ABSTRACT
This chapter attempts to examine the role of co-operatives in empowering marginalised sections of the working class. We shall illustrate this with the help of two studies in two different metropolises in India. These are Ahmedabad in Western India and Calcutta (now renamed ‘Kolkata’) in Eastern India. We will discuss co-operatives formed by waste pickers in Ahmedabad and worker co-operatives in Calcutta. These cases show how marginalised workers of society try to protect their right to gainful employment through collective action.
