First COVID-19 survivor from BEST 

Vivek Gawade, 53, Mumbai
Bus conductor, Brihanmumbai Electric Supply & Transport Undertaking 

Just a few days into the 2020 national lockdown, we received news of a BEST staffer—working at the Wadala garage—who lost the battle to COVID-19. I didn’t know him personally, and learnt of his death over WhatsApp. The magnitude of the crisis hit home. Our shifts had become unpredictable. Until before the pandemic, I was working on the Jogeshwari-Dahisar stretch (Route 203) and had an eight-hour shift. During the lockdown, on several occasions, I was posted on Route 33, leaving from the Goregaon bus depot, from where we’d head to Goregaon station, all the way up to Opera House, and back. I remember having a lot of nurses and staff from Jaslok Hospital on this route. On my part, I was taking all precautions.