JAMMU, FEBRUARY 28: Prakash after having seen almost everyone of his family members perish in the Orissa cyclone, had promised his father before setting off for Jammu that he would raise enough money to reconstruct their damaged house.The promise was kept though at a big price bigger than the old man back home had expected Prakash was killed in a bomb blast along with four others that rocked the Krishna Nagar locality opposite the GGM Science College on February 11. The State Government has ordered a sanction of Rs one lakh against every dead.Prakash's father will now be Rs one lakh richer minus his dead son.The deputy commissioner, Jammu, has asked two other labourers, who were sharing a room with him (Prakash) to get the victim's father from Orissa to Jammu so that the government will hand over the cheque to him.The two, presently putting up in Krishna Nagar, told The Indian Express that only Prakash and his old father had survived in their family, while the rest were wiped away in the sea storm last year. The storm had also consumed their home, they added.Leaving behind the sufferings and his ailing father, Prakash, along with two other youngsters set off for Jammu to work as a labourer. But, before he could have earned enough to return back to his place, he fell victim to the blast.``The father in his last letter had written to Prakash that he was eagerly awaiting his arrival so that they could begin anew. But little does the old man know that he will only be getting money for the construction of the house, but no one will be there to share the sorrow and joys with him,'' rued Surinder, another labourer from Orissa, who was lucky to escape with injuries on that day.Meanwhile, silence has visited the family of Ghungroo, 17, another blast victim. His disabled parents are dumb-struck even after 15 days of their son's death. ``I have lost my other limb also,'' said Ghugroo mother as she walked on her crutches.In continuous shock, the family is yet to encash the cheque they received from the government. ``What will we do with the money when our dear one is not with us,'' she added as tears start to well in her eyes.Meanwhile, families of the injured undergoing treatment in the hospital are not satisfied with the amount of Rs 5,000 they got from the government. ``Most of the injured were sole bread earners and it is out of this ex-gratia money that we are buying medicines for the injured besides keeping our kitchen fire burning,'' a relative of an injured said.``I don't know what will happen after three days,'' rued Neelam, wife of Jang Bahadur, a dholwalla from Gandoh di Chawni whose leg got mangled in the blast.Adjacent to him is Maheshi, a drum-beater. Undergoing treatment in the hospital room, Maheshi seems to have lost all hopes of resuming business. ``By the time I will be fit, the marriage season will be over. I will have to face a lot of difficulties to make both ends meet once I leave this hospital,'' he said.
