Tribute to a war hero
I went to Dowarabazar upazila of Sunamganj for doing a field work from ICDDR,B in January 2012. Laxmipur is one of the remotest unions where we went to collect data on water and sanitation. I was searching for houses where there were children under five years for a short interview with the mother of the children. During my search I unknowingly went to a house where there was no child under five but a living legend to whom the whole nation is indebted. She was Kakon Bibi, Bir Protik, who was entrusted with the task of spying in that area during the Liberation War. She talked to me for some time and showed me the awards she received from Bangladesh government and from different organisations. She also narrated how brutally she was tortured by the Pakistani army when she was arrested. Hearing the horrific description of the torture perpetrated on her I became emotional and could not hold my tears. Just after her release from the Pakistani camp, the spirit of independence made her fight again. She started to help the freedom fighters as usual forgetting the torture she had to undergo, which was very surprising to me. After the independence, Bangladesh government declared her Bir Protik for the brave efforts she made to emancipate Bangladesh. Before I came back from her house, I saluted this war hero bowing my head in front of her.
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