Nineteen arches span the long side of the Margao Municipal Council Building and the Roman arch-pier form gives a classical look. The corridor outside is the busiest in Margao during the peak hours with people of all walks of life passing by. Spread out on the floor of the corridor are a dozen or so cobblers who are waiting in search of their next customer.
Speak to these guys and they tell you how they have seen Margao change and how the colour of the MMC building may have changed but the city fathers never bother to look at them. Only common folk are their regular customers. Some of these cobblers have been sitting here since the 1980s.
This is not the only place where they sit. Their fellow cobblers sit below Kamat Hotel opposite the MMC garden and the inter-city bus stop and they occupy the aisles where those travelling by bus have to wait. A lot of people who come to Margao from neighbouring villages alight at this stop. They are also spread out on the foothpaths of the MMC run Gandhi Market and New Market.
Therein lies their issue and biggest complaint. Why are they forced to sit on footpaths and why have successive governments been blind to their plight given that they sit there even during torrential rains and strong winds, the sweltering heat on a hot sunny day or the freezing cold. “For several years we have taken up this issue with the authorities with our single point agenda to shift us and allocate us a place either at the market or in Margao. We are poor folk and can’t afford to agitate and agitate. It’s not like we don’t pass them everyday. But everyone passes the buck to another authority and we are told to wait. We thought the wait would be over at the turn of the millennium but it is 2015 now,” said Narayan Kote, a 60 year old cobbler.
“Most of our customers are those who are either leaving or entering the city. They usually have an issue with their sandals, be it the soles that have come out or some tear that has to be sewed back. Some want their leather shoes polished while others require the shoe to be fixed. Again this is mostly from the older generation,” said Arun Velip. Cobblers reasoned that the younger generation prefer buying a new pair of footwear if their old shoes wear out while the suggestion of such a practice would be frowned upon by the older generation who still come with the same pair of sandals they have been wearing for the last 10-20 years.
Another task for the cobblers which is a demand due to the monsoons is that of umbrella repairing. The demand is usually for changing a broken handle for Rs 30, changing the cloth for Rs 50 and together with the cost of the cloth it comes up to Rs 80 while there are other small repairs of the wire or stitching jobs which do not cross Rs 50.
Here again they face the issue where some of the customers feel it just makes more sense to purchase a new umbrella that will save them the time of travelling to Margao, finding a place to park their vehicle and meet them. The cobblers use this example to reiterate their demand for a dedicated space where they can meet their customers and they prefer the market area.
Ashok Kerdkarkar who has been at this job for the last 40 odd years is following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather. His companions are present sharp at 8.30 am and barring a lunch break at 1.30 pm they are open for business till 7.30 pm.
It is too late for them to change their profession and they are not in a position to skip work and retire as their family still looks upon them as breadwinners. The senior citizen cobblers do not want to add any financial burden to their children.
