Prasavithirku ilavasam, is a common adage that found behind most autorickshaws directly hinting that the ride is free for pregnant women. Here is an autorickshaw driver at Gudalur in the Nilgiris district who went beyond his call of duty to help the patients at Government Gudalur Hospital by dropping and ferrying them free of cost, after he found some patients could not get transportation during the curfew.
P Jayaprakash, 51, the driver said he recently saw a patient from the hospital struggling to return home as the latter did not find public transport or private cab due to the curfew. He had then instantly decided what he wanted to do the remaining days until the curfew period is over. He said he had dropped and ferried almost 15 patients in the past week. The pick-up or drop of the patients could be done anywhere at the radius of 25 km in the Gudalur region, he added.
"I have put my contact number on all social media platforms along with a message to inform about the free ride for the patients. The service is offered not to all the people but, to the patients who essentially need to travel to the hospital. Normally, the service of the '108' ambulance is limited to only dropping the patients at the hospital. Whereas, I give provide them shuttle service," said Jayaprakash, who is an ardent fan follower of Superstar Rajnikanth.He also acknowledged that he has started receiving calls from people after he published his contact number on Facebook and WhatsApp.
Being an auto driver for the past 25 years, Jayaprakash had received the best driver award during the Road Safety Awareness rally in 2018.
