Bleak days await family of man who died saving girl
The family of Badal Mia, the railway staff who was killed while saving a girl from being crushed under a train on Friday, sees bleak days ahead.
“I don't know how we will survive. My father was the main earning member of our joint family, which has 12 members,” Mamun Mia, Badal's son, said yesterday.
The technical assistant at the engineering department of Bangladesh Railway died near the Kuril Biswa Road in the capital. The incident happened around 12:30pm when a group of railway staff, including the 55-year-old, was doing maintenance work of the railway tracks there.
The five-year-old girl was crossing one of the tracks apparently with her mother. A train was approaching fast, and Badal, sensing danger, jumped in and shoved the child out. He, however, himself was hit by the train and killed on the spot.
Talking to The Daily Star, Mamun, who is now staying with his other family members in Mukhi village of Mymensingh's Gaffargaon, said, they were down-at-heel.
“We are five brothers and three of us are married. We have children and our old grandmother needs medicines frequently,” said the 25-year-old, who is a contractual railway gateman at Khilkhet area in Dhaka.
His eldest brother is a security guard. The third brother is unemployed while the fourth one is a day labourer and the youngest one a class-IV student. “We have three sisters and all of them are married.”
“My father had managed me my job just seven months ago. I earn just Tk 8,000 every month and used to supplement his [Badal] income. But I don't know what will happen now,” Mamun said.
Badal's widow, Aysha Khatun, said she also did not know how the family would survive now. “My elder sons could not study because of poverty. And now, when we have been dreaming about my youngest son, this tragedy has struck us,” she said.
Ayesha urged the government to recognise her husband's sacrifice, and give her other sons jobs at the railway department.
Hannan Miah, assistant headmaster of Mukhi Pallisebok High School, said the villagers were proud of Badal. “We hope that the country would recognise Badal's heroic sacrifice”.
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