Martyrs’ Memorial may come up soon

Ramkrishan Upadhyay

Tribune News service

Chandigarh, May 10

The Martyrs’ Memorial at the Capitol Complex is likely to come up soon. Sources said the Administration had decided to complete the project and had sought the help of the National Gallery of Modern Art.

Le Corbusier had planned the project, symbolising the independence struggle, but the project failed to come up during his lifetime.

The Capitol Complex, one of the most renowned creations of Le Corbusier, comprises three buildings—Punjab and Haryana High Court, Assembly and the Secretariat.

Besides, six monuments were to be part of the complex. Of these, the Martyrs’ Memorial is the one projects, which is incomplete. Drawings of these monuments were made by Corbusier. In a letter to the Director of the National Gallery of Modern Art, the Administration stated that it intended to complete the Martyrs Memorial and the installation of unfinished art structures at the Capitol Complex.

The Martyrs’ Memorial was conceived to honour the memory of those who laid down their lives in the struggle for the freedom of the country, culminating in independence in 1947. The memorial has three components i.e. architectural with mythological symbols, sculptures like lion, snakes, man and debris. The Department of Urban Planning has some drawings to co-relate the same with the project. At present ,the memorial has a square enclosure with one elongated side. According to the Corbusier’s drawings, it was supposed to have sculptures and a debris section. While a building stands in the Capitol Complex, the thought with which the monument was conceptualised has not been fulfilled.