Meals were never so meagre

CHNADIGARH, Nov 4: Bade Lal, 40, gulps down a thick roti with a tumbler full of tea. That's his breakfast now. As far as he can remember, th...

CHNADIGARH, Nov 4: Bade Lal, 40, gulps down a thick roti with a tumbler full of tea. That8217;s his breakfast now. As far as he can remember, things were never this bad. Not even in his village in Unao district of Uttar Pradesh, from which he travelled hundreds of kilometres for a better life in Chandigarh. He settled in the small slums near Kaimbwala and earned enough to have a breakfast of paranthas and vegetables. A Rs 1,500 job as a lawn-keeper and two sons earning similar amounts, life was comfortable for the seven-member family. As comfortable as a poor migrant would want, he says.

As he narrates his woes, a small veiled woman enters the hut and hands out an iron tiffin carrier to Bade Lal. That8217;s his wife Kalawati. He knows what she cooked, but opens it any ways, perhaps, hoping for a miracle. 8220;Brinjal curry and a handful of boiled rice for four days now,8221; he murmurs. 8220;We buy brinjals cheap Sir, there8217;s a farm across the huts over there,8221; he adds. Pulses at Rs 40 a kilo too are now out of reach.

Life for the poor migrants of the city is no different elsewhere. In the dingy hutments adjoining the Bapu Dham Colony, things have been gloomy for matriach Shanti, these last six months. Feeding five children and a drunkard husband is no easy job with an income of Rs 1,000 she draws washing dishes in a few Sector 7 households. 8220;We would often settle for onions and pickle with roti for days together,8221; she says. The colony bania 8212; a shade richer 8212; has threatened to stop giving her provisions on credit because she hasn8217;t paid last months bills. The bania, Kalicharan, sells onions but in ones and two every day. 8220;I don8217;t need to weigh them. People pay per piece,8221; he adds.

In the hutments adjoning the railway station, rickshaw-puller Mishri Lal is no better placed. His diet includes radish leaves curry and rice or chapati. At times gourd or potatoes 8212; whatever comes cheaper.

8220;Things were better back home. I haven8217;t been able to send money to my family for months now,8221; says neighbour Dina Nath. 8220;We are thinking of going back.8221; A more optimistic neighbour chips in: 8220;Winters are here. Vegetables will be cheaper now.8221; 8220;But winter means spending more money on firewood,8221; replies Dina Nath.