Despite technology boom the village people are preferring Kumhars (Potters) for curing their bone disorder, as rural communities do not have access to proper health facilities. Apart from this there is no room for qualified orthopedists in government-run rural health centers to give solace to the ailing folk.
In this situation, the rural people believe that kumhars might be the only way out for their bone-setting and they know better about the complexity of bones disorder than even many orthopedists, who are practising in government-run hospitals as well as in private clinics.
It may appear strange that some traditional illiterate potters are performing as consultants in different government-run rural health centers and visit twice or thrice a week there to help ailing community. They claim that apart from these health centers many distressed people come to them for the treatment.
A 60-year old Masi Gullan wife of Urs Kumhar, belonging to a traditional potter community, said: "we people make earthen pots, beat and burn them properly, so we know about its each and every joint, which we unite carefully.
Gulan, having little knowledge about the bone setting, has been working in this ancestral field since her childhood and can make all kinds of pots. She believes that joints of human body are not different than earthen pots, as both are too fragile.
Though the claim by a kumhar woman can be opposed on medical ground but she was proud to claim that selected potters have a healing quality and they understand how to unite the damaged human joints.
They have different style of therapy. Neither they have costly equipment nor they give costly medicine to the ailing people. They give them their self-made medicines to patients in special cases. Otherwise, they avoid suggesting medicines and always advising them to have natural nutrition like milk, butter etc for curing their problem.
Noor Mohammed, who had visited a kumhar living in a neighbouring village in district Matiari for treatment of his arm's defect, said he went to different physicians earlier but later he was advised by elders to go to kumhar, as he was the real healer of that ailment.
"I visited him for three weeks and now feeling well," he said.
A 40-year old Mai Samil, brought to kumhar living in Barocho Bagh near New Saeedabad Town, for the treatment of bone-disorder in her leg, said she went there once a week for three months and now she was feeling better.
Ghulam Mustaffa, a bank employee, also visited the same kumhar for his broken elbow and his joint was healed up.
People of Hala and its neighbourhood recalling the past said that late Mevo Kumhar and Bhaledino Kumhar were the most experts in this field and at every time rush of people was observed pouring in their wide pot-manufacturing units. But now rarely experts like them could be found in the entire neighbourhood, they added.
They were used to perform well either manufacturing earthen pots or uniting the damaged joints of the people visiting there.
Abdul Rehman living in Mauripur sharing his experience said Haji Kumhar of Old Kumharwara, Lyari was the most expert in this particular field and he treated even several distressed people, who returned from the major city hospitals. Though, his successors have still been in this field but Haji was the exceptional, he added.
Lal Bakhsh Baloch running his traditional therapy center at Karachi's Gulbhai neighbourhood is also popular in his unique style of therapy. He can be seen busy along with his traditional learners rubbing hand-made greasy substance on the skin of people to soothe their soreness. A large number of ailing folk visits his one-room clinic daily.
Besides this, few traditional kumhars in old-areas of Karachi and its suburbs, despite decline in their ancestral work, still perform both, manufacturing earthen pots and providing inexpensive treatment to people.
For setting the dislocated or broken joints, village kumhars do not demand amount for their service, but after healing up the people present them traditional gifts like ajrak, rally and other items in return. In some cases rich people gift them buffalo, cow or goat as a reward after getting relief from distress.
It is a tradition that these artisan communities, including kumhars are scattered and only two or three families can be found in each village. In the past, there was no big market for their produce. Entire work of manufacturing pots was depending on requirement of peasant communities and they used to give little share of crop to them in return of getting earthen jars and other items for home and fields.
Though now the situation, as well as the mode of production has been changed but at some places these ancient traditions are being followed as same as they were in fashion in the past. For instance these artisan communities oblige to farmers' families free of cost whole year and in return they get little share of crops once or twice a year at the harvest time.
Giving example old-age villagers say, in past marriage functions were observed to remain continue from two week to one month, in which the artisan communities and peasant people had their commendable role. Kumhars had to give more required pots, including earthen jars etc free of cost to the family.
Keeping a donkey is a traditional norm, which has been coming through their ancestors. In this regard they don't feel humiliation to it. In past they used to ride on donkey at every function, held at little distance from their native villages. They use it for bringing clay or shifting pots-going to near by market.
However, now it seems that unskilled youth of potters are in fashion and they don't share their labour with their elders. Being deprived of their basic right of access to education, they are doing some different kind of jobs like labour on daily wages or working in the agricultural farms. In fact the poverty is another problem, which has forced these village communities into trouble. However, the kumhar youth are no more interested in their ancestral field, as they believe it is dying business so they do not like to keep it continue. They have alternative to do for their living.
However, looking to this changing situation and lack of interest of government institutions this old method of treatment is losing its significance by every passing day. Despite the fact this traditional method of therapy benefits low-income people in rural areas, who cannot afford to visit hospitals, the government institutions have nothing to do for the promotion of this cheap treatment.
Government authorities' this indifferent approach may lead to discouraging these traditional healers, which in result in fact will harm the common folk. In this regard, the government should give it a favourable consideration to promote this effective, cheapen and reachable method of treatment to ease the village communities, who have prefer to go to these traditional healers instead of going to government-run hospitals or private clinics.
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