The Corona Pandemic gave me an opportunity to teach my Daughter, Nandini,

who in Grade 9 a subject – Business Studies today. The topic was ECONOMY.

I being a Chartered Accountant was trying to explain her the meaning of words
depression and recession.
A recession is widespread economic decline that lasts for at least six months.
A depression is a more severe decline that lasts for several years.

Explaining her the concepts, a small story stuck me which I had heard sometime
in my childhood.

I give all the credit to the original writer of the story. I would narrate the same
here today which may slightly differ from the original version as I don’t
remember the exact story.

The story moves like this,

It was a fortnight before the Diwali and the country was reeling under recession.
The people were not sure how they would be able to celebrate the Diwali that
year?

A small town that goes by the name Bhilwara in Rajasthan (India), with a
population of around 4lacs spread over approx. spread over a 50sq kms.

The town had all kind of infrastructures such as shops, temples, mosques, small
scale industries but there was recession everywhere and hence the economy had
slowed down. People purchased only items of bare necessity, and thus the
whole town was reeling under recession.

One day, a man in his 50’s came to the Car Showroom and enquired about the
latest model of Mercedes launched in the country. The Owner of the showroom
was very happy, he confirmed the value of Order at Rs. 45lacs and that the
delivery would be handed over by December. As the Order had come in
difficult times the Showroom owner could not have pressed for initial payment.

The Showroom owner estimated his commission on the deal at 3lacs and
happily instructed his wife to spend that earning to buy out jewellery, clothes
and some luxury items for Diwali.

Next day the Car dealer’s wife and children withdrew an amount of 3lacs from
internal resources, banks and spent that amount in the market buying Clothes,
Jewellery, Sweets and many other items. Their act of spending spread happiness
in the town and within the next 5days everyone in the town was paying off their
vendors, doing purchases for Diwali and the whole town changed its economic
pace. Everyone buying stuff for celebrating Diwali.

The houses & streets were lighted with lamps, Kandeels and colourful rangolis.
Then came the day of Diwali, people traditionally celebrated doing Laxmi puja
and visited their friends and relatives to seek their blessings.

A week after Diwali, there was an advertisement in paper from the Institution
for Mental Health with the photograph of man informing that the pictured man
has escaped from then Mental hospital and informed that any person giving the
whereabouts of the photographed man would be rewarded.

The Showroom Owner got the shock of his life seeing the photograph of the
lunatic person as he could soon relate the photographed man to be the same man
who had booked the Mercedes at his showroom. He understood that the Ordered
Mercedes would have to be cancelled but blessed the man for making the town
celebrate Diwali.