Kaveri, a trademark village girl of southern Tamilnadu completed her higher secondary. Thanks to her marks, she was able to make through one of the best engineering colleges in the state. B.Tech Biotechnology.
The tradition of education in India then is to complete higher secondary and to join the well known engineering/medical college. These people are considered as first grade. If a person takes less known engineering/medical college, he/she will be considered second grade and anything other than these two are failures.
Kaveri, the first grade candidate moved to Coimbatore from southernmost district of India for her under graduation. When she had her first step in college, she felt like the first person stepping in Neptune. The government college is where a person can see a vast diversity among students. Being one of the top colleges and the fees being the cheapest, a wide mix of poor and rich people will be there. For outsiders, it will be a mini India. Kaveri generally used to wear half saree till then. Since been told that people will see her as an alien if she wears half saree to college, she bought three chudidhar sets for Rs.1000/- and her rich friend from town presented a salwar of worth Rs.1000/-.
Her roommate in the college, Harsitha was from Chennai and she was from one of the best institution from the city. The dress which is of lowest dignity to her is a fully covering T-Shirt and Jeans. She used to wear Midi to her school. Midi which ends about half a feet above knee costs Rs.1000/- in which Kaveri bought three chudidhars. The globalization effect has made reduction in the size of female's school uniform in the cities. The college rule said only to wear chudidhars or sarees to class. It made Harsitha's mind erupt like a Japanese volcano. She can't tolerate sharing room with a villager who doesn't know what 'accustomed' is. Kaveri asked Harsitha atleast thrice the meaning of 'accustomed' which Harsitha feels even a pimary kid should know. As they happened to share room, they had to adjust. Harsitha who is not originally as rude as her first day understood the family situation and background of Kaveri.
Kaveri who had visited Chennai only once for the engineering admissions was eager to know about Chennai. After having a good conversation about city, it turned into Harsitha's school.
Harsitha: You know. I paid Rs.31,165/- per term as fees during higher secondary and now the engineeing fees is less than that for four years put together.
Kaveri : 31,000 for a term!!! Ayyo!!! For me its Rs. 1000/- for both eleventh and twelfth put together.
Harsitha: Oh!! Great Kaveri!! I paid it as monthly fees for my Physics tuition.
Kaveri : Didn't they teach Physics in school?
Harsitha: They did. I went to tuition since all of my friends went and my parents felt secured.
Kaveri : Rs. 1000/- is my parents half month income rather.. !!
Harsitha: Oh!! Then you must be getting 30 times Rs.1000/- as salary per month after three and a half years!!
Kaveri : My parents are praying Suchindram Thanumalayan for that.
The days passed by and reached the stage of job fair. For all engineering candidates there is an unwritten linear rule.. Finish higher seconday --> Take any branch in Engineering --> Become a software engineer. More than 70% of undergraduates do that. Kaveri followed the most. If she gets through, her salary will become Rs.1000/- per day which their parents made in 15 days. The person who sits in front of computer gets Rs.1000/- a day some even a hour. A person who goes down the drainage and clean them gets a salary of Rs.1000/- a month. The amount one who earns is direcly proportional to the amount of logical complexity involved in the work and not physical complexity and its after effects are the present scenario. She sat in the interview. What she studied in six semesters in biotechnology fetched her a software job that too in JAVA. The total number of people selected in that Bangalorean company is 22 out of which persons from computer science and close to it are 6. A biotechnologist will see only computer mouse after 15 months.
The joy of earning Rs.1000/- a day from a family which earned Rs. 1000/- a month. Priceless!! The day came. Kaveri's first day in office at Bangalore. A girl who considered Jeans and T-Shirts are men wear four years back, saw many fellow girls present in Tight T-Shirt with attributes mostly visible and Jeans pant. The ill effect of globalization!! Kaveri transfomed to Chudi and Jeans pant then. Her eyebrows got a different shape then!! There was a glow in her lips of light rose color. The dressing of the associates there was like seeing an hardcore Hollywood movie with Vijayakanth and Banupriya as leads. That is Bangalore you know. Java was like seeing a Korean movie without subtitles for her. But she was able to pick up. The effect of Rs.1000/- a day.
One of the members in her team saw F1 live in Delhi and it was considered the best moment of life and he threw party to the team. The girl who ate at the worst hostel mess and who can say proudly that she had dinner at Annapoorna(a hotel in Coimbatore) is now going to Barbeque nation, Indira Nagar. She was not able to figure out what she was eating. Pawan Reddy a software engineer with architectural engineering degree understood it and explained her about the dishes. There was no rice for the lunch yet. It was all starters - Kababs. The team ate it for more than half an hour with most of the gentlemen and ladies having complimentary beer and the remaining, complimentary lemon juice . All ended with icecream. Eating Indian food in party is considered sin in software industry. So everyone avoided it except Pawan and Kaveri who were new to the software parties.
Kaveri saw the bill. It was Rs.1000/- per person. Her inner being rewinded four and a half years back when her father and mother starve hard at their paddy field to pay Rs.1000/- for her education and it was half a month income..
Meanwhile in the television:
The news reader : Border line for below poverty Rs.32/- per day for urban people and Rs.26/- per day for rural people.
