Read the given passage carefully and answer the five questions that follow.

Cottage industry is the smallest manufacturing unit. The artisans use local raw materials and simple tools to produce everyday goods in their homes with the help of their family members or part-time labour. Finished products may be for consumption in the same household or for sale in local (village) markets. Capital and transportation do not wield much influence as this type of manufacturing has low commercial significance and most of the tools are devised locally. Some common everyday products produced in this sector of manufacturing include foodstuff, fabrics, mats, containers, tools, furniture, shoes and figurines of wood from the forest, shoes, thongs and other articles from leather, pottery and bricks from clays and stones. Goldsmiths make jewellery of gold, silver and bronze. Some artefacts and crafts are made out of bamboo and wood obtained locally from the forests.

Small scale manufacturing is distinguished from household industries by its production techniques and place of manufacture (a work shop outside the home/cottage of the producer). This type of manufacturing uses local raw materials, simple power-driven machines and semi-skilled labour. It provides employment and raises local purchasing power. Therefore, countries like India, China, Indonesia and Brazil, etc. have developed labour-intensive small-scale manufacturing in order to provide employment to their population.

Large scale manufacturing involves a large market, various raw materials, enormous energy, specialised workers, advanced technology, assembly-line mass production and large capital. This kind of manufacturing developed in the last 200 years, in the United Kingdom, Northeastern USA and Europe. Now it has diffused almost all over the world.

Which one of the following is not a feature of small-scale manufacturing?

Correct Answer: The artisans produce goods in their homes with the help of their family members or part-time labour.

Explanation:

To determine which feature does not belong to small-scale manufacturing, we can analyze the provided passage segment by segment:

1. Analyzing Cottage/Household Industry:
The passage states: "Cottage industry is the smallest manufacturing unit. The artisans use local raw materials and simple tools to produce everyday goods in their homes with the help of their family members or part-time labour."
This explicitly identifies the production of goods at home with family members or part-time labor as a key characteristic of the cottage industry (household industry).

2. Analyzing Small-Scale Manufacturing:
The passage states: "Small scale manufacturing is distinguished from household industries by its production techniques and place of manufacture (a work shop outside the home/cottage of the producer). This type of manufacturing uses local raw materials, simple power-driven machines and semi-skilled labour. It provides employment and raises local purchasing power." It also mentions that countries like India, China, etc., have developed "labour-intensive small-scale manufacturing".

3. Comparing the Options:
- "It engages semi-skilled labour force" is a feature of small-scale manufacturing (explicitly mentioned in the text).
- "It provides employment and raises local purchasing power" is a feature of small-scale manufacturing (explicitly mentioned in the text).
- "It is labour intensive manufacturing" is a feature of small-scale manufacturing (explicitly mentioned in the text).
- "The artisans produce goods in their homes with the help of their family members or part-time labour" is a feature of the cottage/household industry, not small-scale manufacturing, because small-scale manufacturing takes place in a workshop outside the home.

Therefore, the option stating that artisans produce goods in their homes is not a feature of small-scale manufacturing.