The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : Renunciation is the name of the game

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Monday, May 19, 2008
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Renunciation is the name of the game

V.S. Palaniappan

PHOTO: S. SIVA SARAVANAN

Impact: Muthulakshmi, Jayamma and Suseela at work in an apartment at Ramanathapuram. –

“I have stopped buying milk,” says Jayamma, who works as a housemaid at Ramanathapuram.

“With just Rs. 1,600 a month, I cannot afford luxuries,” she adds. For her, milk, which costs Rs. 16 to Rs. 18 a litre, has become a luxury. From the Rs. 1,600, rent eats up Rs. 1,000.

Her husband does odd jobs and sometimes he brings in Rs. 200 to brighten up the faces of family members.

The public distribution system never gives the required quantity of rice or kerosene, she adds. And buying kerosene from open market throws her budget out of gear. Jayamma is forced to go in for a loan from the houses she works.

Suseela, a 50-year-old house maid, has denied herself a fair breakfast. Her day begins with a cup of coffee and if lucky enough, she will get food from some of the houses.

But she ensures that with her Rs. 2,000 a month, her three grandchildren get three meals a day.

“Whenever the children feel like having non-vegetarian food, omelettes come to the rescue. Only eggs are somewhat affordable now.”

For Muthulakshmi (56), everyday promises to be a struggle to repay what she borrows from the houses she works. From the Rs. 1,600 she earns a month, Rs. 180 to Rs. 220 goes for commutation.

Her family comprises husband, mother-in-law, son and daughter-in-law. She too is dependant on the PDS rice and kerosene.

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