Politicos fill mill workers with hope

The workers, who have felt cheated ever since the mills shut down, say political support for yesterday's morcha may result in them finally getting houses

Yesterdayu00a0was a red-letter day in the lives of the nearly 2.5 lakh mill workers in the city as they finally managed to get political parties to rally behind them in their demand for housing.

In a show of solidarity that filled the mill workers with hope, nearly 60,000 people marched from Byculla's Rani Baug to Azad Maidan a 5-km stretch.


A woman protesting during the march yesterday

Bhagirathi Narkar, a 70-year-old who was a mill worker and is currently working as a maid to support herself and her 22-year-old mentally challenged daughter, said she didn't mind sacrificing a day's earnings to participate in the morcha.
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After her husband's death, she worked in Morarji Mill No 1 in Parel and had to move from Lalbaug to Govandi after the mills shut down.

"I work as a housemaid to make ends meet and generally avoid participating in such rallies as it leads to the loss of a day's earnings.

I decided to take part in this protest, however, because of the large crowd and the support it has got from political parties.

Even though I have lost my daily income today, I'm happy that I can finally hope for a house and some basic human rights," she said.

Many mill workers who had to move out of the city and into their native villages after the mills shut down, made it a point to come back to make their displeasure known.

66-year-old Sadashiv Kapde, who used to work at Dawn Mills, stayed in Delisle Road and had to go back to Kolhapur, is a case in point.

"I can feel a glimmer of hope that I will get the house I deserve after seeing the mammoth turnout today. I am not sure whether the politicians will continue to support this movement but we, the mazdoors, are united till the last breath," says Kapde, who now depends on odd jobs to eke out a livelihood.

Hirabai Jivbagulkar (72), who had lost all hopes of getting anything from the government after the death of her husband, who used to work in Sriram mills, was stirred by the speeches given by political leaders.

"I have no one to take care of me and depend on my neighbours for food in Kolhapur. After listening to the leaders, however, I think I might get a house in Mumbai and will finally have someone to look after me."