The Roof

Worker sprays the roof with water to make the mud stick.











The roof of the guest house were I am staying at the moment is made waterproof. The monsoon rains are coming (or so we hope), and in order to prevent leakages, a few men and some boys are applying a thick layer of mud to the flat rooftop.



Outside, across the road, there's a large pile of sand. In the middle water has formed a mud crater from which a man spades mud into bowls. These are carried up by one of the boys. He crosses the street and use a ladder to reach the roof. He wears a scarf on his head for stability and to soften the load.



On the roof his friend takes over the bowl and carries it to the far end of the rooftop where a man empties it at the designated place. Then the mason spreads the paste evenly, using his trowel.



The porters, mainly the boys, make 300 rupees a day (less than 3 euros). The masons 500 rupees.
Masons are needed everywhere, and that these men do it for an abominable wage, is one thing. That the porters do hard physical work in insufferable heat, while they should be in school, is another. It tells you something about the dire poverty many families face.