Indian railway porters are no longer to be called "coolies" under a reform to shake off the negative connotations of the term seen as a throwback to colonial times.
The porters will now be called "sahayaks", the Hindi word for helpers, Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu said on Thursday.
"We intend providing them with new uniforms and train them in soft skills in line with the evolving image of Indian Railways," Prabhu said.
The trademark red uniform and brass armbands, a ubiquitous presence in train stations across the country, were to be replaced with clothes carrying brand endorsements, The Tribune reported online.
The word coolie has origins in Indian languages. It passed into English to refer to local unskilled workers in India under British rule.
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Beyond the subcontinent, the English term has become a racial slur for people of Asian descent, notably in South Africa.
Indian porters welcomed the change in nomenclature but also demanded welfare benefits. Officials said they would be provided with trolleys to move customers' luggage, instead of carrying it on their backs.
"People usually treat us with disdain, ordering us around calling us coolies, which sounds offensive," porter Gabru Khan told reporters.
"The name change will help us get respect and give dignity to the work we do."
