A 70-year-old pilgrim from Fatehgarh Gujjran village near Machhiwara, who went missing after travelling to Sri Harmandir Sahib in Amritsar, was reunited with his family after nine days, having been traced to Gaya district in Bihar.
Chaman Lal had travelled to Sri Harmandir Sahib on September 11 under the Mukh Mantri Teerath Yatra Yojna. During the visit, he became separated from his group and accidentally boarded a Bihar-bound train, eventually reaching Gaya district. While wandering in Bihar, Chaman Lal met Neeraj Kumar, a local youth who took him home, provided him food and water and looked after him. Chaman Lal could tell Neeraj only that he belonged to Fatehgarh Gujjran village. Meanwhile, his family had been searching for him for several days. They circulated his photograph on social media and also lodged a missing person complaint.
Neeraj said he spent four days using Google and other AI-based technology to trace Fatehgarh Gujjran. He eventually discovered that the village was near Machhiwara in Ludhiana district. Neeraj then accompanied Chaman Lal by train to Ludhiana and later Machhiwara. He showed the elderly man’s photograph to locals while trying to locate his village. His efforts finally paid off when Machhiwara resident Krishan Lal recognised Chaman Lal and informed his family. His grandson, Sukhchain Singh, rushed to Machhiwara and brought him home and thanked Neeraj.