38

CHAPTER V.

stood at 4,069 in 1921 and 8,129 in 1929. Most of the latter increase
represents small factories, and many of them work only for short seasons,
so that in numbers the staff, if not completely adequate, is more so than
was the case in 1921. So far as quality is concerned, we are happy to
report that this has been more than maintained since the constitutional
reforms of 1920. We were impressed by the enthusiasm and the capacity
which the inspectors bring to their difficult task and we are satisfied
that the standard of enforcement of the Act has risen steadily, in spite of
the constantly increasing complexity of factory administration which has
resulted from the expansion and development of industry and the changes
in the law.
Enforcement of the Factories Act.

In most provinces the great majority of the permanent factories
are inspected at least once a year, the more important factories receiving
two or three inspections. In some provinces, notably Bombay, Madras,
the Punjab and the Central Provinces, the staff has proved equal to
inspecting nearly every factory, perennial and seasonal, at least once a
year. We show below the number of persons convicted under the
Factories Act in each major province and the minor provinces, together
with the average number of operatives in each provinee throughout the
period.

Persons convicted.

Average
number of
operatives.

Province.

Assam .. .

Bengal .. ..
Bihar and Orissa ..
Bombay ..

Burma .. ae
Central Provinces ,.
Madras .. ..
Punjab .. 0%
United Provinces ..
Minor provinces ..
Total

a
’

.
‘
.

1091.93

33
7
41
24
113
50
68

251

Total
1024-26. (1927-29. | 1921-29.

. &
145 203
4 10
211 211
56 98
100 164
224) 329
67, 173
19 Gl
A

381

21
463
178
377
603
308
“or

61

4

8492 1

1.810

2 503

1921.29.

38,000
541,000
69,000
365,000
96,000
65,000
124,000
50,000
80,000
28 000

1.457.000

Control of the Inspectorate.

As the table shows, in the leading provinces there has been a
steady increase in the number of prosecutions and this corresponds with
increasing improvements in administration. In only two provinces is
the number of prosecutions markedly low—Assam and Bihar and Orissa.
In the former case, owing to peculiar local difficulties which are discussed
slsewhere, many factories have been uninspected each vear. In the