“Bamboo is considered as poor man’s timber”, but the bamboo workers too are poor. In India, the tropical moist deciduous forests of North and South India and the deciduous and semi-evergreen regions of North-eastern India are the home of the bamboo and it is a fast growing species and widely distributed all over the world.
Sharma (1990) has reporting the bamboo species occurring in India is 10.05 million hectares. The bamboo species are also used as a raw material for cottage industry and employment for the people.
Bamboos are commonly used as agricultural implements, broom, brushes, chairs, basket making, chicks, dustbins, fishing rods, flower pots, fuel, furniture, hats, ladder, musical instruments, poles, roofing, table, mats and for paper and rayon industries.
Living bamboos provide good fencing along serving as ornamental; some of the dwarf types of bamboos are used as ornamental plants in trays and pots. According to one estimate, bamboo consumption in India for housing construction is 16%, for rural uses about 30% and the rest are for paper pulp and other uses.
The present revenue derived from bamboo is estimated at about Rs. 66.77 million/year which can be further increased by encouraging bamboo industry. Nearly 1,60,000 hectares of new land has been brought under cultivation in different states of India.
Recently bamboos are used as water pipes in Bihar State. Recent research at FRI, Dehra Dun has successfully used it as a reinforcing material, replacing of steel in various cement concrete construction, such as roof shed, beams, electric posts etc.
Role of Bamboo Workers Co-Operative Society:
Since, the Coimbatore town Bamboo Workers Co-operative Cottage Industrial Society Limited, Coimbatore is functioning from 35 years before. This is the number one society in the State and it is now under the control of State Government Khadi Craft Board. This society has 200 members and it also collects the finishing bamboo goods from the labourers and settles their payment weekly once.
Family Structure of Bamboo Workers:
In Coimbatore district, the Methra community people are enrich in the work of bamboo basket making. They are migrants from the State of Karnataka during Tipu Sultan’s period and their mother tongue is Tamil mixed Kannada.
The literacy percentage among these people is very low. Each family consists of approximately 4-5 members. Mostly ladies are engaged in this work and the males are working in some other works like shops, mills etc. On an average a female could earn Rs.15-20/day without raw material cost.
Problems Faced by the Bamboo Workers:
The Bamboo workers life is in very poor condition in the society. They have to purchase the raw material bamboo/reeds from the Bamboo Co-operative Society, Angamali, Kerala State and Sulur market at Coimbatore district. Their half of the income goes to the raw material and remaining amount is not enough to lead day-to-day life.
The preference for the plastic goods by the people also leads to the problem in this work. The bamboo workers, opinion is that the State Forest Department should release the bamboo/reeds to the public at the concessional amount.
The private merchants are also engaged in this business. They collect the finished goods from the labourers and settle their payment daily. The owners gave the raw materials to the labourers and receive the finished goods. The private dealers of the bamboo baskets used to purchase 100-200 bundles of the raw materials per month.
Conclusion:
The awareness of the bamboo products among the local people are now-a-days has slowly decreased. The Government and the Forest Department have taken the steps to improve this work. The non-availability of raw materials is the main drawback of this work. Intensive planting of bamboos should be encouraged in the agricultural sector and in homesteads, by providing the planting materials and technology to the farmers.