Nostalgia gripped three blood-donor friends when they visited a colony meant for the leprosy-stricken to spread awareness about coronavirus on Saturday.

S.K. Jha, Jayant Kumar Bhuyan and Shashank Shekhar chose Gandhi Ashram near New Baradwari for the mission to inform people about the virus and ways to prevent it.

The trio spent over two hours there to distribute soaps among nearly 100 residents.

“We felt very nostalgic. We three used to visit the colony during our college days. We used to work for the residents of the colony who being cared for by Navjagrat Manav Samaj, a social outfit promoted by Telco (now Tata Motors). We used to spend hours here. Coronavirus prompted us to revisit this place after over three decades,” said Jha, a Tata Steel employee and the first person from Jharkhand to donate blood 152 times.

Jha said they told the residents of Gandhi Ashram about the importance of washing hands with soap and keeping themselves clean.

“We asked them not to venture out of their homes tomorrow (Sunday) during Janata Curfew of which they had no clue,” said Bhuyan, an experienced chess arbiter and mentor who has crossed the century mark in blood donation

He said the phone numbers of hospitals were also handed over to the colony residents.

Shekhar, also a Tata Steel employee. said he felt satisfied after having taken this initiative. “We told them about the basic things such as social distancing and washing hands to keep to virus at bay,” Shekhar, who has donated blood more than 80 times, added.

The three friends, who love adventure, had trekked to Sandakphu, the highest point of Singalila range in Darjeeling, to spread awareness about blood donation in 2017.