Delivery boy leaves ailing father to deliver gas cylinders to customers
New Delhi: When thousands of migrant workers started reverse migration from Delhi in a desperate attempt to go back to their hometowns following the nationwide lockdown, some amid adversities decided to head back to Delhi responding to the call of duty, that too on foot.
Jeetu, a delivery boy in a gas agency in South Delhi went to see his ailing father in Mathura, Uttar Pradesh on March 20. His 60-year-old father Rajveer also worked as a delivery agent till he retired. Jeetu did not know that a lockdown would be announced and all routes to his return would be closed on March 24. Before he could consider himself stuck in Mathura, he got a call from his office in Delhi.
"I was asked to return to Delhi immediately as the delivery of gas cylinders could be hampered if I stayed at home. It was difficult for the company to find new delivery boys for the time period. It was then that I made up my mind. I received calls from many of my customers whom I personally knew," Jeetu said.
Leaving his ailing father and his own family behind, Jeetu decided to head back to New Delhi. With no trains or public transport available, he knew he had to rely on his stamina and will power to start a journey on foot.
"It was 8 a.m. in the morning on March 26 when I had a cup of tea and started off early on foot from Mathura to Delhi. The biggest problem was that all dhabas and hotels were closed so all that I could manage on the road was water. I wanted to reach Delhi as soon as possible," he said.
Jeetu also recalls how he was beaten up by cops on the way and kept counting the batons he reveived. "Two batons at Kosi kallan, two at Palwal and two at Faridabad. The cops were confused why I was returning to Delhi when all others were rushing out," he grinned. On 27 March, he reached his house in Delhi post midnight. The first thing he did was prepare food for himself. The next day he carried the cylinders on his shoulders, so that the customers don't feel the heat of the lockdown.
