Co-operatives and the Emancipation of the Marginalized: Case Studies from Two Cities in India

This paper discusses the role of co-operatives are one of the means of emancipation of the marginalised sections of the working class. It begins with a brief outline on the industrial situation in India and the need to forge alternative production processes through worker cooperatives. This is followed by a discussion on co-operatives, especially worker cooperatives, and social emancipation. This proposition is examined through two studies conducted in two cities, namely, Ahmedabad in Western India and Calcutta in Eastern India. The study in Ahmadabad deals with the socially marginalised group of female waste pickers who have formed co-operatives with the help of SEWA, a trade union of women workers. The study in Calcutta deals with the attempts of workers who have re-started their enterprises through worker co-operatives after the employers shut them down. While focussing on the role of co-operatives, the study underlines their links with the trade union movement. Other factors, which influence the functioning of these co-operatives, are internal democracy and the role of the state.