ITANAGAR: A day after the Arunachal Pradesh government announced its plans to construct war memorials at notable sites of historical conflicts across the state, an establishment dedicated to a 1962 Sino-India hero is set to grace Nyelam village in the Deed circle of Lower Subansiri district.
The war memorial dedicated to the valiant soldier Neelam Tebi will be constructed by the Hydropower Development Corporation of Arunachal Pradesh Limited (HPDCAPL).
Officials from HPDCAPL, led by its CMD Toko Onuj, conducted a final inspection of the site on Monday, marking the beginning of the formal construction work. The entire project will be executed in three phases, and the government has allocated Rs 5 crore in the first phase of the construction.
Speaking to the press, Onuj expressed their intent to make the Neelam Tebi war memorial one of the most exceptional war memorial parks in the Northeast, if not the entire country. He asserted that this memorial would serve as a reminder of the supreme sacrifice made by Arunachalis and fellow countrymen during combat on Arunachal soil.
Spanning approximately 45,000 square meters, the memorial will feature an approach road, an entry gate, a martyr cenotaph, a martyr wall, a museum-cum-armoury hall, a cafeteria, multiple viewpoints, an artificial pond with fountains, a walkway bridge, a parking area, a statue of Tebi, extensive landscaping, and more.
it will also include the installation of an unused artillery tank and a helicopter sourced from the armed forces at the war memorial. In addition to commemorating Neelam Tebi’s sacrifice, the memorial is expected to become a significant tourist attraction in the future and a source of inspiration for the younger generation, Onuj said.
Neelam Tebi, a valiant soldier serving with the 5 Assam Rifles, laid down his life defending India’s territorial integrity during the Chinese aggression on October 20, 1962, in the Kameng sector, as part of ‘Operation Bumla’.
