A year on, kin of Mumbai blast victims struggle to cope

Mumbai, Jul 13: With a two-year-old daughter in tow, Rinku Vishwakarma is still struggling to cope with the loss of her husband Mankeshwar who fell victim to the blast at the crowded Zaveri Bazar on Jul 13 last year.

"Last year, on the same day I saw my husband for the last time... a year has passed but still the pain lingers...its yet to heal..what is beyond my control is to explain to my little daughter about her father's tragic end," says Vishwakarma.

"My daughter always sees his photo and enquires about him. Pointing towards the moon, she asks us to call her father soon," said the 35-year-old housewife with tears welling her eyes.

Though Vishwakarma got the promised amount of Rs five lakh from the state, she says it was not easy as it involved too much of the documentation.

"I have not studied that much to understand these formalities.. thanks to some of our friends who helped us get the money," she said.

"The money cannot heal my wounds, but it will help me raise my family," she added.

Mankeshwar happened to be at 'Khau Galli', where a scooter packed with explosives went off that fateful day in Zaveri Bazaar, the city's diamond and jewellery hub. Another victim Dharmendra Jagia (40), who got severely injured in his limb at the Opera House blast, says that doctors have asked him to undergo two more operations.

"I still have two more operations to go... one for my bone and another for my nerve in the right leg. Until I was discharged, the government paid for my treatment but now I have to shell out money for these operations", said Jagia, who already has undergone four surgeries.

Shattered on being rendered immobile, Jagia, who got a compensation of Rs two lakh from the Maharashtra government, is trying to pick up the pieces of his life.

"I am bed ridden and cannot walk. Life after the blast has changed so much... I wish I was not there at the blast site at that time," he said in a choked voice.

Three near-simultaneous bomb blasts in the busy areas of Zaveri Bazaar, Opera House and Dadar in the city killed 27 people and left over 100 injured last year.

PTI