A Day Without Change
People spend a lot of time talking about change in India. Everyday, someone is debating the country's social change, political change, economic change. Is it good? Is it bad? I don't know. That's why they're debating.
But I do know about a different kind of change. The change as in the cash. As in, ‘can I have change for my 100 rupee bill, PUH-LEASE?’
Why is it that no one in this country, which prides itself on its service sector, ever provides the service of having change?
Yesterday, a day filled with sporadic monsoon showers, I had to find change for a rickshawwalah, a fruitwalah, another rickshawwalah, and the bank teller. Yes, even the bank — a place that by definition is a house of cash – did not have change.
It started when I hopped in a rickshaw to meet a friend for lunch. All I had on me was one 100-rupee bill. It was a 30-rupee ride. I asked the rickshaw driver for change. He had none. Shocker. So I went into a convenience store and exchanged my 100-rupee bill for ten smaller pieces.Then went back and gave the rickshaw driver the exact amount.
Later on, I went to the newsstand. I wanted three papers for 9 rupees. I wanted change for my next rickshaw ride so I gave the newspaperwalah a 100-rupee bill with hopes he would break it. He did not have enough change. So I gave him my remaining 10-rupee bill.
I got in the rickshaw to go home. Thirty-rupee ride. Again, I was left with 100-rupee bill. The driver had no change. So I walked over to the nearby fruitwalah to get change. He could only break my bill if I bought something. T.K. Ji. (O.K. sir). I'll take some mangos, please.
Later in the day I made my monthly bank trip to turn my cash into a check for rent. The service fee was 56 rupees. I gave 100 rupees. The teller had 40 rupees, but was missing the 4 rupees change. He told me to go to the other teller. The other teller did not have change in his register either. Come on people. Work with me. Eventually one of the tellers went through his own pockets and made an exchange of a 10-rupee bill in the bank’s register for ten one rupee coins. Four were handed over to me with the four ten-rupee bills. Well at least I have the right change to pay for my rickshaw ride home.
Moral of the story:
Ten rupee bills may only be worth a quarter in the U.S., but they are gold in India.
