How we reached our home, 906 km away, in two days

A labourer who began his long trudge from Virar on Thursday last week along with 10 members of his family amid the lockdown that has brought the country to a standstill reached his village in the Pali district of Rajasthan on Saturday afternoon Pappu Singh alias Akash 22 and his two nephews traversed the entire 906 kilometres in approximately 55 hours The other relatives who were behind them reached on SundayWhile they walked for 125 kilometres the rest of the distance was covered by hitching rides After reaching his village Kalab Khurd Pappu recorded a video thanking Boisar Crime Branch officer Bhimsen Gaikwad for his helpPappu also apologised to Assistant Police Inspector Gaikwad for having lied to him According to the video message Pappu has a diploma in solar energy from a government institute in Rajasthan He has also trained as an electrician Pappu had given his name as Prakash and said that the kids were his own He came to the city in the beginning of March after giving his final exams to work as a labourer The trio and their eight relatives had set out for their villagePappu SinghPappus brother Mahendra Singh is an electrician working for the Indian Railway The familys plans to go to their village after the kids exams were scuttled with the lockdown coming into place With no place to live and no money to eat the villagers decided to go home on footThe kids Pradeep 6 and Jaydeep 4 were with me We were walking towards Gujarat on the highway around 10 am My brother cousins and other villagers were behind while the kids and I got a lift till a toll plaza That is when API Gaikwad noticed us and enquired where we are off to I was scared and lied about my identityFrom right Pappu with his mother sisterinlaw and brother MahendraAPI Gaikwad dropped us near the toll plaza at Gujarat border and helped us hitch a ride in a vehicle going near to Rajasthan border He also gave money to buy food for the kids Pappu said in the videoWe reached the Rajasthan border on Friday morning Hitching a ride here became difficult We would walk four to five kilometres and wait for a vehicle Pappu said During this period a traveller demanded R3000 for a 100km ride in his car Pappu arranged the money from a friend and made the payment onlineI also came across kind people who not only gave us a lift but also food to eat Pappu addedPradeep and Jaydeep in whiteOn March 28 afternoon the trio reached Raipur taluka in Pali district Kalab Khurd was another 15 kilometres away and they called a relative to pick them up Pappus brother Mahendra and the others reached home on Sunday morningAPI Gaikwad told midday that he helped Pappu as he could see that the man was going through a difficult time I appreciate him coming clean through the video However that he lied to protect himself doesnt matter He was just trying to get home As humans we should always be able to help others125kmPart of the total distance of 906 km Pappu and his nephews covered on footTruck carrying 64 to UP stopped siblings bookedTwo siblings owning and operating a truck service were on Sunday booked for allegedly ferrying 64 labourers illegally to Uttar Pradesh Saki Naka police said The labourers were found crammed in the truck in the early hours of the day in Powai an official said Amjad Ali Razzak Shah 32 who was driving the truck and his brother Mohammad Shah who owns the vehicle have been booked They were charging R2500 per person to transport them to Uttar Pradesh an official said Zone X Deputy Commissioner of Police Ankit Goel said the labourers were let off while civic authorities were asked to provide them food and other basic amenities We registered a case under section 269 negligent act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life and 188 disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant of the Indian Penal Code Both have been detained he saidCatch up on all the latest Crime National International and Hatke news here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates