Judgment

SHAH, J. : The first petitioner is a private limited Company incorporated under the Indian Companies Act 1913 and the second petitioner is a Director of the Company. The Company maintains 23 establishments for manufacturing bidis in the District of Nasik, Poona and Ahmednagar in the State of Maharashtra. A large majority of these establishments are borne on the register of factories maintained by the Chief Inspector of Factories under the Factories Act, 63 of 1948. Craftsmen called rollers attend these establishments and prepare bidis, using materials supplied by the Company. The establishments remain open during specified hours but the rollers are not bound to attend for any fixed period: a roller may come to and leave the establishment according as is convenient to him, and he is paid for the bidies turned out by him according to a fixed tariff. It appears that this is the accepted modus of work in bidi establishments in the Maharashtra region. These establishments were, it was held by the Bombay High Court, factories and the rollers working therein were workers , within the meaning of the Factories Act, 63 of 1948: The State v. Alisaheb Kashim Tamboli, ILR (1955) Bom