Flying High: These Businessmen Gifted 115 Tamil Nadu Village Seniors Their First Flight Experience

On Saturday, January 2, 115 senior citizens from Devarayanpalayam village of Tamil Nadu boarded the first flight of their life to travel to Chennai from Coimbatore. For 102-year-old Kuppathaal, this tour of the state was a dream come true, all thanks to two entrepreneurs from the same village.

A dream come true

The group mainly comprised women who worked in the textile industry, and making the trip a kind of pilgrimage, the group is being taken to temples and a mosque at Kancheepuram, Tiruvannamalai and Vellore by bus, on their way back, reported NDTV.

“The plane ride was beautiful. I enjoyed. They took care of me very well,” said Kuppathaal, the eldest in the group.

Not just Kuppathaal, for everyone travelling in the plane, the whole trip was a dream come true. 57-year-old G Valliammal said that travelling in a plane was unimaginable for her, because of them have never even travelled in a train. 63-year-old Saraswathi, who used to look at the sky every time a plane passed by, this is an “unforgettable memory”.

For one of the two men who sponsored the trip, M Ravi, the idea to fly his villagers crossed his mind when he flew for the first time on a business trip to Kolkata, and his idea and desire only kept growing stronger every time he took a flight. He said that his father, who is no more, loved the villagers a lot and had done a lot for them, and so he wanted to take the legacy forward. His plan took the form of reality after the other sponsor, a textiles merchant, came forward to share his costs.

“There is joy in making others happy. That’s what I’ve done. All are like my family. We are not going to take our wealth anywhere after this life,” the businessman said.

Earlier in 2018, Vikas Jyani, a pilot from Sarangpur village, Hisar District in Haryana arranged for air travel for all the villagers aged above 70. Among the 22 people, most had their first flight experience after Jyani’s initiative from his earnings. Jyani arranged the travel from New Delhi to Amritsar. The trip extended to Wagah border, Golden Temple and Jallianwala Bagh.

The Logical Indian appreciates the two men’s kind gesture towards the elderly.

Also Read: Promise Of A Lifetime: This Pilot Gave The Gift Of Air Travel To All Grandparents Of His Village