MSRTC’s Lockdown 1.0 hero hits highway to transport oxygen

Jagtap brought a medical oxygen tanker from Chakan in Pune to Satara on Tuesday

MSRTC driver Suresh Tukaram Jagtap was hailed a hero during last year's crippling lockdown after he ferried 24 migrant workers to West Bengal covering over 2,300 km. The braveheart is in the thick of things this time transporting oxygen.

Exactly a year ago, the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation asked 54-year-old Jagtap to head for Nadia district in the eastern state bordering Bangladesh. The driver from Satara covered 4,600 km, both ways, becoming the first MSRTC staffer to achieve the feat.

Japtap, who lives with his wife and children, said his family was reluctant when he was given the Bengal assignment. But this year, they are proud that he is ferrying life-saving oxygen.

"Negotiating unknown stretches of road with the help of Google Maps and an atlas, I and an assistant driver drove about 900 km every day non-stop. We got stranded due to Cyclone Amphan on our way back and were escorted by the NDRF. It was a tough task, but successfully accomplished," he said.

He has been entrusted with an equally challenging project this time - transporting liquid oxygen from manufacturing units to medical facilities amid a mad scramble for O2 across the nation.

Following a shortage of experienced and trained drivers to ferry oxygen, the Maharashtra government has permitted the deployment of MSRTC drivers for the delicate job. The state transporter has picked a team comprising Jagtap and four others.

"I was chosen probably because of my experience, permits and certification. I had earlier handled fuel transport. It is an honour for me and I am just doing my job," Jagtap told mid-day over the phone, just after bringing liquid medical oxygen from Chakan in Pune to Satara.

Jagtap's superiors couldn't be prouder. "The MSRTC is doing its best in every task entrusted to it. I appreciate the zeal and commitment shown by Jagtap and many other employees of MSRTC who are rising to the occasion and doing their best. It will also not be out of place to mention here the contribution of drivers and conductors of the MSRTC who are rendering their services to Mumbai city commuters through BEST," said Shekhar Channe, MD and vice-chairman of the bus organisation.

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No. of MSRTC drivers on O2 duty