“Has it started here too?” asked nine-year-old Saba Farheen to her mother when she heard what she thought was gun-fire.
The innocent bursting of crackers, after Zilla Panchayat member Shailendra Beldale won the standing committee election, scared the child as much as it did her family.
The small family, comprising of Abdul Hamed, his wife Badrunnisa, their child Saba and Badruniss’s sister, from Bidar was among the thousands evacuated successfully by the Indian Navy from war-torn Yemen.
“We have been listening to bombings and firings for so long that children have got used to it now. I am sure children will forget all that and move on. But we will need some time,’’ feels Badrunnisa. She taught English in a primary school in Mukalla in Yemen.
Ms. Badrunnisa and her husband lived in the alien country for eight years. The job was satisfying, the pay was good and there were no problems at all. “But all hell broke lose in January,” she says.
“Rebels and armed forces were killing each other on the streets. A military camp a few kilometres away was bombed. A cement factory in a neighbouring town was completely destroyed. It was scary. And when we began to think of what our families in India were thinking, we were even more worried,” she said.
“We stopped going to offices and schools. We stayed indoors and prayed. Rebels targeted power and water supply, LPG cylinders went out of stock and food was scarce. We stored food for weeks and waited,” Ms. Badrunnisa recalled. Rejecting the idea of going back to Yemen, she said, “There is nothing like staying in our own country. Indian democracy is so reassuring”.
“There are fights here between different political groups. But they are all settled by the electoral process, it is so peaceful,’’ she said. Her sister who was working as a teacher in Yemen has come back with them too.
Abdul Hamed, a technical consultant who worked for the Arabia Yemen cement factory is not sure what to do next. We will take rest for some days and then think about the options, he said. He is all praise for the Union government.
“We approached the Indian embassy for help and they immediately responded. Officials sent word to the Indian community that an Indian Navy ship was waiting at a nearby costal town. Around 225 of us reached the seashore from where we were taken to the ship in small boats. We thank the Navy for rescuing us even when the sea port was captured by the rebels, Mr. Hamed said. From Djibouti, they were flown to Mumbai from where they took a train to Kalaburagi. Indian government officials and Navy personnel ensured that we got food and other materials on the ship. They even organised an entertainment programme on board the ship to take our minds off the situation in Yemen, Mr. Hamed said. He is not giving up the idea of going back once the situation returns to normal.
Hamed’s father, Abdul Khader is happy that his son and daughter-in-law have safely returned. “We are not worried about the belongings they have left behind,” he said. He feels he would be happy if his son settles in Bidar.
