Centre and the poverty line

Dear Mr. Prime Minister,

The last week has been an eye-opener of sorts; first of all I am positively above the poverty line and so is my bai (household help, superwoman, who single-handedly manages to keep many urban families together by taking on the “top work” thereby alleviating the mistress who can now go to work or catch her favourite midday television sob story).

I read in the newspaper last week that the Centre in an affidavit to the Supreme Court said that a person only needed to earn Rs.454.11 and Rs.327.56 in urban and rural areas respectively, to be classified as being above the poverty line. I decided to do a bit of investigative blogging for a change.

Now, my bai works in about 10 households and rakes in Rs.300 for every chore, for eg: she charges Rs.300 for swabbing the floor, another Rs.300 for washing clothes etc), on an average I believe she earns anything between Rs.3,500 to Rs.4,000 a month( I did not dare ask her the real number, for it would be a good excuse for sobbing about the inflation and asking for a pay rise, and yes, thanks to the news channels, and the extensive coverage , these days everyone is an expert on what the inflation is, where the stock market and the country as a whole is headed), now I know for a fact that she pays Rs.2,000 as rent for the “kholi” (which means room) in the slum that she lives in. That is 50% flat on rent, then to get a gas cylinder she has to shell out about Rs.340, given the sorry state of civic amenities in the slums if she falls ill that is Rs.100 on medicines, so she has Rs.1,560 to buy food, which is about Rs.52 a day, she is well above the poverty line!!!

OK, Mr Prime Minister, this is the case of a well off person comfortably over the poverty line, let’s talk about a person just on the poverty line or a border line case, say living in Mumbai and earning Rs.600 a month. Let us track his monthly expenses, we assume that this money should be sufficient to buy him “roti, kapda aur makan” , the basics, since he earns Rs.20 a day, the only food he will be able to afford in Mumbai is “vada pav” - the burger of the poor, this costs Rs.5 per vada pav so he spends Rs.10 straight on food, now that the roti issue has been sorted, the rest of the money should buy him clothes and a place to live, where in Mumbai will he get a room for Rs.10 a night ??

If you go to the market Mr. Prime Minister, which I am sure you do not, you will realise the Tomatoes are Rs.28 a kilo, potatoes are Rs.20 a kilo, onions are Rs.24 a kilo and every other self respecting vegetable is above Rs.30 a kilo. Fish and other non-vegetarian items are also crazily expensive.

My mother remembers when she got married and first arrived at her sasural she chided the fish monger for charging Rs.5 for three mackerels, she had told him “where well you keep all this ill-gotten money”... now we have to pay Rs.50 for three. Or for that matter, my grandfather bought all my mom’s wedding jewellery for Rs.3,500, given the rates today, I am sure in the near future it will be every above poverty line father’s dream that his daughter elopes...

Sincerely,
Sen