Family of six stares at bleak future after losing sole-earning member in freak mishap

Since 2007, when he started working as a driver, Saiyog Pawar had been looking after a family of seven - his unmarried elder sister, disabled brother, aged parents, and the two children of his late younger sister

Since 2007, when he started working as a driver, Saiyog Pawar had been looking after a family of seven - his unmarried elder sister, disabled brother, aged parents, and the two children of his late younger sister. He had even decided not to get married because an extra member meant an additional expenditure on a shoestring budget.

Thane, India - November 22, 2022: Family in grief, pain and sorrow as 38-year-old driver Sahyog Pawar, the sole breadwinner of the family of seven members, died in Mumbai after a tree fell on his car, in Thane, Mumbai, India, on Tuesday, November 22, 2022. (Praful Gangurde/HT Photo) (HT PHOTO)

Now the family has lost its breadwinner in a freak accident, and they are uncertain about their future.

On Monday, 38-year-old Saiyog was in his car at Mahalaxmi when a tree branch fell on the vehicle, resulting in his death. The driver of the excavator that hit the tree leading to the mishap is still absconding, Tardeo police officials said.

The family resides in a small one-room kitchen house on the top floor of chawl-like Mahadev Smriti building in Thane’s Wagale Estate.

His elder sister, Pallavi, 40, is an asthma patient and could not go out to work due to her health.

“Late on Monday afternoon, we got a call that Saiyog was in an accident. My parents and I rushed to Nair hospital, but no one gave us details about his condition. When my mother insisted that we be taken to the ward where he was admitted, the doctors told us that he had died. We could not believe what we heard,” a tearful Pallavi said, adding, when they watched the video of the incident, they realised that he died due to no fault of his.

She said her brother was careful and never drove fast even if his client demanded. “However, his long-distance trips always worried me but he would say: ‘tai [sister], I know my family needs me and I will drive slowly and safely.’ He had many regular customers who trusted him with long travel.”

Saiyog worked as a driver with a private company. He had to drop out of class 7 to support his family’s income. His younger brother is disabled and bed-ridden, while his younger sister died at the age of 27 due to an illness in 2015. Since then, he had been raising her two children, an eight-year-old daughter and a seven-year-old son, and taking care of their education expenses. His father was in a private job but he left it once Saiyog got employed as he too had health issues.

Now, the fear of survival haunts the family. “It will be impossible to afford even two square meals. All of us have some health issues and are not fit to work. My brother’s death is a huge blow; we need some compensation from the government,” Pallavi said.