Mumbai Milkman adopts unique way to ferry his wares after petrol price hike

Pandurang Vishe now travels on horseback to deliver milk

It's time for the government to open its eyes and see what measures people are taking to deal with the exorbitant hike in petrol prices across the country. After the rate per litre increased to Rs 84.52 in Maharashtra, milkman Pandurang Vishe, 49, sold off his bike and bought a horse. Vishe, a resident of Dasai village in Murbad area, took the decision after he started facing losses in his business due to the price hike, as he had to daily travel six to seven kilometers on his bike to deliver milk.

Speaking to mid-day, Vishe said, "My family has been in this business for the past 40 years. But, for the past couple of months I'm not earning much due to various factors. The petrol price hike has simply added to my woes. I daily have to travel long distances to deliver milk to 10 to 15 residents. However, my other customers stay within a radius of three to four kilometers of my house."

He further said, "When my father was alive, he used to travel on bike to distribute milk and I walked six to seven kilometers daily. But, then time wasn't an issue because the two of us were handling the business. Now, I alone have to deliver almost 15 litres of milk daily."

"There are five people in my family, which includes my mother, three children and my wife. It had become extremely difficult for me to save money for my mother's treatment and for the kids as well. Every week I had to spend R200 for petrol. Hence, I decided to sell the bike off. I gave it away for Rs 22,000 and bought a horse from Junnar at Rs 25,000. Now, I only have to spend R50 per week for its food. I love the animal a lot and it's much better than the machine."

Meanwhile, a horse owner from Thane, Jaydip Kolhe said, "Horses have really high maintenance. Maybe he's getting food for the animal at a cheaper rate, as he stays in the village, but we spend almost Rs 100 daily for a horse's food. If he wished to save money, then he could have bought a cycle."

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