree to which the
directions issued by the Court had received compliance. Shri Srivastava was not in a position to undertake this inquiry and ultimately it
led to the appointment of Mr. Mahabir Jain, as already indicated. On
E
6th of March, 1989, Mr. Jain furnished his report. He took into
account the 21 directives of the Court. As the report indicates •.. he
adopted the method of interviews, observations, representations,
holding of formal and informal meetings, reference to documents and
other available literature as the basis for collection of information. He
spent considerable time in the jhuggi colonies where the bonded
F
labourers dwell in-different parts of the quarry area. He noticed
absence of sufficient drinking water facility, no provision for schooling
of the children of the bonded labourers and want of appropriate medical facility. Apart from these, he also found that the jhuggis were very
small, unhygienic and did not constitute reasonable accommodation
~
for human use. He noticed that there was lack of organisation among
G
the jhuggi dwellers which facilitated their exploitation by the stone
quarry owners. Even though camps were being organised at regular
intervals for workers employed in the stone quarries and stone
crushers by the Regional Directorate of Wrokers' Education Centre,
Faridabad, there was no discernible impact whieh would catch the eye of
the visitor. He recoraed the statements of 'several- people he met
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including workers, their widows, dependants, relations, outsiJers and
public officials. He noticed that adequate safety measures were not
available in the mines and several accide.nts had taken place on that
account.
With reference to the Workers' Education Centre at Faridabad,
Mr. Jain observed:
"A critical analysis of the camp reports shows that a few
Acts like the Mines Act, Minimum Wages Act, Bonded
Labour System Act, Maternity Benefit Act, Payment of
Wages Act and Trade Union Act had been given rnuch
emphasis in almost all the camps. In only one or two
camps, topics like eradication of social evils, economic
problems, a sense of cooperation and the need for organisation of the workers had been discussed. If one goes back
to the camp reports of the Centre for Workers Education,
Faridabad, one finds that the basic objectives of the camps
were to desensitise the workers about their legal rights and
the need for workers organisation. Compared to those
objectives, the discussion of the topics relevant to organisation building had been given less emphasis. Besides, less
emphasis was also on audio/visual method of teaching.
However, topics discussed in different camps were more or
less the same. Therefore, topics which would create awareness among stone quarry workers need to be discussed in
the camps.
In regard to the specific direction of the Court, Mr. Jain noticed
that Vigilance Committees as required under Section 13 of the Act had
F
been constituted in all districts and sub-divisional headquarters of the
State of Haryana and a good number of meetings of the Vigilance
Committees had been held. He, however. came to the conclusion on
verifying the proceedings of the Vigilance Committee at Faridabad
that he did not ·find any useful information regarding the work of the
Vigilance Committee'.
G
Mr. Jain then referred to the report submitted by Shri Laxmidhar Misra to this Court where he had said that 26 per cent of the
bonded labourers had been released and rehabilitated by the State
Government; nearly 30 per cent of the identified bonded labourers
were not willing to go back to their native places. At the same time, 41
H
per cent of the bonded labourers had left the work site. According to
BANDHUA MUKTI MORCHA v. U.0.1.
541
Mr. Jain, these facts showed that only one bonded labourer out of
every three identified was willing to go back to his or her native place.
Mr. Jain, however, found that most of the bonded labourers who had
been released or rehabilitated came back to the mines-a feature
which clearly indicates that the rehabilitation process was defective
and not useful'. If the rehabilitated bonded labourer had a sense of
confidence in the arrangement of rehabilitation, there would indeed
A
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be no occasion for him to run away from the rehabilitative process
back to bondage. Mr. Jain found that the task of identifying the
bonded labourers had not been sincerely carried out. It is true that in
1982 the Haryana Government had instructed all the District Magistrates to make rehabilitation schemes for released bonded labourers in
accordance with the Government of India's scheme and contemporaneously or nearabout that point of time some rehabilitation had
C
been undertaken. In the absence of constant goading, the exercise had
become sporadic and even fell into disuse. Mr. Jain found that there
;
had been an increase in the number of bonded labourers and ston.e
quarries were again thriving. The minimum wage programme had not
been effectively introduced. A few prosecutions had been lodged but D
that was not adequate and had not generated the requisite conscious-
•
ness. Payment of wages had not been properly recorded and in the
absence of documents cross-verification became indeed difficult. The
Commissioner found that even though Mr. Laxmidhar Misra had indicated about deficiency of drinking water, schooling facility, medical
treatment and the like, no attention had been bestowed on improving E
these aspects and he noticed dearth of these wherever he went. Portions from the conclusions of the Jain report may now be extracted.
His report said:
"It is a technologically backward industry thriving on continuous plentiful supply of cheap replaceable labour.