NEW DELHI: The demand is feeble, not even listed in the charter of demands that they would present to the Railway Minister. But they plan to broach the issue at an appropriate time- why call us 'coolie'? "It is one of our several demands including a forth grade employee status to coolies and a pension scheme for those coolies attaining age of 60," says Mangat Ram Saini, Chairman, All India Railway Coolie Organization.
Coolies, the inseparable entity of one of the world's biggest railway network and the biggest non-governmental structure supporting the Indian railways have come up with these demands during their "Sansad Ghero Abhiyan" in the capital.
"This name, 'coolie' smacks of the British Raj and still gives us a sense of 'slavery'," says Saini adding a better calling name was much required to uplift their social status. "Being called as 'coolie' is a little degradation of the kind of service, we provide to the millions of passengers everyday," he says.
After a long gap of 25 years when 'coolies' were heard and their role was recognized in the society with the Bollywood 'Icon' Amitabh Bachchan giving a voice to their plight through the hit film 'Coolie,' the coolie fraternity has decided to voice its demands on their own.
"We are going to put our demand before the government for not only changing this name but also to consider us as the fourth grade employee under Indian Railways and providing pension scheme for our colleagues who cross 60 years of age" says Charan Singh, who has worked as a coolie on the New Delhi Railway Station for last 35 years.
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