do you give a child in india 'one pen'?

steven_ber

hmmmmm...... interesting

Most of the members on this site come from countries that are rich in comparison to India, yet, still have beggars that are far more aggressive than even the worst Indian beggar.

One of the reasons we travel is for the culture shock, another is because places like India are so cheap and offer such good value for money, and we cant then complain that we don't like how other tourists adjust to this culture shock.

I don’t think tourists are responsible for children begging in India, though they are a more attractive target.

I think the average westerner who arrives in Delhi on a 'golden triangle' tour having done no research, and then gives the kids Rs100 notes, only raises the expectation of these kids, and eventually they are not begging for need and become a lot more expectant (and a lot more persistent with it).

However, away from the biggest tourist places it is a different situation, we always remember how friendly Indian people are compared to our home countries, I wonder if Indian people always remember how unfriendly we are in comparison.

I wonder what Indian people think when 'rich' and 'naive' tourists spend hundreds of dollars on aeroplane tickets and then absolutely refuse to give to any beggar, when at the same time even poor Indian families give to beggars.

There is something worrying about cold-hearted tourist adopting a suspicious mind at the sight of hungry children scrambling in the dirt for small change.

Do we go with an attitude of 'we will look but we better not touch', didn't Gandhi want to end the practice of 'untouchability'.

Watson

Steven, I agree totally. As mentioned in another recent post of mine; I find that there is a major split in priorities of moral and sometimes even cold-hearted „ME“ mentality among travelers in all third world countries. Like I said before, someone pays for a hotel room spending the monthly earnings of a local for one night in a comfortable bed, but on the other hand make a sport out of haggling away at the most down-trodden over 10 or 20 rupees. I mean I haggled too, with great pleasure at times, but there is a limit to it. When the haggling get’s to a point of „you have to take it for this price because I know how much you NEED MY money then it’s going overboard. This is in my view what really hurts the locals in ways we can’t begin to fathom.

steven_ber

Just read an article from the hindu newspapers website from december last year, it's quite shocking, click on the link below to read it.

article on begging rackets

maree

And rent a copy of 'Salaam Bombay' for a heartbreaking look at street life in India's biggest city.

Dayglowhamster

Does the school system in India provide pens and paper? In Sri Lanka the schooling and uniforms are free but families must pay for paper and pens. Having no school book or pen will mean children don't get to school.

I know the value of paper because letters I recieve come written on anything (last one arrived on the torn page of an out dated Greek diary!).

I know the value of pens because I give packets to a couple of respected village members to pass on. They're a shop brand and I've seen the same pens knocking around when I've gone back.

As for whether it's a selfish thing to do - maybe. Off from the tourist strip if I swap addresses with folk out pops a black 'Staples' pen. Maybe they know where it came from, maybe not BUT I do, and yes it makes me feel good every time.

So how much are pens and paper NEEDED in India?

__________________
Mine's not as clever as yours!

LuAnnandJawahar

I have met more than one young man who has dropped out of school, not for want of tuition, but because they couldn't keep asking their parents for rupees to buy books, paper and pens.

__________________
Reject violence.

Dayglowhamster

Yep - That would be the same then.

BTW, pens are light and easy to pack, it's no hassle to take 100+ at a time. Imported pens that survive the heat better are cheaper for us to buy and bring. Excercise books are heavy but very cheap to bulk buy in country.

beach

As a policy I never pay anything to a child who begs.

Not that I’m unkind. Believe me this is the best help you can offer to that child. It’s not that most of the beggars can’t get a job or go to a school. At places (cities) begging is too easy and profitable a job than the regular jobs. The rehabilitation homes are the best example. The authorities ‘catch’ the beggars and send them to such homes. They get out of them by paying bribe. It is as simple as that in a large number of cases.

Kids are begging not to earn money for education. Primary education is mostly free or dirt-cheap by govt.-supported schools. Many poor locality primary schools offer meals to the child as an incentive to come to school. But when the parents feel that begging is more ‘profitable’ than sending them to the free schools, the result is obvious.

There are only very few cases where there is no way to survive except to beg. Many a cases this is true with old beggars.

People who pay are creating more beggars doing damage. If you are so particular go to a poor locality school and give the kids the pens or books. Sure this will do to job in your mind.

Merchant

Kids in poor schools do their work with chalk on slates.

I think the pen thing is just one way kids try to interact with foreign visitors. They can learn three words in English and come up and get a response from you. I wouldn't really call it begging, just a little game the local kids can play and then talk about with their friends. Look how their eyes light up when you give them a pen.

I have had the kids of families--not poor ones--I have a visited ask for pens. It's just a kid thing. Rather like collecting stickers or baseball cards.

Dayglowhamster

Ok, you may have some point. BUT surely if you accept there is a real need and a shortage of writing materials then the likelyhood of them being begged increases. I don't hand out my pens to beggars because people who live in the community know better than me who needs them. I always treat beggars with respect and a smile - how would I know if they truly did need that pen?

Pens are so easy to pack and can make such a big difference. It's worth it and all you need is one local you can trust to guide you in how to distribute them. Excercise books cost 6slr each in Sri Lanka - I can buy 15 for the price of one beer!

My question was about the need for pens and books - I believe NIT completely because it's not the sort of thing people think about until they find out.

You can't ignore the level of need when you look at begging. The 2 are always in some way connected.

aventura

when travelling around in different states i became really fed up with this one pen question, it was especially strong in hampi, and i really started to dislike all the other travellers who have handed out pens to the children in the past!

Or maybe they learned this scentence at school in the english class, together with what is your name and what is your country

further i heard a story about a tourist who gave 100 rupees to a begging child, and then you think about the child showing it to his parents who have to work a whole day or more for this money!

funny solution, when a child would ask for something of somebody he said, jokingly;no i dont give you that but i can give you a smile or a kiss!

mdchachi

How much do pens actually cost in India?

Dayglowhamster

Merchant - it was adults that suggested pens and books to me when I asked if there was anything they needed me to bring.

That's why I wondered if it was the same in India.

wonderwomanusa

I think this "one pen" thing started in the 60s or 70s, when India had only India-produced goods. The ball point pens/biros were horrible -- it took about two minutes of writing for the ink to drain out of the pen and all over your page.

And people saw travellers with BIC pens that didn't leak or smear -- of course they wanted them.

India now makes all sorts of pens, and some that I used were as good as any I've bought here. But folklore hasn't caught up with the improved Indian goods, so we are still asked for "one pen."

picklepak

Wonderwoman, that's a great observation. As a writer I took a whole box of pens with me to India, but in the humid climate they would blot or not work at all. Every time someone would ask me for "one pen" I thought humorously about giving them one, but of course none of my pens worked properly. The pens you can buy on the street (some are imported from Asia) do a much better job anyway.