Panjab University researchers trace roots of 1857 martyrs
Remains found in Ajnala well that of Native Bengal Infantry soldiers
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Bhartesh Singh Thakur
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, November 2
A research by Panjab University has traced the origin of martyred soldiers of the 1857 revolt, whose skeletal remains were found in a well in Ajnala, near Amritsar.
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The research has endorsed historical accounts that the soldiers of the 26th Native Bengal Infantry Regiment had come from West Bengal, Bihar, Odisha, Awadh (presently in Uttar Pradesh) and parts of Meghalaya and Manipur and other northeastern states.
282 executions by the british regime
- In his book published in 1858, Frederick Cooper, the then Amritsar DC, narrated the execution of 282 soldiers
- The Indian soldiers were shot dead and buried in a well in Ajnala on August 1, 1857
- The skeletal remains were found in 2014 during the
construction of a gurdwara
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JS Sehrawat, Assistant Professor, Anthropology Department, said: “We have sought a list of martyred soldiers from the British authorities. We will try to identify them and locate their families so that their last rites can be conducted in a proper manner.”
The research has found that the remains belonged to adult males, who were not locals, but share a common geographic area. The injuries on the skull confirmed that the sepoys were killed in volley fire.
“The soldiers were in the age group of 20-50, had good dental health and healthy dietary habits,” said Dr Monika Singh, who completed her PhD while studying the remains.
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