Velmurugan, a man in his 50s, left Tirunelveli in a car with his brother-in-law on Thursday, heading to Chennai. The whole journey was a rather painful one, as he was to receive his 29-year-old daughter V. Kollammal, who was arriving from Dubai, along with the mortal remains of her husband L.M. Kumar.
“It is a long journey back and a tough road ahead for us. I don’t know how to comfort her. It is heart wrenching for me see these events unfold at this age of my life,” he says. Both his daughter Kolammal and son-in-law Kumar were living in Dubai and were to celebrate their third anniversary next month.
Kollammal was among the 358 Indian nationals who were brought to Chennai in the two repatriation flights from Dubai at 12.30 a.m. and 1.30 a.m. respectively on Saturday. After completing the procedures at the airport, Kollammal and her father have now left for their hometown, with the mortal remains of her husband.
The remaining passengers finished the immigration procedures, gave authorities their swab samples, and then left for quarantine centres. All of them were given a choice to remain in quarantine either in the free accommodation organised by the government or pay and stay in a hotel.
While nearly 230 passengers were taken to a college campus in Vandalur-Kelambakkam road, 102 opted to stay in a hotel in Periyamet which will cost them ₹1,500 a day. The remaining 26 went to a luxury hotel in Guindy. All these passengers were taken in a bus and will be on quarantine for two weeks at these locations.
For 30-year-old Suganya Saravanan, this homecoming was rather special and crucial as she is expecting to deliver a baby soon. It was a hurried and a last-minute process -- after receiving the mail from the Indian Embassy, her husband quickly booked tickets for her to return home. “It was a smooth process. From staff in the Dubai and Chennai airport to co-passengers, everyone helped me and didn’t even allow me to lift my baggage,” she says.
Flying this time was far different, as almost everyone was clad in personal protective equipment, she says. “As soon as we entered the aircraft, we were given a new set of gloves and masks. The food—a sandwich and cake—and water were already placed in each seat. The crew was fantastic and took extra care of the pregnant women including me in the flight,” she adds. Now, after spending another two weeks here on quarantine, she will return to her hometown, Puducherry for her delivery.
