Whatever happened to the piggybank?

Every March, the priest at Cordel Church near Mangalore used to give Anil Fernandes a tin box. The aim was to collect money meant for sharing with the poor over the next 12 months.

“I developed an interest in saving money and, apart from putting it in the tin box, I used to save money separately too, ” recollects Fernandes.

His daughter Ruth, 11, has now taken to the habit. Three years ago, she began putting coins in a box. Now, she also has a bank account.

In this era of instant gratification, the concept of children saving money is rapidly disappearing, teachers say.

For decades, buying a piggybank made out of clay was a common practice among rural areas, especially during Sankranthi . Today, these are rarely seen. Shopkeepers say they sell 3-4 plastic piggybanks a week, at Rs 8-10; perhaps as a container for people to put their spare change into.

That's what Mr Arun, 37, from Bantwal taluk in Dakshina Kannada does even today. He started saving coins as a child when he used to sell vegetables grown in his backyard, getting a commission from his mother.

During the summer holidays, he recalls, he earned as much as Rs 2,000. “I used to save this in my coin box,” he says. Once in a while, he would put the money in a post office account, spending it mostly on books and clothes.

Today, he has inculcated habit in his nephew, Ajay, 11, and niece, Anita, 9, by giving them one rupee for each arecanut they collect on the farm. Ajay also earns Rs 2 a day for carrying milk to the dairy, 1 km away. This is how Arun hopes to make agriculture interesting to the children.

Satyavathi, a mother of two children, says that her 11-year-old son Shobith buys stationery for his school projects from the money saved up in his piggybank.

Other kids have grander plans: Ruth says she wants to build a house near a river, with a tailoring unit. Sahana Gowri (8) is saving money to buy a TV or a washing machine when she grows up . Sampreet (5) and Aditya (9) are fascinated by cars. Sampreet wants a remote-controlled toy; Aditya is holding out for a real Lamborghini.

Rakesh Bhat (14), who started saving money as a five-year-old, had enough money to surprise his father, Rajesh, with a wallet and a T-shirt, costing Rs 1,000 on his birthday.

C.K. Manjunatha, a school principal, blames parents for the lack of savings habit among children. “When the children demand some toy or money, you are giving more than what they ask.”

Manjunatha says that in most of the urban areas, where both husband and wife work, the savings habit among children has been ignored. Weekend spending is more important than saving, he says.

Anil's wife, Rohini, agrees. She says parents often have to give in to the adamant kids, who are bombarded by a high dose of advertisements on television channels.

Mr K. Ravindranath, a retired manager of Vijaya Bank, says he successfully got many students in a rural school to open bank accounts.

He says the Government could appoint an agent in schools. Since most bankers do not find time each day to and collect money from schools, he says, the agent could coordinate with the students and banks on a daily basis.

“Speak the language of children to make them aware of the needs for saving money,” he adds.

vinayakaj@thehindu.co.in