The British government brought these sweepers from Kanpur, Kerala and Madras in India to provide cleaning services for Dhaka that others refused to do.

They were accommodated at Ganaktuli City Colony since those long gone days. From the beginning, they have been deprived of their basic rights as city workers and dwellers. Their miseries have continued up to the present day.

There are only six separate living quarters for more than 30 thousand dwellers of Ganaktuli City Colony. Among these, five quarters were made during the British period and one was made only three years ago.

"We all do jobs under the city corporation and if the city corporation takes steps to build more quarters for us then our accommodation problems will be solved easily," said Anisur Rahman, a member of the colony.

The supply of water is very low in the colony. What little water they get is mostly dirty. "We face a serious problem of shortage of drinking water," said Jamal Hossain, a sweeper of Hajaribag.

The Ganaktuli City Colony has only 7 bathrooms for each quarter and the dwellers usually have to line up for a bath. Latrines, however, are the greatest problem.

"Really it is pathetic. We have to line up and wait for so long time to use the latrine," said Mangal Mia.

The sweepers do not get gas facilities. They use lakri or kerosene for cooking.

"Gas and electricity are vital needs of our day daily life," said Mita Rani Rajbanshi, a housewife.

"We work very hard but our salary is limited. We usually get only Tk 2000 to 3000 per month. We can't run our family properly," said Malu Mia, a 70 year old sweeper.

Being a sweeper is still an obstacle to getting a good job.

"Although I have completed my BA, there is no good job for me. People are still prejudice against our community," said Shishir Chandra.

The Ganaktuli City Colony has three clubs. These are Manab Seba Tarun Sangha, Samaj Seba Jub Sangha and Ashar Alo Jub Sangha. Each club has 21 elected members.

There was a law during the British period that if any sweeper committed wrong acts, the club member will judge them, not the police.

"In the club, children read here, we hold various functions and we discuss what initiatives we can take for the dwellers of this colony," said Jamal Hossain about the activities of the clubs.

"We informed the City Corporation several times about our problems. They always give us assurances but do nothing for us," he added.

The sweepers of the Mohammadpur Town Hall Colony are also deprived of their basic needs, although they too are workers of the Dhaka City Corporation.

"We have not enough bathrooms, water supply or gas facilities," said Ramu Das, a sweeper of Mohammadpur Town Hall colony.

"The authorities of Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) know the problem of the sweeper colony at Hajaribag and we will try to solve their problems as soon as possible," was the comment of Sohel Faruque, the chief conservancy officer of DCC.