A man has built a temple to his father, who passed away recently at Fishermen’s Colony here in his memory.
“I have seen the statues of political leaders and felt that my dad, who toiled all his life for us, deserved much more. He gave us education and did all that was possible, within his limited means as a fisherman, and ensured that we all settled down in our lives,” says V. Das, a constable in the Armed Reserve (AR) Police.
Mr. Das got a COVID-19 screening test done for his father, when he fell ill on July 23. He had tested negative. “My mother used to take care of him all the time, when he was sick, He died of heart attack in front of our house on August 3. I got his bust erected at the same place and converted the place into a temple,” Das said in a voice choked with emotion.
His brothers and sisters came home and offered prayers at the bust of their father during Dasara. His mother lights a lamp every morning and evening at the statue.
The fisherman, Vasupalli Demudu, was only 10-year-old, when he lost both his parents.
He got married at the age of 18 and had four daughters and three sons. One of his daughters had died, and he brought up his other children well with his limited resources.
“Me and my brothers used to accompany him on his boat, when he went for fishing. On three occasions, the boat capsized and we all escaped from the jaws of death. Later, he asked us to stay back at home and concentrate on our studies,” recalls Mr. Das. “My father was out at sea in his boat, when the Pakistani submarine Ghazi was sunk at the mouth of Visakhapatnam harbour by the Indian Navy in 1971. He saw life jackets floating on the waters a little while later. He rushed to the harbour and informed other fishermen about it,” he says.
Mr. Das, who studied Intermediate, had joined the Police Department, when he was just 18. A self-taught photographer, his services were utilised by the police, when he was posted in the PR wing. He put up photographs that he had taken of his parents in happier times, on the walls of the temple.
