GROUNDNUTS HERE AND GROUNDNUTS THERE

Dry salted groundnuts, plain roasted groundnuts, boiled salted groundnuts; oil cakes of groundnuts or toffees made from groundnuts have always been my first choice. While I am out to do some work and lunch, dinner or breakfast seems to be away from near future, groundnuts is a choice which comes handy. Whenever I felt the need of respecting my stomach I would stop at the road side vendor and buy groundnuts worth rupees two. Back on my way I would enjoy munching them up-keeping my efficiency needed to follow the task I am after.

Jubail in Saudi Arabia is a town catering to the needs of industrialization and one finds people of many nationalities thronging its street. The majority of them are from, in and around the Indian sub-continent. During the initial phase of my stay in Jubail I did not have a vehicle and I preferred to walk around for any work that I was required to accomplish; may it be shopping, visiting a friend or taking a print out. Every land has its own customs, food habits, relevant markets and road side hawkers. Here in Jubail the roadside hawkers sold perfumes, wallets, watches, toys, recharge cards and so on. Some of the hawkers were smart enough; over a period of time they have improvised their marketing skills, some of them market, negotiate and close the sale in Hindi language.

Days sailed by smoothly, months rolled over silently and the streets of Jubail continued to be as ever. One day I saw a Saudi hawker near the Telemoney remittance center. He had a will barrow; a small gas stove stationed in it and was sand-roasting groundnuts. The very sight of this hawker filled me with joy. I went up to him bought one packet for one riyal; the next moment my hands and mouth went busy munching those groundnuts. As my feet fathomed the streets of Jubail my mind relished the memories of the streets of India. Within weeks I could see few groundnut hawkers at the corner of different streets of Jubail. The sale of groundnuts was well accepted on the streets of Jubail.

Recently during my visit to India I stopped by a road side to buy groundnuts. I extended a two rupee note; to my surprise the hawker did not extend his hand to accept it, his confusing look confused me for few moments. To break the impasse I told him ok; make it five rupees. He immediately started weighing the groundnuts.  I took the groundnuts and was on my way. My mind was full of questions, the questions those might have rushed in the mind of that groundnut hawker. Here when I buy a handful of groundnuts for one Saudi riyal it happens to be a normal business transaction but in India when I tried to buy the same quantity of groundnuts it raised many questions in the mind of the groundnut hawker. This article is also an outcome of the feeling that still lingers in my mind.

Life in Jubail followed a straight line graph. The prices of laban and milk have remained unaltered over the years but inflation in India has been creating new peaks. Inflation figure do not make a feel but when a common man feels his pocket emptying out remember that inflation has set in. Life is a cake walk for the rich, a rope walk for middle class and a fire walk for the poor.

When I write this article the $-rupee exchange rate has spiraled to 01$=66.5613 rupees The finance minister tries to hide his face when he sees a journalist; the common man on the other hand tires to hide money thinking a rupee saved is a rupee gained.