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Advts: Classifieds | Employment | Obituary | New Delhi
By Our Staff Reporter
NEW DELHI, JAN. 31. They might be the "real'' faces behind the Army, but often their sacrifices are forgotten and their stories remain untold. Left to linger with memories of a battle they lost waiting at home, war widows are constantly fighting to find a space within society. Bringing alive the trials and tribulations of the widows of Rajasthan in the country's most televised war is Leena Parmar's book "Kargil War Widows'', which was released here today by the Secretary-General of the Rajya Sabha, Yogendra Narain. A first-of-its-kind book, it not only deals with case studies of war widows, but also seeks to place the Kargil war widows within a sociological context. "The Kargil war widows are different from all the other widows of war for many reasons. These women have got recognition from the Government as well as from the villages or towns they live in. The soldiers who died in Kargil had State funerals often attended by the whole village. The Governments, both the Centre and State, also gave unprecedented monetary help to them, some of them getting up to Rs. 30 lakhs as compensation. So their problems are different from that of any other war widow,'' stated Ms. Parmar. The result of extensive research in many villages of Rajasthan, Ms. Parmar hopes to highlight the condition of these widows who are often forced to marry their late husband's elder brother to keep the money within the family. "The money has improved their financial position and given them a sense of empowerment. As one widow put it, `I was scared when I became a widow but my in-laws consult me in all monetary decision as I have to sign the cheque'. It is important to understand their position after keeping caste norms and patriarchal attitudes in society that prevail in rural Rajasthan. She can't challenge society on her own. Often these girls, the majority of whom are between 15 and 25 years of age, have never had any sort of training and need to be educated and made aware,'' she asserted. Stressing the need to educate them, the chairperson, Guild of Service, Mohini Giri, said: "There are about 33 million widows in the country, about 11 per cent of the population. They are helpless, hapless and are left alone to be misused by any man. To make them equal, it is important to change the mindsets of men. It is our duty to take care of those who are left behind and give these widows dignity.'' While monetary help has been extended to these widows, often other benefits offered to them are forgotten by State Governments, said Mr. Narain. "We found that non-monetary help promised to them like petrol pumps have not been allotted. It has been 3 years since the war and if they have not got the full benefit, then it is a matter of concern for policymakers,'' he added.
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