The lone breadwinner of his family, Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) jawan, Mohan Lal Raturi (55) was one of the many who died in the terror attack in Pulwama in Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday.
“He was to retire in five years. And he planned to work even after that,” said his wife Sarita Devi (46).
At the time of the incident, Raturi was not in the bus that the suicide bomber plowed in to. He was near the blast spot, in the security team monitoring the convoy. He talked to his sister Maya Devi and brother’s son Surya Prakash Raturi in Rishikesh at around 1.30 pm. “We had put on the news minutes after talking to him and found about the incident. We tried again on his mobile, but couldn’t connect,” Surya Prakash said.
He is survived by his wife, three daughters and two sons.
Two of his children are independent, but now that he is gone, the family sees trouble.
His eldest daughter Anusuiya (27) is married. His elder son Shankar (25) takes private tuitions in Rishikesh in Yoga. He barely earns enough to sustain his expenses. Next is Vaishnavi (20) who has completed her graduation and is unemployed. His daughter Ganga (18) is in grade 12th and son Shri Ram (14) is in grade 6th.
{{/usCountry}}His eldest daughter Anusuiya (27) is married. His elder son Shankar (25) takes private tuitions in Rishikesh in Yoga. He barely earns enough to sustain his expenses. Next is Vaishnavi (20) who has completed her graduation and is unemployed. His daughter Ganga (18) is in grade 12th and son Shri Ram (14) is in grade 6th.
{{/usCountry}}Raturi belongs to Bankot in Uttarkashi district and is the youngest of five siblings. His family resides in the government quarters in Dehradun. The house is barely enough big to accommodate his children and wife.
“For private jobs, one needs polished resume with degrees from high end institutions. But, what about our kids who study in government schools and colleges? They do not have job opportunities,” Devi said.
Devastated by the loss, Sarita who last spoke to him on Wednesday said that she wants a secure future for her children. “The government should provide us a source of livelihood by giving one of my children a government job. At least then, we won’t have to worry for our bread and butter,” she said.
Central Reserve Police Force officials visited his family and extended condolences. Deputy inspector general DIG Central Reserve Police Force, Dinesh Uniyal was also present.