Army chief General Upendra Dwivedi on Monday announced that the iconic painting depicting Pakistan’s surrender in the 1971 war at his office in Raisina Hills will be replaced with a new piece titled ‘Kalam Kshetra’. Justified.
The painting relating to the 1971 war was removed from the Secretary of War’s Lounge in December and later installed at the Manekshaw Convention Center.
Changes to historical paintings bothered many Army veterans, and the decision was met with some criticism.
“If you look at the golden history of India, it has three chapters. There is the British period, the Mughal period and the period before that. If you want to connect that with the vision of the Army, symbolism is important. ” said General Dwivedi.
The new painting ‘Kalam Kshetra’, which means ‘place of action’, is the work of Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Jacob of the 28th Madras Regiment.
The Army says this portrays the Army as a guardian of the nation’s values and a custodian of “dharma” that reflects its evolution into a technologically advanced joint force.
It depicts the snow-capped mountains around Pangong Tso Lake in eastern Ladakh, Krishna’s chariot, and Chanakya representing strategic wisdom.
The army chief mentioned rebalancing the army in view of the challenges coming from the Northern Front and suggested that the new picture was drawn up taking into account the current realities.
General Dwivedi said the painting was done by Lieutenant Colonel Jacob, who belongs to the younger generation of the force. “It is also said that there is a half-naked Brahmin standing in the center of the Pangong Tso river bank,” he said.
If Indians don’t know Chanakya, they need to reflect on their civilized approach, he says. The army chief said the new painting symbolizes the past, present and future.
“If ever there was a connection between past, present and future, this represents it,” he said. The Secretary of War has two lounges and the Surrender Painting is located in the Manekshaw Center lounge.
