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Agra brothers lose parents to Covid within five days
Fate shattered the world of two Agra brothers, aged 13 and seven, as they lost their parents to Covid-19 within five days in May
Fate shattered the world of two Agra brothers, aged 13 and seven, as they lost their parents to Covid-19 within five days in May. The younger of the two boys is finding it especially hard to come to terms with the loss.
It has become difficult for him to reside in the same house in the village where his parents lived as their memories haunt him and the tears are impossible to fight back. Helplessness is writ large on the face of the 71-year-old grandfather as he deals with the enormity of the responsibility of bringing up the two boys at Gudhi Rampuri Chandrasaini village in Bah tehsil of Agra district. His wife, 69, is a cancer patient and he underlines the need for government aid for the boys.
The younger child, aged seven years, is a student of class 5 and the elder, aged 13 years, is a student of class 9 at a school in a nearby village.
“I will leave no stone unturned to have my grandsons educated although there are financial constraints. Both my son and daughter-in-law were earning before they breathed their last,” says the grandfather.
Till Covid turned their world upside down, all of them had been staying together.
“I lost my son and daughter-in-law within a span of five days because of Covid-19. I have little choice but to live for my grandsons now,” he says.
The grandfather is employed as security man in Delhi, but visits his village from time to time. He has no land to his name, nor any pension. He worked in the private sector all his life.
“My daughter-in-law aged 37 was a shiksha mitra (para teacher). She died after being infected by the coronavirus on May 10 despite receiving treatment at a hospital in Agra,” he says.
“Within a span of five days, I also lost my son, aged 41, to Covid. He was employed with a construction company. With his death, my grandsons lost both their parents and the responsibility of raising them has fallen on me,” he says.
“I have to go to Delhi to report for work. My grandsons are taken care of by my wife, who is 69 years’ old and a cancer patient,” he says.
“A sub divisional magistrate was in the village recently and talked to me. But we are yet to get any financial aid from the government. Till then, I have to carry out the responsibility of taking care of my grandsons so that they do not feel orphaned,” he says.
“However, we need government help as both my wife and I are old. We may not live long enough to see my grandsons settled. The government should ensure a government job for my grandsons (when they grow up),” he says.
