NatioNal cadet corps

3 sikkim Ncc bN, GaNGtok activity: Article writing

remembraNce of ,massacre

Every year on 13th of April, we celebrate Jallianwala Bagh Remembrance Day in order to remember those people who had sacrificed their life for our country. This year our school conducted a program on this incident. The NCC cadets of our school, JNV Pakyong East Sikkim, presented a small drama on this incident. I was very fortunate to have got a chance to present a speech on this incident. For the preparation of this speech I took help from internet. I read many articles on this incident. I also got an opportunity to watch some videos on this incident. Some videos were so realistic and heart touching that I felt myself in that situation. This opportunity gave me a huge knowledge in my life. I came to know and feel that at what cost today I am standing as a free citizen of India. The sacrifices made so that the future generations may not suffer the way as they did. While preparing this speech I developed a huge love for the country and also the martyrs who gave their life for the freedom of our country. The Jallianwala Bagh massacre also known as the massacre took place on 13th of April 1919, when Acting Brigadier-General ordered his troops of British Indian Army to open fire into the crowds of unarmed Indian civilians in the Jallianwala bagh. Background: The recently crushed Ghadar conspiracy, the presence of 's Kabul mission in Afghanistan and a still-active revolutionary movement especially in Punjab and Bengal as well as worsening civil unrest throughout India led to the appointment of a Sedition committee in 1918 chaired by Sidney Rowlatt, an English judge. On the recommendations of the committee, the , an extension of the Defence of India Act 1915, was enforced in India to limit civil liberties. The passage of the Rowlatt Act in 1919 precipitated large scale political unrest throughout India. As a reaction to the Rowlatt act, Muhammad Ali Jinnah resigned from his Bombay seat. In India, Gandhi's call for protest against the Rowlatt Act achieved an unprecedented response of furious unrest and protests. Especially in Punjab, the situation was deteriorating rapidly, with disruptions of rail, telegraph, and communication systems. On 10 April 1919, there was a protest at the residence of , the Deputy Commissioner of Amritsar. The demonstration was to demand the release of two popular leaders, Satya Pal and , who had been arrested by the government. A military picket shot at the crowd, killing several protesters and setting off a series of violent events. On the evening of 12 April, the leaders of the hartal in Amritsar held a meeting. At the meeting, announced a public protest meeting would be held at 18:30 the following day in the Jallianwala Bagh. Massacre: On the morning of 13 April 1919, the many people had gathered in the Jallianwala bagh to celebrate the traditional festival of Baisakhi along with the people who had come to attend the protest meeting. An hour after the meeting began as scheduled at 17:30; Colonel Dyer arrived at the Bagh. The main entrance was relatively wide, but was guarded heavily by the troops. Dyer, without warning the crowd to disperse, blocked the main exits. He stated later that this act "was not to disperse the meeting but to punish the Indians for disobedience."Dyer ordered his troops to begin shooting toward the densest sections of the crowd in front of the available narrow exits. Firing continued for approximately ten minutes. Cease-fire was ordered only when ammunition supplies were almost exhausted. Apart from the many deaths directly from the shooting, a number of people died of crushing in the stampedes at the narrow gates or by jumping into the solitary well on the compound to escape the shooting. This incident has left a deep scar in the face of humanity. Even today we can see the bullet marks on the walls of Jallianwala Bagh. Even the government has not removed the bullet marks from the walls of the Bagh so that every time we look at these marks we may realize that at what cost we have got our freedom. I think that every school must celebrate this day so that the students, the future of our country may know that how we have got our freedom and they may also develop immense love for their country and devotion to work hard for the welfare of our country. We must keep in mind these sacrifices made by our people and keep working hard to make our nation proud. Thank You.

Jai hiNd.

Prepared by –

Ct. Ayush Pradhan Reg. no- SK20SDA226449 J.N.V. Pakyong East Sikkim

Image of Jallianwala Bagh Amritsar, Punjab.

Speech on Jallianwala Bagh Massacre on 13th April 2021 by Ct. Ayush Pradhan in JNV Pakyong East Sikkim.

Bullet marks left on the wall of Jallianwala Bagh.

An illustration of Jallianwala Bagh massacre.