New Delhi: Losing crucial documents and belongings while travelling abroad is a nightmare that can unsettle even the most seasoned travellers. This unfortunate situation was tragically encountered by Dr Jothydev Kesavadev, a renowned physician and diabetes researcher from Kerala, and his wife Sunitha during their visit to Milan, Italy. The couple had travelled to Italy to present a research paper in Florence, but their trip took a distressing turn when they fell victim to pickpockets who stole their passports, credit cards, and cash. This left the couple in a dire situation, grappling with the loss of essential items in a foreign land. However, both Italian and Indian authorities swiftly intervened, providing much-needed assistance and support to the distressed couple.
The incident happened on March 5 when the couple was entering the Milan Central railway station in Italy to take a train to Florence at 6.20 pm when "a tall, lean African-American man" bumped into him. "His large trolley bag hit my right knee and I almost fell down. My wife, out of shock forgot the surroundings and bent down to help me out. When I looked back I saw a woman passing by her and then the woman and the man disappeared instantly," Kesavadev wrote on X while narrating the incident.
'Very common to have passports stolen in Italy'
Later when his wife opened her handbag, she realised that her wallet containing the passports, credit and debit cards and cash was missing. They rushed to the police station and after a long wait, he prepared an FIR and asked them to contact the Indian Consulate in Milan.
"It was not an easy task. After a long wait (police were attending to other cases), we were called inside," Kesavadev said. "Police officer on duty was very kind and considerate, and prepared a very detailed FIR. He asked us to contact the Indian consulate at Milan. We were still hoping that we would get the passport back. He said, it’s very common to have passports stolen in Italy but seldom gets it back."
The physician checked his phone and also discovered SMS notifications from his banks indicating that within 30 minutes of losing the wallet, the thieves had attempted to use both the debit and credit cards. "Fortunately, we lost only 28 euros," he said.
Check Dr Jothydev Kesavadev's tweet
The next morning, they reached out to their family friend and MP Shashi Tharoor. ''His response was quick and powerful. Immense gratitude to SC. He immediately informed the Indian consulate in Italy and by 9:00 AM I received a call from there. Consulate General Shri. Atul Chawhan, consoled us and promised an emergency passport for both of us,'' the doctor further wrote.
''Upon arrival at the Consul, the officers were very courteous and offered us a warm welcome. Within an hour they provided us with two emergency passports and gave us the confidence to go back to India only after the meetings and presentations in Florence. Dear friends let me tell you, losing the passport and money in a foreign country is very very scary and a fearful experience,'' he added.
Kesavadev said that the incident left them feeling shaken and guilty. "Probably due to repeated travels over several decades we were so careless and this is a lesson to learn from,'' he said. The doctor also said that losing the passport and money in a foreign country is a very very scary and a fearful experience.
"I am sharing this experience in social media; whether you are a traveller or not, inexperienced or experienced, could be of some help," he added.
Shashi Tharoor reacts
Thiruvananthapuram MP Shashi Tharoor also reacted to the post and said, ''Glad it all worked out in the end @jothydev! So pleased our consulate did what was needed so well.''
Here’s what people had to say:
The post, which was shared just a day ago on X, has garnered 1.7 K likes, and many comments. Many people shared their experiences in the comment section.
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