The bugles sounded at 11 o’clock on the second Sunday in November to commemorate the 104th anniversary of the end of World War I. At the Bengali War Memorial in College Square, Kolkata was prepared to honour its fallen troops. Shashi Panja, the cabinet minister for industries, commerce & enterprises and the department of women & child development, attended the commemoration of Remembrance Sunday as the chief guest. Sudip Bandyopadhyay, a member of Parliament, was with her.
The band and soldiers from the Bihar Regiment organised the ceremony in Kolkata. The wreath-laying event included dignitaries as well as members of the army, air force, police, local council, Indian Chamber of Commerce, College Square Puja Committee, College Square Swimming Club, and other organisations.
Atashi Sanyal Kanjilal, the granddaughter of Amulya Charan Kanjilal, a soldier in the 49th Bengali Regiment, was also on the list. Kanjilal safely came home while carrying tales of the horrors of battle. Ms. Kanjilal learned about the war stories from her grandmother after her grandfather passed away. She described the severe food shortages the regiment experienced. The Sanyal family still strictly prohibits food waste during daily meals.
Almost a million Indian troops served in the British Army during the Great War of 1914–18. In various conflict zones around the world, 62,000 of them died and 67,000 others were injured. Some Bengali soldiers who participated in conflicts in Mesopotamia were among them. In 1924, a memorial was erected in honour of the roughly 56 individuals who passed away near the eastern gate of College Square.
World War I came to an end on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, which has since become known as Armistice Day. The observance of Armistice Day was moved to the second Sunday in November after World War II, which gave rise to the name “Remembrance Sunday.” Every year on Remembrance Day, which is honoured internationally, memorial services are held at the Glorious Dead Cenotaph at the
The Bengali Double Company, now officially known as the 49th Bengali Regiment, was founded on June 26, 1917, with 228 soldiers. In September 1917, after completing their training in Karachi, they arrived at the Mesopotamian battlefields (present-day Iraq). The regiment served mostly as support personnel and was most likely never directly involved in combat. Of the 56 fatalities, illness and accidents were the main causes. On August 30, 1920, the regiment’s surviving members returned to Kolkata, and shortly after that, it was dissolved.
William Ingram Keir created a memorial that stands now in honour of them. The top of the pillar-shaped memorial bears the inscription Bengalis and a representation of the British crown. “In commemoration of members of the 49th Bengali Regiment who fell in the great war 1914-19,” is written on the base’s front panel. To the honour of God, the king, and the nation. The names of the 56 deceased servicemen are listed on the memorial base’s other three sides. Additionally, it includes the following details: registration number, rank, death date, and district of origin.
