After three years in which she was separated from her family in Assam, a woman has been reunited with loved ones thanks to an attempt to get her an Aadhaar number.
The reuniting of Jiratan Bibi and her family members is the first success of its kind for Sabahmuswang halfway home, indeed it is the first case of its kind where a person has been rehabilitated in a halfway home and then reunited with family.
Jiratan was joyfully reunited with her family in an emotional ceremony held at the halfway home in the presence of Additional Deputy Commissioner DV Lyngdoh, District Social Welfare Officer R Passah, Society for Urban and Rural Empowerment (SURE) secretary HH Mohrmen, the home’s project coordinator Niwanka Shylla and staff.
Jiratan (58) had gone missing three years ago and has been living in the Sabahmuswang facility for the last nine months.
The story of how Jiratan got to Sabahmuswang begins in June 2022 when she was discovered in the Byrnihat area of Ri-Bhoi, just over the border from Assam. She was found loitering in a confused state and, following police intervention and a court order, was referred to mental health hospital MIMHANS in Shillong for treatment.
Following her stay at MIMHANS, she was transferred to the halfway home in August 2023.
It was when the staff tried to enroll her in the Aadhaar system that it was found that her biometrics were already in the system, linked to a person from Assam. It was then that her name was revealed and that she was the daughter of one Jadab Ali. Through the Aadhaar system, the authorities were able to obtain a contact number in her family and this information was shared with the District Taskforce.
On being contacted, the family confirmed their relationship with Jiratan and spoke to her over the phone, with tears of joy being shed.
After reviewing and confirming the documents of Jiratan Bibi’s relatives, it was decided to hand her over to her family.
“We are overwhelmed with joy and relief to have our mother back home,” Jiratan’s son, Bahar Ali, said while thanking the halfway home and its staff.
Mohrmen said, “We are glad that this one case ends on a happy note as we are able to hand over the patient to her loved ones.”
