CHENNAI: Its 2.30 pm on a Sunday, and the Egmore Railway Station looks less chaotic than its usual self. After loading boxes of goods on a trolley, 60-year-old porter Muruganandham in a wrinkled red shirt and a towel on his shoulder, limps towards the water station.
As we approach the ‘Sahayak’ to talk to him, he first hesitates. After much persuasion, he sits on a trolley in the entrance and narrates, “I have been working as a porter for 35 years. Though what people call us has evolved — coolies, porters and now ‘Sahayaks’, our situation hasn’t changed. In fact it has only gotten worse!” he rues.
As he chats, he keeps his eyes and ears alert — in the lookout for people with heavy luggage and for announcements. “Most of the licensed porters don’t come to work anymore. What would we do here? People don’t need us,” he says as a passenger drags his trolley bag up an escalator. Smiling cheerlessly, Muruganandham walks away to try his luck in the arriving train.
These ‘Sahayaks’, who once used to carry heavy baggage for a living, are struggling to make ends meet, thanks to luggage with wheels and the installation of escalators.
Manivannan*, a 35-year-old porter whose license was passed on from his father, says he is looking for a different job. “My father worked here till he was 70 and then I took it up. Until a few years back, I earned at least Rs 100 everyday. Today, I go home empty handed. But, it’s not too late for me to switch jobs. My father couldn’t because he was too old by then,” he opines.
While having a porter’s license enables them to provide service in stations, these ‘Sahayaks’ are not directly employed by the railways. “Most of us are waiting for a railway job to give a better life to our family and children,” he adds.
No day is the same for a porter...from earning anything between Rs500-800 before noon to going back home empty handed in the evening, these ‘men in red’ live in uncertain conditions.
“Some generous people pay us well. While some argue and pay less than the fixed price!” he rues.
Walking through the EVR Periar Salai towards the Chennai Central Railway Station can make you sense the number of restless eyes looking for their next job. From standing in bus stands adjacent to the station to the parking space inside the station, these porters are everywhere. You can spot the most number of porters in front of the prepaid taxi stand.
Patiently waiting for a passenger to ask for his service is 72-year-old Devan*. Walking up and down the entrance, from cab to cab, he finally leans on a nearby post for a break. “I used to carry luggage as heavy as 60 kg and sometimes even more before, but now I am old and can’t carry too much weight. But, I can’t leave the job. Who will employ me now?” asks the porter who has been working in central since 1966.
From dashing his way through the crowd, with heavy luggage on his head — making sure that the passenger catches the train on time, to sometimes not even getting paid as the train begins making its way to the destination, the septuagenarian has faced it all. “We feel responsible for the passenger and we make sure they don’t miss the train. So, we ensure they safely board the train..we don’t demand money in such times. We let it go,” he says bleakly.
Like many senior porters Devan has a limp as a result of years of carrying heavy luggage. “Our legs bend and knees wear out. It’s part of the job. What’s more painful is we go unnoticed. There are even porters with a fractured knee who still work here,” he says.
Concurs 63-year-old Raman, who says he slipped and fractured his knee while carrying luggage. With no money to treat it, he says he continued to work. “With the little money we earn, there’s not much we can do. Such things are just part of our lives and we go on with it. But we make sure we are strong enough to lift the luggage,” he adds.
Unfulfilled promises
The 2016 budget promised porters soft skill training and an image makeover. But, the porters in the stations claim that the programme hasn’t taken off. “We were told that we will be given training on how to be polite with passengers — the way we talk and behave. But, nothing happened. We just got our ID cards reissued with the name — ‘Sahayak’ printed on it.” — a 30-year-old licensed porter
Status of porters after Budget 2017
While the Budget 2017 proposed several measures to improve services, infrastructure and amenities for Railways, it has been a big letdown for the porters. “We were looking for it to provide us with pension and include us social security schemes. But, we don’t know if we are entitled to any benefits. We don’t get any benefits.nor are we informed about it, if any,” rues Devan.
What are they paid?
At Chennai Central Railway Station and Egmore Railway Station
For luggage per head load of 40 kg- Rs80
For sick and disabled passengers by wheel chair/stretchers- Rs100
Luggage by trolley load- Rs 130