: ‘I Don’t Fear Death’: Hero Street Vendor Who Risked His Life to Save Over 150 Others #IndiaNEWS #Inspirational You reach the corner of the bridge and ask around for me. Someone will guide you

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Posted in: #IndiaNEWS #Inspirational

‘I Don’t Fear Death’: Hero Street Vendor Who Risked His Life to Save Over 150 Others #IndiaNEWS #Inspirational
You reach the corner of the bridge and ask around for me. Someone will guide you to my home,� Rajesh Kachi confidently informs me over the phone.
To no surprise, a stranger guided me to his two-room house in the slum of Tofkhana area in Shivajinagar, Pune. “This is my home,� he says as he showed me his house that has a leaky roof and some awards that lay surrounding the 100 square foot area.
A street food vendor by profession, the 50-year-old earns a living by selling egg bhurji about 200 metres from his home.
Across the road from his food kiosk is river Mutha where he recalls swimming in his childhood days. He has a closer connection with the river and is fondly called Mutha cha Raja (king of River Mutha). His moniker comes from saving hundreds of lives over the past three decades by preventing people from drowning or trying to take their lives in the river, which has earned him fame, if not a fortune, in the city.
A Hero Without A Cape
Dengle Bridge at river Mutha.
Rajesh is a school dropout and could never pursue his education owing to the family’s poor financial condition. “My parents passed away when I was young. I quit school after Class 8 and was raised by my grandmother. She used to farm along the riverbed, and I spent my childhood swimming in the river,� he tells The Better India.
But little did he know that his swimming skills would make him an inspiration for many.
“I was 19 years old when I saw a girl drowning in the river. I jumped in the water and saved her life. I took the girl to her family to learn that she was being married off without her will, which pushed her attempt suicide. Her parents were thankful to me and made me emotional,� he says, adding, “That is when I pledged that I would not let anyone die on my watch. �
Since then, Rajesh saved the lives of individuals whenever he saw people drowning or in despair. “Most of the cases were during the floods when people got stuck or found themselves in the violent currents of the river water,� he says.
Soon, it spread through word of mouth and people started reaching out to him for help. “Everyone along the riverbank came to know about me risking my life to save people from drowning. And it was my grandmother who encouraged me and was confident about my skills,� he says.
At a time when there was no social media or phones, he rushed whenever requested. “Eventually, I started the street food business to make a living. It also became convenient for me to check on people jumping in the river or drowning by accident,� he adds.
Since the first incident, Rajesh has saved over 150 lives and fished out over 800 dead bodies from the river.

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