Sikh soldiers to get new war memorial in London
Thursday, 01/02/2018
https://dailypost.in/news/punjab/sikh-soldiers-war-memorial-london/
Sikh soldiers to get new war memorial in London. The UK government has agreed to support and fund a national memorial to honour the sacrifices and contribution of Sikh soldiers who fought for Britain and its allies during the two World Wars. More than 83,000 turbaned Sikh soldiers gave their lives and more than 100,000 were injured during the wars.
We are indebted to all those servicemen who volunteered to serve and fought to defend the freedoms we enjoy today,” said UK communities secretary Sajid Javid here on Tuesday as he announced government backing for the new memorial in London. “A Sikh war memorial in our nation’s capital will honour their sacrifice and ensure that this part of our shared history is never forgotten. So, I’m delighted to get behind this campaign and ensure its success,” he said.
The campaign for a new Sikh war memorial was led by Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi, Britain’s first turbaned Sikh MP, who now has the support of the UK’s Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government to help set up a Working Group to find a suitable location. Once an appropriate site has been identified and detailed plans agreed, the ministry has agreed to provide funding towards the project.
“Given that the Sikh community, which is very proud of its military traditions, there has been a demand for more than a decade for a Sikh memorial in a prime central location in London,” Dhesi said. Britain owes a huge debt to the Sikh service men and women who fought alongside British troops in the First and Second World Wars,” added London Mayor Sadiq Khan.
