This story is from June 6, 2020

Train service resumes partially, but no change in porters’ luck

Train service resumes partially, but no change in porters’ luck
Ludhiana: Left without a livelihood for the past two months, porters of Ludhiana railway station have little to celebrate even as the Indian Railways has started some long-route trains since June 1.
Struggling to manage their daily expenses during the lockdown period, porters who hold licence for the job were left with no option but to work as vegetable vendors or delivery boys for grocery stores.

Now, after the partial resumption of train services, 54 porters working at the Ludhiana railway station said there was no demand for them as people prefer to carry their own luggage and don’t want their services out of fear.
Suresh Kumar, a porter working at city station from past 30 years, said, “I have not seen such a crisis in the life of porters. We all are struggling to manage our daily expenses.”
“I never imagined that porters will be forced to leave their profession and look for other means of livelihood for survival,” said Kumar.
He said, “From almost 70 days, all licenced porters didn’t earn a single penny. Now when railway has resumed some long-route trans, passengers are not ready to take our help to carry their luggage.”
“We can feel a sense of fear among passengers who totally ignore the existence of porters to stay away from Covid-19, but they should also realise that we are like daily wagers who barely manage our expenses,” Kumar added.

A woman porter, Lajwanti Devi, who had left for her hometown in Haryana after facing difficulties in managing daily expenses in the city, said, “Earlier, each porter used to earned around Rs 400 to 600 after 8 to 10 hours of duty. But since lockdown, porters at Ludhiana railway station have been dependent on ticket collectors (TCs) for their survival, as they haven’t got any aid from the government so far.”
“The railway ministry should look after licensed porters,” she added.
Maya, who has been a porter in Ludhiana railway station for the past decade, said, “I also left the city for my hometown in Rajasthan as I have found it difficult to manage my daily expenses amid the lockdown and suspension of railway service.”
The porter community has approached the All-India Railway Lal Vardhi Union to provide basic financial help to all porters working in railway stations across the country.
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