Jalgaon: National Bravery Awardee Hali Baraf, Who Saved Sister From Leopard's Jaws, Still Battles For Livelihood

Jalgaon: The fear of tigers and leopards in the dense forests of Shahapur is nothing new. But when a 12-year-old girl brought her sister back from the jaws of death using only stones, the entire country saluted her. That same brave girl, Hali Barf, was present as a guest at the 'Balvishva School' annual function in Jalgaon today. While interacting with media representatives in the morning, she recounted the thrilling and hair-raising incident, and also appealed to today's girls to fight against injustice.

Recalling that day, Hali said that while she and her sister Shakuntala were collecting firewood, a leopard lying in ambush suddenly pounced on Shakuntala. Her head was in the leopard's jaws. Seeing her sister lying in a pool of blood, I could have run away, but I stayed there. I didn't have a weapon, but I had courage. I picked up stones from around and started throwing them at the leopard. I shouted loudly.

Finally, the leopard had to retreat, and my sister's life was saved. Hali became extremely emotional while giving a message to today's girls. She said that if I had run away from the leopard, my sister would not have survived. Today, girls are subjected to atrocities, and dowry deaths occur.

Girls should not remain silent against these monsters in society, but should raise their voices. Don't consider yourselves weak; if you stand up with courage, a way will surely be found. During the interaction, a sad aspect of Hali Barf's life has once again come to the forefront.

In 2013, she was honoured with the 'National Bravery Award' by the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Following this incident, a lesson about Hali's bravery is taught in the fourth-grade 'Balbharati' textbook. But the situation today is very different.

Despite such widespread recognition, Hali still works on daily wages at a hostel in Shahapur, Thane district. Hali, whose bravery is read about by students across Maharashtra, is still struggling for her livelihood. Present on this occasion were school president Sandeep Chaudhary, founder Bharti Chaudhary, director Saurabh Chaudhary, headmaster Farman Tadvi, and sports teacher Dheeraj Jawale.