The rehabilitation camps set up by the Government for border villagers here have turned into mourning congregations as wailing relatives of the victims of Pakistani shelling cry over their dead.
Over 425 persons from nearly a dozen border villages are camping at two Government run schools and an Indian Training Institute (ITI) complex in R S Pura town over the past couple of days after getting dislocated from their houses in border areas due to intense shelling by Pakistan.
“He was my only hope…his elder sister was scheduled to get married in March. We have lost everything,” Sukhman, father of 15-year-old Gharu Singh, who died of Pakistani shelling near his Kapurpur residence yesterday, said.
Sukhman’s wife and three daughters were among 250 border residents camping in Government boys higher secondary school and are in deep shock, weeping inconsolably as their neigbhours and relatives attempted to console them.
The boy was cremated last night far away from his home.
Fighting to hold his tears back, Sukhman, whose left arm is motionless after suffering an electric shock some years back, said he was with his son minutes before his death.
He asked me to leave the house as intense shelling was going on and said he will follow soon, he said.
Middle-aged Kanta Devi, neighbor of Sukhman, said she telephoned the police after the boy was hit by splinters in the chest. He was taken to a hospital where he was declared brought dead.
He had started working as a barber to help the family to meet expenses of the marriage of his sister, Sukhman said adding he was hardly in a position to do anything owing to his disability.
“I used to work as a labourer. I am helpless and don’t know what to do,” he said.
‘Lambardar’ Darshan Lal said Sukhman’s family was the poorest of all house-holds in the village, making a passionate appeal to the Government to help the family with adequate compensation.
“Our village is just half a kilometer from the zero line. The firing was intense this time, (and we have) never seen such a thing before,” he said adding four houses were destroyed in the village by the Pakistani shelling.
He said a majority of the people fled, but at least one person of each family stayed back to take care of the domestic animals and to keep watch on the house.
Lecturer Anita Sharma said arrangements were in place to ensure that they do not face any problem during their stay at the camp.
In a nearby camp set up at an ITI complex, the body of 40-year-old Ghar Singh, a resident of Bhera, was lying and the people were making arrangements for his cremation.
“He was hit by a shell as he came out of his house yesterday to relieve himself,” Sudesh Kumari, sister-In-law of the deceased, said. He is survived by his wife, three sons and a daughter, she added.
While his daughter is married, his two sons were unemployed while another is serving in Army, she said.
“The body of the Pak shelling victim was brought to the complex last night and necessary arrangements were made for the cremation of the deceased,” ITI Principal Vivek Sagar said.
He said over 150 persons from Abdal, Abdullian, Raipur, Choga and Bhera were putting up in the institute and were being provided every possible help by the administration.
He said a stream of local residents and volunteers from Non-Governmental Organisations had also contributed. We have surplus essential commodities available at the camp, he said.
Girdari Lal Sharma, a Government employee deployed at Government High School for overseeing the arrangements, said about 20 persons stayed overnight at the camp.
Police said they had evacuated nearly 5000 people to safer places besides shifting nearly two dozen injured persons to hospital.
“We have deployed four bullet proof vehicles, one each in R S Pura and Arnia sectors, to help the affected population. Around 35 villages were under the impact of direct fire from across the border,” he said.
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