The Gurkha families in Reading fighting for their pensions

Now aged 87, Indumati Thapa’s life revolves around a group of similarly widowed women. Her husband, a former Gurkha who fought alongside the British in south east Asia, died in 2020.

He left her a pension, but Gurkhas who retired before 1997 receive far less than their British Army counterparts.

Theirs are based on Nepalese living costs, not those of towns like Reading, where thousands of Gurkhas retired to.

Indumati says her pension is so small she has to rely on the generosity of friends, and roughly £100 a week in benefits, to cover her rent, bills and food costs.

The government says it “holds the distinguished service of the Gurkhas in the highest regard and remains firmly committed to supporting the welfare of Gurkha veterans and their families”.

Many Gurkhas disagree and want their pensions increased.

Indumati lives in a small two-bedroom flat with her friend Devisara Rana in central Reading.

Squeezing into her small bedroom I ask her how she feels about her life.

Her friend and local Labour councillor Pratikshya Gurung translates for her.

“She thinks they’ve been let down a bit and says she would be grateful if the pension was bigger than it is as that would make her living conditions and financial situation better,” Pratikshya says.