A simple cup of tea

As a result of inflation, the number of tea sellers and tea houses is declining rapidly, especially those in rural areas like Bakrani. Given that a cup of tea now costs around Rs50, people are less willing to go to tea houses, which were also places of respite and served as social spots for the less well-off. Now ordinary people – villagers, labourers and farmers – cannot afford even this simple pleasure. They are also deprived of the sole source of social interaction they had. Moreover, tea house owners feel that if things continue as they are, they will have to shut down their businesses. That people can no longer afford a simple cup of tea, speaks volumes of the state of the economy. Unfortunately, those at the helm of the country's affairs continue to make tall claims. The IMF-dictated economic policies have unleashed unimaginable troubles, and there is no relief in sight.

Nazeer Ahmed Arijo

Larkana