Whom to trust

On weekends, MG Road in Pune becomes a walking plaza from 4 PM onwards. This concept is very much in vogue abroad, but have not seen it anywhere in India except Pune.

The entire place is alive, you feel the entire Pune is on roads, enjoying and having a great time, shopping or just window shopping and enjoying the various activites going on there. Lot of food stalls, Live band/music, jumping jacks for kids etc.

Yesterday we too thought of spending a couple of hours there and also finish some small odd jobs and do a bit of window shopping.

While returning, suddenly a small boy appeared from nowhere and tugged at my husbands shirt and said "sir would you like to polish your shoes"...so my husband replied no time...he said no probs i will wait. In the meantime this conversation attracted our attention too(me, my niece and my SIL). The reason being the boy was talking to my DH in english and that too immaculate. Even the engineers in our office can't speak such fluent english.

The boy was insisting...he said just Rs. 2/- not more....In order to buy some time with him i urged my DH to get it done. So he took us aside and started his work of polishing the shoes. Our curiosity ws already aroused so we started asking him about himself he said my name is Ajay, i live in Hadapsar with my mother and youger sis who is 2 yrs old. I am the only earning member.

We: which school do you attend.
Ajay: i don't go to school...but i attend tution classes.
We: How much do you earn in a day
Ajay: Rs. 20-30 per day...i give all the money to my mother
We: Why don't you go to school
Ajay: If i have a shoe box then i can earn more money, it is very expensive
We: what is the price
Ajay: Rs. 350/- sir don't give me this money...why don't you buy me a shoe shine box.
We: Give us your address, then we will come and give it to you.
Ajay: daily 6-70 people tell the same thing but no one gives.
We: we won't do that we will give you the box and also if you are interested we will sponser your education.
Ajay: But i don't have an address.
WE: you must be staying somewhere
Ajay: in a jopad patti (slums)
We: fine no problem we will come and see your mother thre

By this time he had finished his work...so my DH took out a Rs. 5/- coin and gave it to him...he just took it and slid away into the crowd...he was not ready to give us his address.

This set our mind ticking...had we just given him the money or bought the shoe shine box for him what would he have done with it...given it abck to the same shop or sold it to someone else and taken the cash. If yes then to whom would that cash go. Is this some sort of a racket....was he a genuine individual or a member of some gang.

Really a lot of questions had started popping in our minds.

But whatever...that kid of 7 or 8 yrs was speaking very fluent English we were all impressed.....but trust we couldn't.

Roopa.

Hi roopa,

While Going thru ur post, it reminded me of a similar incident which happened to me, We were in Bangalore at that time, And these days Banglore has become a Big hub for all those youths and is Crowded by Call Centre and IT Prof. Apart from MG road, CMH Road has become a Happening place and Spl weekends being horrible with All the crowds on the streets .

A small girl of maybe 6- 7 yrs with a small baby of around 1 year started nagging me for money. She started pulling my dress and chasing me I got irritated and asked her what she wants....? she replied back saying i need 10 Rs to get milk for the small baby since it has been hungry the whole day. i felt little bad and thought i will get her bread and milk and told her that i won't give u money, but u come with me i will get u bread and milk. But To my surprise..... she just innocently replied "In that case Get me Dairy Milk Choclate ...... i don't want Bread". .

After that incident,somehow i don't feel like giving money to beggars ,spl the ones with small babies, and don't feel giving any money or showing sympathy towards them for their selfish Act.

Cheers
vaidehi

Hi,
Very true... people just try to cheat you.
Many incidents like this....

Regards.

Dear Roopa
so very well said This is todays world which way you look at it, its always the same.. To answer your question would be no one..what say?!

hi Roopa,

True...noone to trust.

Lakshmi.

Hi its really true which u all shared..

One incident which i remember is when we went to local theater in Hyd to watch movie one small boy aged between 6 to 7 yrs came to us and asked for money, wen my husband gave him 2 rs coin, he refused to take it. My husband asked him what else he want and to our wonder he replied i need more 15 rs to buy ticket for the movie...... :? then we didn't have any words to speak...

by what he asked my husband gave him the 15 rs/ and told me its okay let him too enjoy the movie.....

Hi Roopa,

I was cheated by a woman in rags, with a baby in Chennai years back. I was getting back from office one a'noon when a lady with a baby on her back who looked so sick, asked me some money and the way to Children's Hospital in Egmore. I told her the bus route and also gave her rs.5/- for her bus and on my way prayed for the child's good health.

To my dismay, I saw the same lady at the same place asking for money to another person, a few days later. This put me off very badly, but I could only be a silent spectator. I thought I go complain to the traffic constable, but before I could reach him, she had disappeared.

Its very disheartening when children are used to cheat people. Begging with difference these are..I would be a little generous with my maid and my driver, than paying these people now a days. What say you?

Poornima.

So very true.

But one thing good here was atleast the boy was doing something constructive and not begging for money, atleast he was shoe polishing in return.

At Chembur - Mumbai there is a beggar family who begs at the main signal and at night after 10.30 when the traffic lessens, they go to a nearby hotel and buy non-veg food worth about Rs.1000/- and have their dinner daily.

At another signal we told the beggar paisa nahi hain...kaam karega he replied time nahi hain.

We all bust out laughing.

Roopa.

hi
this happened to me also
due to some people we r unable to trust the real needy
aparna

Dear Roopa,

Well said. The boy must have touched yr heart strings as it touched us readers.

But well, u never know.Mostly, i may be wrong, these are a part of a gang really,no one can beg or shoe shine ont he roads on his own.These are terroritites marked by different ganglords.

Regards.kamal