Calcutta's informal sector - Changing pattern of labour use

Calcutta, being a Populous city of a third world country, contained a large informal sector of industrial activities in colonial times. The trends whi ch were visible in the pre-independence days were reinforced in the East 50 post-independence years. A heterogeneous labour force are employed without the sanction of labour legislation and they are rising continually in thir d world urban sites or agglomerates. Both domestic and foreign firms have t hrived in the city area on the basis of ancillarisation. The paper attempts to trace the changing pattern of labour use in this amorphous segment in C alcutta urban agglomerate during the last few decades. The all-India indust rial scene also revealed an increasing trend of marginalisation and casuali sation of the labour force. Calcutta has witnessed a spurt in informal acti vities during the last few decades. The city also experienced a difference in policy prescriptions as the state of West Bengal has been under Left Fro nt regime during the last two decades. Labour organisations are much strong er in this state and labour movements have included the workers in this seg ment. The paper investigates whether this has affected the pattern of labou r use in this sector vis-a-vis the rest of the country.