Hurt in terror attack, Rajouri youth seeks job

Arjun Sharma

Jammu, November 3

Hit by two bullets on his right arm during a terror attack, Rohit Sharma, who was a porter with the Army, is jobless for the past 10 months. He had sustained injuries when terrorists struck his village –Dhangri – in Rajouri on January 1 this year.

While a total of seven civilians were killed in a targeted attack, Rohit also sustained serious injuries on his arm and is still undergoing treatment. Rohit had also lost two cousins – Prince and Deepak – in the attack by Pakistan-backed ultras.

While the doctors claim to have performed successful surgeries which made his hand functional again, Rohit said he faces difficulty in doing daily chores as he is not able to lift the load with the affected hand. He worked as a porter in an Army unit in Rajouri but could not continue the job after the incident.

“It was the fateful evening of January 1 when two terrorists entered our village. They fired indiscriminately and entered the home of my cousin where I was also present. They killed my cousin Prince and fired two bullets at me injuring my arm,” said Rohit.

He was later shifted to a hospital in Rajouri from where he was referred to Government Medical College, Jammu. “Multiple operations were performed to make my arm functional. I am thankful to the doctors of GMC but I need help from government in form of a job so that I can earn a living. I have requested the authorities several times to provide employment but nothing has been done so far,” said Rohit.

Rohit is nephew of Saroj Bala, whose two sons—Prince and Deepak—were killed during the attack. Saroj Bala says while her own sons were killed, she is taking care of Rohit like her own son now. “The government was not able to protect us from the attack but at least they should provide a job to my nephew who is left jobless due to the terror attack,” said Bala.

Meanwhile, an official at GMC, Jammu, informed that restoration of forearm which was almost partially amputated was conducted in a successful manner.

“The reconstructive surgery was performed through a team effort and execution of meticulous plastic and reconstruction surgery by Dr Ratnakar Sharma and other doctors,” the official informed.