Britain to hand over ‘war diaries’ to India today
31 Oct 2014 5:29 AM IST
The British defence secretary Michael Fallon will hand over ‘war diaries’ of the Indian contingent of then British Indian army to Arun Jaitley, the defence minister on Thursday. It will mark an important occasion that would be a departure from the state of denial the UK and the allied powers had maintained for almost hundred years, by not acknowledging the contribution of the colonial Indian armymen.
The Indian army in the famous battles of Gallipoli (Turkey), Abyssinia (Ethiopia), Ypres (Belgium), Mesopotamia (a landmass that consisted of Iraq, parts of Syria and Turkey and even Iran) and many others.
Over 70,000 of those forces died in the battlefield. A major general of the Indian army leading a unit of the army to Gallipoli, recalls that there is no memorial for the Indian troops in the Belgian town; but a general memorial for all the allied troops exist, which lists the names of the fallen soldiers.
Many of the other countries which took part in the war as constituents of the British empire, have their national memorials. Even the Turks who had been defeated by the allied armies have a series of memorial to honour their dead.
The Indian army in the famous battles of Gallipoli (Turkey), Abyssinia (Ethiopia), Ypres (Belgium), Mesopotamia (a landmass that consisted of Iraq, parts of Syria and Turkey and even Iran) and many others.
Over 70,000 of those forces died in the battlefield. A major general of the Indian army leading a unit of the army to Gallipoli, recalls that there is no memorial for the Indian troops in the Belgian town; but a general memorial for all the allied troops exist, which lists the names of the fallen soldiers.
Many of the other countries which took part in the war as constituents of the British empire, have their national memorials. Even the Turks who had been defeated by the allied armies have a series of memorial to honour their dead.
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