NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday inaugurated the country's National War Memorial (NWM) adjoining the iconic India Gate complex in the heart of the capital, nearly 60 years after it was mooted to honour the fallen soldiers after Independence.
Here are eight facts about the National War Memorial (NWM):
Rose petals were showered by IAF helicopters and a fly-past in 'Missing Man' formation was also part of the event.
There was no national memorial to commemorate the sacrifice of fallen soldiers after independence.
The outermost circle -- the Rakshak Chakra comprises of rows of more than 600 trees with each tree representing many soldiers who guard the territorial integrity of the nation round the clock.
The memorial complex also comprises graphic panels and stone murals.
Officials said the Amar Jawan Jyoti, built in 1972 underneath the India Gate arch in memory of the fallen soldiers of the 1971 war, will remain there but the NWM will be the place to pay tributes to soldiers who sacrificed their lives for the country.
The India Gate itself is a war memorial built during the British Raj as the All India War Memorial Arch to honour the soldiers who died in the First World War (1914-1918) and the Third Anglo-Afghan War (1919).
The landmark has the names of soldiers inscribed on its surface.