Mumbai
Story Edited by Chitra Sawant.
For the common man, the number 100 is synonymous with the police department, but it has now become a matter of deep emotional connect for police personnel attached to police stations falling between Chembur and Mankhurd jurisdiction, finding themselves almost in tears.
The reason being these policemen were treated with great concern and fed with care by a Chembur couple, non stop for 100 days.
While the corona virus warriors working on the front line have been clapped and praised for their brave and tireless efforts, there are a few unsung heroes silently carrying out the good deeds, setting examples of humanitarian values.
Chembur based compassionate couple, Rosmand and Sweety D’Souza inspire, not just to Mumbaikars, but stand tall as an example world over to be emulated, as they served tea and snacks for 100 days to nearly 120 policemen who were tired, hungry and working under stress, in harsh weather conditions.
Following the announcement of a nationwide lockdown to break the virus chain, the police had been manning the roads, controlling traffic, during ‘Nakabandi’ as is known in Maharashtra, under the scorching heat and harsh weather of March, April, May and June.
As Rosmand, a civil contractor, was driving to buy essentials, after the lockdown was announced, he was considerably moved by the plight of the policemen standing for long hours, hungry and thirsty, without fearing for their own lives.
Rosmand was talking to his wife Sweety, a house-wife, about the repercussions and that is when the idea of providing food to police personnel came up.
“As these police personnel were risking their own lives, working continuously for lengthy hours, under tremendous stress, without complaining, I thought we should contribute positively, while saluting these frontline coronavirus warriors,” Rosmand told Indjournals.
When asked whether they weren’t afraid of contacting the disease, which could even mean, dying of the dreaded virus.
“Death often comes unannounced, we can die anywhere, even in the best of conditions, but that does not mean that the threat of death should stop us from following our calling. No, it should act as a deterrent, I will be happy to die while contributing to this cause,” said Rosmand.
Contribution by D’Souza couple
Rosmand and Sweety embarked on serving tea and snacks to police personnel at 3 pm daily for free, beginning by visiting three to four check posts in Chembur. Slowly they started sharing food with police personnel in Central Mumbai at Sion naka and further down at Mankhurd check post.
Sweety used to start brewing 9 liters of tea by 1 pm and then rolling 70 parathas. The couple offered varieties of parathas to ensure they did not get bored by the same menu.
The couple used to start distributing from 3 pm, carry 12 cups, plates, along with snacks in their car, and continue till 7pm, feeding nearly 120 personnel’s daily.
As the police have been avoiding food from restaurants, initially they were hesitant, a bit reluctant also, as the food was being served to them by strangers. But the duo’s persistent efforts were well received.
“We informed them that the food has been cooked at home, personally by us,” Sweety explained.
The duo thought their gesture will help the cops in keeping up with the harsh conditions they were working in, and after a few efforts the Dsouzas were convinced that they were doing the right work.
The couple used to wash the cups thoroughly with soap and water in their presence, this also helped in building trust factor.
Policemen requested to provide tea in disposable cups when they found the Dsouzas washing the cups themselves before serving tea, avoiding inconvenience.
“But we convinced them that drinking tea in disposable cups was not advisable for health,” Sweety Dsouza, recollected her initial conversation with the policemen, while speaking to Indjournals.
Emotional Moments
As Rosmand and Sweety are satisfied since they could do their bit for these frontline warriors, the policemen who have been receiving tea and snacks from them have been deeply touched by the selfless gesture.
Ankush Chavan, who was falling short of words to express his gratitude towards Dsouzas, requested his painter friend to draw a painting of the duo, depicting his feelings of appreciation. This painting was later gifted to the Dsouzas by the policeman.
While Mumbaikars were braving the heat and the pandemic, it was reported that yet another crisis was likely to hit the city, worried that the cyclone Nisarga was expected to hit between 3 and 5 pm on June 3, their scheduled time for the ride, they decided to serve the food in the morning instead of afternoon.
The Dsouzas have been receiving unexpected pleasant gestures, in prose, in graffiti and were even offered with home cooked food from policemen.
As it was raining, the policemen assumed that the duo may give a miss, as the conditions were not favourable even for a car ride.
Touched by their presence in the tough weather, Pravin Khanvekar, a policeman, got so emotional that he forcefully fed them home cooked food carried by him.
“He expressed that it was a token of gratitude, as he could not offer us anything in return,” Rosmad narrated.
Vijay Tambe, a police personnel working with Shivajinagar police station in Mankhurd, wrote a letter in Marathi describing them and their philanthropy activity as symbols of humanitarian values.
When Indjournals asked Rosmand, on how did they managed to fund the expenses, when there was no flow of income during these months. Rosmand describing on why it was not a burden on their budget, mentioned, “We treated them as our family members, not as outsiders, we used to buy all the grocery items along with the family’s grocery, so it was not an extra expenditure.”
Though the family did not calculate the actual cost incurred for brewing 9 litres of tea and cooking 70 Parathas daily for 100 days, it must have amounted to a big sum.
Rosmand avoided answering on the expenditure incurred, it seems that now he is eager to resume his work as civil contractor, soon.
The endeavour which bought the
Dsouzas closer to the otherwise feared policemen, ended on July 4 evening having completed 100 successful days of their humanitarian ride.
The family humbly refuses to acknowledge doing any great work.
Police in Tears
The policemen were in tears on Saturday evening as the endeavour came to an end.
“A cup of refreshing tea relaxes you and boosts your confidence, especially when working outdoors. But since as tea stalls were closed, hence when they served us tea and snacks without taking a single break, we felt their heartwarming act reach the core of our being,” Anil Girigosavi, Police personnel posted in Chembur Traffic police, voiced his views while speaking to Indjournals.Dsouzas have become part of our family. Many of us cried on Saturday, as we won’t be meeting them now. We fall short of words to express our gratitude towards this family”.