A. Harikumar
There was a time in Kerala – not too far in the past – when investors who did business in the state meekly surrendered to the outrageous demands of militant trade unions. Construction sites were the favourite hunting grounds of trade unions, where they forced contractors to pay gawking wages (Nokkukooli). The unions also forced their men on contractors quite often, denying them the rights to choose and pick skilled workers. It was a bizarre situation. Everyone knew there was an elephant in the room, but none dared to speak out.
But one man; P..K Ramachandran, popularly known as PKR, a builder based at Kochi, dared to be different; He took the rampaging unions by their horn and forced them to obey the laws of the land. The unions didn’t take it lightly. They threatened to finish him off. But Mr. Ramachandran, who was the national vice president of Builders Association of India (BAI) was made of sterner stuff and was nonchalant. He approached courts for justice. His fight came to a fruition when the Kerala High Court ordered in favour of his pleas for the right to appoint workers of his choice, and expressed their strong disapproval of gawking wages.
Recounting the battle of Mr. Ramachandran to protect the rights of entreprenuers, his son-in-law B. Chandra Mohanan, managing partner of Kerala Contracting Company, Kochi said, the battles of his father-in-law were nothing short of historic. The ruling of Kerala High Court’s single bench and later a division bench protecting the rights of contractors at worksite have not been revoked, and still remains valid not just in Kerala, but all over India, he pointed out.
It was around mid1990’s that Mr. Ramachandran approached Kerala High Court, said Mr. Chandra Mohanan who headed BAI, Kerala, previously. He was awarded the contract for constructing Government Ayurveda Hospital at Thripunithura in the suburb of Kochi metropolis. There were around six trade unions operating in the area ,and it had became quite impossible to satisfy their demands, which were even contradictory at times, noted Mr. Chandra Mohanan.
“My father-in-law tried his level best to negotiate with the trade unions which pressurized him to recruit only their men for executing construction work, but couldn’t find a solution. Construction work needed skilled workers and could not be executed with the unskilled labourers deputed by unions. The work was in limbo. The administration and police refused to intervene to solve the crisis, saying it was a labour problem and they were not empowered to intervene. Even colleagues and friends couldn’t help as everyone was afraid of the muscle power of unions. But an unfazed Mr. Ramachandran refused to yield and took them to court. The rest is history. Favourable judgement of the court was a shocker to unions, and the crisis slowly defused.
Mr. Ramachandran’s fighting spirit won the grudging admiration of some of his opponents too, who eventually sought peace with him. Mr Ramachandran’s win at the court set an example to other other builders and the public also. Soon they also started fighting back. However, gawking wages and trade union militancy continue to exist in many places; in Kerala and the police and authorities are yet to act proactively to eradicate the blight says Mr. Chandra Mohanan
Latest Developments
Of late, the Kerala High Court has again taken up the issue of gawking wages which still troubles people. A few days ago, the court directed Kerala government to take steps to amend the Kerala Head load Workers’ Act, 1978 and clarify its stand on the issue of gawking wages. There is public outrage in Kerala against trade union militancy and the mainstream media and social media don’t miss an opportunity to expose such ridiculous practices. However, not many know, that the fight against injustices was began by one man named Ramachandran.
Mr. Ramachandran passed away in 2018. However, his fight against injustices continues to inspire many. His son Denoop, who now leads the company founded by Mr. Ramachandran, and son-in-law Mr. Chandra Mohanan continue to be in the industry following his footsteps.