Haryana clerk fulfils Australian woman’s last wishes

CHANDIGARH - A clerk in Haryana travelled hundreds of miles to fulfil the last wish of an Australian woman, born in British India, who wanted her ashes to be immersed in the Ganga river at Haridwar.

Jill Villers, who was born in Lahore in 1945, passed away in Mount Barker, Western Australia around two years ago. Before dying, she had expressed her desire of immersing her ashes in Ganga river.

Her daughter Linda Wibberley, the Australian cycling team manager for the pre-Commonwealth Games invitational event, last week reached New Delhi and planned to fulfil the last wish of her mother. But due to time constraints, she could not make it to Haridwar.

“My mother is from India, she was born in Lahore. She wanted us to immerse her ashes in Ganga. This is my first visit, I have brought her ashes to disperse in the Ganga, but it seems impossible since I have a tight schedule,” Wibberley told reporters in Delhi last week.

Moved by this gesture of a daughter for her dead mother, Ravinder Kumar Aneja, who works in the office of Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, contacted Wibberley and offered his services.

Aneja travelled to Haridwar on his own expense and immersed the ashes on her behalf. He also arranged to document the entire ceremony and is e-mailing it to Wibberley.

“I did it for the sake of humanity,” Aneja said Monday.

Reacting on Aneja’s effort, Wibberley said: “Angels and god have found a way for my mom to come home.”