There are hundreds of them scattered all across Lahore’s main railway station. Dressed in vibrant red shirts that fade into saffron with time, they can be spotted from afar. Right at the entrance of the railway station, some of them stand in groups on the lookout for passengers and ever-ready to shoulder their burden.

Opportunity hangs thick in the air here, and despite their seemingly passive demeanour as they wait for potential customers, they are no novices at seizing it.

"Coolie chahiyey? Coolie?" they ask earnestly, crowding around travellers and vehicles entering the premises of the station. One can sense the desperation in their voice as they struggle to catch the attention of travellers, eyes brimming with a silent prayer. It is perhaps the only time they are allowed to posit a question.

But even before they will be able to muster the strength to ask why, the more than 150-year-old iconic red shirts that have formed a major part of their identity will be replaced with the ubiquitous green that stands for everything Pakistani.

The decision that will strip them of a very important and historic facet of their identity, after conveniently denying them a voice and representation in unions of railway employees, is a sudden move. In the broader sense, the unimaginative measure can be viewed in connection with the government’s recent rampage that has resulted in the loss of heritage sites to development -- whether it is the Orange Line Project or the demolition of the 151-year-old Sahiwal Railway Station. In another country, such a national treasure would be meticulously preserved and looked after.

Even during the tenure of a democratic government and in the 21^st century, there seems to be little standing in the way of mutilating historical remnants.

What may come as a revelation to some is that a community that has been brutally cornered and exploited is more aware of the importance of preserving history and cultural heritage. By calling them ‘coolies’ which translates into unskilled workers -- a racist and belittling term from the colonial era -- a certain judgement is passed on the intellectual calibre of these people. Railway porters do not exist in a vacuum and like other sections of society, they too are observing changes and reacting to them.

Their responses to the impending change in uniform are emotional and exhibit a sensitivity towards keeping historic traditions alive.

"This Qalandri red is the colour of mystic passion. It is the identity of a coolie. It symbolises love and humanity," states 24-year-old Mohammad Imran who has been working as a porter at Lahore Railway Station for two years now. He is married and has a one-year-old daughter. "We help people with their luggage and lessen the stress they experience when travelling; helping them navigate through the station and the system of booking seats and sometimes guiding others that are totally new to the city," he adds with a smile.

Wali Khan, another porter at the Lahore Railway Station and a father of five, has been working here for 28 years. Having inherited the job from his elders, he feels that it is his duty to protect the old uniform. "My grandfather used to wear the red uniform, then my father and now me. This is a tradition. Coolies have always worn red. I think it is a very practical idea too given that it keeps us safe because we work around trains. The colour is bright enough to catch attention and stop a train. Accidents can be prevented," he claims.

"Wardiyan na badlo,saadiyaa’n kismetaa’n badlo! (Don’t change our uniforms, work to improve our future)," says Malik Ejaz, a 48-year-old railway porter who has been in this line of work for the last 20 years and is the sole breadwinner in his family of six.

"Pakistan seems to be developing, I can see changes all around me. If new roads are being constructed, it means the government has money to invest. It’s just that we are not a priority. Everything is changing except for the abysmal conditions of coolies. All we get is token gestures and reassurances," says Ejaz.

Zeenat Hisam, a researcher associated with PILER (Pakistan Institute of Labour Education and Research), agrees that merely switching from red uniforms to green and yellow ones will not achieve anything. Instead, solid employment benefits must be provided to railway porters. "Part of Pakistan Railways has already been privatised. So, in a way you can say the authorities want to give a new business look but it has got nothing to change the terms and conditions of coolies. Just handing them over a new uniform will not change their situation."

"The uniforms should remain like they always have been. We shouldn’t unnecessarily tamper with the surviving bits and pieces of history that we have. Of course, railway porters will have a sense of emotional attachment with the uniforms that have been worn for generations. Over the years, they have also become proud of what they wear," notes artist Dr Ajaz Anwar, who has been involved in the campaign to preserve Lahore’s heritage.

Perhaps, a better way of bidding adieu to the cultural legacy of colonialism is to take measures that ensure a better standard of life for the contractual railway porters. Carrying loads of up to 40 kilograms and perhaps even more at times all year round without a break for as little as Rs30, they are unfortunately kept on the periphery.

Out of the many injustices meted out to them, the system’s non-inclusive nature is most distressing. There is no union of railway porters and virtually no way for them to convey their grievances to the government and Ministry of Railways in an organised manner. A mere protest by the coolies at Karachi Cantt Railway Station on contractors’ demanding a 40 per cent commission resulted in not just violence but registering of FIRs against them. How ironic is it that Labour Day wasn’t even that long ago!

"At a time when the minimum wage in Pakistan for unskilled workers is Rs13,000, porters earn around Rs9,000-10,000 per month working seven days a week and after giving the contractors a commission of 30 per cent of their daily income. Without social security and old age benefit programmes, and in the absence of appointment letters and employee IDs, they have been dehumanised to no end," says Karachi-based journalist Qazi Khizer who is actively involved in the movement for the rights of railway porters.

That trains are departing and arriving on time is today being celebrated and hailed as a benchmark of success in the sector. But embracing modernity means a little more than revamping uniforms of the hapless porters and razing historical railway stations to the ground.