Author: Prashant Dayal
Publication: The Times of India
Date: July 28, 2008
Officer Yadav Has Defused 300 Bombs
The job offer came when his father, a cop
himself, died with his boots on. That was in 1995 when Rakesh Yadav had barely
entered the Gujarat police force. His family told him to reject the offer
to join the bomb disposal squad.
Having lost her husband, his mother was averse
to the idea of her son, now the sole bread-winner, taking up such a high-risk
job. But Rakesh had a penchant for adventure from an early age. His family
gave in finally and Rakesh, now 37, has been at it ever since.
Today, as the head of the bomb squad of the
Gujarat police, he has to his credit the disposal of nearly 300 bombs in the
last 13 years. He is considered a guru by his team-mates.
On Sunday morning, Yadav was at work again.
He was called to the Hatkeshwar circle by a social worker who spotted a bomb
inside a dustbin. Yadav successfully defused the timer-bomb and then touched
the earth in front of him to thank the Almighty. It was yet another mission
successfully done.
His family used to pray whenever he used to
undertake risky assignments. "Now, they are confident I will return alive
after a hard day's job," he said.
He displayed rare courage in 1998 when a live
bomb was detected inside Natraj Cinema. He put on his bomb suit, wrapped the
bomb in a blanket and hugged it to his chest. He then walked out, as softly
as possible, from the cinema hall. He got a cash reward of Rs 1 lakh from
the then police commissioner for this recue act.
There was no looking back. He has defused
countless bombs since then. In 2002, when tiffin-bombs blew up on board AMTS
buses, a colleague lost two fingers while handling a bomb rather recklessly.
"We all know the risks involved, one mistake and boom."
