Three years ago when the then President A.P.J Abdul Kalam was dedicating the country’s first post-Independence war memorial in Chandigarh, a young and distraught widow cried out in agony: “Memorials for soldiers are good, but the army and society at large should take care of the families of those who sacrifice their lives for the nation.” The lady was Manreet Rana, whose husband Lt. Col Amardeep Singh and 34 others were washed away while constructing a crucial bridge over Satluj river at Kharo in the Kinnaur region of Himachal Pradesh on September 8, 2005. The whole team was wiped out when the bridge collapsed, and the Army, realising the contribution made by the team, immediately declared it a “battle casualty”. However, when it came to securing compensation that was her due, things were not so easy for this mother of two widowed at the young age of 31. The question she would be asked was: “Usko kya goli lagi thee, ya woh landmine ke karan mara thha?” Manreet was vocal about the government being apathetic to non-war casualties and also earned the displeasure of certain authorities. “What others and I are saying should be taken in the right spirit. We are not cribbing but only asking for a fair deal for dependents of those who sacrifice their lives for the nation.”
Today she is wary of the Press and does not wish to come to the forefront. “Personally, I have received a lot of help from the army and the government but there are others too and the authorities should be more sympathetic in dealing with these cases,” says Manreet.
She is right. The battlefield exploits of intrepid soldiers like Capt Mohan Singh, Shaurya Chakra, Capt Gurjinder Singh Suri, Mahavir Chakra, and Havildar Anand Kumar, Sena Medal, are stuff that legends are made of. No enemy could stop them from accomplishing their difficult missions. But their families are today at the mercy of an insensitive system that does little to alleviate the irreparable loss that they suffered.
Post-martyrdom, these brave soldiers are often laid low by the apathy of a nation that forgets them and their families. Captain Mohan Singh has survived to tale the tale, but in the case of the other two men mentioned above, their families have been left to fend for themselves.
What hits many army widows most is that three years after the casualty they are required to vacate their official residence and this is extendable only by six months. The army widows have been demanding that this facility should be extended to them for at least five years.
Only the names change, not the complexion of the problem. Scores of women like Manreet are getting a taste of the government’s apathy around the country. Their belief in the system is beginning to waver. Jaya Babbar is still awaiting the Rs 5 lakh compensation promised by Assam government after her husband Major Inderjeet Singh laid down his life fighting insurgents and was awarded the Kirti Chakra (posthumous) in August 2003.
She says: “It is only fair that the law be amended to give army widows an extension on the official residence. After a soldier is killed in war or peace, the widow has to cope with much. First she has to deal with a grave personal tragedy and then fend for the children and herself. And then she has to run from pillar to post to get her due.”
For Complete IIPM Article, Click on IIPM Article
Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008
Today she is wary of the Press and does not wish to come to the forefront. “Personally, I have received a lot of help from the army and the government but there are others too and the authorities should be more sympathetic in dealing with these cases,” says Manreet.
She is right. The battlefield exploits of intrepid soldiers like Capt Mohan Singh, Shaurya Chakra, Capt Gurjinder Singh Suri, Mahavir Chakra, and Havildar Anand Kumar, Sena Medal, are stuff that legends are made of. No enemy could stop them from accomplishing their difficult missions. But their families are today at the mercy of an insensitive system that does little to alleviate the irreparable loss that they suffered.
Post-martyrdom, these brave soldiers are often laid low by the apathy of a nation that forgets them and their families. Captain Mohan Singh has survived to tale the tale, but in the case of the other two men mentioned above, their families have been left to fend for themselves.
What hits many army widows most is that three years after the casualty they are required to vacate their official residence and this is extendable only by six months. The army widows have been demanding that this facility should be extended to them for at least five years.
Only the names change, not the complexion of the problem. Scores of women like Manreet are getting a taste of the government’s apathy around the country. Their belief in the system is beginning to waver. Jaya Babbar is still awaiting the Rs 5 lakh compensation promised by Assam government after her husband Major Inderjeet Singh laid down his life fighting insurgents and was awarded the Kirti Chakra (posthumous) in August 2003.
She says: “It is only fair that the law be amended to give army widows an extension on the official residence. After a soldier is killed in war or peace, the widow has to cope with much. First she has to deal with a grave personal tragedy and then fend for the children and herself. And then she has to run from pillar to post to get her due.”
For Complete IIPM Article, Click on IIPM Article
Source : IIPM Editorial, 2008
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