Show me the money

Smalltime shopkeepers have made neat profits during the first phase of the admission process at DU. They are looking forward to the next leg

Suresh Jain can't stop thanking Delhi University admission-seekers. A photocopier, who owns a shop near the Law Faculty at North Campus of the varsity, Jain claims to have earned over Rs 35,000 in the last 15 days, a steep hike from his Rs 1,000-a-day income.

With the first round of the Delhi University admission process coming to an end on Monday, owners of many small businesses like college canteens, food joints, stationary shops, private cabs and rickshawallahs claim to have made neat profits. Though the biggest chunk of the share went to photocopiers, who were busy churning out copies of the common admission form and mark-sheets of applicants.



"I have been very busy for the last two weeks. I hired two helps only for this purpose. All over the year I am not able to earn even Rs 1,000 per day. But during these 15 days, I have done photocopies of over 10,000 to 15,000 forms, earning above Rs 35,000," Jain said.

However, not all shopkeepers were as lucky. Bibhuti, a shop attendant, whose outlet is located near the Student's Welfare Office in the campus, said he couldn't cope with the increased demand. "We have only one photocopying machine. We tried buying and adjusting a new one but couldn't fit it into the shop. So we could earn only Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000 in the last 15 days," said Bibhuti.

The others who joined the profit-making league were the college canteens and food kiosks inside the campus. Most of them were crowded throughout the day with students and their guardians stopping by to sip a cold coffee or munch a burger.

"Every year before the admission process begins, we stock up on various food items so that we are able to do good business," said a shop owner, popularly known as Bhatia in the campus.

Rickshaw and autorickshaw wallahs too made money. Many even overcharged students, who needed to travel from college to college. While earlier, a rickshaw ride from St Stephen's to Kirori Mal College would cost Rs 10, the rate had been hiked to Rs 20 in the last two weeks.

Ritika Gupta, a student seeking admission, said, "I needed to fill separate forms for different colleges under the sports and extra-curricular activities quota. The rickshawallahs over-charged me but I paid as I had no other option."

While students crib, the shopkeepers can't wait for the next round of the admission process to begin on June 25.