MGNREGA workers help lost wedding ring find its way home
KALPETTA: 'It felt straight out of a movie. The kind of story you'd hardly believe if it weren't true. I never thought I'd see my wedding ring again,' says M M Antony, his face lighting up with relief and joy. In a rare and heartwarming twist of fate, Antony and his wife, Ashitha, residents of Mullankolly, were recently reunited with the wedding ring that had been lost nearly four and a half years ago.
A teacher at St Mary's Higher Secondary School, Mullankolly, Antony had lost the ring in April 2021 while swimming in Kadamanthodu, a check-dam stream that flows through Pattanikoop ward. The gold ring, weighing around 8g and engraved with Ashitha's name, slipped off unnoticed during his bath in the stream, 3km away from his house. 'We searched the whole area after I lost it. It felt hopeless, and we eventually gave up,' Antony recalled.
However, fate had other plans. Just two weeks ago, during a routine cleaning of Kadamanthodu as part of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGA), women workers stumbled upon the ring while removing layers of mud from the streambed.
At first, they thought it was an imitation ring. But once they cleaned off the mud, they saw a name engraved inside - Ashitha. 'When we realised it was someone's wedding ring, we could only imagine how much emotion it must hold. We were eager to return it to the rightful owner,' said Lissy, one of the workers.
Understanding the sentimental worth of the find, the workers immediately informed their ward member, Jisra Muneer. Photos of the ring were also circulated on WhatsApp groups. It was Antony's friend, now settled in Canada but originally from Pattanikoop, who came across the news of the ring and contacted Antony to check if it was his. 'I can identify my wedding ring anywhere, anytime, even though we had no hope of finding it again,' said Antony.
On Friday, in the presence of MGNREGA workers and local residents, Jisra officially handed over the ring to Antony. The simple yet emotional moment drew applause and smiles from those who witnessed it.
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