JOIN USSoldiers made to 'starve' in Bijapur
However, local hoteliers and a social worker saved the dignity by extending warm
hospitality.
As many as 36 soldiers of the India-Tibet Seema Suraksha Dal had come to the district on the request of the State government, to take part in the flood relief and rescue operations on October 4. They were provided accommodation at the CMC community hall in the City. The district administration relieved them on the second day itself, stating that they did not have any work. On contacting, the superiors told the soldiers that they had to be in the district as they were assigned for the flood relief works till October 9.
No arrangements
Caught on a sticky wicket, the soldiers finally decided to stay in the district. But the district administration did not make any arrangements for food for the soldiers on the ground that they had already been relieved from the work. Having spent all the money at their disposal for food, the soldiers were having tough time for three days. The brave soldiers ‘had to struggle’ for a meal. But some hotel owners who saw the soldiers in a helpless condition, offered them food for two days. On the third day, a social worker hosted a dinner at a hotel in the City.
The soldiers left for their headquarters in Punjab on Friday morning. “The government has made the people of the district hang their heads in shame by not providing food to the soldiers who had to come to their rescue. If the district administration is treating our soldiers in such a disdainful manner, what about the helpless flood victims?,” questioned Vijapur Nagarika Vedike co-ordinator S M Patil Ganihar.