Are we doing enough for the 7/11 victims?

It has been year since the 7/11 blasts rocked Mumbai. CNN- IBN traces the story of victims of mindless terror. And sadly is has been a distressing one of compensation denied, of endless bureaucratic red tape and humiliation.

Twenty-two-year old Rajesh Jha lost his sales job at ING Vysya bank after suffering a disability. The bank has come now come forward to help him. Unlike many corporate houses, ING took immediate corrective action to help Rajesh rebuild his life.

A meeting and a quick discussion with the regional CEO of the bank later, Rajesh is set rejoin the bank on the sales desk at a branch near his residence on Monday.

However, not many of the 7/11 victims have been fortunate like Rajesh. CNN-IBN show India 360 raised the question: Have we done enough to help the victims of the 7/11 blasts?

On the panel to discuss the question were 7/11 survivor Rajesh Jha and CNN-IBN correspondent in Mumbai, Jency Jacob. President, passenger and traffic relief association, Western Railways, Dr S J Garg joined the show on the phone line.

For Rajesh Jha whose life had been changed by the blast making him disabled, how was it like to struggle over the trauma for the past 11 months and also encounter people who had did help him during the blast?

Rajesh Jha said that he had faced many problems. Owing to a spinal injury his monthly medicine bill came up to Rs 8, 000. And his spinal injury was impossible to be cured, he had written a letter to the government that didn’t take a step.

“ I know now that I have got my job back and I may be promoted to higher posts but I shall alone have to pay for my medicines. The government will do nothing about it,” said Rajesh.

Just like Rajesh, there have been many victims including Ramesh Goti who lost his memory due to brain heamorrhage. When he went to the Railways claim tribunal, the judge told him told him that he looked fit enough so he couldn’t be compensated. So what were the kinds of parameters used by the Railways to give compensation to the victims? Many people hadn’t got the money that was promised to them.

Dr S J Garg said that those who were diseased got the compensation and a few of them could not get their compensation because there was no claimant. There were some who were injured and some who were grievously injured and each got a compensation of Rs 50, 000. However, the expenses that they had to incur were much higher than that. The victims had now planned to file a petition in the tribunal.

Dr Garg said that the victims should have actually been given the actual amount of money they spent.

The Railways and the state government had differences over the extent of disability that a particular victim suffered and that was why compensation was delayed. ING Vyasa took a step to reinstate Rajesh Jha but many corporate houses had still remained indifferent to the 7/11 victims.

Jency Jacob thought that ING Vyasa had really taken a strong stand and an immediate corrective action to help Rajesh.

He pointed out however, that the victims would get lost in the complex eco-system of other corporate houses if they were to claim compensation.

“Low level staff does not have access to the top level management who advocate philosophies and policies but when it comes to implementing them then they can be very insensitive. A time as come for the society to be sensitive and think how much can be done for the terror victims,” Jency said.

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