600 km on cycle, with wife holding child
AGRA: Ramkaran Yadav, 35, had already cycled 600 km with his wife Sonia riding pillion along with their one-year-old son and luggage.
A native of UP’s Fatehpur, Ramkaran had stopped at the entry point of Yamuna Expressway, a 165-km road connecting Agra with Noida, to catch his breath. “We still have another 350 km to go,” he said. Ramkaran worked in Jalandhar as a dailywage labourer.
“I was engaged in packing goods in a factory but then the lockdown was announced and I lost my job. Gradually I spent my entire savings on daily expenses.
I could have survived for few more days but when my landlord asked me to pay the rent of the house I lived in, it left me with no option but to return home,” he said.
The intense heat of May had failed to dampen his spirits. “Five family members who too were there in Jalandhar left with me on bicycles,” he said.
“We had to borrow money from people. Once we had a little money, we started for home, covering about 80 to 100 km daily. We ate whatever was given to us by locals. The police too was helpful throughout,” he said.
For his year-old son, Ramkaran would buy water bottle or pouches.
“Near Faridabad, my bicycle got punctured in a remote area and due to which all the members had to walk for about 10 kilometers. However, a local cop helped me get my bicycle repaired. He also offered me food packets, water bottles and milk for my son,” he said.
“We will always remember this as the worst phase of our life,” said Ramkaran’s wife Sonia. “Managing this distance on a cycle with a small child and baggage and in this weather was an ordeal,” she said.
“When we entered Agra, we were stopped at the entry point of the Yamuna Expressway. But, only now, we have been told by the police that we would be dropped home by bus. It would be great if that happens but if not, we will continue to cycle the remaining distance to our village,” said Sateesh Kumar, a relative of Ramkaran who too was part of the tiring journey.
“We have already covered the 600 kilometers of our journey and we would complete the rest too for we have faith on our god,” the cyclists said.