Indian army's contribution in WWI remembered in Brussels

Over 130,000 soldiers from India fought during the First World War in the Ypres salient in Belgium and at nearby Neuve Chapelle in France.

More than 10,000 lost their lives in critical action to stop the German advance, according to India's Ambassador to Belgium, Manjeev Singh Puri.

"This is a bond of solidarity. This is something that brought 130,000 soldiers from India a hundred years ago in the October of 1914 to Belgium where they joined many other countries in the defence of Belgium, Europe and to set a new global order in place," he said.

"As a country, we are proud at the contribution of the soldiers from India and the Indian army. We are very proud that we are part of this great endeavour that has led to global governance changes," said Puri.

He was addressing a function organised by the Indian embassy at the War Museum in Brussels Wednesday night to remember the supreme sacrifice of the brave Indian soldiers.

Sq. Ldr. (Retd.) Rana T.S. Chhina of the Centre for Armed Forces Historical Research, United Services Institute, New Delhi, noted the India was one of the few countries that was engaged in the project for the centennial commemoration of World War I.

He noted that this project examined both the role played by India in this conflict and how the conflict in its turn impacted upon India in terms of social, political and military changes.

"We seek to work with our project partners to highlight the futility of war and the value of lasting peace. We are gathered here not to glorify war but to condemn it," he stressed.

The Indian army that served in the Great War swelled from 150,000 on Aug 1, 1914, into 1.4 million men engaged by the end of the conflict in 1918 and they suffered 70,000 casualties.

It had a significant role to play in numerous fronts around the globe -- France, Belgium, Greece, West and East Africa, Egypt, Palestine, Russia, Iran -- he noted.

"No account of the Great War can ignore the contribution of the Indian army on the various battlefields. But the fact is that most accounts, most histories, most narratives are totally ignorant of this enormous contribution," he stressed.

Dominiek Dendooven of In Flanders Fields Museum, Ypres, narrated about the contribution of Indian soldiers in the battle in Belgium .

He said that very little had been done about commemorating the Indians. "We have been Eurocentric for decades," said the Belgian scholar.

He said that local communities asked for something to be done to change this situation which resulted in the construction of an Indian memorial at the battle site.

Brig. M.S. Jodha spoke about the participation of the Jodhpur Lancers in WWI in Belgium, France, Egypt and Palestine.

The chief of the Belgian armed forces was among the large number of Western diplomats, military officers, parliamentarians and Indian expatriates who attended the reception.