Delhiwale: Rat race in the metropolis

In Gurugram's Sadar Bazar, street hawkers like Seeshpal, Ramesh, Rajkumar, and Rajesh sell rat poison, displaying banners with various pests. Rat poison hawkers are less common in Delhi.

The world has its share of unloved and unwanted rats. This becomes evident in Gurugram’s bustling Sadar Bazar. It offers unusually frequent sightings of street hawkers selling rat poison. Here are some brief sketches of a few of these hawkers, encountered across the seasons.

The largest image is of two rats romantically gazing into each other’s eyes. (HT Photo)

Seeshpal arrived in the city more than two decades ago from a Rajasthan village. He spent the early weeks surveying the markets, observing the many street businesses. One afternoon in Sadar Bazar, he sighted a hawker walking along a packed lane with a placard hanging from his neck. The placard depicted a rat. The man was selling pills and powders to kill rats. Today, Seeshpal, along with fellow hawker Ramesh, is among Sadar Bazar’s long-time rat poison sellers. The banner that he holds shows not only a rat, but also a cockroach, a chipkali, lice and a bedbug. He has many kinds of “powders and goliyan,” he explains, each focusing on a particular pest.

The quiet Rajkumar conducts his business in Sadar Bazar and also in other sectors in the city. His banner displays images of insects and rodents with a tagline guaranteeing the swift extermination of rats, cockroaches, termites, and lizards. The largest image is of two rats gazing almost romantically into each other’s eyes — see photo, snapped during an interaction a couple of years back.

Rajesh’s little cart is crammed with very many sachets. The banner displays a sprawling bungalow surrounded by rats, cockroaches, lizards, bedbugs and flies. Rajesh wades through the market lanes so slowly, that at any given moment his cart almost appears to be stationary. His vending voice is as laid-back.

To be sure, rat poison hawkers are not limited to Gurugram’s Sadar Bazar. They are also sighted in Delhi, including in the cramped lanes around the Walled City’s Turkman Gate, but there they are never seen in such strength as in the market in Gurugram.

At some points during their day’s repeat circumambulations, the aforementioned mobile hawkers inevitably pass by Bharat Tin Traders, a small establishment near Sadar Bazar’s pickle lane, close to Yasin Plaza shopping complex. The shop is a formidable rival. It specialises in something that is a chemical-free alternative to rat poison—the mousetrap.

PS: Vendor Fakeeru who administers her stall under the Dilli Gate monument in Najafgarh has a wide selection of rat poison, making the display sight a must-see.