One of the worst things that came along with the coronavirus pandemic is joblessness. Out of work, people are forced to take up menial jobs to feed their families. And while domestic air travel has started in India, not everyone can afford it, to be honest.
One such woman, who could not afford to buy flight tickets to meet his sick 5-year-old son, decided to undertake a journey of 1800 km from Pune to Jamshedpur on scooter.
According to reports, the 26-year-old woman, Sonia Das used to work as a freelancer in production houses in Mumbai. She lost her job during the coronavirus lockdown and was forced to vacate her PG on failing to pay rent.
She then moved to Pune, to her friend Sabia, and started searching for a new job. Meanwhile, her husband, a heart patient and out of work for 2 years, was living in Jamshedpur with their son.
Recently, her son fell sick. With no passenger trains running on the route and unable to afford a plane ticket, the woman decided to travel on scooter with her friend Sabia. It took them 5 days to reach their destination.
Recalling her tedious journey, Sonia told HT:
We mostly survived on vada-pav and water. Most people took us for boys as our faces were covered with helmets and we were wearing shirts and pants. At some places people did stare at us but we left those places immediately. On the other hand, some locals also came forward to help us and gave food and water.
On reaching Jamshedpur, the duo were asked by the city administration to stay in quarantine and get themselves checked. But before that Sonia got the opportunity to see her son on the balcony from road.
Speaking to HT, Sonia also said that she did try to contact Jharkhand and Maharashtra governments and actor Sonu Sood through tweets, but received no help. Eventually, she left on her scooty.
While it is heartwarming to see a mother going that extra mile to see her ailing son, the woman’s helplessness shows the sad state of affairs in our country.