From: Jurriaan Bendien (adsl675281@TISCALI.NL)
Date: Thu Dec 07 2006 - 12:06:29 EST
Farewell to hand-pulled rickshaws By Subir Bhaumik BBC News, Calcutta The hand-pulled rickshaw of Calcutta, immortalised by Dominic Lapierre's famous novel, City of Joy, will soon be consigned to the history books. A bill passed by the West Bengal state assembly described the centuries-old mode of transport as "inhumane." The assembly passed the Calcutta Hackney Carriage (Amendment) Bill (2006) on Monday by a majority vote. Ruling left front lawmakers voted in favour, but the Congress and the Trinamul Congress parties opposed it. "Westerners try to associate beggars and these rickshaws with the Calcutta landscape, but this is not what Calcutta stands for. Our city stands for prosperity and development," West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya told journalists recently. "This inhuman mode of transport should have stopped years ago," said communist city mayor Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya. "We can't imagine one man sweating and straining to pull another man." Chinese traders introduced the hand-pulled rickshaw to Calcutta in the early 20th century and sinewy, emaciated barefoot men have been pulling the vehicles ever since. They are still a common sight in the city, and are especially in demand during the monsoon when flooded streets make it hard for commuters to use taxis or cars. The rickshaw pullers, whose wiry bodies glisten with sweat as they haul their loads are sometimes known as "human horses". They earn around 100 rupees ($2.25) a day. Most sleep, eat and live on the city's crowded pavements. Many are poor people from states neighbouring West Bengal. In most cases they do not own the vehicles, but pay a sizeable potion of their earnings to hire them. China banned hand-pulled rickshaws after the communists took power in 1949. Calcutta is one of only a few places left in the world where such vehicles are used as everyday transport. Complete story: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6206544.stm
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