The shipyards of Dhaka

Last December while visiting Bangladesh, I had the chance to stumble upon the shipyards of South Dhaka early morning.

After having spent only 1 day in Bangladesh it was a big shock to face these very poor working conditions, but the friendliness of the people made up for it. At about 7 am, people gather on the river shore and walk to their respective working place.

Most workers will be sitting on the floor, hammering the ships to remove the old painting. This is a very tedious and noisy job, and the painting dust falling down did not seem very healthy to breathe.

Some other groups of workers carry plates of metal weighing a few tonnes, from the river to the ship that needs some fixing. They carry them plates on their heads using some type of thick straw hats. Once the plates are put down on the floor, it takes 12 men to move them inch by inch.

Inside the ships, people weld, hammer, cut metal plates, and paint. It is a real hive of busy people running around, and the colours of the ships make for perfect backgrounds.

Some people have their own little workshops on the side and build propellers and other ship parts.