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‘Don’t know why I was stopped’: Telegu techie confined to a room in China prays to return
Jyothy, who hails from Bheemunipadu village in Koilakuntla Mandal of Kurnool district, and another colleague Satya Sai Krishna from Visakhapatnam, were the only ones among the 58-member team from TCL Corporation who were stopped from boarding Air India flight.
It is like a virtual solitary confinement for 22-year old Telugu techie Annem Naga Jyothy at her dormitory room in Wuhan town in China.
For the last one week, Jyothy has been staying alone in the room on the sixth floor of the women’s hostel where she was put up by her company – TCL Corporation. All her colleagues from India, who had come to Wuhan for training in November last, were evacuated and sent back to India on February 1, after the outbreak of dreaded Novel Coronavirus (nCoV) in the town last month.
“There are in all 10 rooms on the floor and all of them are now locked up, except my room. I am the only Indian girl in the entire hostel. There is none to talk to me and I feel scary (sic). Occasionally, one or two Chinese people are seen here and there but I cannot communicate with them,” Jyothy told Hindustan Times over phone from Wuhan.
Jyothy, who hails from Bheemunipadu village in Koilakuntla Mandal of Kurnool district, and another colleague Satya Sai Krishna from Visakhapatnam, were the only ones among the 58-member team from TCL Corporation who were stopped from boarding Air India flight that brought 324 Indians back on February 1. A day later, another batch of 323 Indians were also evacuated by the second Air India flight.
“Krishna and I were stopped at the immigration counter in the airport after medical check-up. I was told I had a temperature of 37.5 degrees Celsius, as against the normal temperature of 37 degrees. They took my saliva sample and asked me to go back to the hostel room,” she said.
Jyothy wondered why she was forced to stay back in Wuhan when she had no symptoms of Coronavirus.
“They didn’t conduct any other tests. I am absolutely fine and healthy. I contacted the Indian embassy people several times and told them about my position, but they are also helpless as the Chinese government authorities are not allowing anybody to leave the town,” she said.
There is nothing for Jyothy to do now. “There is no work, as the company has been closed. In fact, the vacations for spring festivities started on January 22 and I was planning to return to India, when this unfortunate development took place. I am sitting idle all through the day alone. I cannot go out of the hostel, as the town has been under lockout. Luckily, there is WiFi facility in the hostel and I am able to pass time with my laptop,” she said.
The company has arranged for her food and other facilities.“Everyday, they drop food packets at the doorstep of the hostel room and go back. I feel like I am in a jail, but I cannot help,” Jyothy said.
Jyothy’s father Annem Maheshwar Reddy, who served in the military, died a few years ago and her mother Prameela is a housewife. In fact, Jyothy got engaged to her close relative Amarnath Reddy, a chartered accountant working in Bengaluru and their marriage has been fixed for March 15.
Prameela, who has been in touch with her daughter every day, is anxiously waiting for her return at the earliest. She has been worshipping Lord Shiva at Maha Nandi temple near Nandyal every day, praying for the safe returning of Jyothy.
Following Prameela’s repeated representations, Nandyal MP Pocha Brahmananda Reddy took up the matter with the minister for external affairs S Jayashankar to see that Jyothy is sent back to India at the earliest.
“Yeah, Jayashankar sir spoke to me this morning and assured to take up the issue with the Chinese authorities for my early return to India. I have also requested the Indian embassy to see that I get out of this town and move to a safer province from where I can get the flight back to India,” Jyothy said.
