Is this racist? Indian prices for foreigners

[Justin]

Hi everyone,

I am currently living in Mumbai, India for the summer.

Exchange rates (from google):
1 USD= 47.7 INR.
1 EURO= 67.5 INR.
1 POUND STERLING= 78.7 INR.

If anyone is from/has been to India, it is pretty well-known that non-Indians are charged significantly more than Indians. In a museum in Mumbai, it costs Rs. 10 for Indians and Rs. 300 for foreigners. To enter the Ajanta Caves near Aurangabad in Maharashtra, it is Rs. 10 for Indians and Rs. 250 for foreigners. This is mainly because most tourists who come to India and see these sights are mostly from the UK, Europe, or the US, and even though Rs. 300 to enter a museum is 30 times that of what an Indian would pay, it is still only about $6 etc. Most travelers able to afford to go to India will likely be able to afford this price. And that's why it happens, because despite that it's vastly unequal to native Indians, it ultimately is still not very expensive for a foreigner. But to someone not from a country that has such a good exchange rate, then it becomes expensive (IE Thailand).

Is this racist? Clearly it is targetting specific groups of people (non-Indians) and charging them more because of it. But, because of the exchange rates, does this justify it? This is something I've been trying to figure out while I'm here. It is difficult to really label this as "racism," but I don't really know how to define it.

[McP3000]

of course it is what kind of question is this

[1338 h4x0r]

It's price discrimination for sure, although it would be a little hard to say it's racist

[This Life is Genocide]

wats the min. wage in india though?

[John Paul Harrison]

it's not designed to keep certain ethnicities out or favor natives
it's meant to take advantage of tourists who have money
it's not racism

[TheDarkHorse]

It's price discrimination for sure, although it would be a little hard to say it's racist

Right on

the problem with calling it racist is that Indian is not a race, its a nationality. They aren't targeting any specific group (Non-indian is very inclusive).

You can call this an unfair tourist-trap, but you can't really raise ethical considerations.

[McP3000]

Right on

the problem with calling it racist is that Indian is not a race, its a nationality. They aren't targeting any specific group (Non-indian is very inclusive).

You can call this an unfair tourist-trap, but you can't really raise ethical considerations.
umm Indians pretty much all look the same racially wtf are you going on about

[This Life is Genocide]

caste system?

[Meatplow]

this happens in the Philippines as well, when my dad went over to get his mail order bride she insisted that she do all the haggling because they jack prices up 700% for foreigners cause they are so rich

true story

[rasputin]

umm Indians pretty much all look the same racially wtf are you going on about
Indian is not a race

[1338 h4x0r]

umm Indians pretty much all look the same racially wtf are you going on about

hahahahhaha

oh ****

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_BgaBKdo7qZo/R520hcEfBDI/AAAAAAAACXk/C-1LmoOZgrU/s400/bihunasoni.jpg

http://img87.imageshack.us/img87/4338/tamilnadumahabalipuram5zc.jpg

http://img99.imageshack.us/img99/9571/hema1in.jpg

As you can see from these examples, some East Indians have Mongoloid facial features, some are dark-skinned and yet light-eyed like the young Tamil in pic #2 (though this appears to be rare), and some look like Europeans

this happens in the Philippines as well, when my dad went over to get his mail order bride she insisted that she do all the haggling because they jack prices up 700% for foreigners cause they are so rich

true story

lol wat was your dad divorced or summat?

[Meatplow]

yeah

hes a fat 65 yr old british guy who wears a cabbie hat its pretty obscene the amount of sex he gets

[1338 h4x0r]

stop please

crusty old Brits + brown-skinned Asian women half their age = worst mental image ever

[cobert]

"Racist" probably isn't the right word. It is undoubtedly discriminatory. This is justifiable because of the amount of tourism revenue from countries with much higher exchange rates.

[1338 h4x0r]

It would be less iffy if they just charged people who had money to spare more rupiyah, but how would you tell the difference easily? Whereas the Indian / non-Indian distinction is easy to verify and more or less corresponds to doesn't have a lot of money / does

[rasputin]

they do the same in most parts of the developing world, not just India

[Meatplow]

stop please

crusty old Brits + brown-skinned Asian women half their age = worst mental image ever

haha

there is much more to the story that would make you vomit but I respect your wishes

[griftadan]

Hi everyone,

I am currently living in Mumbai, India for the summer.

Exchange rates (from google):
1 USD= 47.7 INR.
1 EURO= 67.5 INR.
1 POUND STERLING= 78.7 INR.

If anyone is from/has been to India, it is pretty well-known that non-Indians are charged significantly more than Indians. In a museum in Mumbai, it costs Rs. 10 for Indians and Rs. 300 for foreigners. To enter the Ajanta Caves near Aurangabad in Maharashtra, it is Rs. 10 for Indians and Rs. 250 for foreigners. This is mainly because most tourists who come to India and see these sights are mostly from the UK, Europe, or the US, and even though Rs. 300 to enter a museum is 30 times that of what an Indian would pay, it is still only about $6 etc. Most travelers able to afford to go to India will likely be able to afford this price. And that's why it happens, because despite that it's vastly unequal to native Indians, it ultimately is still not very expensive for a foreigner. But to someone not from a country that has such a good exchange rate, then it becomes expensive (IE Thailand).

Is this racist? Clearly it is targetting specific groups of people (non-Indians) and charging them more because of it. But, because of the exchange rates, does this justify it? This is something I've been trying to figure out while I'm here. It is difficult to really label this as "racism," but I don't really know how to define it.

it's not racist, it's just price discrimination aimed at generating greater revenue. they know foreigners are willing to pay more for tourist attractions because they have more money, it probably has nothing to do with race

[Pop music sucks]

It's opportunistic. They just see it as a tourist that can easily afford world travel could afford $6 here or $6 there.

Still cheaper than touring Europe. And by touring Europe, I mean a multi-country sojourn.

[Jude]

Racism would be if they wanted to keep the tourists out because they hated them

this is just good business practice

[Light Flantastic]

racism takes other forms than hate

[hismajestythepope]

it's not designed to keep certain ethnicities out or favor natives
it's meant to take advantage of tourists who have money
it's not racism

seriously

[Room13]

this is the most raisin thing i have ever seen

[Der Übermensch]

When I go to a beach in a town I don't live in, I have to pay the non-resident fee.
If I wanted to go hunting this fall in Virginia, I would need to buy the non-resident license (much more costly).
There is nothing racist about those policies, just as there is nothing racist about the point you raise. It is simply how things work. The locals are allowed to enjoy what they have around them for considerably less, while people whose tax dollar's don't go to the upkeep of what ever is being visited must fork over more money.

[Ulthwe]

Yeah it could be compared to the higher prices in going to a public university if you're not a resident of that state, it's most certainly not racism it's just kinda how things go.

[Elitist Douche Bag]

this happens in the Philippines as well, when my dad went over to get his mail order bride she insisted that she do all the haggling because they jack prices up 700% for foreigners cause they are so rich

true story

lol

[1338 h4x0r]

haha

there is much more to the story that would make you vomit but I respect your wishes

......

ok

spill all the details

[Fuqueue]

It's not racist it's just ****ing rude.

Just like saying that all Indian people are back-stabbing, shoulder-stepping judgmental wimps.

[Aaron]

Indian is not a race
*ahem* Indy 500?

[McP3000]

3/10

[Fuqueue]

Cute.

[Aaron]

My dad would've laughed at it.
/hangs head in shame.

[Fuqueue]

There's really that little to do down in Wollongong, isn't there..

[Aaron]

Not much to do but drink and fight.

[Fuqueue]

And they wont even let you do that anymore.

[free_thinkers_are_dangerous]

It's completely legit if it's a musem that was partly paid for by public money. If it's private then it's discriminatory but probably not outrageous.

[McP3000]

why is it discriminatory for private institutions and not public

not to mention if America did this to non-Americans we'd be called racist or something or other so

[Meatplow]

Not much to do but drink and fight.

this made me lol

i'll find out when I come to visit

[BridgeToSolace]

Is this racist?

Old people only get charged 5 dollars to eat at Old Country Buffet while I have to pay 8.

Is this legal discrimination or something???????????????????????????????????

Why am I forced to subsidize crappy food for old people I am fyurius.

[Meatplow]

they are from an older and gentler time

while all you kids are plied up to the eyeballs on drugs!

never mind grandpa popping those heart pills like they are going out of fashion

[Jonny]

Question to think about:
Do they charge foreigners more, or do they charge locals less? Maybe it's merely a lower fee to encourage locals to come and absorb the culture and knowledge of their own country. I mean, when was the last time you went to a tourist attraction near where you live? You wouldn't do it that often, because they're expensive, and not that exciting to you.

[free_thinkers_are_dangerous]

why is it discriminatory for private institutions and not public

Because if your taxes are already partly funding something it makes sense for you not to pay full price for it. Same way a lot of cities have different prices for residents and non-residents for pools, libraries, whatever.