Hyderabad: Patriotic autorickshaw driver gives free rides
A few lucky people were surprised as their autorickshaw ride to any place in the twin cities was free
By : DC Correspondent
Update: 2014-08-16 02:27 GMT
Hyderabad:A few lucky people were surprised on Friday as their autorickshaw ride to any place in the twin cities was free. Rather than the usual argument on fares, this gesture by an autorickshaw driver came as a pleasant surprise.
Displaying a humble yet powerful gesture of humanity and brotherhood, 61-year-old autorickshaw driver, A. Balaji Purushottam, offered free rides on the occasion of Independence Day. Decked up in the colours of the national flag, his autorickshaw had a huge flex banner saying, “Free services in my autorickshaw on the ocassion of our country’s I-Day.”
Mr Balaji has been following this ritual for the last 17 years. “As citizens of the country we are responsible for promoting oneness and harmony among people. My livelihood is dependent on what people pay me and I thought I should also give back something. This is my way of showing my respect to my fellow citizens and there cannot be a better occasion than Independence Day,” he said.
On Friday, he went around ferrying passengers for free from Bowenpally to Ameerpet, Punjagutta to Abids and Kacheguda and other places, and made a loss of '600 in the process. “I usually make about Rs 500 to Rs 600 per day day after my expenses on fuel and other essentials. Currently, I own my autorickshaw, but earlier when I used to drive a rented auto, I would make less than this. I filled fuel worth Rs 1,000 especially for I-Day. Some commuters volunteered to pay, but I did not accept,” he said.
A resident of the New Nallakunta area, Mr Balaji lives with his wife, Lalitha, who is equally patriotic and distributed sweets in the locality on I-Day. Mr Balaji has been driving autorickshaws for the past 32 years. Before that he had had several jobs a security guard at a private firm, a typist at a transport association and a helper at the Salar Jung Museum. “I was hired only on temporary basis and could not retain my job for a long time, hence I decided to start driving an autorickshaw,” he said.
Hailing from a lower economic background, his life has been a struggle. “I have to manage all expenses myself. My elder son had a mental disability and passed away last year. my younger son got married and left. My wife and I have made a small world of our own.”