The day 8/8/8 I am waiting for the 9.28 a.m. Virar local on platform no.4 thinking about viewing the inauguration of the 29th Olympic Games on television in the evening and suddenly I see this beautiful girl may be 16, crawling on her hands and dragging her thin frail legs, begging for alms.
I was watching her crawling towards me, she had a clear complexion, fair and beautiful, except her legs crippled and very thin, her arms seemed to be more stronger as she had to use them to pull her body around while crawling. Her left leg was so thin, frail and lifeless that she had to hold it with her hand and pull it forward every time she moved.
As she approached me out of pity I put my hands in my pocket for a coin as I could not bear the sight and her humiliation. She came towards me and raised her steel glass almost full and brimming with coins and a 10 rupee note, I had never seen a beggar carrying that sort of money, atleast not flaunting it. Immediately I put my coin into her glass.
She was wearing a red printed night gown and was pulled high up to her thighs to make her thin frail legs clearly visible. I was wandering why she was appearing so vulgar and not wearing a salwar-kameez (type of Indian slacks and tops), I realized soon it was the trick of the trade as a salwar would had covered her thin frail legs and most probably resulted in bad business.
I have always been reluctant to give alms as I have seen blind ones perfectly rushing to the doors of next compartment and or perfectly stopping at window of one car to another. I have seen men dropping the crippled at stations in the morning and picking them at late night, parents forcing children to beg at highway junctions while they are busy with petty jobs around or busy begging around themselves. I have believed begging is rather a mafia than out of necessity. But I don’t know why I gave her alms this time.
As soon as the girl had moved ahead I realized she was being followed by a stout lady in a yellow saree. My eyes started following both of them. The lady muttered something and pointed to a corner and the crippled girl moved aside below the bridge and the lady sat next to her on the floor. I saw the lady trying to pull the glass of coins from the girls hand and the poor girl trying to resist and hold on to the glass. It seemed she was a newly inducted into the fraternity and her efforts will bear no fruits. The lady pulled harder and the girl could not resist further against her might and gave up. The lady pulled a loose end of her saree and emptied the glass into it and started counting.
The little girl was ashamed of her defeat, it was her money and someone had robbed her of it. She saw around if some one was watching, her eyes met mine and her head bowed in shame. Shame on me! I had done nothing to protect her against that stout ladies might? Can I fight the system? I am busy in my own small selfish world, neither I have the time or the resources or the courage.
The day 8/8/8 opening of the 29th Olympic Games in China a expenditure of approximately US $ 44 Billion spent on the event. 204 countries participating and spending another few billions sprinting for medals. Every performance and the fire works was bringing the picture of the poor girl child to my mind. Many of her kind will be begging for ever because I don’t care and she cannot fight the might of that stout lady and others of her kind. I limp to act SHE crawls to survive. The world consist of many selfish men like me. Sorry God! Forgive Me!! Please!!!
This photograph was taken last week when I saw her again but this time she was more relaxed and is seen sharing a wada-pav (burger) with her caretaker (that fat stout lady). It seems she has accepted the way of life.
