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Yasira lost her leg to Indian shelling, but not her ambition
ISLAMABAD: It was a usual pleasant morning on October 1, 2017, in Battal Chowki, a town in Battal Sector, Azad Jammu Kashmir. Everything was in routine as people were busy in usual chores. Women were doing domestic work and children were playing out on the streets. Their everyday routine was suddenly abruptly disrupted by the gunshots, and soon the screams took over the streets.
Children ran for cover, except for Yasira Riyasat. The 11-year-old girl was bleeding as shrapnel had hit her leg. Her father Mohammad Riyasat recalled that he was in the nearby fields when he heard the blast and later the cries of his daughter.
By the time he arrived at the scene of the blast, Yasira had been taken to her home for safety concerns. In the next few moments, more shells by Indian forces from across the Line of Control (LoC) landed in the otherwise scenic locality of Battal.
The breath-taking town of AJK, Battal is around 185 kilometres from Islamabad. And the site of the attack, Riyasat’s house, is located within a mile from the LoC where ceasefire violations have witnessed an unprecedented hike in the past 14 years.
Before the poor family could have shifted Yasira to any hospital, a special emergency team from nearby 647 Mujahid Battalion arrived and removed the injured girl to a military facility.
Mohammad Riyasat told Pakistan Today that soon after the emergency aid at Battal, Yasira was transferred to the Combined Military Hospital (CMH) Rawlakot in a critical condition, where her left leg was amputated below the knee due to the deteriorating wounds.
“This tragedy has broken me from all sides. Watching my youngest kid with an amputated leg, I am shattered and so is the mother of Yasira and the entire family,” he said.
However, Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa, during his visit to Chirikot sector on November 10, 2017, had interacted with injured civilian personnel at the LoC and had taken cognisance of Yasira’s injury. He had also directed for an immediate evacuation of Yasira to the AFIRM Rawalpindi for artificial limb implant.
The ill-fated girl was immediately transferred to forward treatment centre in Kahuta in malnourished condition and was re-operated on November 12, 2017, for debridement and preparation for artificial limb grafting.
Post-operatively, Yasira was provided high protein diet and round-the-clock intensive care that made her infection free. Two days later on November 14, 2017, she was transferred to Military Hospital (MH) Rawalpindi and grafted with an artificial limb on December 27, 2017, at AFIRM, restoring her normal gait and other life activities.
On Jan 20, 2018, she returned home after almost two months of rehabilitation with a smile on her face and happiness in her heart. One nursing assistant has been permanently detailed with her to look after her medical and logistic needs. Her rehabilitation, treatment and recovery were closely monitored.
Four months later, Yasira is a completely changed girl today. At the age of 12, Yasira says she feels always insecure due to the unannounced and sudden shelling by Indian military from across the LoC.
“I am really grateful to all those doctors and staff who helped me return to normal life. This incident has changed me altogether. It was my ambition to become a doctor after completing my education. But my ordeal and rehabilitation have reinforced my mission to become a doctor. Indian army has deprived me of my leg but they can’t kill my ambition,” said Yasira.
“Uncle, I have recently watched an Indian movie, Bajrangi Bhaaijan, where an Indian army officer sacrifices his life to help a stranded Pakistani girl to reunite with her family across the LoC. But I wonder why the Indian army keeps targeting kids like me in AJK all the time,” wondered Yasira while talking to Pakistan Today in a sombre tone.
Mohammad Riyasat expressed his heartfelt gratitude for army chief Gen Bajwa for helping out his daughter.
“I am really indebted to the army for the immediate care and state-of-the-art cure provided to their beloved daughter,” Riyasat said.
Yasira argued if Indian movies depict true picture about the Indian army, why the Indians were targeting Kashmiris at the time – a question only Indian Army Chief General Bipin Rawat could answer who recently has again called for ramping up the military offensive to “pile up the heat on Pakistan”.
