Rajeshwar Prasad Rajesh runs Raj Shree Hotel on Station Road, Nawada. First, he started a fertiliser business in June 1996, then a cement supply business. Later in 1999, he took the responsibility of transporting LPG from a Purnea bottling plant. He tried his luck in politics but dropped the idea soon. In 2006, he opened his hotel — the first in Nawada to have power back-up. Over the past 10 years, he added another floor to his one-storey house.

Name: Rajeshwar Prasad Rajesh, 49
Profession: Businessman 
Education: MCom (1984), LLB from Magadh University (1997) 
Family: Wife Sunita Kumar (42), son Rishav Raj (20), daughter Naincy Raj (13), two brothers and two sisters 
Place: Nawada, Station Road 

Do you earn more or less, compared with 2005?
Comparatively more. Now, I earn Rs 10 lakh 

Do you save more or less compared with 2005?
More, around Rs 50 lakh annually

What does your house have now that it did not in 2005?
I purchased a Toyota Fortuner last year and a RO water purifier 

What does your neighbourhood have that it did not have in 2005? 
We had roads and power but both were in bad shape. Now, things have comparatively improved. We get around 15-hour power supply and roads are motorable now 

Where do you buy your grocery from, malls or the corner store? 
From the grocery store. There is no mall culture in Nawada town but I think there should be one here

Do you shop round the year or only before Diwali, Chhath, Id etc? Has this changed over the years?
Round the year. Sometimes, I take my family to Varanasi for shopping because there are better malls and shopping complexes there

Do you own an AC? Did you own one in 2005?
None in 2005 but I have a split AC in one room. My children stay outside Nawada so I do not require more 

Has MGNREGA made any difference to your life? How?
No

Do your children go to school? In your family, did children go to school earlier? If it’s a government school, has there been any change in the standards/infrastructure?
Yes, we have always promoted education and ensured everyone in the family went to school. (His son Rishav Raj is a final-year BCom student in Deshbandhu College, New Delhi, and daughter Naincy Raj, a Class IX student of Bishop Westcott Girls’ School, Ranchi)

Has the midday meal made any difference?
No 

Is there any difference in the food you can afford now and what you could not 10 years ago?
I could not afford visiting a good restaurant or eating pizzas and burgers but now I can easily have them. Now, whenever I feel like having food at KFC, I go to Varanasi to have it because I can afford it 

Do you encounter more corruption or less in your daily life? Can you cite from personal experiences areas where you are directly affected by corruption?
I encounter more corruption in my daily life now. Recently, one of my relatives wanted a customised number for his new SUV. I sent one of my staff members to the district transport office to get it done. Normally, the office charges Rs 5,000 but the employee told me the person at the counter asked for Rs 1,500 extra as bribe 

What was the last movie you have seen and when?
The Dirty Picture in Varanasi, after a month of its release somewhere in January 2012 

When was the last time you ate outside home with your family?
Ten days ago. I had taken my family on a three-day trip to Singapore. So far as eating out in Nawada is concerned, there are very few options. That is the reason my children do not want to come here. They want parks, good gyms, KFC, Dominos, theatre but none of them is available here 

Describe the biggest change in your life since 2005
Earlier, I used to think only about myself but now, I think about my family and society too 

What is your biggest regret in the past 10 years?
I wanted to become a part of the democratic set-up with an entry in politics but I could not succeed. (He had served the Janata Party as state secretary of Vikasheel Chatra Manch. However, he soon dropped the idea after getting married and started his own business)

What is your biggest achievement in the past 10 years?
Getting a gas agency 

Are you happier or sadder now? Why?
Earning money does not mean you are happy, because somewhere I feel we are still lagging behind in my town as far as basic needs are concerned 

Decade Decoder is an occasional election feature that seeks to bring out through a 
question-and-answer session whether lives have changed for the better or the worse 
in the past 10 years of Nitish rule