A police constable in Madhya Pradesh walked for nearly 20 hours without food to join duty, in the middle of the nationwide coronavirus lockdown. Constable Digvijay Sharma, 22, took the 450-km journey from his hometown in Uttar Pradesh to Madhya Pradesh despite his senior advising him to stay home.
"I contacted my boss - Pachor police station inspector - and told him that I want to join duty during these testing times. He advised me against it as there was no transport facility available," said the young policeman. The gruelling journey may have left him with sore muscles but it has not diminished his commitment to work.
"I started my journey on foot from Etawah on March 25 morning. I walked for nearly 20 hours during my journey in which I took lifts from people on motorbikes and reached Rajgarh on Saturday night. I subsequently informed my boss about my arrival," he told Press Trust of India.
Digvijay Sharma said during the journey he had nothing to eat for an entire day, until some social organisations provided him food.
"My boss asked me to rest as I have sore legs. I will join duty soon," said the constable, who joined the Madhya Pradesh Police force on June 1, 2018.
Mr Sharma was recently presented a letter of appreciation for his commitment and dedication towards work during such challenging times. "I am going to write to the state Director General of Police, requesting him to give the constable a letter of appreciation," said Rajgarh Superintendent of Police (SP) Pradeep Sharma.
In India, there are close to 1,100 coronavirus cases now, including 29 deaths. The disease has caused over 34,000 deaths across the world, with many countries under complete lockdown.
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