New Delhi:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit the Mazargues War Cemetery in France’s Marseille tomorrow. The cemetery contains a memorial that honours the memory of Indian soldiers who made the ultimate sacrifice while defending foreign lands during the World Wars.
As a tribute to their valour and sacrifice, PM Modi and French President Emmanuel Macron will lay a wreath at the cemetery, reaffirming the deep historical ties between India and France.
PM Modi came to France to attend the AI Action Summit.
PM Modi will also visit the ITER site tomorrow – the home of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER). It is a significant step in harnessing nuclear energy for global good.
The prime minister has been a staunch proponent of giving due respect to soldiers, especially those whose sacrifices may have been forgotten over the years since they lay down their lives far away from the motherland.
During his visit to Australia in November 2014 , PM Modi paid homage to martyrs at the Australian War Memorial, in Canberra. At the memorial, he presented the Man Singh Trophy, a prized possession of Sikh regiment battalions, to his Australian counterpart Tony Abbott.
The trophy originally in silver was presented to the Officers’ Mess 14 (King George’s own) Sikhs in 1919.
The officers of the battalion, who served in the unit during World War I in Egypt, Gallipoli, Sinai and Mesopotamia from October 1914 to May 1917, had made it in commemoration of the gallant actions of their soldiers.
In April 2015, PM Modi paid homage to Indian soldiers at the World War I memorial in Neuve-Chapelle in France. He became the first Indian prime minister to do so.
In November 2015, PM Modi paid homage at the INA Memorial Marker in Singapore, and also became the first Indian prime minister to do so. In July 2017, PM Modi visited the Indian War Cemetery in Haifa, Israel and paid respect to soldiers.
Later on, in his Mann Ki Baat address in September 2018, he spoke about the centenary of the Battle of Haifa in Israel and paid tributes to our brave soldiers of Mysore, Hyderabad and Jodhpur Lancers who had freed Haifa from the clutches of oppressors during World War I.
In October 2018, PM Modi spoke about the contribution of Indian soldiers in World War I.
“We had no direct connection with that war. Despite this, our soldiers fought bravely and played a very big role and made the supreme sacrifice. Our soldiers have displayed great valour in difficult areas and adverse conditions,” PM Modi said.
In June 2023, PM Modi visited the Heliopolis Commonwealth War Grave Cemetery in Cairo during his state visit to Egypt. He paid homage to over 4,300 valiant Indian soldiers who sacrificed their lives in Egypt and Aden during World War I.
In August 2024, PM Modi laid a wreath and paid tribute at the monument to the Battle of Monte Cassino in Warsaw, Poland. This monument commemorates the sacrifice and valour of soldiers from Poland, India and other countries who fought alongside each other in the famous Battle of Monte Cassino in Italy during World War II.
