The Sand Workers of Bangladesh
another chapter in the relationships that people have with rivers
• please read the more about these images here •

(click an image to enlarge or to initiate a slideshow)
Workers carry baskets of damp sand up the river shore's slope to a waiting truck. (30kb) Often, the workers will divide the route in sections, transferring the load to another. (43kb) In the river boat, a worker uses a hoe to fill a basket with the damp sand. (42kb)
The loads of sand are heavy, weighing upto 50 kilos (120 pounds). It takes several people to lift and place the load on the coolie's head. (27kb) Many of the men use a ball of cloth to pad their heads from the scrape of the basket's weave. (36kb) A staight neck and back are imperative to keeping the sand's weight over the spine. (44kb)
The workers rarely get the attention of another who is interested in what they do every day. Each wanted an image made of them so that their existence was documented. (33kb) A halt, a push, and gravity spills the sand into the bed of a waiting truck. (34kb) Sometimes the boats are so heavy and the rivers so shallow, the sand has to be carried to the shore from midriver. (34kb)

 

View images and read about the Dock Workers of Bangladesh.

To view images and read of the great Narmada and Ganga Rivers in India, please visit: www.rakuloren.com/portfolio



All images and text © 2006 Raku Loren
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