New Delhi: For 27-year-old Abhijit, who came to Delhi from Madhya Pradesh nearly a decade ago to prepare for the civil services, survival has always been a careful calculation. When his plans did not work out, he pursued an MBA as a fallback to secure a job. But he is still unemployed, currently interning for a small stipend and managing his expenses with money from home. The ongoing LPG issue, he says, has added to his already stretched budget, forcing him to shell out more on daily meals.Living in Katwaria Sarai, where he pays Rs 15,000 for a small one-room accommodation, Abhijit says the mess he relied on for daily meals was recently shut, leaving him dependent on tiffin services. “My dabba wali didi has increased prices by Rs 150 per meal due to the rising cost of cylinders, which are being sold in the black market at rates as high as Rs 300 per kg. I don’t have an option,” he says.A visit by TOI to three of south Delhi’s key student hubs on Tuesday, Katwaria Sarai, Ber Sarai and Kalu Sarai, showed similar scenes across these densely packed neighbourhoods, home to aspirants and young professionals trying to keep costs low and dreams high.According to residents, rising LPG costs have disrupted their daily food arrangements. Several mess facilities have either shut down or scaled back, pushing people towards tiffin services, food delivery apps and local dhabas, all of which have raised prices, they say.“Roti Rs 12 ho gayi hai—kaise chalega,” says Jaswinder, a working professional who lives in the area and commutes to Noida for a BPO job. “They give me Rs 180 as a food allowance. I cook my own food, but now even getting gas is difficult, and I don’t have the time,” she says, grabbing a quick bite at a chole-kulcha cycle stall before rushing to work.On a rainy afternoon, Shashank and Akshita, students from Panipat and Kanpur, remain positive. With cups of chai, they say, “Snacks and tea have become thoda mehnga (a bit costly), though still manageable for now.”Not far away, Vageesh, a PhD scholar at IIT Delhi, standing outside a kachori stall, says many in the area depend on small, budget eateries.In Kalu Sarai, on the second floor of a narrow building, Sohani, a Gargi College student, points to an induction stove in her shared kitchen. She and her two flatmates have long relied on induction cooking, so the LPG issue has not affected them much. “But you will find many here who are struggling,” she says.Outside, a delivery worker carries an empty cylinder through a cramped lane lined with PGs and hostels. The caretaker, pointing to a gas distribution centre, says, “Ek mahine se band hai.” He then gestures towards a hotel converted into a mess facility for residents. “You will get decent food here,” he adds, trying to reassure potential tenants.At Ber Sarai, three friends from Bihar, Anshu, Rajan and Rishabh, who have been preparing for civil services and banking exams for years, tell TOI how they shifted here from Rajendra Nagar due to lower rents. Their expenses are still largely met through money from home, they say.“Prices of basic snacks and even a simple cup of tea have gone up,” one of them says, pointing to a 5-kg cylinder and a single stove tucked into a corner of their small room. Rishabh says he usually cooks his own meals, a way to keep costs down, though procuring a cylinder has now become a bigger challenge.
