Sixty-eight year old Mangilal Bothra is a familiar sight on the streets of Cooch Behar, with bhujia, papad and other snack items that he brings from Rajasthan to sell at homes, restaurants and shops.

At the day’s end, however, he doesn’t take his profits back home but spends it on the needy.

“For past seven years, I have not taken a penny of my earnings back home,” said the unusual trader

who lives in the NN Road area of the town. “Whatever I earn every day, I buy various items and distribute them among the poor, the children and others. This, I believe, is

my small service to society,” he said, adding that sometimes he also pitches in with monetary help to arrange the weddings of girls

from humble homes.

It was in 1978 when the young Mangilal had joined the trade of procuring snack items from Rajasthan, the state that he calls his second home, and supplying them to the different parts of Cooch Behar.

Right now, he makes around Rs 1,000 a day, which includes a profit of around Rs 400.

This tire profit goes towards charity.

“Back at home, my son runs the family and at times even helps me out with money,” said the philanthropist. “I, on the other hand, spend my profits on helping people. During the lockdown, I had arranged the marriages of six girls from economically backward families whose earnings had dried up. Some acquaintances also came forward to help me,” he added.

As he moves through the streets, his eyes keep scanning for people who need genuine help. Sometimes, he helps children with books and stationery, while at other times he helps the poor buy medicines or helps them with winter clothes, blankets and mosquito nets.

The soft-spoken Mangilal admitted that he could have easily stayed back home and enjoyed a “retired” life.

“But this is something I do not want to do,” he said. “I want to work till the last day of my life and extend whatever little help I can to make the life of the poor easier,” he said.

His own lifestyle is extremely simple, he says.

The sexagenarian takes a meal only once a day and relies on occasional sips of tea and munches on biscuits for the rest of the time.

“Instead of spending money on myself, I prefer to save every penny of my earnings so that I can help others. This has become my habit for the past seven years. I rarely take a rickshaw to travel with my wares and cover most of the town on foot,” said Mangilal.

The unusual benevolence of the trader has drawn appreciation from Cooch Behar residents, including notables.

North Bengal development minister Rabindranath Ghosh, who is also a resident of the town, said he was aware of the trader’s selfless service to society.

“He has been relentlessly working for society out of his own means for years now. He is the pride of our town and we should take a lesson (in philanthropy) from him,” Ghosh said.