Nabarangpur: Age and the chilly winter have not deterred 82-year-old G Venkat Amma from working as a pilgrim guide here. It might be difficult for many people of her age to go out alone, but for her it is not so. Her hard work and determination has made her a household name in the locallity.
Every year she accompanies pilgrims as a guide to pilgrim centres and ensures that they return home safely. Venkat Amma has accompanied pilgrims 10 times in the last 22 years.
This has been her source of livelihood, happiness and the way to avoid boredom after her husband died 22 years ago. Although it might seem like a daunting task to teenagers and the middle-aged, Venkat Amma’s energy has surprised everyone including the pilgrims.
“During the Hindu month of Kartik, I took a group of 70 pilgrims to Hardwar. After a month we returned via Puri,” she says.
Sources said, Venkat Amma’s husband G Surya Narayan died 22 years ago, leaving her alone as they had no children. She did not have a home of her own and she used to live in her friend Mangama’s house.
“God had something different for me. So the house was destroyed in a fire. I lost all my documents like voter identity card, Aaadhar and ration cards. But my neighbour N Shankar allowed me to live in his house,” she says.
Meanwhile, municipal officials helped her acquire copies of all her identity cards. She has been receiving Rs 500 as pension and 10 kg of rice under the Annapurna Yojana from the government. When asked how she has been handling the job of a guide, she said her father had been a guide and that she had assisted him for 30 years.
“I take pleasure in accompanying pilgrims. Moreover, pilgrimages help me to forget my loneliness,” she adds.
Venkat Amma is now on a pilgrimage to Ganga Sagar near Kolkata for the holy ‘Makar’ dip with pilgrims.
They are planning to visit Nadia Naudweep, Mayanagari, the birthplace of Chaitanaya, Babadham, Kolkata, Dakshin Kali and Vellore Mutt. Their journey will end at Puri January 21, and they will come back to Jeypore on the Hirakhand Express.
PNN
