Agra :
Shanshah Khan received the President’s Award for Bravery at the tender age of 11 for his attempt to rescue four children drowning in the Yamuna.
However, Shanshah, now 18, lives in penury and says he cannot eat the certificate and trophy, and wishes that the President had given him some scholarships for his studies. “I am managing my studies of my own. It is sad that the government remembered to give me an award but forgot that I cannot eat and drink the certificate and trophies. I would have been thankful to the President if she had given me some scholarships for studies,” Shanshah told TOI.
The youth lives in a small hutment on the bank of the Yamuna with his family of nine members and hardly has space to keep the award. His father, Bissa Khan, is also working as a diver and has rescued several people.
Of the four children rescued by Shanshah in 2007, two were rescued alive while two died due to breathlessness. He received more than a dozen bravery awards, medals and certificates for his bravery from local NGOs and the district administration. He received the President’s bravery award in 2009 from then President, Pratibha Patil, at Rashtrapati Bhawan which he has kept in a big suitcase gifted to him by an NGO.
Youngest among his four brothers, Shanshah is a hero in his locality. His friends used to tease him that one day he would rescue a girl drowning in the river and she will be his heroine, forever. Married just six months back, Khan is happy these days because of his high school result. He has just passed Class X from CBSE and managed to get 7.2 CGPA. He wants to pursue his studies further.
However, Bissa said poverty snatched his son’s dreams of becoming an engineer. “My son wanted to be an engineer but I was unable to send him to a proper school. I am proud of what he has done and is doing in life. We do not want medals, but a little help and respect from people.”
Bissa has to look after a big family of nine persons and is struggling to manage even two square meals per day. “People do not give me anything for rescuing them. I also don’t ask for anything. May be their lives were not valuable for anyone, but mine is, for my family. Even police and the district administration do not give the divers anything for their acts of bravery, apart from felicitation on Independence and Republic day,” he added.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Agra / TNN / August 12th, 2014