Pakistani baby named 'Border' goes home via Attari Wagah border

A Pakistani Hindu couple couldn't return to their homeland because of the pandemic and later, due to the expiry of their visa was staying at the Wagah border. As the woman was carrying she gave birth to a baby boy on December 2. Hence, they named him 'Border' after the Wagah Attari border where they were taking refuge. With the help of an NGO and the local people, the baby and his family could finally return to their homeland on Friday.

Amritsar: A Pakistani baby boy named 'Border', who was stuck in India with his parents, was allowed to go back to his homeland on Friday.
The family was repatriated via the Wagah-Attari border with the help of efforts taken by the local villagers and an NGO there.

Balam Ram and his wife Nimbo Devi, a Pakistani Hindu couple, had come to India for a holy pilgrimage before the second wave of Covid hit the country. But, when the second wave arrived, the pandemic disrupted things again leading to a lockdown and travel restrictions. The couple was therefore not allowed to return to Pakistan. After the relaxation of restrictions, the couple again tried to leave, but by that time, their visas had expired and they were not allowed to leave on the grounds of not possessing proper documents. The family thereafter took a resort at the Wagah-Attari border, where they received help and assistance from an NGO run by an Anuj Bhandari to procure visas and the other required documents.

Meanwhile, Nimbo Devi delivered a baby boy on December 2. The newborn was named as 'Border', considering the place and the circumstances he was born in. His father Balam Ram said that he named the child 'Border' so that he remembers the unique situation he was born in after he grows up. Bhandari and his NGO helped the family in getting all the documents and the visa of the newborn ready and did everything from visiting govt officers for the birth certificate of the kid to the Pakistani embassy in Delhi to get the passport and visa for the family.

On December 9, the family got the visas, as well as a legal birth certificate of their newborn. After doing an RTPCR test, the family was allowed to leave for their homeland, after a period of two-and-a-half months on the Wagah-Attari border.

The family expressed its gratitude towards Anuj Bhandari and all the people, who helped them, while Bhandari said that it is the collaborative efforts of the local people, who helped the family with food, clothing and other daily necessities for so many days, that made it possible for them to survive.