British era bridge in Ambala may be renamed

Nitish Sharma

Councillors of the Cantonment Board Ambala are demanding that the Kali Platoon Bridge be renamed after a martyr or a famous personality. 

The bridge dates back to the British era and connects two parts of Ambala Cantonment. Though reportedly it has no official name, it is popularly called the Kali Platoon Bridge. 

Ajay Baweja, vice-president of the Cantonment Board Ambala, says, “Indian native soldiers of the British army were called Kali Platoon, and were kept towards the Railway Colony area on the other side of the Grand Trunk road, separate from British troops. Thus it got the name Kali Platoon Bridge. Even after over 71 years of Independence, it is still known as the Kali Platoon Bridge. The councillors of the Cantonment Board say that retaining the old name is like carrying the stigma of the British rule”.

The bridge crosses over the Ambala-Delhi National Highway and railway tracks in Ambala Cantonment.

“On the one hand, a Shaheed Samarak is being constructed in Ambala Cantonment to commemorate the sacrifices of the heroes of the 1857 revolt, on the other we have this bridge just a few kilometres from the construction site of the memorial. We have raised the issue with Cantonment Board president Brigadier SS Sidhu and he has asked the board members to bring a proposal at the next meeting,” he says. 

The councillors are likely to propose the bridge to be named after martyrs Gursewak Singh, Vikramjeet Singh, and Bhagat Singh, Subhas Chandra Bose, Chandra Shekhar Azad, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, and Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya. The matter will be discussed in the Cantonment Board’s meeting and the proceedings will be sent to the Union Ministry of Defence for approval. Once the Defence Ministry gives the approval, the board will be able to get the name of the bridge changed.

Baweja says, “Even in the past, the board has renamed roads after Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Patel and Chanakya. We are hopeful that the Union Ministry of Defence will give permission and the name of the bridge will be changed soon”. 

Varun Kalia, Chief Executive Officer of the Cantonment Board Ambala, says, “There is no official information about the name but in common parlance it is known as Kali Platoon Bridge. Even the Railways has been asked to provide information about any document with them regarding the name. The proposal is being examined and if there is no official information regarding the name, the board will change it”.