Prime Minister Narendra Modi threw open to the public the renovated Jallianwala Bagh complicated in Amritsar on August 28.
The monument, initially inaugurated by President Dr. Rajendra Prasad in 1961, was the nation’s tribute to victims of the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh massacre that killed hundreds when British troops led by Col. Reginald Dyer opened fire at a significant gathering to protest against the arrest of freedom fighters Satya Pal and Saifuddin Kitchlu.
In 2019, the Centre had earmarked about Rs 20 crore to commemorate one hundred years of the massacre.
The Union Ministry of Culture has undertaken work on restoration and conservation, as properly as developing ticket counters, toilets, and drinking water fountains. Government-owned NBCC carried out the renovation at the memorial, which had been shut considering that February 2019.
As element of the renovations, the entry and exit points have been repositioned, though a lotus pond has been constructed about the memorial. The government has also enclosed in a glass shield the ‘Shahidi Khu’ or Martyrs’ Well, into which folks jumped to save themselves from the barrage of bullets. The selection has sparked controversy as it may restrict the view.
What’s new
The complicated has a new Salvation Ground for guests exactly where they can sit in silence and honour the martyrs. A 28-minute light and sound show re-enacting the events of that fateful day will also be shown for free of charge each evening.
The higher walls on the narrow lane that guests use to enter the complicated are now lined with new sculptures of martyrs. The sculptures represent the ordinary Punjabis who walked into the park that day, in no way to return.
The government has also designed 4 new galleries by way of the adaptive re-use of underutilised buildings to showcase the historical worth of events in Punjab through that period. The galleries depict Punjab’s history and that of the freedom movement, as properly as the Gadar movement.
Sculptures of Guru Nanak, Sikh warrior Banda Singh Bahadur, and Maharaja Ranjit Singh have also come up.
Politics of nationalism
As elections of the Punjab Legislative Assembly in 2022 nears, the politics of nationalism has after once again taken centrestage. Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh last week inaugurated the Jallianwala Bagh Centenary Memorial Park, committed to the unknown martyrs. He stated the memorial at the original web page only commemorate the martyrs who had been identified.
The second memorial has come up about 3 km from the original web page on 1.5 acres at Amrit Anand Park.