Pakistan News & Features Services
The video of a Karachi rickshaw driver, unable to pay rent and facing harsh consequences, has gone viral, highlighting the questionable government policies regarding the persistent lockdown aimed at containing coronavirus (COVID-19).
The sight of the rickshaw driver, sitting in a dark room, next to an empty stove at his residence in the area of Manzoor Colony, staring hopelessly at the ground with his five children and wife after his landlord had cut electricity and gas due to non-payment of monthly rental, moved a lot of viewers globally, some of them also breaking into tears.
Although rickshaws were allowed to be running on the roads during daytime, the number of passengers had gone down as a result of the extended lockdown in Karachi, having made life particularly miserable for the daily wage workers like rickshaw drivers.
Many rickshaw and cab drivers, besides other daily wagers, have had to endure similar problems and anxieties as they not only have defaulted on rentals during the past couple of months but also struggled to feed their families because of the lack of work in market.
While the government has announced some relief packages and some welfare organizations have also joined in helping out the community but their efforts appeared far too little in the context of the crisis and they need to expedite their actions to reach out the masses for solving their problems.
