Faced wars, but no jobs more upsetting: Villagers

Rajmeet Singh
Tribune News Service
Rattar Chattar (Dera Baba Nanak), May 12

The residents of this remote village, located 1.5 km from the Indo-Pak border, believe that the revered shrine of Hazrat Imam Ali Shah Sahib protects the village from any calamity, natural or manmade. The villagers boast of having suffered zero casualties in the 1965 and 1971 wars.

But they now seem to be facing a double-edged sword. Other than the on and off threat of cross- border firing and shelling, the village youth face unemployment and lack  of opportunities.

Pritam Kaur, the 72-year-old village sarpanch, said “The village withstood the wars but the authorities failed to acknowledge it. The governments have failed to generate employment for the villagers”.

Residents are upset that in the din of electioneering, war hysteria is being made an issue. “Memories of bombs falling and displacement of our people still haunts us,” the sarpanch added.

Subedar (retired) Surjit Singh said “Politics is being played over war but core issues faced by the villagers remain unaddressed.”

Villagers are now banking on the ongoing widening of the Amritsar-Dera Baba Nanak road. They also hope that the opening of Kartarpur corridor will hike the land prices, giving them an opportunity to improve their lives.