KOCHI: If not for his eagerness to help his colleagues, friends and even strangers, Gireesh VD, the driver of the ill-fated KSRTC Volvo bus, would have been alive today. He had returned after a trip and was getting ready to get back home to his family comprising his mother, wife and daughter when he came to know that the driver who was slotted for the trip needed leave.
“He stepped in. That was his nature. Always looking to help others,” said Shobana Mohan, Gireesh’s aunt.
“He was the cool dude in not only our family but also the panchayat. He was always at the forefront of everything, be it sports or any other activity happening in the panchayat,” she said.
According to Shobana, Gireesh’s daughter Devaki, a plus-two student, had drawn up big plans.
“Gireesh had taken leave to take part in the Keezhillam Mahadeva temple festival. But with many drivers taking leave as a part of the Sivaratri, he volunteered to go on the trip. He would have been here by 7 am today,” a teary-eyed Shobana said.
“You should see him while at home. Gireesh’s family was the one that lived the best lives in our clan,” she added.
“We had a foreboding. Every time he goes on a trip, Devaki would call him around 5 am. However, this time when she called he didn’t pick up and that made Devutty, as he used to call her, very troubled. She even said this to her mother,” said Shobana.
“But Smitha, Gireesh’s wife, consoled her by saying he might be busy driving and would call once he reaches Perumbavoor, like the way he used to do every time. But the call never came,” she said. He was the sole breadwinner of his family.
According to Mohanan, Gireesh’s uncle, he started going on long-distance trips just three years back. “He was a very good driver,” he said.