Heroism in the face of disaster

TURA: The story of a 22-year-old from North Garo Hills who saved his grandmother from being swept away during the September 29 flash floods has been doing the rounds in the village of Moamary under Bajengdoba in the district.
Wilmony D Sangma (82), a resident of Moamary village, had taken shelter along with her family in a RCC building of a retired principal of Bajengdoba Higher Secondary School during the floods.
But she got caught in the rising water when she went to retrieve her old Dakmanda (Garo traditional wrap around) gifted by her husband from her home.
Her grandson, Chingkam Sangma, while searching for his grandmother found her stranded in her room. He carried her on his back and tried to go back to the building where their family was waiting. Unable to do so, he instead took her to Koshichora LP School, about a kilometer away, where a police team from Bajengdoba was making efforts to rescue the stranded victims.
After the ordeal, the elderly woman was all praise for her grandson. While the 82-year-old from Resubelpara is thankful for a lot of things, she says she does not expect to see any MLA during these troubled times.