National War Memorial's 3rd anniversary today: All you need to know about the monument

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National War Memorial 3rd anniversary: The Vice Chiefs of the Indian Army, the Indian Navy and the Indian Air Force laid wreaths at the National War Memorial (NWM) on Friday (February 25) on the occasion of the third anniversary of the war museum in New Delhi. Chief of Integrated Defence Staff Air Marshal BR Krishna also laid a wreath at the National War Memorial today on this occasion. 

The National War Memorial was dedicated to the nation near India Gate by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on February 25, 2019. The memorial has been built to commemorate the valour and sacrifice of soldiers, who laid down their lives for the country.

Here is all you need to know about the 'National War Memorial':

• The National War Memorial is India’s first war memorial to commemorate wars and conflicts since 1947
• The National War Memorial memorializes the soldiers who died during the Indo-China War in 1962, the Indo-Pakistan wars in 1947, 1965 and 1971 and the conflict in Kargil in 1999. It also commemorates the soldiers who died in United Nations peace-keeping missions, Indian Peace Keeping Force Operations in Sri Lanka, Humanitarian Assistance Disaster Relief (HADR) operations and counter insurgency operations.
• The memorial was built at a cost of ₹ 171 crore and has central obelisk that stands at a height of 15.5 metres.
• The design of the memorial comprises of four concentric circles where each chakra signifying different values of the armed forces
• The Amar Chakra (circle of immortality): It comprises a15-metre tall obelisk and the eternal flame
• The Veerta Chakra (circle of bravery): It has six bronze murals depicting different battle actions. Each mural weighs between 600 kg and 1000 kg. This chakra is about the six important battles of the army, air force and navy, which have been depicted in bronze.
• The Tyag Chakra (circle of sacrifice): It has been made entirely of granite bricks, each bearing the name of martyred soldier since independence. The chakra holds the names of over 25,500 battle casualties which have been written on a 1.5 metre wall, also there is scope of adding more names.
• The Rakshak Chakra (circle of protection): It surrounds the other three chakras and consists of over 600 trees that will act and represent the soldiers who protect the country. Suraksha Chakra is the outermost tier out of all. 
• Statues of the 21 Param Vir Chakra awardees have been installed at the Param Yoddha Sthal and include those of three living awardees - Retired Subedar Major Bana Singh, Subedar Major Yogendra Singh Yadav and Subedar Sanjay Kumar.
• The visiting time of the National War Memorial are from 9:00 am to 6:30 pm (November to March) and from 9:00 am to 7:30 pm (April to October)
• The entry is free.

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All you need to know about the 'National War Memorial project':

• The central government had approved the project for building a National War Memorial and a National War Museum near India Gate in 2015 in memory of over 22,500 soldiers who laid down their lives post-Independence.
• The National War Memorial draws inspiration from the 'Chakravyuh' formation
• The memorial has spread over 40 acres in the India Gate complex behind the canopy
• The names of over 25,000 war casualties have been inscribed on 16 walls of the National War Memorial
• Adjacent to the main complex lies a tribute to the 21 Param Vir Chakra with a bronze bust
• The entire stonework of the memorial, was done by Star Mercantile of Kishore Kapur, including the obelisk

About the construction of memorial:

In the year 2015, the government granted permission to make the NWM at C-Hexagon and the National War Museum at Princess Park. The construction of the NWM began in July 2017. The construction of the memorial is based on granite and sandstone, which were transported from Rajasthan. 22 trees were cut to build the memorial and around 715 saplings were planted to replace them.

Meanwhile, the school bands now perform at the National War Memorial in New Delhi on a regular rotation basis, as per the information of Defence Ministry. A decision to this effect was jointly taken by the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Education. 

As per an official statement issued by the Defence Ministry, the Ministry of Education has directed the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) prepared a schedule of school bands in consultation with the Ministry of Education and Government of NCT of Delhi so that schools bands can perform at the National War Memorial.

The place, themes, tunes etc. of the band can be decided in coordination with the Directorate of National War Memorial and Museum, Headquarter Integrated Defence Staff keeping in view the sanctity of the memorial. The Defence Ministry in a statement said that the Ministry of Education has also requested the Education Departments of all states and union territories to select one band from the schools of their respective states to perform in coordination with National War Memorial and Museum as a part of regular schedule. 

The CBSE will coordinate with all the schools in coordination with the Ministry of Defence.

"The objective of this initiative is to inculcate the values of patriotism, devotion to duty, courage and sacrifice among the school children and increase the participation of people, especially the youth so that they experience the various facets associated with the iconic war memorial," the ministry said.

"It carries forward the vision of the Veer Gatha project which was jointly organised by Ministries of Defence and Culture to raise awareness among children about the gallant stories of the war heroes and instil the feeling of nationalism in their formative years through enhanced exposure," it further added.

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