Ato(on tricycle) being helped by another student on their way to college on April 15. (Photo Courtesy: Hoto Yeptho)
Morung Express News
Dimapur | April 15
A random act of kindness captured on camera by a passerby on Thursday has evoked the attention of netizens in Nagaland, with the picture being shared across various social media platforms.
In a photo taken on April 15, a college student on a tricycle was seen being helped along the bumpy road by another student in the Showba village road in Dimapur. The photo was circulated with the caption “I took this picture this morning in Showba village. This boy goes to school by wheelchair but the road between Dimapur and Showba is like a nightmare. His friend is helping him. Can we share it to concern department.” (Sic)
The student in the photo is Ato, from Old Showba Village currently in the BA 4th Semester in one of the colleges in Naga United Village.
Speaking to The Morung Express, Ato said that he started using a tricycle since he was in class 5.
He would commute to school on the tricycle but unfortunately it got damaged. Ato was then provided with a wheelchair by an NGO, which helped him attend higher secondary school.
Ato then joined the college in Naga United Village. Earlier, the college bus service could be availed but it had reportedly been discontinued in the current academic year. Equipped with hand pedals, the tricycle once again became Ato’s mode of transport to and from college.
However, owing to the bad road condition along the Showba-Dimapur stretch, the commute to college on the tricycle takes around 20-25 minutes, Ato shared.
While on other days, he would struggle to move his tricycle forward, on Thursday, Ato was seen being helped by another student from the same college. The moment was captured by a passerby identified as Hoto Yeptho who said that he had seen Ato on his tricycle on other days as well. “This morning at least his friend was helping him but other days he was literally struggling to move his wheel chair on the terrible road between Dimapur and Showba,” he shared.
Meanwhile, Ato expressed genuine surprise on the photograph and the reactions from people. “It is something I considered a daily affair. I did not expect anyone to take notice or even extend help,” he said, expressing gratitude to the student who helped push his tricycle on Thursday. “I am not even his friend but he saw my struggle and helped me,” he acknowledged.
As for the roads, if the conditions would improve, it would not only make it easier for students like me but also for everyone else, he added.
