A 23-year-old teacher under the Employment Guarantee Scheme,Zila Singh,who had developed problems relating to liver and brain after undertaking a hunger strike in May this year,was declared dead on Monday. He had been undergoing medical treatment at Guru Gobind Singh Medical College and Hospital,Faridkot. The district administration has already announced Rs 5 lakh as compensation and a government job for the younger brother of the deceased teacher. Ironically,even as the administration announced Zila Singhs death today,his family claimed that the teacher had died on the morning of December 9. The district administration handed over Zila Singhs body to his family and ensured that the same was taken to his native village Mahanbadar in Bhathinda under tight security. The last rights will be performed on Tuesday. Zila Singhs father,meanwhile said,The way we oscillated between hope and despair for the last four days was like living in hell. While we all knew that our son was no longer alive yet the doctors kept telling us that he is responding. All this was a ploy of the state government. My son had fasted for 57 days and had the state government responded to their demand of direct entry into ETT course,my son would have been alive today.
