Malkangiri: Parents these days regularly complain about kids being glued on their mobile or tabs or some of form of electronic device. They also rue that various mobile apps are slowly affecting the mental wellbeing of their children. However, there is a good side also. Due to his techsavvy daughter, a man has finally managed to return to his roots in Malkangiri district. Niranjan Sarkar, a resident of MV 13 under Tamasa panchayat in this district had left home 22 years ago in search of greener pastures. He was 17 and illiterate.
Initially, he went to Andhra Pradesh in search of work. After spending a few years in various parts of Andhra, he shifted to Mumbai. Unable to read and write, he forgot the name of the village as well his address. In Mumbai, Niranjan worked as a daily wager. Then he got married to a local girl and within a couple of years, gave birth to a daughter. As his income grew, he decided to send his daughter to school. He did not want her to remain uneducated like him. All the while he wanted to return to his village and get in touch with his family.
However, he could not do so, as he had forgotten the name of his village and just remembered the district and had vague memories of the lane number. It may seem insufficient to many people, but not for his daughter who had grown up to be tech-savvy and knew how to use a lot of mobile apps. She used the GPS app to finally get the details about Niranjan’s address and they recently returned to their native place. “I was barely 17 when I left my village,” Niranjan said Thursday. “I had no recollection of my village as I shifted from one place to another in search of a good living. I finally settled down in Mumbai. When I expressed the desire to return to my village, it was my daughter who helped me locate it and return to my roots,” Niranjan added with tears of joy streaming down his eyes. “My father loves his roots and always talked about his village.
However except for remembering the name of Malkangiri district and ‘Lane No 13’ he did not have any other detail. I used the GPS app to find a route to the village and we came down. My father is probably the happiest man now,” Niranjan’s daughter Khusboo said. Initially Niranjan’s family was a little skeptical about his identity. However, when he recounted some of his childhood experiences, there was no doubt in Kalitara’s mind that Niranjan was indeed her son. Now mother and son are enjoying a happy reunion.