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Defence Minister A K Antony has backed the armed forces in their demand for a national war memorial within the India Gate complex after Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit made her opposition to the project public, shooting off protest letters to the ministries of Urban Development, Home and Defence contending that an alternative site should be found.
Antony, who has been driving the proposal to have a national memorial to honour post-Independence martyrs of the armed forces, on Sunday stuck to his stand that India Gate complex — which already houses the British era war memorial — is the ideal site.
“As far as we are concerned, it is the place to have a national war memorial. We are very clear,” Antony said responding to questions at the sidelines of a wreath laying ceremony at Amar Jawan Jyoti to commemorate the 1971 war anniversary.
Antony expressed confidence that while various stakeholders have been asked for their opinion on the matter after a Group of Ministers (GoM) set up by the Prime Minister gave the view that India Gate is the ideal venue for the memorial, the government is certain to sort out any differences.
While the armed forces have insisted that the memorial should come up within the India Gate complex, the Urban Development Ministry and the Delhi government have been opposing the idea.
“We are not for it. India Gate is one of the few places in Delhi where families enjoy an outing and have open access. A war memorial can be built anywhere else in Delhi,” Dikshit said on Sunday.
Meanwhile, in the context of the alleged torture of Kargil martyr Captain Saurabh Kalia, Antony said India is pursuing the matter with Pakistan. “We are handling it in an appropriate manner. We will pursue it and now we are pursuing it with Pakistan.”
Earlier, Pakistan interior minister Rehman Malik had said that he was not sure whether bullets or inclement weather led to the death of the young officer.
Cautions Estates department
A K Antony has cautioned the Defence Estates Department against issuing No Objection Certificates (NoCs) without verifying the matter. In a clear reference to the Sukna land scandal and the Adarsh housing scam, Antony cautioned the department that “while issuing NOCs, you must draw lessons from some of the inquiries that are going on regarding malpractices”. He emphasised that the Ministry of Defence has issued new guidelines to ensure a balance between security concerns of the forces and the need for development.
http://idrw.org/?p=16646
