HELLO SAHAYAK!

“The world is my house,
The bus stand and the railway station is my professional hub,

 Come whenever you want,

 My name is Raju,

 And with love people call me. Coolie no. 1.”

 This is one of the famous dialogues of the actor Govinda. The iconic look that Amitabh Bachchan made famous in a movie by the same name, “Coolie” is set to change,
The age old uniform, that thick cotton red shirt, white pajamas, a shiny brass 'billa' on the arm and a gamcha up on the head, is going for a makeover .

 Long time back, during the Victorian era, Indians were voluntarily enlisting to go abroad for work, in the hope of a better life. European merchants and businessmen quickly took advantage of this and began recruiting them for work as a cheap source of labour. The British began shipping Indians to colonies around the world and this is how the porter or the coolie jobs came into existence.

The Railway budget presented in the Lok Sabha on 25^th February, 2016 declared that the porter will hereafter be called 'sahayak' (helper), "Naam mein kya rakha hai,” inserted a fellow collie.

Another alteration from the past, from now on they will also have the privilege of using luggage trolleys to ferry heavy weights across platform. And also learn the soft skills lessons in the offing.

 The coolies at New Delhi Railway Station had gathered around a giant screen to watch the live telecast of the budget, “They are disappointed at losing their red shirts and, it  is Hanuman's colour, it gives us shakti (power)," says Bhanwar Singh, 33, who has been working as a coolie for seven years. His colleague Rahim adds that the red shirt marks them out clearly.

The porter is the fundamental part of the railways .The introduction of trolleys is definitely going to be welcome news for them! “It’s gonna take a longer route. Passengers will start missing their trains. Then don't blame us," says Bhanwar Singh.

Rather than theses superficial changes what they really desire is better pay not a new name, say the men in red. Their main demand is to bring porters under 'Group D' of rail services, put them at par with safai karamcharis, and entitle them to pension and healthcare benefits.

"I started from one rupee per trip and today its only Rs 60 for 40kg. The budget should address these, rather than superficial things like our shirts," echoes Rauf, one of the oldest porters at the station.

These ancient labours are believed to be real heroes carrying a lot of luggage at their backside. With the announcement of budget, the weight got less but the decision taken up by the railway minister Mr. Suresh Prabhu is still unsatisfactory.