Homage to unknown solider marks 61st Indian Army Day

From ANI

New Delhi, Jan 15: The Indian Army commemorated its 61st Foundation Day by paying homage to the unknown soldier at the 'Amar Jawan Jyoti' here on Wednesday.

Chiefs of the three wings of the armed forces, General Deepak Kapoor, Chief of Army staff, Admiral Sureesh Mehta, Navy Chief and Air Chief Marshall Fali Homi Major, Chief of the Air staff, offered floral tributes at the Amar Jawan Jyoti.

Army Day is observed every year on January 15 to commemorate Indian General, Field Marshal K.M. Cariappa's taking over as the Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Army from Sir Francis Butcher, the last British commander, in 1949.

Later in the day, an Army Day parade comprising of marching contingents was held.

Every year, massed bands of the Indian Army provide a colourful backdrop to the parade that is attended by senior officers and military attaches of several foreign countries, besides the chiefs of the three armed forces.

The Amar Jawan Jyoti, the eternal fame, burns beneath the arch to honour the memory of the unknown soldiers.

The Amar Jawan Jyoti memorial is a black marble cenotaph with a rifle placed on its barrel, crested by a soldier's helmet.

Each face of the cenotaph has inscribed in gold the words "Amar Jawan". This cenotaph is itself placed on an edifice that has on its four corners four torches that are perpetually kept alive.

It was unveiled on January 26, 1972 by the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, in the wake of the 1971 Indo-Pak War.


Copyright Asian News International/DailyIndia.com