Saturday, September 15, 2012

Kewalajhir was once settled as a village for members of the Indian National Army

IIPM Review MBA 2012 - Delhi Bangalore Jaipur Lucknow Admissions

Kewalajhir was once settled as a village for members of the Indian National Army. The soldiers have since passed away or migrated. Raju Kumar explores this unique MP settlement.

For those who believe Subhash Chandra Bose or Netaji's legacy is long dead and gone, a trip to Kewalajhir in Madhya Pradesh is worth its weight in gold. On the map, Kewalajhir has no distinct identity of its own, one of the many nondescript villages that dot Raisen district's skyline.

Off the map, appearances can be deceptive. Kewalajhir's novelty lies in the fact that of the millions of towns and villages in India, not one can claim to have settled so many of Bose's legendary Indian National Army (INA) officers and soldiers and to develop it like a military cooperative farm on the lines of a Soviet, as this. Undoubtedly other villages have a distinguished history of such familial recruitment, but here in Kewalajhir it is a deep generational attachment to that rag-tag army which Bose set up to take on the might of the British empire. There is no family in Kewalajhir, a village of about 1,000 residents, which has not served the INA and this includes Netaji's every-faithful driver Tarachand. Much like the master, folklore has it that Tarachand was the only one who could have told the world what happened to Netaji, but did not do so as he was under oath. In Kewalajhir today, there is no Tarachand, nor Gopal Singh, Vijay Singh and Chandgi Ram Malik, all comrade in arms fired by Bose's fiery motto `You give me blood I will give you independence', a cry loud enough to galvanise youngsters of an entire generation.

In this village deeply associated with the INA, only two veterans remain, 90-year-old Master Phool Singh and a relatively young 76-year-old Ramswarup, who continues to live in Kewalajhir.

Singh has relocated to his native Hisar in Haryana. He told TSI on phone,``We were in the Singapore jail when Netaji's stirring speeches electrified us. I worked with him for three years. After Independence, I was assigned to come to Kewalajhir and organise the village here but sad to say, our independent government has done little. It could have been developed as an ideal village, but that was not to be.'' Situated at a distance of 30 km from National Highway 12, the Kewalajhir lake provides the ideal backdrop to this hilly, picturesque and rugged village.

It is not easy to reach here though. In mild sunshine at 12 noon, former village official Khitab Singh Malik sits around distributing cards to friends. Pulling at a hookah, he states, ``It is a fauji village just in name. Of the original INA members, only four are left and three of them have relocated to their home state, Haryana. Only Ram Swarup lives here.''

We caught up with Ram Swarup. Reminisces the veteran, ``In 1951, Independent India's first commander- in-chief General KM Cariappa got 88 soldiers settled here. Of them about 20 were former INA. It was barren land which we made fertile. We did cooperative farming after two new tractors arrived from the Soviet Union. This became a military farm. Later land was distributed evenly amongst the soldiers. When Gen Cariappa came to see us, we apprised him of our problems and he gave assurances like construction of an irrigation dam, Barna bandh, which later, became the lifeline of this village.''

Says Narendra Singh, grandson of INA veteran Chandgi Ram Malik, ''All that are left are memories. My grandfather used to tell us that Kewalajhir was designed to be the ideal village, wide lanes, a dispensary, canteen, parks and schools but 60 years down the line, a lot of people have migrated because not much has happened here.'' Most of those who left have gone to Haryana, their state of birth. There was a time when village houses here were adorned with medals and certificates of appreciation. No longer now. All what remains are some off springs of these former soldiers ploughing a lonely furrow, literally sowing seeds of an uncertain future. Two years ago, Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Sushma Swaraj came to Kewalajhir and assured the locals of much development initiatives. Since then, however, it has remained what it was when the village was settled: a bouquet full of empty promises.

 

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