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