The only breadwinner of the family

A breadwinner is the only one who earns for the family and contributes the largest portion of their income. Neglecting their needs and desires, they work for their families for their better future. Breadwinners in a poor family are the only one who is mostly aged and weak yet bound to strive hard for the rest of the family members. Not everyone earns is a breadwinner; they dare to leave the job. But a breadwinner is bound to do the job no matter the situation or condition.

With the increase in the rates of every single item, the living of a poor man has become a curse for them. Rents, medicines, groceries, the fare of taxis or rickshaws, and many more expenses have made it difficult for a poor man to survive.

Here is the story of 72 years old Shamroz Khan, who moved to Rawalpindi from Mardan to earn for his family.

Upon asking him, if I could take his photo, he asked with a dull face, “Kia karo gi iska (what will you do with it?).”

“Akhbar main Lagwagon gi (I will get it published in a newspaper),” I claimed. “Kia mein apki 1 photo lay skti hoon? (can I take one picture of yours?)

And this was the outcome of a little talk with an old man. Praising and sending blessings my way, he smiled for a photo and talked about himself. He said that his family consists of 4 daughters, out of which one is handicapped, and 2 sons of age 15 and 16, respectively. They all live with a guard in the Commercial Market to eliminate the big sum of rent to fulfill their necessities. Sitting outside the wall of a Mosque in Liaqat Bagh, he has got a good amount of candies, chewing gums, balloons, biscuits, and many more items around him on his little piece of cheddar.  He sits there from 8 am to 8 pm to get more sales and money to take food back to his place to eat. Outside the Mosque, many well-off people take many things in bulk, making a good amount for a day. This is how he fulfills the need of his family.

At this age, parents want their children to support them and help them feed the family, but not everyone is lucky enough to get their blessings. Moreover, it’s our system that does not facilitate the lower class, and because of this, our system needs to revamp.

The Government should set a fixed pension amount for the overage people, so they don’t have to struggle this hard.