Destiny’s child Priyanka Jawalge, now a teacher, tells SHAlINI SAKSENA that she is thankful to all those who pulled her out of the latur earthquake when she was only 18 months old
She doesn’t remember any of the events that unfolded in 1993 when the latur earthquake not only shook India but the world with a death count of 10,000 people, 30,000 injuries and 52 villages under the rubble. Born just 18-months before in Mangrul of latur district, Priyanka Jawalge was asleep with her mother when the Earth shook and everything went dark.
“I don’t remember that night or the events that followed. But my parents told me about it when I was old enough to understand. To begin with, the villagers would treat me differently from other children. I knew I was special. But whyij That I came to know much later. It humbles me that Colonel Sumeet Baxi would risk everything, including his life to try and save a baby who may not have been alive,” says Priyanka who teaches English to Class IV children after completing her BEd and BA in Hindi.
So why does she teach English and not Hindiij That’s because she loves English but she had to pursue her BA in Hindi because she wasn’t allowed to go to an English medium college. She has now been teaching at a public school for seven years.
She tells you how her parents ran from the house in panic leaving her inside. She tells you how they were horror-struck when they realised that they had left their child inside. She tells you how her parents rushed towards the ramshackle house only to realise that there was no way that they could get inside and save their daughter. She tells you how it took her family three years to pick up the pieces and bring their life back on track.
“I don’t hold it against my parents that they left me behind. It was dark, the Earth was shaking. My parents are simple village folks; my father was a farmer. He didn’t understand what was happening. Such things are usually attributed to the wrath of God. What I admire about my father (died two years back) is that once he realised that I was trapped inside, he never lost hope that I would be alive. And that he did everything possible to ensure that I survive. He sought help. That is all I need to know,” Priyanka says who is now 25 and has now been happily married for three years and lives in Asola, a few km away from Mangrul.
Though it has been more than two decades since she was rescued, she still feels that she is special as the villagers think that is was God’s hand that saved her.
She tells you that though it has been 25 years, the villagers still live in fear of another earthquake. “The villagers live in fear. But I have no such feelings. I was saved for a reason. I believe that I will not die till I have fulfilled the purpose for which I was saved. I don’t fear death. If it has to come it will come and nothing and nobody will be able to save me. Why even bother to think about it. I live my life to the fullest,” Priyanka says.