Toddy-tapper's last wish remains unfulfilled

VUTURU (KARIMNAGAR): Dommati Sarvesham was an ardent devotee of Lord Ayyappa. A toddy-tapper, Sarvesham went to Sabarimala on January 9 to seek the Lord's blessings. But now his family is eagerly waiting for his body to arrive.
Sarvesham, 32, of Vuturu village in Manakonduru mandal was among the hundreds of devotees who were crushed to death in the stampede on January 14 night at Pulumedu."He started driving an auto after taking it on hire to make both ends meet. He went to Sabarimala to pray to the Lord to make our lives better. But the Lord has played a cruel joke on my husband," wife Kalyani said, sobbing inconsolably.
Kalyani said Sarvesham took to driving the auto recently as he wasn't earning much from his toddy-tapping profession. "He was sulking a lot over the paltry earnings but had always believed that Lord Ayyappa would bail him out of the severe financial crisis," she said with tears welling in her eyes.
As villagers and relatives gathered at the small house in Vuturu, an air of despondency enveloped the household. Locals said Sarvesham was among the 11-member devotee group which was coming back in a hired Tata Sumo vehicle when the stampede took place. "We never thought Sarvesham would come back dead. He had gone there before and returned safely," a relative said, trying hard to control his emotions.
Kalyani said her husband was the sole breadwinner for the family. "How will I survive with two small children and his aged parents," she asked.