Short Story: The Phantush 1971 by Uma Baghyalakshmi 

Uma Baghyalakshmi tells a captivating story of young boys set in the year 1971 during the Bangladesh Liberation War, layered with mystery, suspense, and intrigue.

The boys had met Subhendu on a Sunday while they were trekking to Kali Pahad.

Young boys and girls climbed these slopes often. They planned picnic lunches and even took their sketch pads and colours with them. A few packed story books and board games in their backpacks.

The hill was 9800 feet high and there was a small temple on the eastern edge. A waterfall, its width that of a beaten mud track, cascaded over the igneous rock face and filled the lake down below. The railway colony flanked its foothills, with wide roads, old trees, and well-maintained houses.

Of late there had been Paleolithic excavations on Kali Pahad. The discoveries had made headlines in the local newspaper and caught the attention of the public.