NEW DELHI: Nearly two days after protesters vacated Jantar Mantar, the designated site of the students’ movement from June 20 to July 25, Delhi Police personnel Monday were seen scraping newspaper sheets pasted across the glass walls of Jantar Mantar Metro station, trying to erase the traces of the month-long agitation.But while the protest site emptied out, another effort quietly continued nearby.Inside a café in Connaught Place, a team of volunteers spent hours booking train tickets for students who had travelled to Delhi to support the movement and were now stranded in Delhi.Many had come without informing their parents, fearing they would be stopped. With the movement winding down after the resignation, getting home had become their biggest concern.“It began when supplies at the protest site started running short. People reached out asking how they could contribute medicines, dry food and other essentials,” said a volunteer, requesting anonymity.Soon, the requests changed. “Many who had come to Delhi to support CJP’s movement had exhausted their money and needed to return.On Sunday alone, my inbox was flooded with messages, and that’s when I realised the scale of the situation,” he explained.Most requests came from students and recent graduates who had travelled to Delhi on their own.“Most of them are just children. We’re simply booking their tickets and helping them get home safely,” the volunteer said, hunched over his laptop, looking for tickets.The initiative started with just two people holding a handwritten poster in Connaught Place.“When police noticed our poster, they took it away. So, we uploaded a reel explaining what we were trying to do. That’s when people started reaching out,” he said.By Sunday evening, the group had helped 65 people begin their journeys home, paying for tickets from their own pocket.The effort unfolded amid apprehensions.Some doctors associated with the initiative alleged several participants returning home through Delhi airport were being detained, a claim authorities denied.“That’s also why we’re not accepting donations. We want every transaction to remain clean. If we are questioned, we’ll be able to account for every rupee,” the team said.A network of six-seven volunteers on the ground identified stranded students and relayed their details to those coordinating travel.Among them was a young man who had reached Delhi Saturday hoping to join the protest after seeing the July 20 violence.“Luckily, we arranged a Tatkal ticket for him to reach home,” a volunteer said.There was another catch, authenticity.The team said they relied largely on personal networks and word of mouth to identify those genuinely in need.“Volunteers are verifying requests first, and then relaying them to us,” he added.
