The 50-year struggle of Dhaka’s one-handed rickshaw puller
Rubel moved to Dhaka the same year he lost his hand. Now, in his late 60s, he still carries on with the same profession from five decades ago, claiming himself to be the capital's No.1 rickshaw puller
Rubel stands with his rickshaw at the head of Paribagh on Eskaton Garden Road, in front of the Holy Family Hospital. His right hand is slightly raised, gesturing for passengers.
As they approach to negotiate the fare, they notice that the long sleeve on his left side hangs empty — his left hand is missing. Some hesitate.
But Rubel does everything he can to reassure them. He may have only one hand, but he is a skilled and experienced rickshaw puller — better, he claims, than any of Dhaka's two-handed pullers.
"I am the number one rickshaw puller in the city. I've been pulling rickshaws here for over 50 years, and I do it better than anyone else," says Rubel, a man in his late 60s. When he starts pedalling, he never brings up the loss of his hand, unless the passenger asks.
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And if they do, he has a story to tell; one that mirrors the struggles of over a million rickshaw pullers in this city.
His is a story of survival and hardship, of a small family in the city's poorest neighbourhoods, living hand to mouth. It is the story of children growing up in scarcity, sustained by the relentless toil, blood and sweat of their fathers.
What happened to Rubel?
In 1974, Rubel was an eighth-grader in Bogura, his hometown. The son of a deed writer and the most handsome, stocky boy in his class, he had a promising future. But that year, as Bangladesh grappled with famine, everything changed for him.
"I climbed a jujube tree at home to prune its branches and fell from quite a height," Rubel recalls. He was rushed to the local hospital, but no doctor was available. "A compounder inserted a rod in my hand, just like doctors do for broken limbs. But it made my hand rot instead," he says.
When doctors finally examined him, they determined amputation was necessary to save his life. Shortly after he recovered, tragedy struck again as his father passed away, leaving Rubel and his siblings orphaned and his mother helpless.
Five decades of pulling Dhaka's weight
Rubel moved to Dhaka the same year he lost his hand and father. He started pulling rickshaws with one hand.
"Back then, I used to earn 50 paisa to Tk1 per ride, making about Tk20 a day," he says.
Sitting on Eskaton Garden Road, Rubel cannot hide his frustration. When he first arrived, the city was beautiful, but over the years, it has become a concrete jungle, something he has witnessed first-hand.
"I used to live in Khilgaon back then. There were trees, ponds and open spaces all over the city. But now, everything has changed," he laments.
The growing pollution and dust trouble him, just as they do other rickshaw pullers. In recent months, we interviewed dozens of rickshaw pullers who shared similar concerns about how the dust in the city causes them health problems and daily difficulties.
One of the oldest rickshaw pullers in Dhaka, Rubel married in the 1980s. However, they could not have any children. "My wife had complications," he explains, so they adopted two daughters.
Later, they moved to Tongi in Gazipur, married off both daughters and in 2010, they had a biological son. "My son is as handsome as me — he's already much taller than you [the correspondent]," Rubel chuckles.
Though he feels complete with his son, he still worries about providing for his family.
"I don't own any land or property. We are truly landless people. And this is how we'll go on," he says.
Rubel spends two hours each day on a bus travelling from Tongi to Eskaton, then pulls rickshaws for several hours, earning between Tk400 and Tk600 a day, depending on his luck. But, he says, this income is barely enough as the cost of essentials continues to rise in Bangladesh.
He cannot ride auto-rickshaws, which have flooded the city, as controlling them with one hand would be too difficult.
These days, he only operates in the smaller areas of Eskaton and Paribagh due to his age and declining strength. Even in these relatively safer areas, he once had an accident when a motorcycle, coming from the wrong side, knocked him down.
"I needed six stitches and was out of work for about 20 days, which forced me into significant debt just to survive," he says. His wife also suffers from various chronic illnesses.
His only hope now rests on his son. Rubel knows he will not be able to continue much longer. Though he insists that he is still strong, his body tells a different story, and he takes regular days off to rest.
"My only hope is that the boy grows up quickly. But these modern kids are hopeless. His sisters bought him a phone, and now he just wastes all his time on that damned device," Rubel sighs, unable to hide his frustration.
