Coolies: Red shirts no more
Pakistan Railways changes the uniform of its porters, shifting to green and yellow from the nearly 150 years old red.
Pakistan Railways has changed the uniform of its porters, switching to green and yellow from the nearly 150 years old red.
For well over 100 years, coolies (porters) in the subcontinent – India and Pakistan – wore bright red shirts (the colour often fades to orange) which made it easier to spot them on the crowded platforms.
On this side of the border, the iconic red shirt has now been replaced with a green shalwar kameez displaying the logo of Pakistan Railways along with and a turban.
In the 19th and 20th century, coolie was a term for a locally sourced unskilled labourer, hired by a company, mainly from the Indian subcontinent or South China.
A coolie carries up to 40kg of luggage for a mere sum of Rs30 for a single trip – a backbreaking job where occupational hazards include stress fractures and spinal cord injuries.
Most coolies ‘inherit’ this job from their fathers and uncles – many of whom used to carry the loads for Rs5.
There are no women coolies in Pakistan but in India some ladies have been carrying loads for a living.
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Comments (19) Closed
May 05, 2016 11:29pm
Islamic color for Islamic country.
Soon everything will be just green except the jungles.
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May 05, 2016 11:59pm
Basically, copied the recent moves by Indian Railways.
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May 06, 2016 12:01am
Good dress. Nice to move away from the British Raj. Hopefully they life too changes with this new dress.
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May 06, 2016 02:13am
Disgusting! Everything is seen through a religious lens... And you complain about how westerners have Islamophobia?
Is this blindness or refusal to open your eyes?
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May 06, 2016 03:06am
changing shirt colour will not change their living standards.
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May 06, 2016 06:19am
Very nice and really informative article. The change was awaited for long, but would this uniform change their financial condition as well in some way? Has the government increased their rates for their services ? That is the question.
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May 06, 2016 02:58pm
repainting an old wall doesn't make it new. I wish someone also provide them with push trolleys, like the one used at the airports. Give them electric silent drivable carts for the passengers and their luggage. Make the walk from the car park or bus stop to the train accessible and friendly for the passengers and their coolies. Introduce Health & Safety training and laws where they don't have to carry a load exceeding a certain weight. Give them health insurance and if the authority is responsible for any health related accident a compensation needs to be paid to them. Just a new pair of shalwar kameez is not a change by any definition.
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May 07, 2016 01:39am
@Silajit why such anger on a mere colour. They reflect the colour of the railway carriages. Green and yellow. Still recall, Bolan mail, khyber express, etc
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May 07, 2016 01:43am
@Ahmedj totally agree, they need push trolleys and some training in best way to carry, avoiding Injuries, maximum weight they can carry, cleanliness, customer service , problem resolution techniques, abusive passengers, how to deal with ladies etc etc.
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May 07, 2016 04:57am
In the age of luggage on wheels, porters are loosing job opportunities. recently I was in India and was surprised to see no porters at Railway station of Agra Cant. etc. On inquiry I was told that every one now carries/rolls their own luggage so most porters went off to do other things. Few porters were seen in New Delhi. However, soon this specie will vanish.
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May 07, 2016 08:46am
Is there a non-profit that can take an initiative to build and supply trolleys and dollies for these poor souls so they do not have to carry so much weight on their heads. These folks are human beings and should be treated with dignity. They should also be provided some training and a collective insurance of some kind.
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May 07, 2016 10:44am
RS 30 a trip , Are you kidding. They start with demanding RS 800 ..
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May 07, 2016 04:16pm
There was a conventional doctrine in Railways to follow the red colour only, barring some exceptions, for their station buildings/ goods go-downs etc.- just to help the train staffs to locate them properly while moving through lush green fields-which are very common along the railway tracks in our country.On the other hand, railway coaches and wagons used to have painted with red colours for the same reasons, as stated above, not to help the railway staffs only but also for the common people to identify them easily. To bear a resemblance and most probably for easier spot- on, shirts, too, of Railway Porters used to have the red colours.
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May 07, 2016 06:06pm
Centuries of colonial bondage being jettisoned. Have we done so mentally?
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May 08, 2016 01:09am
Great comments from AhmedJ, well article but just missed the cure for these courageous people who served everyone for nothing. In my opinion they r fine example of human slaves probably at worst condition that can be found in Pakistan(don't bother about other countries for time being) in the modern time and never care by any of us. I remembered PM Nawaz Shariff took a bold step some years ago by banning cycle rickshaw riding in Pakistan (Bahawalpur and surrounding cities) with alternative mortar- cycle rickshaw, than why these people can't be given trolley with build paths to carry the luggage of passengers rather to carry them on their back/shoulders which can be done rather to change their uniform. Government need to think seriously for these brave people in line with what suggested by AhmedJ.
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May 08, 2016 10:18am
can't we have Airport style trollies at Railway Stations?
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May 08, 2016 06:01pm
that does not seem to be a good decision. Red is more prominent. To locate a coolie in, what loos like Pakistan cricket uniform' would not be as easy. There will be much confusion now at railway stations.
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May 08, 2016 08:13pm
Better if Punjab Govt. had made low cost flats for these coolies.
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May 08, 2016 08:38pm
At least these people are earning a honest living. We should be proud of them.
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