From Tragedy to Tin Shed | Promised aid, six resilient orphans of Narwaw battle red tape, harsh realities

Baramulla, Mar 9: Narwaw, a quaint village surrounded by lush green forests and mountains, 20 km from Baramulla, is witness to a heart-wrenching story of six orphans of the Khan family.

Naseer Ahmad Khan, son of Sarwar Ahmad Khan, was fighting all odds with his wife and six children until the family met a tragedy on December 26, 2023, night.

Naseer succumbed to a brain haemorrhage, leaving behind a shattered family grappling with the harsh realities of life.

The Khan family's journey began in the dilapidated house of mud and wood, a relic from the past that belonged to Naseer's parents.

Naseer, the only son, shouldered the responsibility of caring for his ailing mother and later, his own growing family.

“Amid the poor family conditions, my father started working as a domestic help and later started working as a labourer in the local area. He made all efforts to ensure his children had a roof over their heads and food on their plates,” said Mudasir Ahmad Khan, son of Naseer Khan.

However, life dealt Naseer a challenging hand.

Working conditions at a bakery shop led to the development of asthma.

He took medication while continuing to support his children.

Faced with deteriorating health coupled with poor family conditions, Naseer provided 2 kanal of property land to the School Education Department (SED) for the construction of the school.

“In return for the donation of land, the Education Department promised that they will employ one family member or compensation to the family,” Khan said.

After obtaining the land from Naseer Khan, SED appointed him as a Contingent Paid Worker (CPW) in the schools where he worked till 2017 and was paid a minimum honorarium every month.

In the meantime, Khan donated another 1 kanal of land to the PHE Department for the construction of a water tank.

“The PHE Department also made claims of providing monetary benefits and a job to one family member. But, the hollow promises were never fulfilled,” Mudasir Khan said.

In 2017, the government issued an order directing the SED to stop the honorarium to all CPWs and start a phase-wise process for the regularisation of all CPWs.

Khan kept longing for his regularisation and lost his battle in December.

“He passed away before he could get regularised in the SED,” another family member said.

Frustrated and betrayed by an ill bureaucratic approach, Naseer Ahmad Khan succumbed to a brain haemorrhage on December 26, 2023, leaving his family (six orphans) in dire straits.

The locals and the family members accused the SED and PHE Department of reneging on their commitments.

The six orphans living in a tin shed through the harsh winter, are struggling to make ends meet.

“Despite appeals to the local administration and district authorities, promises made during land acquisitions for the school and water tank are yet to materialise,” said Bashir Ahmad, a local.

He said that the local community after recognising the family's plight took to social media platforms to appeal for help for the family.

“The family has no source of income. Their struggle has not ended yet. The six orphans living in this tin shed face a bleak future unless urgent action is taken by the government,” Ahmad said.

Besides facing betrayal in the SED and PHE Department, Naseer Khan’s application for assistance under the PMAY scheme remains unheeded and the government has failed to acknowledge the struggle of the family.

“We appeal to the government for their attention towards this forgotten family,” Ahmad said.

Chief Education Officer (CEO) Balbir Singh Raina acknowledged that the family donated the land for the school.

“He was also working as CPW in the department. But in 2017, the department issued orders to stop honorariums to all CPWs and start the process for phase-wise regularisation of all CPWs. Unfortunately, he passed away while waiting for his regularisation,” Raina told Greater Kashmir.

He said that he had assured the kids of Naseer Khan that the department would put in effort to provide them some compensation.

“I have personally assured them that I will put up their file to receive compensation against the land which they provided to the department,” Raina said.