Ferozepur farmer dies weeks after wife in cross-border drone strike

A 55-year-old farmer from Punjab’s Ferozepur district, critically injured in a cross-border drone attack that followed India’s Operation Sindoor, succumbed to his injuries on July 1 night — just weeks after losing his wife in the same incident.

Lakhwinder Singh, a resident of Khai Pheme Ki village, had sustained over 70% burns after a suspected Pakistan-origin drone crash-landed on his property on May 9, igniting a devastating blaze. His wife, 50-year-old Sukhwinder Kaur, had died four days later after suffering 100% burns.

The couple’s 24-year-old son, Jaswant Singh, who suffered leg injuries from shrapnel, is now the sole surviving member of the family.

“Both my parents are gone. We’ve become victims of this Indo-Pak conflict for no fault of ours,” Jaswant told reporters on July 2, his voice breaking with grief. “Not a single official from the administration has shown up. We haven’t even received my father’s body yet. Is this how the government treats war victims?”

On the evening of May 9, as tensions surged between India and Pakistan following the Pahalgam terror attack and subsequent Indian military strikes in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir under Operation Sindoor, multiple drones were spotted over the Ferozepur cantonment and nearby civilian areas.

One of those drones reportedly crashed into Lakhwinder’s verandah, setting off a fire that engulfed the house, killed livestock, and destroyed the family's vehicle. Despite being nearly 30 kilometers from the international border, the village fell victim to an aerial incursion that preceded a ceasefire announced on May 10.

The family was rushed first to a local hospital in Ferozepur, and the critically injured parents were later transferred to Ludhiana’s Dayanand Medical College and Hospital (DMCH). Despite best efforts, Lakhwinder could not be saved.

Jaswant now faces an uncertain future, recovering from his own injuries while shouldering the remnants of his family’s life — five acres of farmland and charred memories.

Following Sukhwinder Kaur’s death, the Punjab Government had extended ₹10 lakh as compensation—split equally between the Chief Minister’s ex-gratia relief and the discretionary fund of Sanjeev Arora, then Rajya Sabha MP and now MLA of Ludhiana West.

However, local leaders say the support is far from enough.

“This is a war casualty, and the state must act like it,” said BJP leader Heera Sodhi, son of former MLA Rana Gurmeet Singh Sodhi. “We demand a government job for Jaswant and immediate additional compensation. The Centre has sanctioned another 10 lakh for Sukhwinder’s death, and we will push for the same for Lakhwinder. But Punjab must not abdicate its responsibility.”

As border tensions simmer beneath an uneasy ceasefire, the tragedy of Khai Pheme Ki underscores the invisible cost civilians continue to bear in conflicts they never asked to be part of.