SURAT— A salesman from Surat in Gujarat might have never imagined that his act of returning Rs 10 lakh cash, which he had found in an unattended bag on road, to its owner would bring prosperity to his family just ahead of the Holi festival.
Dilip Poddar, who works as a salesman at a saree showroom in Umra locality, was Monday awarded Rs 2 lakh for his honesty by the owner of the bag and a jeweller, police said.
The incident occurred last Friday when Poddar was returning to duty after having lunch, when he stumbled upon a bag lying unattended roadside, a police officer said.
The salesman couldn’t believe his eyes when he opened the bag, which contained wads of Rs 2000 notes totalling Rs 10 lakh, he said.
Instead of pocketing the money, Poddar informed the showroom manager about the incident, who advised him to keep it with him until its owner is traced.
After police were informed, the owner of the bag was traced through footages of CCTVs installed in the area, said Umra police station officer K A Gadhvi.
Subsequently, police approached Poddar who handed them the money.
Gadhvi said the money was finally returned to its owner, who requested not to publish his name.
He gifted Rs one lakh to Poddar for his honesty.
Additionally, a jeweller, Hriday Pachchigar, also gave Rs one lakh from his pocket to Poddar at Umra police station, saying the money that was returned to the owner was used to purchase jewellery from his shop, Gadhvi added.