MUMBAI LOCAL FEEDS THEM

 Trains in Mumbai are an eminent part of Public transportation. Cancellation of 3-4 trains in the peak hours or any problem associated with the railway tracks or derailment of train compartments can easily cause huge chaos among the office goers. Every day, Mumbai local carries around 30 million passengers, says a survey held in 2013. Apart from being the cheapest way of commuting, Mumbai Railways is the base of earning for some...specifically vendors. And if you board these train after 12 in the noon, you will find a portable mini shopping mall in the trains. Barring few exceptions, you get everything, right from fashion stuffs to the household material. However, working women find this very helpful as they do not get time throughout the week and hence get stuffs in train itself. But these professional women at the same time do not bother about taking a step forward for the child vendors that account for around 30% of these vendors coming in the train.

Mukta  who is 10 year old, boards the train at Dombivali and gets down at Vitthalwadi or Shahad , sells hair band and hair clips though her tiny hands fail to hold the box in which carries the selling stuffs. She lives in Thakurli and comes along with Radha, her neighbour. Mukta’s mother works as a maid and hence Mukta has to cook for herself and her Dad before she comes to earn. “She earns around Rs. 40-50 from morning 11 to evening 5”, says Radha who accompanies her throughout because Mukta is new in the business and does not know the train routes.

 There is  Yadav who boards the train from Ambarnath with his father and earns by singing songs on the sarangi tune. Yadav’s sarangi which is made by joining different materials is created by himself and believe me the tune that come out of it is exceptional. He earns around 200 per day and sometimes gets some money out of singing in some function held in his basti. Yadav is also a part time mechanic. However, almost 80% of his income goes as an interest amount for the debt that his father took. Both these kids never went to school.

Azar, 12, who lives  Mumbra sells drawing books and pass cover in train. Though his uncle didn’t wanted him to go to school after his parents death because of financial crisis, he chose to work and pay his school fees by himself. He used to depend on his aunty for tiffins but now she doesn’t even make an effort to keep his part of meal when he returns home. He earns, washes his clothes himself, lives on 3 vada a day...but yes, he goes to school.

These kids are deprived of their Right to good food and education but we feel proud, giving reservation to SCs,STs and OBCs....

Posted by- Pandey Kavita

MACJ, PART-I