Porter has worked to help passengers but not receiving any or little facilities from government or from respective contractor. The Report revolves around the life of coolies and the hardship they face in their daily life

1. KARACHI RAILWAY
PORTERS
LIFE AND CHALLENGES
March , 2017
Development Studies,
Department of Urban Planning and Architecture,
NED University of Engineering and Technology
Research Supervisor: Mansoor Raza (mansooraza@gmail.com)
Hasan Zafar Ramsha Naz Arsalan Ahmed, Maheen
Arif, Sajjad Mehdi, Mashood Tariq, Zainab Arif

2. PURPOSE OF RESEARCH
•Railway Ministry of Pakistan generates revenue of about 36
Billion rupees, annually;
• Contributing 4% in Pakistan’s GDP.
•Porter has worked to help passengers but not receiving any
facilities neither from government nor their contractor.
So the report revolves around the life of coolies and the
hardship they face in their daily life

3. BACKGROUND:
 KC and KYC are the oldest railway station in Pakistan as they were
declared protected Heritage Building of Karachi by Sindh Government.
 Our Research is to know what facilities are being provided for porters at both
Railway Station.
METHODOLGY:
 Our aim was to collect an interview from every stakeholder:
1. Railway Porter.
2. Railway Administration.
3. Railway Police.
4. Jamadar (Washroom Staff)
5. Porter’s Contractor
6. Passengers
• QUALITATIV
EDATA TYPE
• INFORMAL
SETTINGINTERVIEW

4. PROBLEM AND OVERCOMING DURING INTERVIEW:
PROBLEM
 Participant was hesitating
to share information, due
to which either they were
giving incomplete
answers
 All of the participants
were feasible to talk in
group of 2 to 4 porters
which tends to have an
effect on us making us
feel to be out numbered.
OVERCOMING
 We disclose the objective
of our interview to the
participant
 We also increase our
group member to balance
the group and we counter
each porter individually if
they interrupt the
interview.

5. SECONDARY LITERATURE:
Railways and Labor Rights: The Untold Story
of Pakistan’s Porters:
Complaints by
Passengers:
. Firstly, the train stops far
away from main gate by
which they have no choice
but to hire coolie and
secondly, their rates are not
fixed and they charge at
their free will.
Problems of
Coolies:
In 1990’s coolie earned
1600/day. Now they earn
500-700/day if lucky.
They wait in a queue for
car. If car doesn’t hire any
porter, porter will have to
join the queue from start.

6. Tender Notice
(Islamabad, May 2016):
Geomentary (Geo
News Documentary):
 Contractor has to pay
200,000 as security
charges. Uniform will be
provided by contractor.
Contractor should have
5 years of experience as
coolie to become a
contractor.
Rates are fixed. Rs.50
per trip per 40Kg will be
charged by the coolies
from the passengers.
 Coolies sleep on
platforms; The reason for
the high number of
coolies especially in
Karachi if we compare it
to other cities, most of
them have come from
other small cities and
villages in search of job
and better economic
opportunities.

7. A Thesis on Indian Railway (For
Comparison with Pakistan Railway):
 Porter is licensed by the Railways to earn a livelihood. He is
required to follow certain rules and regulations, failing which
his license can be suspended.
 Licensed porters do not enjoy facilities like pension, gratuity
and insurance.
 Licensed porters do not have the provision of taking
voluntary retirement .
 Since a porter’s license can be passed on from one generation
to the next.
 Since transfer of license to a near relative can take place only
in case one has no son

8. .
 The following is the list of
officials who have been
appointed by the Railways
to deal with licensed
railway porters
• Licensed Porter Inspector
(LPI)
• Assistant Licensed Porter
Inspector (ALPI)
• Licensed Porter Supervisor
(LPS)
• Licensed Porter Jamadar
(LPJ)
 The Commercial Department
publish advertisement , eligibility
criterion, required documents
and the application deadline.
 Names of those selected for the
job are submitted to the DRM. A
list of selected candidates is put
up at the DRM’s office.
A. Badge with license number
inscribed.
B. Two pairs of uniforms for the
summer and winter seasons
respectively.
 For A-class stations, with over
150 porters, (Rs. 10/month)
 For B-class stations, with 50-150
porters, (Rs. 5/month)
Ranking Among Indian
Coolies:
Hiring & Posting on the
Stations:

9. PRIMARY RESEARCH:
 Why do people become “Coolie”?
Reason Addressed by Coolies:
 Economic Opportunities and Low Income:
 They don’t have many economic opportunities in there
village so they earn very little there, or they don’t have any
respect in their occupations.
 There was a coolie which winded up his own business
and started to work as coolie at Karachi Cantt. Jalal Uddin
was operating his own small hotel (Dhaba) in Sukkur for
10 year, but winded it as he was having no profit.
 Level of Education:
 Every coolie participated in our interviews, not done have
their Matriculation. Mostly coolies had only studied up-to 5-
8 classes.

10. How a Coolie is hired?
 The Balla Number:
You have to get a “Guarantor” who can assure your loyalty
and Rs.100 for getting registration and “a Patta” or “a Balla
Number” is allotted which becomes their identity. Coolie has
to return “Patta” to the Contractor, if they are going on
vacations; Rs.100 has to be given to reclaim it.
 Uniform:
Uniform would be purchased by own self, which costs about
Rs.700 excluding hiring charges, but it doesn’t make a
difference; one should only get a green shirt which
resembles their Uniform.

11. Organization among Coolies:
 There is Lari System, from which they divide passengers
among them. Coolie stand in a queue and waits for train,
where ever the train stops, the coolie standing in front of
the train’s gate will get to have the first passenger. If a
passenger did not hire a coolie then that coolie will join
the queue again from the last. Due to this system every
coolie gets an equal chance to get a passenger
 There is also another system, if something is broke or
damage by a coolie. Then all the coolies at the station
contribute little bit amount equally to full the cost of good
that has damage.

12. Who is this Contractor?
 Through Auction of Tender:
It is written in official paper of Railway Government that, “Coolie
Contractor must have worked as Coolie Jamadar for five year, and
have a Domicile of respective city.
 Karachi City Station’ Coolie’s Contractor:
M. Ashraf, Coolie’s Contractor at Karachi City Station, and He
became a coolie in 1970, then after 10-12 year he was promoted to
be a Coolie Jamadar and today he is Coolies contractor at Karachi
City Station.
 Tender Cost:
Karachi City Station has a tender for coolies of 10.2 Lacs while,
Karachi Cantt. Station has a Crore. While a coolie at Karachi Cantt.
Station had mentioned 60 Lacs to be the tender cost of the
Contractor.

13. Facilities to a Coolie:
 Quarters allotted by Government:
 Health Facility:
Coolie earn 500-700 per day, from which around 250-350
rupees is total expense of a coolie for a meal. If coolie fell ill, he
has to arrange medicines by his own or take loan from the
other coolies to arrange medicines for himself.
1
2
3
1
2 Quarters
Own House
Platform

14.  Distribution of Trollies for Coolies:
 There had been an official announcement for the
distribution of the trolleys, “At least 20 large trollies and 20
smart trollies would be introduced ;This announcement
going to be a year old, but the progress to implementation
is questionable.
 Even on this official announcement for both railway
stations; only Karachi city station seems to be working on
this announcement, with 6 trollies which had been
arranged by contractor. But government hasn’t landed any
kind of support in this.
Continue…..

15.  Allotment of Trollies, a Facility or a
Liability:
Coolies at Karachi Cantt. Station shows any concern to this
announcement; they replied to this that, even if Government
allots them trollies it would not be of much helpful to them.
As, Karachi Cantt. Station has stepped pedestrians.
 Washroom:
At Karachi Cantt Station, everyone has to pay Rs.10 to utilize
it. Even Coolies, those lives there have to also pay these
charges.
Continue…..

16. Passenger:
 Passenger, which is the only source of Income to a Coolie.
Almost all passengers prefer to hire only coolie when they
are with their family.
 Although some passengers realize the need of coolies so
hire two or more coolie if they have more luggage's; so
more than one coolie can make his earning.

17. Recommendation by Respondents:
 After concluding Interviews come of the respondents had
recommended some things.
• They asked the government for more quarters.
• There should also be quota for hiring coolies.
• There should be Salary system for us.
• The Contractor’s shares in our income should be reduced
• Coolie’s Contractor at KYC, coolies department should be
nationalized and Basic Facilities like Food and Health should
be provided to them.

18. Conclusion and Recommendation:
 Railway department, which generates about 36 billion rupees annually, but
still there is part of this institution which do work along it but still is not
being facilitated by the basic needs. There are Laws, Rules and Regulation
for providing health, and other facilities to the coolie.
 Some facilities were observed to being provided to coolies at railway station
like Quarters and Washrooms for coolies, but it was not good enough to
accommodate all the coolies at the KC, which is creating discrimination
among coolies.
 The immediate solution to provide facilities to all coolies employed, both at
railway stations, the quota should be imposed on employing of coolie at KC,
while employing the excess coolies from KC should be hired at KYC, as the
number of coolies at KYC is very low. But along this Number of train
operating from KYC should also be increased.
-------------****------------------*****--------------------*****----------

19. References:
 http://ohrh.law.ox.ac.uk/of-railways-and-labour-rights-the-untold-story-of-pakistans-porters/
 http://pakrail.com/tender_files/6467_dsrwpauc280416.pdf
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DCUaOXm-_8I
 http://ccs.in/internship_papers/2003/chap22.pdf
 http://dailybalochistantimes.com/%EF%BB%BFworking-conditions-of-coolies-revamped-by-pakistan-
railways/
Related Reading:
 Coolies on contract:
http://www.dawn.com/news/1252506
 Railway porters to get trolleys:
https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/112705-Can-branded-uniforms-rest-lounges-
really-improve-working-conditions-for-porters
 300 porters at Cantt protest the railway contract system; fight erupts, several injured:
http://www.dawn.com/news/1250317
 Railway to Restructure its Property and Land, Legal and IT Departments
https://propakistani.pk/2017/03/20/railway-restructure-property-land-legal-
departments/

20. THANK YOU 