Praneel Narayan, 33, does not regret joining his family’s business of selling vegetables on the roadside.

Their stall at Kabisi, Nadroga, and is well-known for selling boiled corn and the sensational roasted corn topped with chutney.

Originally from the Valley Road, he moved with his family to Lomawai Top with his wife Sanjana Mala, two children and mother Chandra Kumari.

They have eight acres of land where they grow vegetables such as pumpkin, egg-plant, chilly dalo, cassava, and other crops. Five acres have been dedicated to sugar cane farming alone.

“Roughly four years ago, I found myself here with my family selling by the roadside. Actually, there was not so good pay in my previous job, which was basically to support my mother,” he said.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, he would earn $120 per day. However, now he earns roughly $40-$50 per day and on any given Saturday’s he makes $90-$100 worth of sales.

“We are at the roadside seven days a week. I do earn more here rather than working somewhere else,” he said.

“We are all looking forward to sending my two children back to school. The earning from here does assist us very much,” Mr Narayan added.

Mr Narayan is also thankful for the posh roadside stalls erected by the Government a few years ago.

He added by the end of the month, his stall will be selling sugar-cane juice served with ice to refresh customers suffering from the Nadroga heat.

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