Over the past few months, we have seen how migrant workers have had to tread on foot or cycle to reach their hometowns and go back to their families because of the lockdown. Times are still uncertain for many as travelling via public transport still isn’t a safe option.
Hence, to help his physically-challenged mother reunite with the rest of her children, a 10-year-old boy living in Hyderabad pushed a wheelchair carrying his mother and 1-year-old sister and walked towards Bengaluru, reports The New Indian Express. The boy was found near Kurnool after he had covered nearly 350 kilometres.
After hearing of his plight, a police officer from Kurnool helped the boy, Shah Rukh, and his family reach Bengaluru. Shah Rukh’s siblings were in an ashram in the city.
Shah Rukh’s mother, Haseena, went to Hyderabad with her 5 children after losing her husband and lived off begging. Before the lockdown started, 3 of her children were taken to an ashram in Bengaluru by an acquaintance. Haseena, Shah Rukh, and his sister were stuck in Hyderabad as the lockdown was imposed.
Since then, Haseena has been wanting to reunite with her children. Since transportation was limited, she and Shah Rukh managed to get a wheelchair from a hospital and decided to head towards Bengaluru.
Their journey began in the first week of June. One night, locals noticed them on a highway dhaba and took them to a nearby shelter and offered them food. It was these locals who alerted the police officer who went on to help them.
“Shah Rukh’s courage in wheeling his mother and sister has greatly moved me. Though he is 10 years old, his determination to help his mother reunite with her other children is moving,” the police officer said.
Last weekend, the three reunited with the rest of their family.
Despite the many difficulties that came with it, the pandemic has definitely shown us how relentless the human spirit is.