The plight of cycle rickshaw-pullers in Guwahati

Prof. (Dr.) Dharmakanta Kumbhakar

(drkdharmakanta1@gmail.com)

Cycle rickshaw-pullers are quite familiar in Guwahati. They earn their livelihood after obtaining a licence from the authority concerned. They stand and wait outside railway stations and bus stands, near markets, hospitals, malls, and road intersections in the city, for passengers. They play an important role in the total communication of Guwahati by providing the cheapest mode of intra-city transport. They carry passengers to areas that are inaccessible for other means of transport due to narrow or bad lanes and by-lanes. The neighbourhood cycle rickshaw-pullers often provide door-to-door transport services for schoolchildren. In crowded markets, they serve as a convenient mode of transport for ferrying goods to nearby areas.

The cycle rickshaw becomes an important mode of transport during the artificial floods in Guwahati. Cycle rickshaw pullers carry passengers in all kinds of weather. They pull the cycle rickshaw in scorching sun, on chilly wintry nights, and even in heavy rain. They themselves are drenched in rain but carry passengers and goods safely.

Most of the cycle rickshaw-pullers of Guwahati are jobless young people in the age group of 21 to 40 who have migrated from the rural areas of Assam. Only a few of them are below the age of 20 and above 40 years of age. The main cause of their migration to Guwahati is poverty. They take up this profession because they are unable to manage other jobs due to a lack of skill and education. Most of them are illiterate, while only a few are able to get primary, middle, or secondary education. Some of them are seasonal migrants. They have their own agricultural land where they grow crops during the agricultural season and become cycle rickshaw pullers during the non-agricultural season.

They ride bicycle rickshaws on a daily basis and earn a good amount. Their average monthly income is not bad compared to many other monthly earners in industry and other informal or unorganised sectors. Some of them own their own cycle rickshaws, while others hire them from others. Today, most of the cycle rickshaw-pullers in Guwahati have to find alternative employment as 90 percent of their business has gone to electric rickshaws.

The life of the cycle rickshaw-pullers who ply hired cycle rickshaws in Guwahati is very tough and full of suffering. Though they earn well on a daily basis, they have little money left in hand as they have to give away a fixed amount of their income to the owner of the rickshaw every day. They have to pay the fixed amount even when they earn nothing during the day.

They toil hard for the whole day without rest. The hard work done by them does not match the money they get for it. Sometimes, they have to pull the cycle rickshaw even when they are not well, as they have to earn bread for their families.

Sometimes they are cheated by some passengers, too. These passengers are not ready to pay them a reasonable fare; they argue with them and try to pay them less, taking undue advantage of their weak social position. The city traffic police also frequently harass them, puncturing cycle rickshaw tyres and beating them for money. The irregular and inadequate earnings make them very poor. They are always poorly dressed; they wear torn clothes and stay barefooted. During the winter, they do not have enough clothes to protect them against the cold. They have neither proper food to eat nor a good place to live. They live in temporary shelters with subhuman living conditions, burdened with paying the rent for the cycle rickshaw as well as for their own accommodation. Often, they spend their nights on platforms, pavements, parks, and garages. Sometimes they coil themselves up in their vehicles to sleep.

Most of them use the roadsides or railway lines to respond to nature’s call. They collect water mostly from municipal pipes. The continuous plying of cycle rickshaws without proper rest, poor living conditions, and lack of access to nutritious food, sanitation, proper shelter, and medical care make them prone to various diseases. They do not have enough money to spend on their family. Their family members, too, remain in poverty and become vulnerable to illnesses. They are unable to pay for their medical treatment and the education of their children. It is pathetic that most cycle rickshaw-pullers have to depend on their children in old age, as they do not have anything left to save.

Though some cycle rickshaw pullers are honest and charge reasonably from passengers, most of them are dishonest. They are not fair in their dealings. They try to take undue advantage of the ignorance or innocence of the passengers. They especially cheat people who are not familiar with the local system in Guwahati. They charge more during rough weather and big festivals. At times, they have to pay the price for their unfair dealings. They get slapped or scolded either by the police or by people for their bad behaviour. The majority of them have been found to spend money on bad habits such as drinking alcohol, chewing guthka, using drugs, enjoying dirty films, and visiting prostitutes, which make them poor in spite of their good income. Substance abuse is affecting some cycle rickshaw pullers in Guwahati. They have a much higher risk of HIV infection due to their bad habits.

These days, cycle rickshaw pullers in Guwahati are also committing many crimes. A small section of them are engaged in activities like stealing, picking pockets, drug-peddling, and robbery.

Yet, the cycle rickshaw-pullers of the city form an important class of society. The city needs to be kind to them. The city authority must provide them with permanent stands, free medical support in case of accidents and illnesses, night shelters, police protection, insurance coverage, and education for their children as they collect money for licencing and numbering the vehicle every month. The government should provide them with bank loans, subsidies, and benefits under welfare schemes. Unless they raise their voices for their own rights, one cannot see a single inch of development among these people. A strong cycle rickshaw union is also required in Guwahati so that they can raise their voices for their rights.