Jallianwala Bagh massacre: A heart-wrenching event in history : The Tribune India

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Jallianwala Bagh massacre: A heart-wrenching event in history

Tribune photojournalist Vishal Kumar brings alive the memories of bloodbath witnessed on April 13, 1919

Jallianwala Bagh massacre: A heart-wrenching event in history

The central memorial inside the bagh is a stone structure symbolising the eternal flame in memory of those who lost their lives during the massacre.



 The Jallianwala Bagh, enclosed within an area of seven acres, is the site of one of the most brutal massacres in the world history. Located in the vicinity of the Golden Temple complex, it is managed by the Jallianwala Bagh National Memorial Trust, which was established under the Jallianwala Bagh National Memorial Act, 1951. Several structures such as the Amar Jyoti, Martyrs’ Well, portico pillars representing the British soldiers, bullet marked walls and statues of nationalist leaders have been preserved inside. The premises contain several structures, a martyrs’ gallery and museum dedicated to the memory of 1,600 people, who died at the hands of the British soldiers led by General Dyer on the fateful day of April 13, 1919. The martyrs’ gallery contains a number of paintings, including those of some political leaders and one showing a number of people dead at Jallianwala Bagh. A portrait of Udham Singh is on display at the gallery and his ashes are kept in the museum. Last year, the Centre approved a renovation project that aims at building an additional museum inside the bagh and preserve the sanctity of the place, which is a memorial of national importance.

well of pain: The Martyrs Well, designed by American architect Benjamin Polk and inaugurated in 1961, is surrounded by a large structure and a martyrs’ memorial with a sign which states that 120 bodies were recovered from the well in the aftermath of the massacre.
Jallianwala Bagh

Telling signs of brutality: A number of bullet holes in the walls are preserved inside

the bagh. One of the walls with bullet holes has a plaque reading: The wall has its own historic significance as it has 36 bullet marks, which can be easily seen at present and these were fired into the crowd on the orders of General Dyer. Moreover, no warning was given to the crowd gathered there against the Rowlatt Act before Dyer opened fire. As many as 1,650 rounds were fired.

The statue of Shaheed Udham Singh, a revolutionary of the Ghadar Party, who avenged the Jallianwala Bagh massacre by assassinating Michael O’Dwyer in London on March 13, 1940. He was the Lt Governor of Punjab during the massacre.
The epitaph at the venue
A musical fountain has been installed near the entrance to the Jallianwala Bagh.
Long, bloodied walk for freedom: The entrance to Jallianwala Bagh is via a narrow passage, the same passage that was the only entry and exit point at the time of the massacre and the same route that General Dyer and his troops took to reach the ground. This entrance has been turned into a mural to remember those who sacrificed their lives on the long road to freedom.
The newly set up museum inside the Jallianwala Bagh has several structures and symbolic depictions of prominent historical and religious figures. This one is a representational plaque of Guru Nanak Dev and Banda Singh Bahadur with engraving of the Golden Temple.
Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s statue at the museum gallery. At 22 (in 1802), he took Amritsar from the Bhangi Sikh misl, and announced that he would renovate and rebuild it with marble and gold.


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