During a pandemic when everything has come to a halt, certain people have to work harder than they ever did. This includes pharmacists, among many others.

They keep going because ‘someone has to’. One of these pharmacists talked to Humans of Bombay about doing his job in these starnge times.

I’ve been running a pharmacy store with my father since I was 10, so when COVID-19 hit, I wasn’t going to stop what I’ve been doing all these years. I was scared, so were my wife & kids, but I have to keep my shop open so that people can get their medication. 
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He said that while a pandemic is raging, it is important that people get their medicines in time. If that means waking up in the middle of the night, so be it.

Once, a regular customer called me in the middle of the night. He needed medicines for his father urgently but all stores were closed. I immediately left home to open my store and gave the medicines. Often I don’t even charge people for it & have never charged a late night fee. 
Instagram/Humans of Bombay

He says that his job is proven to be worthwhile when people, even those who don’t have resources, are honest and grateful.

A villager once came to my store in dire need of medicine. I gave it for free, told him to pay me back whenever he could and gave him money for food. He came back 3 weeks later to pay and fell on my feet thanking me profusely. It’s such moments that keep me going.

In the end, he says that he just wants to be of service to people. Just like his father taught him. You can read the complete post here:

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“I’ve been running a pharmacy store with my father since I was 10, so when COVID-19 hit, I wasn’t going to stop what I’ve been doing all these years. I was scared, so were my wife & kids, but I have to keep my shop open so that people can get their medication. I open my store at 7am & work for around 13 hours everyday – but even after I close the store for the day–work doesn’t stop. Once, a regular customer called me in the middle of the night – he needed medicines for his father urgently but all stores were closed. I immediately left home to open my store & gave the medicines. Often I don’t even charge people for it & have never charged a late night fee. A villager once came to my store in dire need of medicine – I gave it for free, told him to pay me back whenever he could & gave him money for food. He came back 3 weeks later to pay & fell on my feet thanking me profusely – it’s such moments that keep me going. That & my family. My daughter constantly calls & asks me to be safe. My wife coaxes me to not go out everyday. She says, ‘What if something happens to you?’. But I think, what will happen to all the patients who need medicines for their diabetes & blood pressure if I don’t go? I can’t have someone suffer on my conscience – & I believe that the good wishes that I receive, will protect & keep me safe. Even as a child, I’ve been taught I should always try & make someone else’s life easier before mine. But even after everything, people don’t really see our value in society. Recently, a customer urgently needed medicine in the middle of the night – I opened my store for him but he was short of Rs 30. I didn’t want to trouble him so I told him that he could pay me later. But the next day, he came back to return all the medicines, accused me of charging him more, said hurtful things & left! I felt terrible & thought that if they can’t respect me, why should I go out of my way to make sure that they face no problems? But I had to let it go– it wasn’t the fault of those who genuinely needed medicines. My father once said that I should be of service to people & that I should be remembered for a good deed – so I’m just relentlessly working towards that.”

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