Context: Recently, the Central trade unions announced the plan to continue their boycott of the Labour 20 (L20) meetings taking place as part of India’s G20 presidency.

About Major trade unions in India:-

• Trade union is an association of either employees or employers or of independent workers.
  •  It is formed to secure certain economic, and social benefits for the workers.
• Trade Unions in India are registered and file annual returns under the Trade Union Act (1926).
•  The statistics on Trade Unions are collected annually by the Labour Bureau of the Ministry of Labour, Government of India.
• Congress associated, the Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC) is assumed as the biggest of the seven central trade unions, with a membership of 33.3 million.

Top Nine Trade Unions of India:-

• All India Trade Union  Congress (AITUC)
  • Year of establishment: 1920
  • Headquarters: New Delhi
  • It was founded in 1920 with Lala Lajpat Rai as its first president.
  • Key personalities: Motilal Nehru, M.A. Jinnah, Annie Besant, V.J. Patel, B.P. Wadia, Joseph Baptista, LalubhaiSamaldas, Jamnadas, Dwarka Das, B W Wadia, R RKarandikar, Col. J.C. Wedgwood, Pt. Jawahar Lal Nehru, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, V. V. Giri, Sarojini Naidu, C.R. Das, S.A. Dange, R.A. Khedgikar and SudhindraPramanik.
• Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC)
  • Year of establishment: 1947
  • Headquarters: New Delhi
  • Acharya JB Kripalani, who was then President of the Indian National Congress inaugurated the Founding conference of INTUC
  • Key personalities: Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Shankarrao Deo, Jagjivan Ram, B. G. Kher, OP Mehtab, Aruna Asaf Ali, Ram Manohar Lohia, Ashoka Mehta, Ramchandra Sakharam Ruikar, Maniben Patel, Gulzarilal Nanda, G. Sanjeeva Reddy Dr. Suresh Chandra Banerjee
• Bhartiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS)

• Year of establishment: 1955
• Headquarters: New Delhi
• It was founded by DattopantThengadi
• Key personalities: C. K. Sajinarayan,Virjesh Upadhyay Malla Jagadish Rao, Surendran, Durairaj, Hari Prasad
• Centre for Indian Trade Unions (CITU)
  • Year of establishment: 1970
  • Headquarters: New Delhi
  • Key personalities: K. Hemalata& Tapan Sen (President & General Secretary, CITU), Ashok Dhawale &Vijoo Krishnan (President & General Secretary, AIKS), A. Vijayaraghavan& B. Venkat, Prabhat Patnaik. A.R. Sindhu.
• Hind Mazdoor Sabha (HMS)
  • Year of establishment 1948
  • Headquarters: New Delhi
  • It was founded by Basawon Singh, Ashok Mehta, R.S. Ruikar, Maniben Kara, Shibnath Banerjee, R.A. Khedgikar, T.S. Ramanujam, V.S. Mathur, G.G. Mehta.
• All India Trade Union Centre (AIUTUC)
  • Year of establishment: 1958
  • Headquarters: Kolkata
  • It was founded at a conference held in Kolkata 26–27 April 1958, following a split in the United Trade Union Congress.
• Self-employed Women’s Association of India (SEWA)
  • Year of establishment: 1972
  • Headquarters: Ahmedabad
  • It was founded in 1972 by Indian lawyer and social activist Ela Bhatt and a small group of other women whose unique needs as indigent female informal textile workers were not being met by conventional labour unions.
• Trade Union Coordination Centre
  • Year of establishment: 1970
  • Headquarters: West Bengal
  • Prasanta Das Gupta was the founding general secretary
• All India Central Council of Trade Union
  • Year of establishment: 1989

About Labour20 (L20):-

• The first formal Labour20 (L20) Summit took place in 2011 during the French Presidency.

• Objective: L20 brings together G20 trade union leaders to provide analysis and policy recommendations on labour-related issues.

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6 Major Central Trade Unions of India,6 Major Central Trade Unions of India,6 Major Central Trade Unions of India