Farewell to a great comrade, leader, dreamer, pioneer...

A pioneer of the historic workers’ cooperative in the Kamani take-over in Mumbai in the late 1980s’, and a leader of the unorganised workers’ movements, his dream was to see that the unions are led by women.

Independent Ink News Desk

Comrade D Thankappan, veteran trade union leader, pioneered the historic workers’ cooperative in the Kamani Tubes Ltd take-over in the late 1980s in Mumbai, which was a landmark event in the history of the labour movement in India. He was the president of New Trade Union Initiative (NTUI), which too created a dynamic new space for the working class, especially unorganised workers and women in India.

He passed away at his Airoli residence, New Mumbai, on September 2, 2026. He was 87. He has been ailing for some time. His loss is deeply mourned by all those who have worked with him, and who have been inspired and guided by him, including organised and unorganised workers, and the forest working people of our country.

Said Ashok Choudhary, Working President of the All India Union of Forest Working People (AIUFWP): “Comrade Thankappan was fully committed in uniting diverse sections of the working peoples’ movements. Although he belonged to the Kamani Employee Union (KEU), an organized sector union, at the same time, he was deeply engaged in the Kamani Constructions Workers’ Union which was an unorganized sector union. He was a pioneer in organizing many unorganized workers’ federations and in linking organized sector workers’ unions. He firmly believed in the independence of trade unions from the company management, government and political parties. Any trade union leader or member may be individually member or leader of any political party, but that union should not function under control of any political party. This principal is extremely important in the working peoples’ movement.”

On behalf of the presidium of the AIUFWP, said Roma, General Secretary of the union: “It is with deep sorrow that we share the news of Comrade Thankappan’s passing today. He was the architect and founding member of our union. It was he who spearheaded the campaign starting in 1992 to raise awareness about the concept of forming a union for forest workers (Van Shramjeevi). He also established the National Centre for Labour (NCL)—a coalition for the country's unorganized sector—of which our forest workers' organization was a part. It was through the NCL that we connected with other unorganized sector unions across the country. 

“Back in 1992, at his initiative, we prepared a document titled ‘Comprehensive Legislation on Forest Rights’ — a draft law concerning forest resources. In a sense, it was through his initiative that we, for the first time, worked to secure the status of ‘forest workers’ for forest-dependent communities across the nation and brought their issues to public attention. 

Later, in 2006, he played a crucial role in the formation of the New Trade Union Initiative (NTUI), in which our union played a pivotal part.

His tireless contributions can never be forgotten; our union exists today because of his inspiration, guidance and ideology.  

His big dream was to see the union led by women. 

He used to spend hours discussing women's leadership with Sokalo-ji (Sokala Gond, current president of the union) and me. When we formed the union in Odisha and elected Jarjum Ete-ji as its president, his joy knew no bounds. As women gradually took on leadership roles, he told me that his dream had been realized….

To us, he was truly like a parent, a guardian of the organization, and we respected him even more than our own parents. We are proud to have been associated with Comrade Thankappan. Indeed, it was a matter of great honour for us. Our entire union and its workers deeply mourn the loss of this visionary and tireless working people’s leader.

Red Salute to Comrade Thankappan!”