Mysuru: We find hundreds of labourers in our daily lives carrying out road works, laying optical fibre cables and staying in temporary settlements. They move with the times and shift to new places of work on a continuous basis like the vagabonds. We say to ourselves anyways life goes on!
Then we encounter an old haggard destitute women lying near a sewage drain in our regular path for days. Most times it appears her life too is going down the drain with none to care. Some of us express pity but fail to respond because we find plenty of those in our daily lives.
However, Infoscion, (Employee of software giant Infosys) D Anatharaju had a different idea when he saw a woman lying by the drain on his way to work. Moved with pity, he wanted to help the 55-year-old Tamil speaking woman who was leading her life by the drain without troubling anybody. She was not even stretching out her hand and seeking alms. She survived on the leftovers at wedding and party halls. She had a companion, a canine living by her side which relied on its true friend for its survival. The unique companionship lasted for over four years with no changes apart from the unstoppable ageing process till good samaritan D Anatharaju of Infosys walked in.
Anantharaju found her a home in “Karunashraya”, a destitute home run by catholic charity nuns on Nanjanagud Road. The new home has given her a fresh lease of life and immense solace.
Life has changed! She has found many of her age in the new home where she can share her joys and sorrows while retaining her identity.
But, when she is alone, she remembers the canine, her lost companion!
