War widow gets promised land after 37 yrs

Vijay Mohan, Tribune News Service, Chandigarh, June 14
It was a battle that took 37 years. Now at the age of 70, Balwant Kaur, whose husband was killed in action during the 1971 Indo-Pak war, has finally got possession of the land promised to her by the state government as a mark of recognition of her husband’s sacrifice.

She was promised 10-acre land in Ludhiana district by the Punjab Government and is now in the possession of eight acres. The remaining land is yet to be handed to her as some issue pertaining to entries are still to be sorted out.

Balwant’s husband, Hav Kehar Singh of the Sikh Regiment, had died fighting in the Leepa Valley in Jammu and Kashmir. Under the Punjab Government’s policy to help war widows, the Revenue Department initially allotted her 10 acres in the riverbed of Churwal village, near Ludhiana.

Since the area was unusable, she sought alternative land that could be used for cultivation. As the area re-allotted to her was under the possession of some villagers, she had to embark on another battle for getting its possession.

Over the years, uncooperative attitude of the subordinate staff, original files going missing and bureaucratic hassles became the order of the day. Ultimately, the Deputy Commissioner, Ludhiana, ordered recompiling of the case file.

In 2003, the matter was reported to the Chief Minister during a public hearing, who ordered immediate action and a progress report. However, nothing moved even thereafter. It was in 2004 that the new case file reached the DC.

Though Balwant Kaur and her sons kept visiting the offices concerned regularly, there was no progress on ground. Meanwhile, an appeal filed by the then occupants of the land was dismissed by the court.

It was in late 2008 that the DC forwarded the case to the Revenue Department, but the inaptness of the subordinate staff came to the fore. Issuing incorrect orders, officials facing corruption charges and bureaucratic lethargy led to further delays.
War widow gets promised land after 37 yrs