India, April 16 -- Twenty-five-year-old Jayesh Paradhi's tea stall at Pratiksha Nagar, popular among taxi and auto drivers, is struggling to stay afloat. It's a shop he inherited from his father for who ran it for 40 years. Paradhi requires three commercial LPG cylinders in a month, each priced at Rs.2000. "I sell at least 150 cups of tea every day, but the increase in the prices of raw materials such as tea powder, sugar and ginger have impacted my profits, as I have not increased the price of tea yet. I use both an LPG stove and a diesel stove," he said. "As my earnings have been affected, I have cut down my expenses. I now cook a one-course dinner of daal and rice, or sometimes roti." A small cup of tea at his stall costs Rs.5 and a cutting chai Rs.10. "I recently lost my home which has gone into redevelopment, and therefore rent a space opposite my stall at Rs.50 per night to sleep. This helps me save on house rent, and I am able to send 60% of my monthly income, which is approximately Rs.16,000 to Rs.18,000, to my wife and two children who live in Rajasthan," he said. When asked why he has not increased the price of tea, he said, "If I do so, I will lose all my customers. I will hike the price of tea when other vendors do so," he said. Niraj Pandit...