THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A fortnight before he set out on an ambitious Kanyakumari-Kashmir trip on May 29, Anas Hajas had told one of his former teachers about his dream. The 31-year-old had said that he wanted to become the first person in the world to successfully complete the arduous 3,700-km-long trip on his skateboard.
However, fate had other plans. On Tuesday morning, the youth from Ancham Kallu, a nondescript village near Panavoor in Thiruvananthapuram, was hit by a truck at Kalka in Haryana. He died on the spot. He was 15 days away from reaching his destination. Those who knew Anas, recalled how the computer science graduate, who dabbled in the IT sector, fell in love with skating while working in Bihar. They said the trip combined two things he loved the most — skateboarding and travelling.
Suresh Thellickachal, who taught Anas for five years in a parallel college at Thempamoodu, remembers his final conversation with Anas. “We told him he would be the first person from our place to travel to Kashmir on a skateboard. He corrected us, gleefully, that he would be first not just from our place but from the entire world,” said Suresh.
Suresh said the local club Anas was associated with had been planning to accord him a grand reception upon his return. “He was interested in attending the reception as it would help him introduce the sport to children,” he said. After getting the news of Anas’ death, his relatives left for Haryana to bring his body back.