HAUNTED BY HUNGRY PAST

SWARAN KAUR, 85, Homemaker, Nehs village, Nabha

Those days still haunt me. My father’s elder brother who had moved a little before us was beaten up at Chakrali near our native village of Tamoli in Gujranwala, Pakistan. Humanity had fallen so low those days that people would mix poison in water tanks at railway stations and food coming as aid. We reached the banks of the Ravi and the jatha decided to stay there for the night. The water started rising and there were floods. We had to stay there for four days without food. A helicopter dropped food. However, we were suspicious till someone saw a slip attached to the bundles that read ‘Harmandar Sahib wallo langar di seva’ and we dared to eat.