Fourth anniversary of the twin blasts held

HYDERABAD: Four years later, the heavy security at the shuttered entrance of Gokul Chat in Koti reminds passersby of the gruesome twin blasts that rocked the city. Piecing their lives together after the incident hasn’t been easy for those who were affected by it.Noorjahan, a resident of Koti who was visiting Badichowdi for Eid shopping was waiting near the closed gates of the famous chat joint on Thursday.“I had plans of rounding my day off with a treat at Gokul Chat but the flowers strewn in the front and the numerous police personnel reminded me that it was closed in memory of the blast.” The entrance of the gate was decorated with a picture of Bharat Mata placed there, incidentally, by the city chapter of Bajrang Dal.Recounting the incident, Premchand Vijayvargi, the owner of the establishment says, “My nephew was badly hurt in the blast and pieces of shrapnel are still present in his body.But the open heart surgery is risky.Even now when I hear a loud noise, even if it is a tyre burst, I feel scared.More than the fear, it is the trauma of that day which I can’t seem to forget.” He also praises the spirit of humanity that day when workers from nearby shops and the general public helped ferry the victims to hospitals.There are others who prefer to keep mum about the mishap.Anil, proprietor of a stationary shop nearby says, “What happened was unfortunate.But reliving it every year is a punishment inflicted on us.” The victims of the blast victims have received little help from the government as the schemes are all on paper.For G Sadashiva Reddy, the incident turned his life upside down when he went to grab a bite with his friend on the fateful day.He lost his vision due to the blast and was comatose for 4 to 5 months.Though he is recovering gradually, the erstwhile senior designing engineer can hardly voice the trauma he has lived through.His brother, G Srinivas Reddy says, “Government had announced a compensation and a government job for relatives of the victims of the blast.I have the government job but we have not received any financial help so far.My brother was the sole bread-winner as my father has retired..” He added that Badshah, Sadashiva’s friend, was also promised a compensation of `15 lakh as he suffered spinal nerve injury.But even he hasn’t received the money yet.Lumbini Park The site of the blast at Lumbini Park was witness to a political gathering denouncing terrorism.A peaceful candle light vigil was also held by students of International academy of computer Graphics in Dilsukhnagar, where a third unexploded bomb was discovered on the same day.K.Sirisha, the student welfare officer of the institute said that the vigil has been a tradition for the past three years.