Abhijith N Kolpe

Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru

Mangaluru Nov 27: In contemporary world, it is common to see youngsters sending their elderly parents to old age homes as they feel that looking after them is burdensome. But here is a 39-year-old bachelor, Krishna Kumar, a former marketing official hailing from Mysuru taking his 70-year-old mother on pilgrimage in his two decade old scooter. Krishna Kumar prefers to call this journey, 'Mathru Seva Sankalpa Yathra'.

Krishna Kumar, in his old Bajaj Chethak scooter, has carried his 70-year-old mother to worship centers spread over seven states covering more than 29,000 kilometers. Krishna Kumar started his journey on January 16 this year from Mysuru. So far, he has explored states like Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Maharashtra, and Goa, after which he has now reached coastal belt of Karnataka.

During his visits, he gets busy visiting all the temples, tourist places and exploring the culture, traditions and richness of the respective states.

Krishna Kumar and his mother Chooda Rathna reached the city on November 26 and stayed overnight at Ramakrishna Mission located at Mangaladevi. This mother and son duo spoke to Daijiworld about the experiences they had in the course of their journey, during their halt here.

Speaking to Daijiworld, Krishna Kumar said, "I happen to be the only son to my parents and am a bachelor. We live in a joint family and I would see my mother spending all her time in serving and taking care of our joint family. Four years ago my dad expired, my mother spent close to 67 years in taking care of the family and she had never been to outing and had not been to any of the places around. I used to notice this but could not do much as I was helpless," he explained.

He further said, "After the death of my father, I had a conversation with my mother during which I questioned her about the places she had visited. Her instant reply was that she had not even visited Belur and Halebeedu which are only a few kilometers away from our home town that shocked me. So, I decided to embark on this tour which is called I prefer to call 'Mathru Seva Sankalpa Yathra."

When asked about the reason for opting the two wheeler for this journey, Krishna Kumar said further, "In the past, when I was working I took her to northern part of the country in a four wheeler on a 40-days trip. I could notice that she used to enjoy every moment and was more enthusiast and deeply involved. I resigned from my professional career and decided to fulfill her wish and took her for this 'Mathru Seva Sankalpa Yathra'. I chose this scooter for the tour because it can be driven even in nooks and corners and is more convenient to travel. 20 years ago my dad gifted me this scooter and it makes us feel that he is taking along and we have that attachment towards our two wheeler," he explained.

He also added,"We will visit Mangaladevi, Kudroli, Kadri, Sharavu and other tourist places in Mangaluru. We spent nearly two months each in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra, and Telangana. We made sure to see that every corner, and every lane is visited by us during the tour to explore the beauty, tradition, and culture of the respective places."

When asked about accommodation, Krishna Kumar said,"as I was a corporate team leader, I used to share good bonding with the people and developed contacts from various parts of the country. So I arranged accommodation. We even stayed in Maths, temples etc. Many a time, even local people were kind enough to guide us, and helped us throughout the journey by giving us love and respect which made this journey smoother".

Speaking to Daijiworld, Chooda Rathna said, "We lived in a joint family and I restricted myself to taking care of my husband and family. Since the death of my husband I became lonely and all the responsibility came on my son. He has been with me 24 hours of the day. When I said I did not even visit Belur and Halebeedu, he felt bad and decided to take me for a Yathra across the country. This scooter has been helpful for us and more convenient and he made sure I see every place and corner of the regions we visited."

She also said," I stand as perfect example to prove that despite travelling in two-wheeler my health condition is perfectly fine and I have not been through any body pain throughout my journey. Since a young age my son has been closely attached to me and does not allow me to become sad. I did not express my wish to undertake this Yathra openly, but he understood my wish and now he is fulfilling it. It has brought me satisfaction and I am blessed to have a son like him."

"This is the time when we see elderly being sent to old age homes and children do not even take care of the elderly. But my son quit his job for my sake to take care of me. He took me for a Yathra and made sure to keep me happy and fulfill my wish," said Chooda Rathna.

Passing a message to present generation, Chooda Rathna said, "As elderly people, we do not expect to take us for a Yathra, because everyone cannot do it as they have their own difficulties. But I want to request the youngsters not to desert or leave the elderly alone. "Just take care of us with love and respect, at least once in a while take us around which will bring smiles on our faces. Even a small thing done for us will feel like huge favour for us."