Two Coins

As usual I stood near a gate of the compartment (don’t try it, it can be dangerous, do under expert supervision) to enjoy the beauty of the nature and to take the high speed fresh air, the train started at the right time. The compartment was not much crowded.  A beggar was begging in the compartment and after a while he came near to me and asked for money from two women those were preparing to get down in the next station, those two women were from labor castes, were carrying heavy languages with them, they gave two coins to the beggar and after few seconds I heard the sounds of coin dropping, moved my head and saw that the beggar has thrown the coins and angrily asking those women “what will I get with 50 paisa coins? Who will accept these and will give me food? Now-a-days it needs minimum 5 rupees to get a good food.” Those two women heard all these and got down in the next station. I was looking at the coins on the floor and was getting angry….

I was waiting to see who picks up the coins, I decided to pick up the coins after completing my observation, the passengers in the other entrance watched everything but none of them came to pick the coins. Some new passengers boarded the train, they looked at the coins, asked why they are in the ground, one of the passengers said “its 50 paisa coin given to the beggar and he has thrown it”, the new passenger heard it and gone inside to search a vacant seat.

My anger getting high….i was trying to cool down myself.

I was about to scold the beggar for throwing the coins, just at that moment the beggar picked up the coins, touched those in her forehead (as we do pay regards(pranam)) and kept those coins under the door. I got much cooled down …

After  few minutes a hawker came, he completed selling in the compartment, so he came near the gate and sat there to count his money, he saw the coins and asked “whose coins are these”, a passenger answered…”its 50 paisa coins”, the hawker heard it and lost interest  on the coins, in the next station he got down, few new passenger boarded the train , they saw the coins, asked for it and some passengers who boarded the train in the previous station, informed the new ones that …”these are 50 paisa coins”.

My observation was complete, still I was waiting for more, out of anger I moved my eyes from my “genius” (conscienceless) co-passengers, lots of thoughts were coming into my mind…

when I was child I used to by chewing gum with 50 paisa, even few years ago I have bought centre fresh with 50 paisa, this is the 50 paisa which had as much as value as 10 rupees when my elders used to be young, this is the 50 paisa which has served foods to many hungry stomachs, this is the 50 paisa which used to be a huge amount to my ancestors, I have heard from my parents, specially from my father, how much value 50 paisa had during his childhood, a 50 paisa used to be enough for a whole day journey(bus fares, lunch, Tiffin etc) …

Alas! Now-a-days nobody wants it (at least my co-passengers of that day). I realized that only those people will pick up these coins, who has minimum respect for the services, the foods, the facilities they have got from this 50 paisa during tough financial days of life, yes, I felt it, because there were a time when me and my family members have gone through very tough financial conditions. i was right---in the next station a person entered at the compartment, stood beside me, after a while he noticed the coins and picked it up, touched at his forehead and kept the coins in his shirt pocket, his age was nearly 60 years. 

While writing the post, I realized why the number of old age homes is increasing day by day----keep them till you get services from them…when they become disabled…throw them like the 50 paisa coins---to some people relations are just about profit and loss…