Porunnan Rajan, a resident of Kannur district in Kerala, won the first prize of Rs 12 crore in the Kerala New Year-Christmas Bumper held on February 10. The 55-year-old daily wage labourer from a tribal colony at Malur Kaithachala couldn't contain his happiness as he bought the ticket while he was on the way to a bank to avail his fourth loan to repay the three loans he took before.

Being a regular lottery ticket buyer, he couldn't resist getting the ticket despite the fact that he couldn't easily afford Rs. 300 for the ticket. He had also not told anyone about the lottery as his family was against him wasting money for it.

"I feel happy. I never thought I’d win this big. Though the result was announced, I did not expect to be the winner. I would now be able to settle all my loans which will come to around Rs 7 lakh and complete the work of my house. My wife always fought with me for my habit of buying lottery tickets as she thought it is a waste of money," said Rajan who has two daughters and a son.

“We were under debt after trying to build a house for ourselves and after the marriage of our elder daughter. Coming from a tribal background, we got some financial help to build the house – Rs 75,000. But we needed more and took loans from the district bank and other banks. It came to about Rs 5 lakh. To pay off that debt, Rajettan was going to take another loan. On the way, he went to Payyan Lottery at Koothuparamba and got the ticket,” Rajan's wife Rajani said. After deducting taxes, Rajan would get around Rs 7.2 crore.