Asom rickshaws to help meet UN Millennium Goals

Guwahati, May 4: The obscure rickshaw-pullers in Asom are silently contributing their bit towards achieving the United Nations Millennium Development Goal of increasing the daily income of the poor population of the world.

The target of increasing the daily income of the poor to at least USD 2 is now a feasible goal for the rickshaw-pullers in the state with the innovative Rickshaw Bank, making a ''strong positive difference'' in their lives.

Dr Pradip Kumar Sharma, the man behind the project, said, ''Our Rickshaw Bank project has drawn adulation at the international forum now. The benefits the poor pullers are getting here are testimony of the positive difference it is making.'' The Rickshaw Bank is a project of the NGO-Centre for Rural Development (CRD), which provides specially designed rickshaws to the poor against a system of repayment of the cost for the rickshaw in installments of Rs 25 daily.

When the cost of Rs 10,500 is repaid to the Rickshaw Bank, the puller becomes the owner of the rickshaw he plies. The design of this special rickshaw was developed by the Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati, and had been operational on the roads of the state since November, 2004.

Dr Sharma informed that during his participation at a meet at the Swiss Development Corporation in Geneva last year, delegates from other countries appreciated the project and showed interest to replicate it in their countries.

Altogether 26 countries had participated in the meet that took stock of the various projects and ventures taken up by the countries to achieve the Millennium Development Goals.

Dr Sharma highlighted that once the rickshaw-pullers had repaid the cost to the Rickshaw Bank, which is generally done within 420 days, the latter would earn about Rs 150-200 (USD 3-4) daily.

''The Millennium Goal of increasing daily income to at least USD 2 by 2010 is very easily achievable by replicating the Rickshaw Bank model,'' he added.

He further informed that while concrete step to replicate the project in other countries was still in informal correspondence state, the special rickshaws developed under the project would soon ply on the roads of Dhaka.

UNI