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Poor but honest and noble

BHUBANESWAR: Many often say that poverty leads to dishonesty. But, an act of nobleness by a poor man and his little daughter compel such persons to correct themselves.

A Bhubaneswar-based trader, Gunanidhi Biswal, and his daughter Rosy, were on their way by a motorcycle to the city from their village near Astaranga in Puri district on Friday morning.

After driving for nearly an hour, to their utter shock and surprise, they discovered en route that their bag with Rs.60, 000 in cash, jewellery worth more than Rs. 1 lakh and important documents was missing.

Convinced that the bag had slipped off their vehicle somewhere, they drove back. The father-daughter duo stopped at each hamlet on the roadside to enquire if anyone had found the missing bag but in vain.

“At Charichhak bus stop, we were asking the locals about the bag when a 10-year-old girl approached us and invited to meet his father who, she said, had found a bag,” said Mr. Gunanidhi.

“The child took us to his father Duba Bhoi, a poor farmer, who was working in the field. He showed us the bag that he had recovered from the road and had kept in his house. I opened the bag and was surprised to see that the farmer’s family members had not even opened it so far,” said the trader.

“The farmer was not at all excited to hear that the bag was worth more than Rs. 1 lakh, nor did he agree to receive a cash award of Rs.2, 000 from me for helping me to get it back,” said Gunanidhi with gratitude.

“God has made me poor but I am happy with whatever I earn by hard work. It’s your property. Why should I long for it?” the farmer asked Mr. Gunagrahi.

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