Situated in the Pune Cantonment area near M.G. Road, the National War Museum is a war memorial devoted to the Indian soldiers who sacrificed themselves for the nation in the post-independence wars. Pune is the city that is rich in every sense, whether you consider it from education, tourism, or culture point of view. Pune has its share of several rich museums and the National War Museum is one of them.
The notion of setting up a museum of national significance in Pune was first set forth in the year 1996. It was the citizens of Pune who set up the War Memorial fund with the help of the Express Citizens’ Forum who sponsored it. The people of the city were asked for the contribution towards funding. All the people, right from a common man to a business tycoon came forward to raise the funds wholeheartedly for this noble cause. As a result, the Punekar’s tasted success when the foundation of the National War Museum was laid down in November 1997, and eventually was introduced to public in October 1998. This is the only war museum in the entire South Asia that has been constructed as the consequence of the contributions made by the citizens.
Popularly known as the National War Memorial, it has a brown-colored, granite-made pillar which is 25-feet high. The eight-foot tall marble plaques encompass this memorial on all the sides. Each plaque highlights the names of the soldiers engraved on it who gave up their all while defending India in wars since the independence of the nation. You will come across around 1200 names on those plaques. You will find four fork-like projections at the top of the pillar, which collectively look like a flower. This pillar exists at the Morvada junction.
Presently, the Southern Command looks after the National War Museum. It is believed that a proposal was made to rename this memorial as the Southern Command War Memorial. However, it experienced rejection due to the objections it received. The memorial was renovated under the direction of the Southern Command. The current memorial exhibits a landscape, a gate, a Vijayanta tank, and pathways for visitors. The inscriptions on the stone galleries present here display the details of the battles and the heroic deeds of the soldiers.
People from the city and all over the country come here to pay reverence to the war martyrs of India. This museum also displays a Mig 23 BN that was used in the Kargil war and a model of INS Trishul that aidedIndiain the Indo-Portuguese and the Indo-Pak (1971) wars. The luxuriant greenery adds to its beauty. It is a plus point for Pune that it houses such a beautiful memorial that salutes the martyrs of our nation.
You can opt for the Pune Darshan trip that includes this place in its list. Thus make sure you visit this place to experience the lifestyle of that time and beauty of the place. Thus if you have not visited this place, or you are planning to come to Pune on a trip, make sure you visit the National War Memorial to feel the pride of being an Indian.
