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Automation being non-existent, all the unloading has to be done manually, by the sweat of one's brow
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For each round trip the labourer will earn two Bangladeshi taka for a basket of sand and three taka for a basket of coal
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What labourers earn is a function of how much they carry on their heads during a 10-hour day
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In a country booming economically there is an insatiable demand for building materials such as sand, gravel and coal
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Porters get plastic tokens worth three taka for each load they carry. At the end of the day they count them to see how much they have earned
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Lacking basic equipment like shoes, gloves or mask, coal porters do a draining job in precarious conditions and often experience headaches and backpains
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The dual gangplanks are designed to make sure the line of full baskets does not cross the line of the empty ones
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Their bodies covered in coal dust and soaked in sweat, the "modern slaves" work tirelessly from sunrise to sunset
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Coal workers are only paid for the work they do (no sick-pay !) so often take painkillers
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A day of backbreaking work carrying around about 7000 kg of coal will earn this galley slave a mere 700 taka ie 6 euros
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Up at the crack of dawn the porter toils for 10 hours straight with only two small breaks
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Carrying around on a daily basis 200 baskets of coal weighing 30 kg each eventually takes its toll on workers' health
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Women are supposedly paid the same as men ie three taka per basket, but in practise men who work quicker can do more loads and hence earn more
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Bangladesh only produces a fraction of its coal needs and imports it mainly from India, Indonesia and South Africa
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Line of workers carrying a heavy load of coal in baskets balanced precariously on their heads
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Day labourers emptying their basket of coal at the depot situated 50 meters from the barge
