Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his Independence Day speech in 2021 had declared 14th August to be observed as “Partition Horrors Remembrance Day” throughout the country. The day is observed in memory of the struggles and sacrifice of the people of the nation who lost their lives due to mindless hate and violence as a result of partition. To commemorate this day, Western Railway organized exhibition on the theme of “Partition Horrors Remembrance Day” at 35 stations across WR.
According to a press release issued by Sumit Thakur – Chief Public Relations Officer of Western Railway, the photo exhibition displayed historical facts to bring to light the agony, suffering and pain of millions of people who suffered the Partition. The exhibition is a stark reminder to the country of the largest displacement of human population happened in the last century, claiming lives of a large number of people. The exhibition on “Partition Horrors Remembrance Day” was set up at 35 stations, as well as at Vadodara Divisional Railway Manager’s office. The exhibition was first started at Sabarmati station of Ahmedabad Division, which began on 10th August, 2022 and culminated on 14th August, 2022. At all other stations, the exhibition was held on 14th August, 2022. In Ahmedabad Division, the exhibition was also held at Ahmedabad, Maninagar, Kalol, Gandhidham, Mehsana, Palanpur & Radhanpur stations while in Mumbai Central Division, the exhibition was set up at Churchgate, Mumbai Central, Bandra Terminus, Valsad & Navsari stations. In Vadodara Division, the exhibition was held at Vadodara, Ankleshwar, Bharuch, Anand, Nadiad, Ektanagar, Godhra, Chhayapuri, Kosamba, Kim and at Vadodara Divisional Railway Manager’s office, Pratapnagar. In Bhavnagar Division, it was set up at Bhavnagar Terminus, Junagadh & Porbandar stations while in Rajkot Division, it was held at Rajkot, Surendranagar, Morbi, Jamnagar & Khambhaliya stations. At Ratlam Division, the exhibition was held at Ratlam, Ujjain, Indore and Chittaurgarh. At several stations, retired railway employees inaugurated the exhibitions.
Thakur further stated that the “Partition Horrors Remembrance Day” has been envisaged to bring to light the agony, suffering and pain of millions of people who were sufferers of partition. Keeping in view of the importance of the day, the exhibition has been curated by the Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR) and Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA).
