Residents of historical crawling street want memorial at Kodeya Wala Khoo

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, April 3

The residents of the historical Kodeya Wala Khoo, where Gen O’ Dyer ordered every passer-by to be baton-charge from Duggalan Wali Gali, demanded a memorial to keep the memory alive. The street is also known as crawling street.

The residents of Dugglan Wali Gali say that during the BJP-SAD regime they met the then deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal and sought a memorial.

Things have changed over the years. The Khoo (well) was replaced with a Shivala (Shiv temple) in 1980’s but most of the people are aware about the history.

A large number of inhabitants, especially people belongs to Dugal caste, of Dugglan Wali Gali have migrated to other areas of the city.

It is worth mention here that Miss Marcella Sherwood, who supervised the Mission Day School for Girls, was cycling around the city when she was assaulted by a mob in the narrow street. After this incident, Dyer visited the street and ordered to tie a rope near the well. Every passerby had to crawl to pass the street. The British police had been ordered to baton-charge them.

Rajinder Gupta, born in 1934 in Bodi Munyan Da Vehra, says, “I have listened about it from eyewitnesses who used to crawl. In 1984, we constructed a temple on the well. The government should install a board to make the people aware of the history of the area.”

Rakesh Sharma, another resident, “This is the right time to make a memorial. If the government fails to take an initiative, we will install a board revealing history of the street.”