In a near repeat of a short story he had written earlier, auto driver and writer M Chandrakumar of 'Visaranai' fame helped a pregnant migrant worker from Odisha deliver a baby boy on the roadside in Coimbatore.
The incident happened on Friday morning when Chandrakumar, whose novel, Lock Up, was converted to a national-award film, Visaaranai by director Vettrimaran, was on his way to deliver food packets to migrant workers. Upon receiving a call from his friend to come to Thulasiammal layour near Singanallur to help the pregnant woman, Chandrakumar, also known as Auto Chandran, rushed to the spot.
"My house was nearby and I called my daughter, and rushed there before she could arrive," Chandran told News 18. "The woman was already in labour and was passing a lot of amniotic fluid and blood. There were quite a few women around but they were apprehensive as they didn't know what to do. So I went to the (pregnant) woman, who hesitated initially before being convinced.
"We had called an ambulance, which arrived soon. Fortunately we managed a normal delivery."
Incidentally, this wasn't the first time Chandran was in such a situation. In a short story Azhagu written in 2013, he narrated an incident from the 1990s when he witnessed a woman delivering a child in his auto.
Recalling that incident, Chandran said: "It was early morning and I had to take a pregnant woman on the verge of giving birth. Her husband and mother were away, so the woman was alone.
"An old lady in the neighbourhood called me urgently and asked me to drive her to the hospital. I clearly remember when we were near Race Course, she couldn't bear the pain and started shouting and banging on the auto. The old lady was attending to her and said she could see the head (of the child), I told her we have three more kilometres to reach the hospital.
"She said we can't travel that far and asked me to stop near a Tea shop. After stopping the vehicle, she called me to help with bringing the child out. I was holding her legs and hands, and thanks to god we helped the woman deliver safely."
The experience, Chandran said, came to his help in this emergency situation.
"I remembered what the old lady did the other day and being in awe of how calm the old lady was back then. Fortunately the ambulance came soon, but even if there was a delay, I was mentally strong enough to do what it takes.
"Apart from that, I've seen many emergencies and accidents. Only in the last 10 years we have been using ambulance services for emergencies widely. Earlier, it was the auto drivers who would help in all sorts of emergencies. So I wasn't afraid of this situation, in fact I got stronger seeing this."
The woman and the child were rushed to Coimbatore Medical College Hospital, and are said to have been discharged on Sunday.
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