Events

Calendar of Events 2014

  • Jan 17-21,2014 A panel on ‘India and the Great War’ at the Jaipur Literature Festival
  • Feb 5, 2014 Talk by Jody East, Creative Program Curator of Royal Pavilion Brighton Museums, UK at USI, New Delhi
  • Feb 7, 2014 Talk by Jody East, Creative Program Curator of Royal Pavilion Brighton Museums, UK at Western Command, Chandimandir.
  • March 5-7, 2014 An international conference titled, ‘India and the Great War’, held at the USI that investigated into the Indian participation in the First World War from a variety of perspectives.
  • Aug 10, 2014 Talk by Sqn Ldr RTS Chhina (Retd), Secy CAFHR on the theme, ‘All the King’s Men: The Great War’s Forgotten Army’, at a symposium at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London.
  • Oct 11, 2014 A panel on the ‘Indian Voices From the Great War‘at Khushwant Singh LitFest in Kasauli.
  • Oct 13, 2014 'Remembering World War I & Exploring the future of non-violence' seminar, organized by Consulate General in Belgium, in collaboration with the think tank, Gateway House, Mumbai aboard Belgian Navy Ship 'Leopold - I' visiting Mumbai.
  • Oct 22, 2014 A talk to be delivered by Sqn Ldr RTS Chhina (Retd) at the Indian Embassy in Brussels to highlight the contribution of Indian soldiers to the Great War.
  • Oct 24, 2014
    • An international conference themed, ‘Indians on the Western Front’ being jointly organized by the United Service Institution of India (USI) and the In Flanders Fields Museum (IFFM), in close collaboration with King’s College, London. This conference is part of the EU sponsored HERA Joint Research Programme, Cultural exchange in a time of global conflict: Colonials, Neutrals and Belligerents during the First World War.
    • Release of a battlefield guide titled, ‘Indian Corps on the Western Front’
    • A Special wreath-laying ceremony to commemorate Indian soldiers in WW1 at the Menin Gate Memorial.
  • Oct 25, 2014 A battlefield tour to the various WW1 battlefields in France and Flanders. It shall involve the presence of Indian as well as local dignitaries.
  • Oct 26, 2014 A talk on ‘India’s Contribution to the Great War’ at Indian Embassy in Paris.
  • Oct 30, 2014 A joint USI-UK High Commission Reception at the UK High Commissioner’s residence in New Delhi. Release of a Coffee Table book, ‘India and the First World War, 1914-1918’, and a WWI graphic novel, ‘India in World War I : An Illustrated Story’.
  • Nov 01, 2014 Episode of 'India: Imperialism' as part of the BBC World Service show 'The War that changed the World' at IIC, New Delhi.
  • Nov 09, 2014 Remembrance Day Ceremony at the Delhi War Cemetery in collaboration with the British High Commission. The event shall witness the participation of descendants of Indian soldiers in WW1.
  • Dec 08, 2014 A talk by Sqn Ldr Rana Chhina (Retd), at a ceremony hosted by Ruchira Kamboj, Ambassador and Permanent Delegate of India to UNESCO, to commemorate the 100th anniversary of World War I (1914-1918) at UNESCO’s Headquarters, Paris.

Calendar of Events 2015

  • Feb 07, 2015 Lecture by Sqn Ldr Rana Chhina (Retd) at 'India and the Great War' Seminar organised by Alliance Franciase, Pondicherry, as part of ‘Pondy Partages 2015’ Festival.
  • Mar 10, 2015 Participation in a Commemorative event, 'Battle of Neuve Chapelle Centenary : Honouring the Past, Sharing the Future', jointly organised by the Royal British Legion, and Undivided Indian Ex-Servicemen’s Association in Staffordshire, and Salford Quays, UK , to mark the centenary of Second Battle of Neuve Chapelle, that saw the first major engagement of Indian troops on the Western Front.
  • Mar 19, 2015 An International Conference, 'Gallipoli 1915: A Century On', being jointly organised by Australian War Memorial, and the Australian National University (ANU), Canberra on 18-20 March 2015 - Sqn Ldr Rana Chhina(Retd) to speak on the topic, 'From the jewel in the crown of empire: the Indian army on Gallipoli’ at Llewellyn Hall ANU.
  • Mar 25, 2015 ATalk to be delivered by Sqn Ldr Rana Chhina (Retd), at a WWI commemorative event jointly organised by theTurkish Consulate, and INTACH Hyderabad.
  • Apr 24, 2015 'Seminar on the Use of Chemical Weapons', being jointly organized by the USI and Embassy of Belgium, New Delhi, to mark the centenary of Second Battle of Ypres in April 1915, where poison gas was first used by the German side.
  • Joint USI-Belgian Embassy Reception, to be held at the Belgian Ambassador's residence in New Delhi in the evening, to commemorate the centenary of Second Battle of Ypres in April 1915. Display of an exhibition depicting the role of Indian and Belgian soldiers during the Great War.
  • Apr 25, 2015 Joint USI-Australian High Commission exhibition 'Gallipoli One Hundred' to be displayed at a reception, likely to be held at the Australian High Commissioner's residence in New Delhi, to commemorate the centenary of battle of Gallipoli, in which the Indians and ANZACS fought alongside against the Ottomans.
  • June 2015
    • Release of ‘India and the Great War’ Publications.
      1. Indians at Gallipoli by Prof Peter Stanley
      2. Indian Army in East Africa by Dr S D Pradhan
    • Release of Coffee table books
      1. India and the Great War
      2. India on the Western Front
      3. India in the First World War
    • Produce a series of illustrated booklets on the role of the Indian Army in each major theatre and one giving an overview of India and WW1.
      1. India and the Great War: An Overview
      2. India and the Great War: France and Flanders
      3. India and the Great War: Gallipoli
      4. India and the Great War: Mesopotamia
      5. India and the Great War: Egypt and Palestine
      6. India and the Great War: East Africa
      7. India and the Great War: Minor Theatres (Aden, China, Persia, etc.)
  • Tentative Conference/Seminar in collaboration with Haryana Academy of History and Culture, Gurgaon.
  • Tentative Collaborative events with India Embassy in Cairo, Egypt.
    1. Seminar/ Panel discussion on Indian participation in WW1.
    2. Dovetailing WW1 centenary activities to ‘India by the Nile’, an annual event organised in Cairo to promote Indian culture abroad.
    3. Collaboration with local artistes to create an "artist's impression" of key events.
    4. Performance by an Indian Army band.
  • Tentative Exhibitions on ‘India and the Great War’ both in India and abroad in collaboration with the Governments of Australia, New Zealand, France, Belgium and Turkey.
    1. Proposed Belgo-Indian Exhibition on the India and WW1 Centenary.
    2. Exhibitions by the Royal Pavilion and Museums, Brighton to be organized in India and the UK.

Calendar of Events 2016

  • March 2016 International Conference/seminar on ‘India and the Great War’ with a greater focus on military aspects of the war.

Calendar of Events 2018

  • Sep 2018
    1. High Profile Battlefield tour of battlefields of the Indian Expeditionary Force in Israel in Sep 2018 in collaboration with the Govt of Israel.This is to culminate with an appropriate ceremony at Haifa to commemorate the famous charge of the Jodhpur Lancers on 23 Sep 1918 that resulted in the liberation of that city from the Ottomans.
    2. An Indian Army contingent is expected to be present. Israel amenable to suggestion.
  • Nov 2018 A Special wreath-laying ceremony by Honourable President of India at the India Gate, New Delhi

  • About Us

    The Joint USI-MEA Centenary Commemoration project highlights the oft-forgotten role of India in the First World War and commemorates those soldiers who served during the War. The project is aimed at exploring India’s engagement in the war from a variety of perspectives.
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    Rao Tula Ram Marg (Opposite Signals Enclave)
    Post Bag No 8, Vasant Vihar PO, New Delhi - 110 057

    Ph: +91-11-26147464
    E-Mail: cafhr@usiofindia.org

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