New Delhi: As a symbolic gesture of friendship with Israel, India has renamed the iconic Teen Murti Chowk, a war memorial, during the visit of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The new name of the war memorial located in a roundabout near the Teen Murti Bhavan, the official residence of the first Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, is now Teen Murti Haifa Chowk.
Reports suggest that the decision to rename the iconic landmark of the national capital was taken during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Israel in July 2017.The formal ceremony to rename the landmark took place during Prime Minister Netanyahu’s visit to India.
“Immediately after arrival PM Netanyahu and PM Modi participated in a solemn ceremony at Teen Murti Memorial to pay homage to the soldiers who made the ultimate sacrifice. The leaders laid a wreath, and signed the visitor’s book. The ceremony also marked the formal renaming of Teen Murti Chowk as the Teen Murti Haifa Chowk by the NDMC,” official sources said.
Mr Modi had indicated at the renaming during his visit to Haifa last year where he unveiled a plaque commemorating the leadership of Major Dalpat Singh who led the successful operation. 2018 marks a centenary of the end of the World War I and the Battle of Haifa.
The three bronze statues at Teen Murti represent the Hyderabad, Jodhpur and Mysore Lancers who were part of the 15 Imperial Service Cavalry Brigade. The brigade carried out the victorious assault on the fortified city of Haifa on September 23, 1918, during World War I.
There are various accounts of this battle — all narrate the valour with which the lancers undertook the assault on the garrisoned city protected by a joint force of Ottomans, Germany and Austria-Hungary. The liberation of Haifa cleared a supply route for the Allies to the city through the sea.
Forty-four Indian soldiers made the ultimate sacrifice during the liberation of the city in World War I. Till date, the 61 Cavalry celebrates September 23 as its Raising Day or “Haifa Day.”
