Punjab Post Daily Online Newspaper & Print Media
Address teachers, students at Khalsa College of Education
Amritsar, Apr. 27 (Dharmender Singh Rataul) – A renowned scholar and researcher from Belgium Dominiek Dendoovan today gave powerful presentation on the `Role of the Sikhs in World War I’ at Khalsa College of Education (KCE) here. Referring rare pictures and historic records he has collected, Dominiek recalled the supreme sacrifices that the Indian and especially Sikh soldiers made in Europe while fighting the Germans during WWI.
Dendoovan said about 1.2 million Indians volunteered to fight for the British Indian Army in World War I, making them the largest volunteer army in the War. On the other hand while Sikhs were only 2 per cent of India’s population, their presence in British Indian Army was above 22 per cent and WW I and II, 83,005 Sikhs were killed and 109,045 wounded fighting for the allied forces against Germans’, he stated.
He said contribution of Sikhs as martial race were immense and their stories of valor and sacrifice were still remembered in parts of his country Belgium and others. He was earlier welcomed at the College by Khalsa College Governing Council (KCGC) honourary secretary Rajinder Mohan Singh Chhina and Principal Dr.JS Dhillon. He also highlighted the difficult conditions in which the soldiers fought in extreme conditions and how many died by diseases and were left handicapped by mines explosions and `trench feet’ diseases.
During his visit to Khalsa College’s historic building and Sikh Museum, he batted for World Heritage status for the 124 years old building. Later, Punjab Cultural Promotion Council (PCPC) Dr.Davinder Singh Chhina who also addressed the gathering said the Sikhs were unsung heroes of the wars and it were the scholars like Dominiek and other Belgian Sikh scholar Bhupinder Singh who have scripted the history of these `great men’. RMS Chhina earlier said the whole Sikh community was indebted to the contribution of Dominiek who took pains to collect the data relating the role of Sikhs in these Wars.
Other present during the talks included Principal, Khalsa College, Dr.Mehal Singh, Prof.SS Chhina, Chief Judicial Magistrate Girish Bansal, vice Principal vice principal Harpreet Kaur, KCGC under secretary DS Rataul, Prof Deepika Kolhi and Prof.Maninder Kaur, social activist Sarbjit Singh Gumtala and others.
