The Darkness Behind The Colourful Bangles

A Bangle is a type of ornament worn mostly by South Asian women and men in different style. It is most famous in India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, and is worn in Bangladesh too. The ornament is nothing new, it has a long history. A statue of a dancing girl wearing bangle on the left arm was found in Mohenjo-Daro civilization’s site which belongs to around 2500 BC; this was followed by several other statues from Indian cities which show the spread of bangles across India.

In India, Moradabad in Uttar Pradesh is said to be the world’s largest producer of bangles.

On the other hand, Firozabad in Uttar Pradesh is the largest producer of glass bangles in the world. The Sadar Bazar of Firozabad is most famous for bangle shops.

The Lad Bazar in Hyderabad is one of the most famous and largest markets of bangles in India. It is situated in Hyderabad, the capital of Andhra Pradesh and houses a total of around 350 bangle shops. The price of bangles here can range from Rs. 100 to Rs. 5,000 per pair. Generally, the total daily business is of around Rs. 30 lacs plus the exports. There are around 150 workshops in which there are 4,000 artisans who work and of which 60% of are women. Women handle mostly the stonework decoration on bangles.

In Lad bazar, the number of people working in bangle shops has increased from around 200 to 15,000 in last 10 years. Demand for bangles is increasing in this market. The market is so lucrative that even those who hold professional qualifications are getting involved in home businesses in Lad Bazar. I will give the example of Mohammad Gouse who holds an M.C.A. degree and now sells bangles in Lad Bazar.

There is also a black side of the bangle industry. Child labour is still used extensively in Sadar Bazar market of Firozabad. Vikrant who is a child labourer there says, “I work in bangle factory for 8 hours and manage to earn 30 to 35 rupees a day. I have no time for studies and I do not have any option”.

Assistant Labour Commissioner rejects these facts. There have been some raids on some factories before and it has reduced to some extent but it’s still quite widespread. People can’t afford to buy 2 meals in a day . Children can’t continue there studies as they need to support there family and hence they have to work in  bangle industry.

The bangle industry is growing a lot in India and it supplies extensively to whole country as well as exports to the whole world. Child labour needs to be stopped and the government should take strict actions against the Child labour and try to finish it as soon as possible.

-Prateet