CHAKWAL: Life in Dhoke Chaphar, a sub-locality of Dhermond village in Talagang, usually offers a monotonous routine but for the last few days, this tiny community is witnessing hustle and bustle, alien to its fixed pattern.

Umar Hayat, a 99-year-old veteran of World War II, is the source of this excitement. Staying true to the mantra ‘old soldiers never die’, Mr Hayat refuses to fade away despite his old age. In addition to his regular visits to the local mosque, he often indulges in gardening.

His village does not entertain many visitors since this remote part of Talagang has hardly anything to offer. But it is Mr Hayat’s persona that has piqued the interest of many, including the officials of the British High Commission who visited him in November last year.

Umar Hayat gave seven years and 87 days of his youth to the British Empire fighting in the battlefields of Burma (now Myanmar) alongside thousands of other Indian soldiers. The British Empire acknowledged his gallantry and bestowed three medals upon him in 1948 when he formally relinquished the service.

British govt replaces medals of 99-year-old Umar Hayat who had served in Rajput Regiment

“Those medals were an asset to me and I kept them with great care. Unfortunately, I lost them when my house perished in torrential rain which lashed the area in the early years of the 1970s,” Mr Hayat tells Dawn while sitting in a chair in the courtyard of his simple but spacious house.

On November 11 last year, the officials of the British High Commission in Pakistan visited the soldiers of WWII to mark Remembrance Day which commemorates the services of those who fought in the great war.

When the officials visited Mr Hayat, he shared with them the tragic loss of his medals and requested them to replace the accolades he lost some five decades ago.

The former British high commissioner, Christian Turner, promised to replace the medals. This promise was fulfilled as Tom Hyde, deputy head of communication, visited the residence of Mr Hayat earlier this month to hand over the medals.

The nonagenarian is over the moon to get hold of these medals again. These accolades take him back to the battlefields and remind him of his comrades who fought alongside him.

“Medals reflect the official thanks of a government to those who have served it honourably, often with gallantry or distinction,” Tom Hyde said.

When asked about his meeting with Mr Hyde, the veteran unable to remember or pronounce the British names replied in Punjabi: “Kaptaan aaya aahia, bahot acha larka aye” (Captain visited me; he is a good lad).

After Mr Hayat got possessions of his precious medals, journalists and relatives are thronging his house and he happily receives them wearing a white ‘dhoti kurta’ and a white turban.

Although his CNIC puts his date of birth in 1924, Mr Hayat thinks 1922 is the actual year of his birth.

“At that time date of birth was not recorded and people usually left it to guessing,” he maintains.

A Spring morning in 1941

In conversation with Dawn, Mr Hayat also talked about the day he joined the military. On a warm spring day in 1941 when the war was at its peak, a recruitment committee came to the town to enlist young men in the army, he recalls. “I got selected and was taken to Fatehgarh as a member of the Rajput Regiment,” he adds.

The idea of a battlefield was not alien to Mr Hayat as his father Aulia Khan had also served in the British army in World War I.

“Although I was recruited as a driver, I would also use heavy guns when required; my officers used to call me an ‘all-rounder’,” he recalls.

He was later promoted to the rank of Lance Naik. When Hayat left the British army in 1948, he did not receive any allowance or pension. However, in 2020 he started getting a small amount of Rs120,000 for a year under the head of the Commonwealth Ex-Services League.

Pre-partition co-existence

Hayat’s life offers a fascinating account of co-existence among the Muslims, Sikhs and Hindus not only in the military barracks but also in his village.

“My childhood friend was Nanank Ram a Hindu while I had many Sikh and Hindu friends in the army,” he shares with Dawn.

Even now, Umar Hayat is unable to comprehend how the Muslims and Sikhs living in harmony resorted to mass slaughter during the riots on the eve of Partition.

“I witnessed dead bodies scattered along the railway lines, being devoured by stray dogs,” Mr Hayat recalls the horrors of Partition. Umar Hayat who’s been married for 72 years has fathered five daughters and four sons. “I have no regrets about the life I have led,” he adds.

Published in Dawn, February 27th, 2023