IT IS MONSOON, a time when Bhopal, the capital city of Madhya Pradesh, is at its best. In one part of Bhopal lies Bittan market which is a prime shopping centre and hosts big showrooms like Reebok, Allen Solly, and eateries like Barsita, Amer Bakery and CCD’s. It caters to young crowd from all over Bhopal.
On Monday, Thursday and Saturday evening it hosts a makeshift vegetable market that caters to people staying at Arera Colony, Shahpura, Char Imli, Gulmohar and surrounding areas. It is quite popular among the area residents as one can get vegetables at comparatively a low price.
Though others enjoy the rain, for vegetable sellers it is not a pleasant experience. Rain directly affects their sale. Due to heavy rains, not many people come for purchasing the vegetable and prices of vegetables also go up. I also got a chance to visit this vegetable market where I met Nadeem, a young boy, who was sitting next to his father and selling vegetables. He goes to school in morning and is a student of fifth class in the government school (though he should be in much higher class as per his age but may be he joined the school late). In the evening on haat days he sits next to his father in the haat lane. He wants to play and enjoy like other kids and does not want to sell vegetables. He has a dream in his eyes. Like others he wants to study and work in an office. But it is the need, which makes him help his father in earning a good sum. “It is better rather than roaming around,” says his father. Nadeem is not the only child, who is into vegetable selling, several other children can also been seen involved in attracting customers and helping their parents in selling the veggies. They are not only a helping hand for parents, but they earn additional income for the family. In Bittan one gets one mentioned space per person, so normally they get the space next to their parents to sell vegetables. Extra space means extra 23 rupees per day (Rs 15 for lights, Rs 4 for the corporation and few rupees for tea) but this way one can display more vegetables and attract more customers so better sales and more earning.
Five-year-old Rohit was sitting next to her mother and was busy selling vegetables.
Too young to understand the bargaining tactics, for Rohit it is a matter of survival. His father had lost the job and his mother runs the family by selling veggies. She was also feeding her one-year-old child, brother of Rohit while selling. In addition to Rohit and Nadeem there are other children like Suraj who roams around and sells lemons in Bittan. In Bhopal vegetable markets lemons are mostly sold by young boys. Suraj normally earns about Rs 50 /60 each time haat is there, which helps him earn extra bucks. Part of that amount goes to his family and another part he keeps with himself to fulfill some of his own wishes. Rohit Nadeem and Suraj are still lucky ones of the lot. There are children like Kanchan and Rajni whose parents do not have a shop here so they beg for money /vegetables and take home whatever they can. These little girls do not study in school. It is at these markets they get to earn a bit.
Children like Rohit, Nadeem, Kanchan and Rajni do add to the income of their respective families but they have left their childhood far behind. They have their own little dreams in their eyes. Many of them may not want to sell vegetables and have an ambition of doing something big. But the big question here is who will provide them the opportunity—opportunity to study, opportunity to grow, opportunity to get jobs and the list is long one. Or they would end up doing what their parents are doing and will never be able to realize the dream, their little eyes see…
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