india

Updated: Apr 25, 2020 10:50 IST

A 109-year-old man, and perhaps the oldest in the country, has emerged a silent coronavirus disease (Covid-19) warrior in a remote village on the Bihar-West Bengal border.

Yogendra Nath Mandal, an elected sarpanch of Gauripur gram panchayat, which falls under Pranpur block and located about 75 kilometres east of Katihar district headquarters, is spreading awareness among his fellow villagers about the viral outbreak in Bengali and Angika, a local dialect.

“Gaamchha, saban aar nizer bari ai diye amra corona ke tarhabo” (We’ll defeat corona with a towel, soap and our own house) is the message of the centenarian for his native village, where Bengali is the lingua franca.

He explains that gaamchha, which has found resonance in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s speech as a homegrown personal protective equipment (PPE) kit against Covid-19, can double up as a mask, soap as hand sanitiser and a person’s own house to enforce social distancing norms.

Initially, the government announced a nationwide lockdown for 21 days and then further extended for another 19 days till May 3 to contain the spread of Covid-19 outbreak.

Mandal, who was born on October 1, 1911, in a family of marginal farmers in Gauripur, which has a population of around 5,000 people, was elected sarpanch at the ripe old age of 104 in 2015. The then Katihar district magistrate, Mithilesh Mishra, had felicitated him for his feat.

His daily routine is one of strict discipline, as he gets up early in the morning, maintains a healthy diet, and serves his fellow villagers with love and affection.

Mandal holds a rare distinction that none of his judgements -- delivered to resolve petty villages disputes -- have ever been challenged in court by any disgruntled party. “I’m happy that during my four and a half years’ stint as a sarpanch, all my decisions have been acceptable to both the opposing parties. I must have resolved around 350 disputes to date,” he said.

Pratap Singh, a local villager, agreed. “No one has ever raised a finger against him.

Any appeal made by Mandal ji has a divine ring to it. All of us obey his order,” he said.

“His kind words hold the key to strict enforcement of lockdown restrictions in our remote village,” he added.

Mandal, a Gandhian at heart, is dreaming of a prosperous future for Gauripur after the battle against the viral outbreak is won. “We’ll develop our village and the nation with renewed vigour after Covid-19 pandemic is defeated,” he said.

His wife, Basumati Devi, helps Mandal in his social service. “I feel proud of my husband’s zeal and concern for the betterment of our society. I try to help him whatever way I can,” she said.

Mandal was blessed with there sons. However, his youngest son, who worked as a lawyer at Katihar civil court, died a few years ago. The son’s death didn’t deter him from carrying on his selfless social work. His eldest son has retired from the sales tax department, while the middle one is working in the state health department.