Iconic rifle, helmet at India Gate shifted to National War Memorial

New Delhi: The iconic rifle and the soldier’s war helmet, which were part of the Amar Jawan Jyoti at the India Gate, were moved to the National War Memorial on Friday.

The defence ministry said the armed Forces ”shifted the inverted rifle and the helmet from India Gate, which was the symbol of fallen soldiers of 1971 war, to Param Yodha Sthal at National War Memorial”.

It said the rifle and the helmet were installed in the midst of busts of Param Vir Chakra awardees.

”With this ceremony, the integration of the memorial of fallen soldiers of 1971 war with National War Memorial has been completed,” the ministry said in a statement.

The ceremony was led by the Chief of Integrated Defence Staff to the Chairman, Chiefs of Staff Committee (CISC) Air Marshal BR Krishna and attended by Adjutant General equivalents from the three services.

The Amar Jawan Jyoti at the India Gate was merged with the eternal flame at the National War Memorial (NWM) in January.

The NWM is around 400 meters away from the India Gate.

The Amar Jawan Jyoti was constructed as a memorial for Indian soldiers who were killed in action in the 1971 Indo-Pak war, which India won, leading to the creation of Bangladesh.

It was inaugurated by the then prime minister Indira Gandhi on January 26, 1972.