October 01, 2008	Wednesday	Shawwal 1, 1429

FAISALABAD, Sept 30: Eid brings joy but only to the haves as a countless number of the have-nots find it 'just another day' in their lives for one reason or another. Among the latter are three orphan brothers who don't find much of a charm in the festivity in the absence of their 'props of affection'.

The three lads work at powerlooms and earn too meager a salary to make a difference to their lives on this Eid. Much to their plight, they hold the criminal poverty responsible for claiming their parents and all they have to celebrate Eid are the memories of their dear departed.

"We have lost our parents and a brother because of poverty, the culprit which has robbed us of the joy of Eid. Having no resources to fulfill our desires, we can only see children romp and dance in beautiful dresses."

Sixteen-year-old Sajid, Javed, 14, and Wajid, 12, of Ghulam Muhammadabad's Iqbal Town locality told Dawn that their mother Hamidan passed away eight years ago, and father Allah Bakhsh and a brother, Khalid, departed a few years ago.

Hamidan died while giving birth to a baby girl who is now being brought up by an aunt. The boys are not allowed to see their sister. Allah Bakhsh put up some fight against the tuberculosis which ultimately claimed his life while young Khalid died of an infective wound.

The deaths of loved ones, one after another, brought untold miseries to the three brothers who were forced into the world of work at an early age. They work at powerlooms in return of peanuts; their collective income being Rs5,000 a month.

Their misery is not restricted to monetary crisis only as the powerloom owners subject the poor boys to physical torture even on minor mistakes. Some time back, a neighbour Hanif took Javed and Wajid to a seminary but they left the institution for the treatment there was no different.

"We are finding it hard to make both ends meet. Besides financial constraints, we have to face wrath of our relatives as well as employers," cried Sajid. He said some of our relatives tried to rob us of our house, but their efforts proved futile as "we hide the documents".

"Our relatives never bring any kind of gift for us on Eid," said the brothers who live in a small room of two and-a-half marla house. Half of the portion is on rent and they get Rs1,000 for that.

Not far back did the orphans request the elected representatives of the area to provide them the card under the Food Stamp Scheme, but their request fell on deaf ears as they were told that the facility was being extended to the ID card holders only.