I read somewhere recently that the poverty has come down to 22% in India. Really? What about the girl who sells lemon-green chillies (used in cars to ward off evil eye) at the traffic signals? I doubt she is able to sell all her stuff by the end of every day. Then there is a young boy who carries around a tall stack of books at the same signal. I never saw anyone buy a single book from him - myself included.

Last weekend I was out in the evening when it started raining suddenly. I didn't have an umbrella so I took shelter just outside a shop where a couple of people were already waiting. A pandal of a community Ganeshotsav Mandal was nearby. I could see a guy selling balloons just outside it. He hadn't left his post and so was soaked thoroughly. I doubt if he would have got a chance to run home and change into a dry set of clothes. As a strong gust of wind toppled the pole on which he had strung his balloons, one of them got loose. He had to run for quite some distance before he could catch it, soaking him further. He must have been there right till the time the pandal closed for the night. And though I have no idea about the amount he must have earned by then, I am pretty sure it must not be enough to earn him a place in the 78%.

And what about that old lady in the market who sells dry spices like cloves, cinnamon and coriander seeds?

I bet I am not the only one in Mumbai who sees so many people who are definitely poor and the situation in other metros isn't very different from that of Mumbai. If this is the case in the metros, I don't want to think about the state of affairs in 2nd or 3rd tier cities or villages.

Somehow, 22% seems like a number pulled out of someone's hat. :-(