Dying away from home, away from the soil of your birth ,and to do so unseen and unmourned, is a profound HORROR…
— Yvonne Adhiambo Owuor
At this point, my identity, my caste, my religion, my political affiliation, my social status should be none of anyone’s business. For my government, i am just another S T R A N D E D local Migrant away from his home, Mumbai, the Business and for many the Bollywood hub of India.
My feelings are filled with pitiful adjectives, as i completely empathize with the lead role from the Bollywood movie “PK”, an image illustrated above, who too was away from his race, his home and the vulnerabilities and emotions that surround him is very well depicted in the movie.
So why am I in agony?
Let’s start….As an Indian tradition, growing up as a kid, if my memory serves me right (Oh, yes it does) i would get pasting left, right and centre for being cranky (though seldom). However, during vacations, i remember my dearest late grandpa who when saw me crank up, would in a calm and composed manner just ask me one question — What is that you seek? And, its not that i was rewarded for my silly behavior, but the feeling that my grandpa is ready to hear my agony, made a huge difference in the overall memorable experience.
Being stranded in a two star lodge, for over three months now, i have been following the GOI news daily hoping they empathize with us “Migrants” someday soon, because we were made to believe it is our Government, Of the Masses. No?. Again, before i continue, let me reiterate, i am not here to grab any sympathy or hatred from the Twitterites tweeting from the comfort of their homes or dictatorship of most political pundits, for i seek no social validation.
Now for those who dont know what i am going through, let me fill you. Because i came from Mumbai, my home in early March 2020, i am perceived as a carrier of Covid19 till date. The locals ill mouth us, with discrimination in the air, uncertainty of hygienic food & shelter and a high risk of getting contaminated.
Each day and night, I search for hope on the internet with these keywords “xSRTCMumbaiBusesnews”, “AirIndiaMumbaiflightsnews” and “IRCTCIndianRailwaysnews” with continuous dismay in the execution of GOI policies. To add to my agony, is all the social distancing rules and spikes in cases back home, helpless and worried for my aged parents, leaving me with only prayers for their safety.
Aww! there is excitement in my story as well. Late May, when the GOI permitted resuming some domestic flights, I thanked my stars and did book my domestic flight with an airlines and guess what? The airlines cancelled the ticket and put our money in their fancy term “credit shell” account. Time to revisit Business Ethics 2.0! The GOI seems to be languishing on the dire state of stranded migrants.
With the pervasiveness of ongoing Covid19, the GOI had the courage to open liquor shops and even embrace digital technology to deliver booze online , had the willingness to help stranded NRI’s, focus on virtual strategies to win the next electoral state, gift the citizens economic candies, but prefer to stay immune and deaf to the stranded locals, some in a dying state who just want to return home. And many who do not mind taking risk embracing death on the way back, just to be with their loved ones.
For they prefer to die in front of their love ones, than live a life of daily suspense and horror.
I aint planning to start another movement like #Metoomovement or #Blacklivesmatter not because i am a responsible citizen but because i know,
Democracy is a right to make the wrong choice.
Finally, I dedicate this story to my beloved Grandpa, for he still silently continues to hear my voice (and to some it may be a crank)…..!
