102 Haifa Day Celebrations in Bengaluru
- Former Bengaluru Police commissioner Bhaskar Rao, descendent of Mysore Lancers to lay wreath at JC Nagar, Near TV Tower
Bengaluru: Haifa Day is being celebrated on September 23, 2020, at the Mysore Lancers Memorial located at JC Nagar, near TV Tower. On that day, three communities – The Urs, Maratha and Rajputs are gathering to pay respects to their forefathers who laid down their lives.
Also, this was the day in the year 1918 during the World War I, Mysore Lancers which was part of the 15th (Imperial Service) Cavalry Brigade defeated the Ottoman Empire and the Germans in the port city of Haifa.
Today, the Mysore Lancers has been disbanded. It was on November 15, 1953, it got merged with the 61st Cavalry Regiment of the Indian Army. The Mysore Lancers are remembered throughout India as the Teen Murti War Memorial in New Delhi and the Memorial at JC Nagar in Bengaluru.
War Memorial Remodelling and Redesign Proposal
With only three Haifa War memorials in the world – one in the port city of Haifa (presently located in Israel), second in New Delhi as the Teen Murti War Memorial and the third Memorial in Bengaluru at JC Nagar. In order to preserve the martial history of Mysore and to present the circle aesthetically, Mysore royal family led by Sri Raja Chandra and Lancers descendent families are to give a memorandum to the government.
During Nalvadi Krishna Raja Wadiyar’s rule, the significant gallantry and decisive victory of Mysore Lancers over enemy troops in the Great War (World War I) was commemorated by Maharaja’s Government through the installation of a pillar with a roll of honour in present R. T. Nagar. The road it stands on was named after Col. J. Desaraj Urs. However, the road had lost this name when it was upgraded, and we request that it be restored. Yashaswini Sharma of Esthétique Architects has proposed enlargement and redesign of the War Memorial. An enlargement of the Memorial circle by about three meters all around would bring in space for people to stand reminiscence and pay their respects to the departed martyrs. Also, the proposal includes the installation of a life-size equestrian statue of Mysore Lancer with plaques on either side commemorating the Mysore Lancers of the 15th Imperial Service Cavalry Brigade with a visual connection to the Memorial. This larger roundabout would have seats too to enable relatives and others to sit, reflect and remember their ancestors. The proposed grill work takes inspiration from the decorations of Mysore Lancers.
