Delhi wide boys

Went to buy an Indian Sim card for my phone today. I had been advised a card would cost me about 50 rupees. (50p) and Air Tel was the best coverage.
So I go into a shop and tell them what I want.
So first I am offered a Vodaphone card (they get more commission) .
No, I would like an Airtel card.
OK, you can have one for 500 rupees with 400 credit minutes.
No, I want a cheap one like I said. 50 rupees.
You can have one for 210 rupees and 150 minutes credit.
Yes that'll do. Thought that wasn't a bad compromise as I would have to charge it up anyway with some credit.

It's their job to make money on each and every transaction and my job to stick (as far as possible!) to what I wanted in the first place.

Same as this hotel. A nice, mid to low range hotel. But at reception we were quizzed about our travel plans in detail and.. Have you booked your plane tickets? Do you want us to recommend a good hotel at your next destination etc etc. It's no stone unturned to squeeze a bit of extra money out of the client. You are not a person, you are a funding opportunity. Customer satisfaction is way way low on the list after ' How can I make more money from this person?'. And yet in England there is a war being waged around customer satisfaction as the best means of getting repeat sales.

This against a backdrop of walking down any street to be asked probably every six steps if you want a rickshaw or tuktuk or postcard etc.
But then this is Delhi, one of the most competitive cities on the world. When we stay in places where hardly any foreigners go, we aren't hassled at all.