No food or money, Ludhiana youths walk home

Tribune News Service

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New Delhi, April 25

The saga of wage-earners stuck in different parts of the country and the tug of the warmth of home continues. Nearly a month into the lockdown, five young men from Ludhiana working at a trading company in Maihar, Satna district of Madhya Pradesh faced imminent crisis – no money, no food. All their savings are gone and they are now staring at uncertainty.

Aged between 18 and 28, Manish, Mandhata, Ayush, Anand and Alok decided to trudge their way to Ludhiana and on the night of April 22 began the trek surviving the 700-odd km distance on intermittent food provided by truckers at wayside stalls.

One of the persons told The Tribune that after the wages provided by the trading company was exhausted, they survived for some time on local rations, but were eventually turned away since they were from a different state.

“So we decided to return to Ludhiana and left on the night of April 22. We crossed several places and near Delhi asked police for directions…,” said one of them. The youths appeared shaken and tired by what they endured.

They were sighted on Saturday afternoon by journalist Sharyana Deepak whose tweet caught the attention of Diva Gujral among others. While the Delhi-based journalist, who saws these young men in a state of distress, tagged a few seeking assistance, including the Punjab Police, Rajya Sabha MP Naresh Gujral stepped in to arrange for their accommodation at Gurdwara Rakabganj.

At present, these men have been lodged at the gurdwara and await clearance from the state authorities hoping to get a ride back home that would be more comfortable than the difficult 780-odd km walk to the National Capital.