BALASORE: Three years back he had left home for Mumbai in search of greener pastures. The 26/11 terrorist attack, however, shattered his dreams. Now Satyananda Behera (29) of Chalisimedha village in Balasore district sits idle. Forget eking out livelihood, he is unable to even walk without crutches.Satyananda is the lone victim from Odisha to have received bullet injuries during the Mumbai attack. He then was working at a small restaurant near the Victoria Terminus (VT) railway station and had a regular income, most of which he sent home to support his four-member family.His life turned upside down after the terrorist attack. A handicapped Satyananda now struggles to manage his family. Despite the tall claims of the Centre and the Maharashtra Government he is yet to get the full compensation and the job that was assured to him. “I had received a letter from the Home Ministry to get a compensation of ` 3 lakh. But so far I have got only ` 50,000 each from the Railway Ministry and the Maharashtra Government. A job in the Railways is still a distant dream,” he says. As the third anniversary of the carnage was observed on Saturday, memories of the horror are still fresh in Satyananda’s mind. He says the moment when he was shot at the VT railway station while waiting for a train is a “bad dream” that he can never forget. “I was waiting for the train at about 9.30 pm that day. I heard the screams of people and before I could realise anything, two armed youths started firing indiscriminately. Two bullets hit my right leg and I became unconscious. The next day I found myself in J J hospital,” he recalls. He got operated on in the hospital before returning home. The treatment cost of nearly ` 50,000 which he had paid was reimbursed by the Maharashtra Government later. Satyananda’s family, comprising wife Tulasi, four-year-old son and mother Kunamani doesn’t even own a piece of land and reside in a thatched house on government land in the village. His wife and mother work as daily wagers to manage the family. “Though the wounds in my leg have healed, I am unable to walk without the help of crutches. My leg swells if I stand for 30 minutes,” he says.A handicap stipend by the State Government too eludes him. Satyananda had also met the district Collector and railway officials in Bhubaneswar to appeal for a job. Village leaders too had apprised the PMO and CMO of the victim’s plight, but in vain. A district level officer said the administration had forwarded his application to the Home Ministry and a copy of it to the Railway Ministry urging necessary action.
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