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MISCELLANEOUS OCCUPATIONS |
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COPPER
AND BRASS SMITHY.
MAJOR GRAHAM IN HIS REPORT [Op. cit., pp. 117-8.]
RECORDED 15 COPPERSMITHS and as many sellers of copper and brass
utensils in Kolhapur. The Old Gazetteer of Kolhapur recorded that
there were about 70 families of copper-smiths or tambats and
kasars in a few large towns of old Kolhapur State. The metal
dealers at Kolhapur brought copper and brass sheets from Poona and
Satara and occasionally from Sangli and sold them to local smiths at
annas seven to eight per pound. They made water jars, mugs, and
cooking-vessels from these raw materials. This craft was not
particularly prosperous in Kolhapur owing to large imports of
ready-made vessels from Nasik, Poona, Rajapur Satara and Shahapur.
Professor Modak in his report [Op. cit., 1895, pp.
62-3.] on Industrial Survey of Kolhapur Territory said that all the
copper and brass utensils for cooking and drinking required over
this extensive territory were imported from Rajapur, Poona, Satara,
Shahapur and Terdal. In 1894, the import of these vessels in
Kolhapur town was worth Rs. 40,000. Dr. Balkrishna in his survey
(1926) recorded 31 copper-smith shops with 71 employees and 16
establishments of dealers in brass and copper utensils with 19
employees. In 1947, [N. V. Sovani, Op. cit., pp. 72-3.] there were
29 establishments employing a total of 73 persons. Of these, 14 were
in D ward, nine in A ward, and two each in B and C wards. There were
27 establishments of copper and brass-smiths at the time of our
survey. Of these, 17 were located in C ward, six in B ward and four
in A ward. The total employment in these shops was 44 persons.
Three shops of different sizes were taken in the
sample survey. One of them was started in 1890 and two in 1941 and
1950 respectively. Copper and brass-smithy was the principal
occupation of these shops and the employers were dependent on it
throughout the year.
A total of 19 persons was engaged in the three
establishments in the sample. Of these 17 were members of employers'
families. A skilled worker who was making utensils was paid Rs. 40
per month in two shops and Rs. 45 in the other. The total wage bill
of each establishment was Rs. 270, Rs. 120 and Rs. 120 per month.
The equipment in these shops was bellows, hammers,
scissors and other tools. The cost of equipment in one of the
establishments was about Rs. 500, in the other two it was about Rs.
250 each. The annual repairing charges of equipment varied from Rs.
20 to Rs. 100 according to the quantum of equipment in the concerns.
The necessary initial capital required for these
establishments in the sample was raised by owners from their own
resources. All the three were situated in rented premises. The rent
of each varied from Rs. 12 to Rs. 19 per month.
The main raw materials required were brass and
copper sheets. They were supplied by shopkeepers who gave orders.
The consumption of these materials per month of each shop was about
20, 12, and 8 Bengali maunds. Besides copper and brass, other raw
materials required were tin, sulphuric acid, borax, salammoniac,
tamarind and coal. Of these coal and tin were important. The
consumption of coal of each shop varied from 15 to 20 maunds per
month.
Most of the establishments received orders from
local markets and very few from other parts of the district. The
business was more or less steady throughout the year.
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