Prabhat Yadav, an ambulance driver, was working his usual shift and ferrying Covid patients to hospitals in Mathura when he received a call from his family informing him that his mother had passed away. Undeterred, Yadav continued with his shift, thinking that his work was more important than returning home, and took a total of 15 Covid-19 positive patients to the hospital.
Yadav told Times of India, “I was shaken, but I had to gain control and go on. I couldn’t just drop what I was doing. The work we do is critical."
On the same day, Yadav finished his shift and travelled 200 km to reach his village Mainpuri. He then performed his mother’s last rites and returned to work the next day.
Yadav, who has been driving 108 ambulances for nearly nine years, was picked for the Covid duty last year in March. However, he was relieved from the job after the number of cases came down last year. Yadav was back working in April following the onset of the second wave.
According to a TOI report, Yadav’s father had died due to Covid-19 in July last year. Even then, Yadav went home, performed his father’s last rites and returned to his job in a day.
Ajay Singh, programme manager of Mathura’s 102 and 108 ambulance services said that Yadav was told to stay home for a few days following his mother’s funeral, but he refused and wanted to return immediately. Singh had arranged for Yadav’s journey back home since the state is under lockdown and no public transport was available. According to him, Yadav is a dedicated worker.
Yadav told TOI, “My mother is gone. If I can save some people, she would be proud."
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