Man running from Bhayander-Vasai to catch Shramik train collapse, dies

Chanderlal had no money and was only carrying a small bag. Pictures/ Hanif Patel

A 45-year-old migrant, who had walked/ran 30 km from Bhayandar to Vasai Road station on Thursday, in order to board the train to his hometown in Rajasthan, collapsed and died as he neared it. Completely out of breath from rushing, Harish Chander Shankarlal died metres from his destination.

Shankarlal was a carpenter and lived in Sai Baba Nagar in Bhayandar. His relatives told mid-day that the authorities concerned had not provided any transport for migrants from their hutments to the station.

"We had completed our online applications almost 10 days ago to board the special train to Rajasthan. On Wednesday evening, we were told that a train for Rajasthan would leave from Vasai on Thursday but we were not told the timing," said Sawarmal Jangir, the distant relative of Shankarlal.

Harish Chander Shankarlal had started out from his house at 2pm on Thursday

"The authorities had told us to manage our own way to Vasai station if we wanted to board the train. A few of us hired an auto and were charged R1,500 totally. As Shankarlal had no money left in this lockdown, he decided to walk to Vasai. He walked 30km on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad highway to reach Vasai Road station," he said.

As the timing of the train was not confirmed, Jangir said, Shankarlal had started from Bhayandar at 2pm.

Jangir added, "As we all remained inside the house during the lockdown, the sudden exposure to the scorching heat caused Shankarlal to feel giddy. He vomited and collapsed just a few metres from the location in Vasai where government officials were conducting thermal screening of migrants. The train was scheduled to depart at 6.30pm from Vasai, but Shankarlal breathed his last before that."

On seeing Shankarlal's condition, government officials gave him immediate medical assistance but it was too late, said Jangir, who did not board the train. Shankarlal's body was rushed to Jan Seva hospital but he was declared dead before admission. Now his body has been sent to Virar where the swab/sample will be taken to conduct a COVID-19 test and then it will be handed over to his relative.

Tehsildar Kiran Survase said, "Shankarlal's name was not on the list of passengers who left for Rajasthan on Thursday evening. It seems that he might have been told by someone that a train for Rajasthan was to depart and he started to walk from Bhayandar to Vasai Road."

Other government officials refused to comment.

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