Amar Jawan Jyoti to National War Memorial

Subject – History

Context – Amar Jawan Jyoti now merged with War Memorial flame: govt.

Concept –

The iconic Amar Jawan Jyoti, which was inaugurated after the 1971 Liberation War of Bangladesh by former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, was removed, even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the construction of a statue of Subhas Chandra Bose, restructuring the symbolism around the India Gate.
The Centre said the Jyoti was “not extinguished” and only “merged” with the flame at the National War Memorial (NWM).

Amar Jawan Jyoti

The eternal flame at the Amar Jawan Jyoti underneath India Gate in central Delhi was an iconic symbol of the nation’s tributes to the soldiers who have died for the country in various wars and conflicts since Independence.
Established in 1972, it was to mark India’s victory over Pakistan in the 1971 War, which resulted in the creation of Bangladesh. The then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had inaugurated it on Republic Day 1972, after India defeated Pakistan in December 1971.
The key elements of the Amar Jawan Jyoti included a black marble plinth, a cenotaph, which acted as a tomb of the unknown soldier. The plinth had an inverted L1A1 self-loading rifle with a bayonet, on top of which was a soldier’s war helmet. The installation had four urns on it, with four burners.
- On normal days one of the four burners were kept alive, but on important days like the Republic Day, all four burners were lit.
- These burners were what is called the eternal flame, and it was never allowed to be extinguished.
The Amar JawanJyoti is manned by soldiers drawn from the Army, Navy, and the Air Force. It is manned round the clock. The three flags of the Indian Armed Forces can be seen from it. The Chiefs of the Indian Armed Forces also pay tributes on Vijay Divas.

How was the eternal flame kept burning?

For 50 years the eternal flame had been burning underneath India Gate, without being extinguished. But on Friday, the flame was finally put off, as it was merged with another eternal flame at the National War Memorial.
Since 1972, when it was inaugurated, it used to be kept alive with the help of cylinders of liquified petroleum gas, or LPG. One cylinder could keep one burner alive for a day and a half.
In 2006 that was changed. Though a project that cost around Rs 6 lakh the fuel for the flames was changed from LPG to piped natural gas, or PNG. It is through this piped gas that the flame marking the tribute to Indian soldiers had been kept alive eternally.

Why was it placed at India Gate?

The India Gate, All India War Memorial, as it was known earlier, was built by the British in 1931.
It was erected as a memorial to around 90,000 Indian soldiers of the British Indian Army, who had died in several wars and campaigns till then.
Names of more than 13,000 dead soldiers are mentioned on the memorial commemorating them.
As it was a memorial for the Indian soldiers killed in wars, the Amar Jawan Jyoti was established underneath it by the government in 1972.

National War Memorial

The National War Memorial, which is around 400 meters from India Gate was inaugurated by Modi in February 2019, in an area of around 40 acres.
It was built to commemorate all the soldiers who have laid down their lives in the various battles, wars, operations and conflicts of Independent India. There are many independent memorials for such soldiers, but no memorial existed commemorating them all at the national level.
Discussions to build such a memorial had been ongoing since 1961, but it did not come up. In 2015, the Modi-led government approved its construction, and the location east of the India Gate at C Hexagon was finalised. The final design of the memorial was selected through a competition.

Architecture of National War Memorial

The architecture of the memorial is based on four concentric circles.

Largest is the Raksha Chakra or the Circle of Protection which is marked by a row of trees, each of which represent soldiers, who protect the country.
The Tyag Chakra, the Circle of Sacrifice, has circular concentric walls of honour based on the Chakravyuh. The walls have independent granite tablets for each of the soldiers who have died for the country since Independence.
- As of today, there are 26,466 names of such soldiers on these granite tablets etched in golden letters. A tablet is added every time a soldier is killed in the line of duty.
This Veerta Chakra, the Circle of Bravery, has a covered gallery with six bronze crafted murals depicting the battles and actions of our Armed Forces.
The final is the Amar Chakra, the Circle of Immortality, which has an obelisk, and the Eternal Flame.
- The flame from the Amar Jawan Jyoti at the India Gate will be merged with this flame, which has been kept burning since 2019 when the memorial was unveiled.
- The flame is a symbol of the immortality of the spirit of the fallen soldiers, and a mark that the country will not forget their sacrifice.
Busts of the 21 soldiers who have been conferred with the highest gallantry award of the country, ParamVir Chakra, are also installed at the memorial.
The central obelisk is topped with an Ashokan Capital and the base bears the famous couplet ‘Shaheed kimazron par…’ by poet Jagdamba Prasad Mishra ‘Hitaishi’.

Old Custom of Amar JawanJyoti (1972-2019)

Since 1972, every-year on the Republic Day (before the Republic Day parade), it had been customary for the President, Prime Minister, Chief of the Air Staff, Chief of the Naval Staff, Chief of the Army Staff and dignitaries to place a wreath at Amar JawanJyoti and pay homage to the dead and unknown soldiers.

Current Custom of Amar Jawan Jyoti (2020-)

From 2020 onwards, the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, on the occasion of Republic Day placed the wreath at the National War Memorial instead of the India Gate.
Starting a new custom taking place at the new Amar JawanJyoti at the National War Memorial accompanied by the Chief of Defence Staff, along with the Army Chief, Navy Chief, and Air Force Chief who also visit the same monument on their respective Service Days to pay tribute to historic and modern fallen soldiers.
The flame of the Amar JawanJyoti at the India Gate in Delhi was merged with the eternal flame at the National War Memorial in 21 Jan 2022.

Statue of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose at India Gate

A “grand statue” of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose will be installed beneath the empty canopy at India Gate – it has been vacant since 1968 when the statue of King George V was removed and taken to Coronation Park in northwest Delhi.
The sandstone canopy where Netaji’s statue will be installed was constructed in 1936. It has been vacant ever since the statue of King George V was moved to the Coronation Park.

To know about Netaji Subash Chandra Bose, please refer June 2021 DPN.