Beating The Slowdown Betul Style!

40 villages of Betul district in Madhya Pradesh are celebrating Diwali with ,great gusto,two-and-half months early.Apparently there are rumors floating around that the deity of Salkanpur appeared before cattle grazers and warned them that if anyone fails to celebrate Diwali during the rains, the family will lose its eldest son and/or face calamity.

So villagers are now making three trips to the Salkanpur temple to appease the goddess and avert a tragedy at home.And this has given a fresh spurt to the transport business as pilgrims rush to the Salkanpur temple. Normally jeep drivers charge Rs 1000-1200 for a trip to Salkanpur temple, but now a round trip costs Rs 3000-3500. This has lead to suspicion that these transporters are fuelling the rumours to make money.

To be doubly safe rather than sorry,villagers are continuing the festivities for 15 days.Every family is making purchases. There’s brisk buying and selling and money is exchanging hands. Normally at this time of the year, the monsoons bring trade to a grinding halt in this southern district of Madhya Pradesh.  Read more of this post