Cash in trash: Gujarat fruit seller sifts through garbage to recover Rs 60,000

RAJKOT: Altaf Kadri cannot thank God - and some Rajkot MC officials and workers - enough for his good fortune. The fruit seller managed to retrieve Rs 60,000 in cash that had accidentally ended up in a van, moments before waste was to be compacted.A resident of Rajivnagar in Bajrangwadi, Kadri collected the money to make a payment, and placed the wad of notes in a small plastic bag on a table before stepping out for namaz. In his absence, his elderly aunt, unaware of its contents, threw the plastic bag into the dust-bin. The bin was later emptied into the garbage collection van that services the entire ward."I returned and couldn't find the bag. After inquiring, I realised what had happened. I rushed to RMC ward office and explained the situation. They connected me to work supervisor," Kadri told TOI. According to RMC environmental engineer Prajesh Solanki, the supervisor quickly identified the vehicle that had collected garbage from Kadri's area, and instructed the driver not to unload the waste into compactor. Instead, the garbage was unloaded separately to search for the money.Kadri reached the transfer station and, with help from van driver and helper - Sukhram Vasuniya and Dhiru Vaniya - managed to retrieve the money after nearly two hours of sifting through the pile of garbage.