Beating the slump

Students in DU and elsewhere find their own jugaads to keep their pockets warm, even during recession. Garima Sharma finds out more...

While most of us battle recession blues, students in Delhi’s universities are setting up shops in the most unexpected of places, and raking in envious amounts of moolah. Smart opportunity spotters, as they are, they have turned mundane part-time jobs and little known opportunities into money generating ventures.

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Samarth Chandola, a 2nd year student at Ramjas College, has given a whole new twist to the idea of freelance writing. He began by doing content development for portals but the sheer volume of incoming work compelled him to form a team comprising of his peers and juniors. Last month he bought a brand new Hyundai Santro. He says, “I write content for a variety of clients, including students in the US. At times, I have even earned Rs 60,000 a month.”

Then there are the bunty-babli inspired students. Chandan Gomes, a third year student of St Stephen’s once savoured free lunch when he rented his bicycle to a fellow student. Chandan went on to realise that hobbies can be well paying and turned his penchant for photography into a source of income. In 2008, he registered with an NGO and got the opportunity to photograph their summer camps. He says, “The NGO paid me Rs 22,000 for my work!” He now sells his prints regularly, for almost Rs 6,000-7,000 per shot.

These examples not only provide us with a ringside view of a unique campus life, but also convince us that students are survivors in all seasons.