Livelihood issues of unorganized labourers: With special reference to the rickshaw pullers in Bilaspur city

The unorganised sector is a very broad area. It consists of several occupational groups of labours and needs of the unorganised sector. The rickshaw pullers also come under the unorganised sector category. They are one of the most vulnerable sections, backward, of society in need of social security. In unorganized sectors socio-economic conditions of the workers particularly the rickshaw pullers are very miserable and ridiculous. There is a no proper job, no income, no job security, in large no social security and welfare provisions, no government plan has taken into account. They are bound to work at early morning up to late night and at odd hours and even in rainy, stormy, windy, summer hot and very bad or rough weather conditions without any protection or safety. Rickshaw pullers are amongst the poorest employed urban dwellers. There are currently approximately estimated 10 million rickshaw pullers in India. Rickshaw pullers are a marginalized community. Most rickshaw pullers cannot afford to buy their own rickshaws and rent them daily. With a lack of education and formal representation, they face lots of difficulties in their daily life, like harassment and threatens by the police and municipal officials, truck drivers, bus drivers shout on them when they unable to give the side at a very right movements of their speed as they go about their trade, and bribes, long queues and delays as they attempt to obtain official documentation, such as licenses, registration papers and insurance. Rickshaw pulling is an unorganized sector activity, which provides an opportunity to sail their family in a gentle and silent way of working culture i.e. income-earning for temporary basis; like seasonal migrants from the countryside also come into this type of employment in the urban settings. Rickshaw pullers can be easily seen transporting people in residential colonies of the city and also in its outskirts. Cycle rickshaw pullers are the very prominent in transport sector because they are considered as a eco-friendly people.