On June 8, the family received a telegram, saying that Kundal Singh, 20, is `missing in action' in Kargil. Condolence letters followed from politicians -- former Defence minister Mulayam Singh Yadav and UP Governor Suraj Bhan. The family does not know whether Singh is missing or dead. They cling on to the thin thread called hope.

Devi breaks down when she sees a stranger walking down the bylanes of Bilai. Strangers bring bad news.

Not many from the outside world come to this remote village, about 26 km from Pithoragarh, near Indo-Nepal border. No bus reaches the village, it takes either a car or a jeep to reach the hilltop from where you have to walk down three km to reach the village.

On June 15, a stranger came down to Bilai. He told Devi that he had foughtalong with Kundal at Batalik. `We were para-dropped on a hill, where Kundal fought the enemies for 24 hours at the height of 18,000 ft. He got a bullet in his leg and then his chest. Before dying, he told me to inform his family,' the stranger had told Devi.

He had introduced himself as Vikram Singh Kanyal. But Kundal's unit told his father Ram Singh that there was no such person in 10 Para. As far as they know, Kundal was still reported missing.

`The villagers said that the stranger might be from the military intelligence, who might have come to ensure that Kundal did not run away from the battlefield. Kundal's body has not been found so far,' Ram Singh says.

After it was confirmed that Kundal was missing, they began to hope again -- Kundal's grandmother says his grandfather was missing for seven years in the Burma war -- till the condolence messages started coming in.

Devi is traumatised. She says: `Why did Mulayam Singh Yadav and others send condolence letters, when the military says he is missing?What does it mean? What should we do?'

In a condolence message dated July 6, Mulayam Singh paid his homage to Kundal for sacrificing his life for the country. Two days later, the UP governor sent his condolence letter, followed by one from UP's Energy minister Naresh Aggarwal.

Incidentally, the list of 418 soldiers who were killed in the Kargil war, issued by the Defence Ministry, also has the name of Kundal Singh. When asked, a Defence spokesperson said that there is a remark `missing' against the name of Kundal Singh. But the list in possession of The Indian Express does not have any such `remark'.

The spokesperson later clarified that the inclusion of Kundal Singh's name in the list of the dead `was an oversight'. He confirmed that the soldier is missing in action.

According to the list in the possession of The Indian Express, Kundal Singh was killed on May 21. Kundal's parents said that the telegram was dispatched to them on June 1 and they received it on June 8. The last messagefrom Kundal's unit that the family got was on July 16, that he was still missing.

So the family has not received any monetary help from the authorities. According to a Defence official, the ministry waits for six months in case of those soldiers who are either missing or whose bodies are not found. Then they meet the family and initiate the procedure to compensate the family.

But life has come to a halt at the house. Ram Singh was building an additional room as Kundal was planning to get married. The construction has stopped.

Devi still sits at the door and looks up the road, waiting for that familiar figure to appear against the backdrop of the hill.