Chennai pilgrims bring home a hero

CHENNAI: When the gushing waters of the Ganga took away lives and buildings in Uttarakhand, he set out to save people. And now, its payback time for a group of eight pilgrims from Chennai, who have brought with them their saviour, Pramod Goswami, 25. The youth from Gaurikund who lost his meagre belongings - a shop and two horses - will now begin a new life in Chennai.

"We owe our lives to Pramod ," said Venkatesh, an associate professor at SRM University who led the group to Kedarnath. "He took us from Gaurikund through the forests to Sonprayag, from where the Army helped us. Only locals like him knew the forest path, which 200 other pilgrims also took."

The pilgrims were surprised not just by Pramod's courage, but his compassion too. "His three room-house gave shelter to around 50 pilgrims and the family exhausted their rations to provide food to us. He didn't know Tamil, but we communicated with ease," said Venkatesh .

Now housed at Venkatesh's place in Guduvanchery , Pramod, who speaks only Hindi and Garhwali, said it was his call of duty. "I was aware of the risks involved ," he said.

"There was the danger of a landslip any moment and the paths crisscrossing the forests were slippery. One misstep would mean a plunge into the valley. But then I grew up in the mountains and knew the paths. I was worried about the safety of the pilgrims , not mine," he said.

TN paid for his air ticket to Chennai

The pilgrims said they will take care of Pramod till he finds a job in Chennai. And he is not ambitious. "I will take whatever job comes my way. All that my parents, brother and me had were the two horses and a shop - the flood took all that. I am sure I will be able to take up a job here and support my family," he said.

It would take a while for the pilgrims and their saviour to erase the sights and sounds of nature's fury from their mind. Pramod recollected as he played with Venkatesh's daughter: "The rains began on Sunday and did not stop for three days. Each day the water in the river swelled and there was the danger of my small hamlet being washed away. Scores of pilgrims climbed the mountains seeing the raging river and perished in the landslides." On arriving at Sonprayag , Venkatesh and his group asked Pramod to accompany them to Chennai. The TN official in Delhi didn't refuse an air ticket to Pramod when they heard the pilgrims' tale.

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/Chennai-pilgrims-bring-home-a-hero/articleshow/20771858.cms