Will see that roads, drains work: 94-yr-old Pradhan

ALIGARH: Sikanderpur Chherat village in Jawan block has elected a 94-year-old woman asits gram Pradhan.
Tasmeer Kaur is the oldest of the 902 village heads in Aligarh district. There were eight other candidates in the fray – all younger in age and also literate. Voters, however, threw their weight behind Kaur, whose husband Khet Pal Singh, as member of the Azad Hind Fauj, spent several terms in jail during the struggle for Independence.
“I campaigned for the development of my village and in my term will make sure the roads and drains work. We will work with honesty,” says Kaur.
“My husband was brave and honest. He fought for the country and went to jail, spending time at Mainpuri, Unnao and Aligarh jails. From him, I have learnt honesty and patience. When he was away engaged in the freedom struggle and spending days in jail, I was left alone with our five children. We also had fields to look after.”
The 94-year-old receives three pensions – her husband was a government servant and she draws a family pension. Besides, she gets pensions from the Centre and the state for being the dependent of a freedom fighter.
Prem Kumar, a schoolteacher in the village, explained why he voted for her: “She has always shown great interest in the development of the village. Besides, at her ripe age, she went campaigning door-to-door, without once running out of energy. Our earlier Pradhan just left the village and went to live elsewhere – that is something she would never do. The earlier Pradhan was big in real estate, and had little time for the village. Tasmeer Kaur will stay. And she has also been very critical of her predecessor, so we expect she will work well.”
Rakesh Choudhury, Kaur’s predecessor, was not available for comments.
Kaur’s grandson Mayank Kumar says the village has chosen well: “My grandmother eats porridge and fruit, she takes her morning walk and is energetic through the day. She takes what rest she needs, and can work six hours a day. While campaigning, she would ride pillion on my bike.”
Kaur says she will work for the two villages she is supposed to look after: Bhatoti and Sikanderpur. She says she will be active, not just “a Pradhan in name alone”.