Volume 2 Issue 92| October 23, 2010 |



  
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Behind The Scene
From Jhenidah

Second World War veteran
counting his days

A lifetime after the war, a Second World War veteran is losing
His war against age and disease.

Azibor Rahman

In the south of the country, a Second World War veteran by the name of Abdur Rashid is nearing the end of his life. Full of courage, this man fought fearlessly in World War II from 1939 to 1945, and survived. At 105, senility has him in a stranglehold. However, he was still able to narrate his experiences in battles alongside the British.

Abdur Rashid was born in 1905 in Jamalpur, a village in the district Laxmipur. His father's name was Ahmed Ullah. Unfortunately, he had to drop out of school due to extreme poverty. He took a job on a Kolkata Bengal Company ship at the age of 19. When the 2nd World War started in 1939, he was 34 and underwent training at the '2TTC Battalion Saudil Ali Training Centre' in the province of Maratha in India. He was subsequently placed in the artillery section. His duty was to provide ammunition and food to the fighters.

According to him, the artillery soldiers were restricted to their vehicle lest they should flee away. Later he was shifted to 'Khidirpur Majerhat Camp' in India under the 5TTC battalion. After 6 years of fighting, the Allies won the war. After World War II he returned to Bangladesh and go married to Karimunnesa from the village of Rasulpur of the same upazilla.

At that time, he had ten sons and three daughters, out of which three sons died. His second son, Golam Mostafa, died in 1971 while assisting the East Pakistan Rifles (EPR). The Pakistani militants shot him for helping the liberation forces. Another died of tetanus and yet another drowned.

Abdur Rashid told Star Insight that he has suffered heavily throughout his life. He passed many years in woe with his children without receiving any reward or help for his services in battle. He is now solvent and living a better life with his family as all his sons are self-reliant.

His last expectation from the authority is for them to construct a road from Raghunathpur to Ektarpur village and name it after his son Golam Mostafa, who died in the liberation war. He also expects his son's grave to be preserved. In this way, the sacrifice of his son, who died for his country on April 14th 1971, will be remembered.

 



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