Lost dreams in Punjab: No harvest, no home, no bicycle; floods took it all 

As floodwaters swallowed homes, fields, and much more across parts of Punjab, one father's simple promise to his son was also washed away — a bicycle, promised after the paddy harvest.

“I had told my son that once we harvested this year’s crop, I would buy him a bicycle,” recalled Sukhdev Singh, a resident of Baupur Jadid, Kapurthala, his voice choked with emotion.

The marginal farmer's three acres of farmland were ravaged by the recent floods, and their home was damaged, forcing them to seek shelter elsewhere.

Sukhdeep Singh, a Class 4 student, would often go to school with his classmates as he didn't have any vehicle of his own. This year, he had only one wish — a cycle. But fate had other plans.

“I told my son, if God wills, your bicycle will come from whatever survives here,” he said. “But the waters drowned even that last hope.”

“Hun nai milni cycle (Now I won’t get the bicycle),” the young boy told this reporter quietly.

The area continues to struggle in the aftermath of the floods. Sukhdev Singh, like other farmers in the region, is left with neither land to till nor a safe home to return to. The Government Teachers’ Union, which revisited the flood-hit region this week, extended humanitarian assistance to the affected families.

“There are students who’ve lost everything — homes, fields, school bags, notebooks,” shared Rashpal Singh Waraich, a teacher and state committee member of the union. Rashpal Singh further said the stories of children like Sukhdeep moved everyone to tears.

“Before we realised it, our hands were already in our pockets and we also helped the family,” he said, adding that such children who have dreams were provided with financial assistance. The union members gave Rs 11,000 to Sukhdev Singh's family.

Among the most heart-wrenching stories is that of 11-year-old Davinderpreet Singh, an orphan who studies at the Government School in Baupur. He was already living with his guardians when the floods struck. His house, too, collapsed, forcing him and his guardians to take refuge in someone else's home. He is from Bhaini Kadar Baksh village.

“We will do our best to ensure that Davinderpreet and others like him are not forgotten,” the teachers said, adding that they will help Davinder as well. Another child, 8-year-old Lovepreet Singh from Rampur Gaura village, also lost his home in the floods.

Now homeless, he and his family have taken shelter elsewhere. He, too, received assistance from the Government Teachers’ Union. Yadwinder Singh, a teacher from Government School Baupur, said that he along with other teachers were keeping in touch with the students to know about their mental well-being as well.