This book chapter features an insightful conversation with labour rights activist Nodeep Kaur. The interview delves into Kaur’s experiences and challenges as a grassroots organizer, highlighting her advocacy for workers’ rights, the power of collective action, and the importance of organizing in the fight against exploitation. This piece offers a powerful perspective on labor activism and the resilience needed to bring social change.
Author
Aashita Dawer, Associate Professor, Jindal Global Law School, O.P. Jindal Global University, Sonipat, Haryana, India.
Summary
Nodeep Kaur is a labour rights activist and a member of the Mazdoor Adhikar Sangathan, a union that fights for industrial workers’ rights in the Kundli Industrial Area, Sonipat (Haryana). She has actively participated in the farmers’ protest and created solidarity between the workers and farmers.
The book chapter offers a powerful and detailed insight into the life and activism of Nodeep Kaur, a prominent young labor rights advocate in India. In this in-depth interview, Kaur discusses her entry into activism, which began as she witnessed the pervasive exploitation of marginalized workers, especially women, in industrial zones.
She shares the story behind her involvement with the Mazdoor Adhikar Sangathan (MAS), a grassroots organization dedicated to defending workers’ rights, and elaborates on how her experiences underscored the importance of solidarity and unionization. Kaur explains the critical need for collective bargaining power in securing fair wages, safe working conditions, and fundamental rights for laborers who often lack protection in informal sectors.
The interview delves into the specific challenges she faced, including her arrest during protests, where she became a symbol of resilience and the importance of youth in activism. She reflects on the physical, social, and legal obstacles encountered by organizers, revealing how such hurdles only strengthened her commitment to advocacy. Kaur also addresses the broader socio-political environment in India, examining the critical role of unions in standing up to systemic injustices and mobilizing communities that otherwise lack representation.
A key theme throughout the conversation is the empowering effect of organizing—how workers, once informed and united, can demand change and protect themselves from exploitation. Kaur’s perspectives serve as a testament to the power of grassroots organizing and its potential to inspire future generations of activists. This interview offers not only a personal narrative of resilience but also an urgent call to action for social justice within labor sectors.
Published in: The Indian farmers’ protest of 2020–2021: Agrarian crisis, dissent and identity, Routledge, London
To read the full chapter, please click here.
