Hard Times: This chaat vendor in Mumbai has seen his income drop by half since demonetisation

Four years ago, Sachin Gupta and his father moved out of his uncle’s cramped one-room home on Chapel Road, in Mumbai’s Bandra suburb, and began to live in a rented 100-sq ft room nearby.

Their new home cost them Rs 10,500 a month at the time, but they believed it would be worth it: not only was it located right behind Gupta’s pani puri and chaat shop, but it was also large enough to accommodate their expanding family.

Gupta’s mother was finally able to move to Mumbai from their village in Jaunpur, Uttar Pradesh, and in 2017, Gupta got married and had a child soon after.

Today, however, Gupta cannot help rethinking their decision to move. His chaat business has been steadily declining for the past three years, his house rent has increased to Rs 13,000 a month, he has an 11-month-old daughter to care for and all household expenses have shot up in the past six months.

“If I knew the economy was going to be this bad, we would have continued staying with my uncle instead of renting a place of our own,” said Gupta, 26. “We might have to shift to a cheaper place if this situation continues.”

The “situation” that Gupta is referring to...

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