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By Lt General V.K. Kapoor (Retd) |
Backdrop
The clamour for a national war memorial from the armed forces and even non government bodies has been fairly loud in the past decade or so. This is especially noteworthy because in the past 67 years since independence, the Indian Armed forces have been constantly involved in military operations either at the international border, or at the line of control (LoC) with Pakistan or at the line of actual control (LAC) with China or fighting insurgencies or militancy internally. The causalities suffered by the armed forces even if counted from independence onwards runs into thousands of jawans and officers.
It now seems that, after repeated requests by the military, the Government of India has decided to erect a National War Memorial in the vicinity of the India Gate, New Delhi, to honor its Armed Forces and memorialize armed forces members killed in war after Independence in 1947. It has also been decided that a War Museum will be constructed in the adjoining Princes Park area. The proposed National War Memorial and the War Museum will be connected by a subway. The War Memorial and Museum are expected to cost 400 crore ,(US$60 million).
The memorial is expected to be made around the existing chhatri (canopy) near India Gate. The memorial wall will be flushed with the ground and in harmony with existing aesthetics. Names of martyrs killed in wars in 194748, 1961 (Goa), 1962 (Chinese aggression), 1965, 1971, 1987 ( Saichen), 1987-88 (Sri Lanka), 1999 (Kargil), and other Operations will be inscribed on a memorial wall. Assistance of foreign architects is expected to taken. The Government is expected to issue a global tender for the construction of the War memorial.
The museum at the adjoining Princess Park will be largely underground, and connected to the Chhatri area via a subway. The Princess Park, is a 14-acres area north of India Gate, with barrack-type accommodation, built during World War II, which since 1947 has served as family accommodation for mid level armed forces officers posted in Service Headquarters in New Delhi.
Important Timelines connected to the National War Memorial
Cabinet Clearance
On Wednesday, 07 Oct 2015, the Union Cabinet approved the construction of a National War Museum at Princess Park, near India Gate, New Delhi, in memory of all Indian soldiers who have made the supreme sacrifice for the country post-independence. The estimated cost of the project will be around 500 crore and the total time for completion of the entire project is estimated to be five years, Union Surface Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari said, briefing reporters about the Cabinet decisions.