War Veteran Looking For Succour
C. Kullappan, who served as a Sepoy in World War II, denied of his assistance without a discharge certificate. War veterans of the Armed Forces do not get pension. All that they get is something called a monthly assistance of Rs. 700. C. Kullappan, a Sepoy in the Indian Army, who served in World War II, has been deprived of even this amount, because he does not have a discharge certificate. Reeling under poverty, he makes ends meet by working as a night watchman at the age of 83.
Hailing from Coimbatore, Mr. Kullappan was recruited to serve in the Burma Regiment Twelfth Army. After a training period in Hoshiyarpur, Punjab, he was sent to the battlefield. “On demobilisation of the War, he was discharged from the Army. He has no pension from the Army as he was commissioned for short service. When he was undergoing treatment at the Government Hospital here in 1955, his mother misplaced a bag that contained lunch and his discharge certificate,” says Captain (Retd.) Thomas Thambu, Assistant Director, Ex-Servicemen Welfare Board, Coimbatore.
Mr. Kullappan has been working as a labourer after his discharge, since he has not been able to get re-employment. He has a family of seven children. He does not have any land holding or property. It was only after many years he came to know that the Welfare Board gave assistance to people like him.
“When he approached the Board a few years ago, the officials tried tracing his papers. But, their efforts were in vain. Since the time I took over, I have written to the authorities concerned to trace his records and issue a duplicate discharge certificate to enable us pay him the assistance. But, it has been 60 years since his discharge. Due to the passage of time, they have not been able to trace his records. It must have been disposed off after a reasonable time of record keeping,” Capt. Thomas adds.
Mr. Kullappan has three things with him to corroborate his service as a Sepoy. One is the photograph taken of him in uniform along with his comrades and Commanding Officer, while in service. The other is the formation sign of the Twelfth Army that is worn on the shoulder. The third and last item is the identity disc – that is worn on the wrist by all soldiers who fought in the War – which carries his No: 1564, name and religion.
“This is the most important identity that is used in war time to identify fatal casualties in the battlefield to decide the sort of last rites that have to be performed. We have checked the authentication of the formation sign from the History Cell of the Indian Army. With these identification proofs, we hope he may be considered by the Director General – Settlement as a special case for offering the assistance without the production of the duplicate certificate,” pleads the Assistant Director. He has been fighting Mr. Kullappan’s case for the last two years, but to no avail. “The assistance will at least help him live the evening of his life with dignity,” he believes.
