VIJYA DIWAS

The two-day annual feature to commemorate Vijay Diwas will be held at local Asafwala War Memorial on Monday and Tuesday. Tributes will be paid to 207 soldiers of the Army who made the supreme sacrifice during the 1971 Indo-Pak war in Fazilka sector to save the strategically important border town from falling into the hands of Pakistan. The solemn programme will be organised by the Shaheedon Ki Samadhi Committee, which has been looking after the Asafwala War Memorial since 1972, in association with the Army and the local administration Notably, one of the fierce man-to-man battles was fought in Fazilka sector and a total 206 valiant fighters of the Army and other forces lost their lives and 364 were injured. Residents raised the memorial to commemorate the martyrs whom they considered as “Saviours of Fazilka”. After the ceasefire in December 1971, a collective cremation of 82 jawans of 4 Jat Regiment of the Army was performed at the memorial site by raising a 90-ft pyre. The ashes have been kept in the sanctum sanctorum, where the public pay obeisance. The war memorial complex is constructed on about five acres. The erstwhile Chief Minister of Punjab Giani Zail Singh had inaugurated the memorial on September 22, 1972. Since then a “Shaheedi Mela” is held every year at the war memorial.