Sorabji Shapoorji Bengali

a Parsi journalist and philanthropist and a member of the Legislative Council of Bombay, was among the few who sought improved conditions for workers. In 1878, he drafted a bill for the Bombay Legislative Council that proposed to limit the working hours of men, women, and children in Bombay’s textile mills to eleven, ten, and nine, respectively. Although he was unable to generate sufficient support to introduce his bill, Bengali continued to argue for pro-labor legislation. As a member of the Factory Commissions of 1884 and 1890, he argued for a weekly holiday and for reduced working hours. Through his newspaper Rast Goftar, he publicised the abject working conditions of mill workers.