It must have been around 1 PM on that sunny winter afternoon. Patches of lovely yellow mustard amidst asymmetrical landscape were easy on the eyes; equally uneasy was this jerky and jumpy drive. The shabby, broken, under construction road has had a history of several eventualities, testimony of quite a few fraternity members spilling their blood into martyrdom.
Returning from visit of CRPF Camp in Naxal affected village Sarjamdih, we were about few Kilometers short of Bundu town in Jharkhand. Engrossed in mundane thoughts, my eyes landed on couple of kids, standing on roadside, saluting our convoy. Beside us, they seemed to be only human presence in that eerie ambience.
Curiosity got better out of me. I asked for the vehicle to halt and got out of it. While approaching them, my lips curved into grin seeing their happily smiling jolly appearance. Innocent face, ruffled hair, casually worn school uniform, bags wrapped around back and glint in their eyes, they were surely not more than 10 years. In a local dialect, I asked them as to why did they salute us.
“Kyunki Aap Hamari Raksha karte hain..Aap Desh ki Raksha karte hain. (Because you protect us…You protect the whole country),” came spontaneous reply.
I was astonished and awestruck. I was expecting some naïve and childish response; however this was a powerful return from kids of that young age. Children waving and saluting at soldiers is not an unusual sight but this straight from the heart, unforced and unprompted mannerism, glorifying our presence was immensely pleasing and soothing.
I offered them handful of toffees which I usually carry while on move. After chitchatting for some time, we resumed our ride. Heading for their house in remote jungle, these kids were returning from a nearby school. Generally employed as coercion tactics by parents to induce fear for managing disruptive child behaviour, mere mention of a cop is enough to send chill down their spine and here we had this bold duo, making striking statement before uniform clad Policeman, in an area notorious for producing some of the most dreaded Naxals in the State.
Remaining unfailingly committed in service of the Nation, Security forces often receive flak by virtue of inaccurate projection of stray incidents during volatile law and order challenges. Regardless of the occasional misinformation, this untainted gesture and expression, straight from future of the nation was reassuringly gratifying and exhilarating.
Just few years back, this turf being an intense hotbed of violent Naxalism, a prominent political leader was killed in broad daylight, further derailing the developmental initiatives. With handful of schools around being non-functional, education prospects were also bleak. Children attending school now, with out and out faith in CRPF is reflective of constructive transition and positive undercurrent from the region. There’s not an inch of doubt that end of the menace is pretty much on the cards now.
On eve of Republic Day today, 44 days have progressed since that random rendezvous on 12th of last month. Those words are still vivid in my senses.
“Aap Hamari Raksha karte hai...Aap Desh ki Raksha karte hai...”
(The writer is Inspector General, Central Reserve Police Force, Jharkhand Sector)