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| Sunday, 17 October 2004 |
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Features |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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Sad tale from the sidewalks by Indira Perera Dahanayake "The weather does not bother us we are hardy boys", says Ravindra a young pavement hawker who has claimed a busy spot on Olcott Mawatha as his personal territory. He sells apples to weary office workers.
Ravindra is one of the growing band of men and women who have made the pavements of the congested streets of Colombo the venue of their business ventures. Braving the weather and the strong arm of the law, and any attempts at clearing up the pavements by the authorities. Life is tough for these hawkers who often fall prey to street side touts demanding 'Kappan' from their business.' We have to deal with men who demand 'Kappan', says Ravindra who views it as one of the many hardships he has to put up with in order to make a living. Sometime back these hawkers were offered permanent space (by the C.M.C.) at Gunasinghapura for a monthly rent but as the shops were out of the way for the customers, the hawkers refused to leave the pavement. Adjacent to Ravindra's stall is Gamanie (name fictitious) who sells torch batteries and screw drivers. Gamanie who travels from Kalutara has been a hawker for a long time. First he served as an assistant to his uncle, and later picked up the 'tricks of the trade' (as he calls it) . He has two children and a wife to support from his meagre income. "I have to be here only after 9.30 a.m. If I come before that and start selling, I get caught to the Police who will remand me for one month, then who is going to look after my family," he asks. Acting as a leader for many of the hawkers is burly Priyantha, who had been with them for a number of years. Angry at the lack of security and lack of facilities to improve their business - he demands. "Look at the potholes! Even after a slight drizzle they get filled with muddy water and when speeding vehicles go over them, the water, splashes on us and our goods". Pointing his finger at an open sales outlet where torch batteries were displayed, he says they get spoilt when even a drop of rain water falls on them and have to be thrown away, and the salesmen have to bear the loss. The hawkers have to protect themselves not only from the elements but also from pilfering. "There have been times I had to chase after thieves," he says. Hailing from Matara Priyantha lives at a boarding house close to Colombo. His meagre earnings have to cover boarding fees and travelling. The balance has to be sent to his wife as home expenses. Priyantha is a father of two school going children "I have to educate them, somehow or other", he says, with much determination revealing that he regrets his lack of education which drove him to earn a living from the pavement. Opposite the Y.M.B.A. (Fort) is P.M. Gunapala. A very senior salesman of the area, he has been a hawker for the last twelve years. "I conduct my business as a joint venture with my son, on a share basis", he says adding that he initially had business near the Fort railway station but moved here when he was chased away in the 70s Gunapala has to support six people including his wife, son and son's wife and two children. Adjacent to his stall is Roshan waiting for his brother so he can take a lunch break. Plagued by petty thieves who walk away with the goods when his attention is elsewhere, he says. "This is no joke! we have to be alert all the time to protect these handy goods". Roshan operates the stall with his brother and says he releases his brother only for his meals and prayers on Friday afternoons as he cannot handle the sales alone. "When there is continuous rain, we have to keep the stall closed, then we have to reduce our meals to two per day" he adds. Opposite the Supermarket in Borella, occupying the narrow pavement and almost covering three quarter of it is Ramanie, whose meagre spread of hair ornaments obstruct the pedestrians. Ramanie with her tanned skin due to the scorching sun rays speaks in a moanful tone about the hardships she has to undergo in order to make ends meet and keep her small family fed and clothed.' "I live in Rajagiriya. I have two school going children. I have to pay rent for my apartment", she says explaining that between taking care of her family, cooking and her pavement job, she hardly has enough time to have a bath or even a bodywash. "I have to get up early morning, and cook the morning and the afternoon meals. If I get up late my children will leave home to school without breakfast", she says. "I have to be here by 9.30 a.m. and once I have finished arranging my stuff here, it is nearly ten o'clock and the rays of the sun makes the heat unbearable. The gas emitted from the traffic also adds agony of suffering". On a lucky day Ramanie earns up to Rs. 200 but that happens only during the festive seasons". Women of my age stoop to all kinds of illegal work, but I cannot do that", she says softly. The hawkers in the Borella area were promised permanent apartments near the Lady Ridgeway hospital (Opposite Nona Vattuva). "Sometime back university students distributed some cards, and asked us to keep them with us safely for future reference, on this issue. They also took down our names and made a list, the card given by them is still with me, but now I hear that my name has been cut off from the list, while some others whose names were not taken down at the time has taken my place." She also accuses the police of being very harsh on them. "They ask us to leave at short notice she says. Ramanie leaves her goods at a boutique near by for the night. She does not pay a rent for this service. Ramanie who does not want to spend the rest of her life as a pavement hawker says she needs a place to keep her things and sell so that she could live there with the two children. Close to Ramanie is P.D. Manjula a young widow also with two school going children. Manjula says she makes carpets from scraps of material thrown away by an apparel industry at Ratmalana, and sells them at her sales outlet. She says she makes them when the children are asleep. Manjula lives in a rented shanty at Colpetty and since she is in arrears of rent at present fears that she will be ejected from her hut anytime. At night she too leaves her carpets at a nearby boutique. Manjula shares her makeshift stall with a fruit seller. Gunaratna, a hawker selling old magazines is the worst effected of the lot. He has no stall at all and the magazines are piled on packing cases (turned up side down) Gunaratna says he has no option but to wait at his present spot. "I will not go any where else, as those who read magazines come mostly from the vicinity!" He says that he has two school going children and a wife to support. Mrs Sriyani who runs a tea kiosk in Fort, with her two sons acts as a representative of the pavement hawkers in the Fort area. Recalling a past incident, when the hawkers were chased out she says it was she who intervened and met an active parliamentarian and told their grievances which in turn brought the sales hawkers back to their original places and made them carry out their business up to now. Sriyani says she handles the treasurers duties while her husband Jayawardena acts as the president of the association of hawkers at Fort. According to reliable sources from the Urban Development Authority, out of the hawkers who were registered sometime back 118 are expected to get apartments at Beach road, and the balance to be given at Bodhiraja Mawatha and Saunders place. The Mayor of Colombo Prasanna Gunawardena says that a land from Bodirajah Mawatha bordering 5th Cross Street will be released soon by the Urban development Authority, for the C.M.C, to build sales apartments for the hawkers next year. |
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| Produced by Lake House |
His shop is a makeshift table, with a large umbrella provided by the
Colombo Municipal Council (C.M.C.) The umbrella provides minimum
protection from the elements on a rainy day. "I have been here for
nearly six years, I have only my basic education, which does not permit me
to take an office job, but I have learnt a lot from this", says
Ravindra, who consider perseverance and patience as values he had gleaned
from working on the street.
