In a heartwarming gesture, Muthukumar, a 44-year-old truck driver was severely affected by the coronavirus-induced lockdown like several others in the country, recently got a house from his classmates.
He used to earn Rs 10,0000-15,000 before the lockdown, however, his earnings were reduced to Rs 1,000-2,000 after it. Adding to his financial constraints was his home, a hut which was damaged when cyclone Gaja hit the state in 2018, with six family members to be fed.
“I am staying in the same house since I was born. I have been driving trucks to make ends meet, but lockdown reduced my income measly for the past six months. Trees around my house fell during Gaja cyclone two years ago and since then my house has been in a bad shape,” Muthukumar told TNIE.
Muthukumar met his school friend K Nagendran at their school teacher’s house in September. When Muthukumar invited Nagendran to his house, the latter was disturbed when he saw the condition of his friend’s house.
“I met my friend almost 30 years after we finished school. I was distressed to see the condition of his house. Gaja cyclone had destroyed the trees around his house and the roof of his house. One needed to bend to even enter his house. I knew that I had to help him. I formed a Whatsapp group and sent photos and videos of his house. Many came forward to help him,” Nagendran said.
Nagendran and his friends got a new house constructed for Muthukumar at a cost of Rs 1.5 lakh in three months, that too without any engineer’s help.
They gifted the house to Muthukumar and his family as a Diwali gift. They also constructed a small hut nearby for Muthukumar’s mother.
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