Bhubaneswar/Mumbai: At a time when the COVID-19 pandemic has brought the entire world to its knees disrupting life of billions across the globe, it might have socially distanced people but in true sense, it has brought humanity together in an extraordinary manner.
In India where the pandemic has locked in millions inside their homes, responsibility to spearhead the war against the disease has been vested on few whom the country has proudly named the Corona Warriors.
Of the many instances of deeds by these unusual war heroes what stands out is probably the act of selfless service by an Odisha cadre IPS officer to ensure food supply to a vulnerable autistic kid hundreds of kilometres away in Mumbai.
On April 4, Mumbai Chembur based resident Neha Sinha sought help from Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a tweet seeking supply of camel milk for her autistic child. In the request, she mentioned about the hardship faced by her divyang child because of unavailability of camel milk, the lifeline for the kid, due to enforced lockdown and his allergy to other food items.
Her pleas went unanswered initially but as the social media has far-reaching impacts, her tweet triggered a chain of events initiated by the intervention of Odisha IPS officer Arun Bothra.
One of the most active personalities of top bureaucracy on social media, Bothra, a 1996 batch IPS officer who is renowned all over for his generosity and quick response in redressal of people's problems in an extraordinary manner, came to know about the problems faced by the autistic child after one of his 63 odd K followers on Twitter asked him to help in the matter.
As per reports, Bothra who is originally, a native of Sri Ganganagar in Rajasthan, explored his contacts and found a milk supplier at Sadri near Pali who would help fetch the food parcel. After coming to know that a parcel training running between Ludhiana and Bandra Terminus in Mumbai could carry the milk from Rajasthan, he sought help from Chief Passenger Transport Manager of North-West Railway, Tarun Jain, in Jaipur in transporting camel’s milk to Mumbai.
Meanwhile, in order to help the kid tide through before the consignment reached them, Bothra found out that a Mumbai-based company Advik Foods supplies camel milk powder. He immediately asked the company to help provide some milk powder and they were too pleased to lend their hands.
On the other hand, due to lockdown as it was impossible for the milk supplier to take the milk to Jodhpur, an unscheduled stop for the train was arranged at Falna station, where 20 litres of frozen camel milk and some milk powder was loaded. It finally reached Chembur on April 10 from where the consignment was delivered to the family of the autistic child.
Presently heading three crucial departments in Odisha, the Central Electricity Supply Utility, and Managing Director of Capital Region Urban Transport and as CMD, Odisha State Road Transport Corporation, where he witnesses public complaints come in thick and fast, Bothra says this incident was the most gratifying one even though he had resolved numerous complaints through social media.
Also Read: Story Of Corona Warriors In Odisha Is Equal Parts Sacrifice & Strength
Speaking to The Outlook, Bothra stated that, "Pleased not just because he genuinely helped a mother in distress, but also because he had for once managed to impress his own parents.
“They (Bothra’s parents) never come to know about my work. But this time since it involved Rajasthan, the news was published in the local newspapers too. They read it and were very proud of me,” added the Odisha-cadre IPS officer.
Just like always, hours after his help ensured the most essential milk to the needy kid, social media exploded with scores of Twitteratis showering praises on the Odisha cadre IPS officer.