Auto driver helps family that returned from Mumbai

Mangaluru: An autorickshaw driver has proved that humanity continues to exist during troubled times. For Purandara Rai, 52, a driver working in Mumbai for the past 27 years, it is Jabeer Kuppepadav, an autorickshaw driver, who turned out to be a guardian angel.
Purandara’s son Deependra Rai, 19, said, “My father was diagnosed with kidney problems and was admitted to a private hospital in Mumbai on March 16. We spent about Rs 1.5 lakh on his treatment, but there was no improvement. We then shifted him to another private hospital, and he was discharged after 15 days. Due to the spread of Covid-19 and high medical expenses in Mumbai, we decided to travel back to Kabaka, our native place. Only when we reached here, did we realise that none of our relatives were willing to welcome us,” he said.
Jabeer, 32, said that he spotted Rai, his wife and two children at the Mangaluru Junction railway station at 2.30 am on June 21. “After interacting with a fellow autorickshaw driver, they stayed at the station. They were looking for quarantine facilities. After dropping a passenger, I was resting in my autorickshaw. The family came up to me around 8 am. Purandara looked sick. After a brief interaction, I decided to take them to Bantwal. I told my younger brother to look after the autorickshaw, and dropped them in a car to Bantwal.”
At the Bantwal police station, the family was directed to a government institutional quarantine facility, and after completion of the quarantine period, they were left with nowhere to go. In the meantime, Purandara was taken to Wenlock Hospital. After testing negative for the novel coronavirus, he was referred to private hospitals for treatment, but the family had no money for his treatment, and he was brought back to the Bantwal taluk hospital. He was discharged on Thursday, but requires dialysis, said Deependra.
“Jabeer has helped us in every possible way. After completing our quarantine, he gave us a house to stay in. This house is located right next to his house in Kuppepadav, and he has arranged everything for us,” he said.
Meanwhile, Jabeer has reached out to his friends for medical assistance. “I’m still trying to arrange for funds to provide medical assistance to Purandara. Several officials have helped us. On the family’s insistence, I have arranged a rented house for them to stay at Mura, near Kabaka,” he added.