He was separated from his family at the tender age of five, and spent the next 13 years at a children's home some 1,700 km away from his village here. Deepak Dehri, now 18, recently discovered that fate can also be kind, after images of Massanjore Dam and its scenic surroundings during a video call made him instantly locate his long-lost place of residence, and reunite with his loved ones.

A member of the Paharia primitive tribe of the state, Dehri lost his father when he was just five and his mother subsequently abandoned him, Officer-in-Charge of Massanjore police station Chandrashekhar Choubey told PTI. He was brought to Hardoi in Uttar Pradesh by an aunt, but the child soon escaped, desperate to get back to his village. However, in his zeal to return, he boarded the wrong train, which took him to Rajasthan's Bikaner, Choubey said.