Sajini Sahadevan Monday, March 16, 2009 14:08 IST
Bangalore: Imagine a chronicle of the last 100 years of a country. It could well be the most fitting mark of respect to those who battle it out for the nation, braving not just the rain of bullets, but the forces of nature as well. Commemorating its hundredth year, Sainik Samachar has been released as a special compilation issue in hardback, making it a collector's piece.
The defence journal started by the Ministry of Defence and Indian Armed Forces in 1909, Sainik Samachar (or Fauji Akhbar, as it was known before independence) has found many loyal readers among laymen. An increase in the number of literate men in the Indian Army led to the magazine being brought out in Urdu. The journal was also printed in many regional languages to cater to its readers from every corner of the
country.
In the special compilation, articles have been reproduced from editions dating back to the 30s and 50s. Articles written in Hindi on World War II have been reproduced in Roman Hindi to bring back the zest of the past. Almost 85 years since the first issue, a majority of pictures have been in black and white. Most stories have been sourced from old issues of Sainik Samachar while certain external written material has been included to shed light on subjects from World War I and II to compensate for the absence of photographs -- that were of too poor a quality to be used -- and certain issues that were lost in bulk.
The book is a chronology of milestones, as the yellowing reproductions of articles remind one of the years fraught with struggles and violence. Cartoons featuring characters from various services and advertisements of brands like Brooke Bond tea bring forth realisation of how times have changed.
Copies of important events from 1914 - 1919, originally published in the Hindi edition of Fauji Akhbar, and press releases stating important events of the time have found a place in the book.
An overseas edition was also launched from Cairo in 1959, for the benefit of troops. A single copy of Sainik Samachar cost one anna in 1909. A hundred years later, it is available at Rs 5, well within the reach of one and all.
The black and white photographs include the 3/8 Punjab Patrol in Italy during WW II; King George V and the the Queen of England being received by the governor general; proceedings of the Delhi Durbar when Delhi was declared the new capital in 1911; students attending classes on seamanship and wireless telegraphy; an aerial view of Pakistani tanks running haphazardly during the Battle of Longewala in Rajasthan; and a photograph of Sonepat, the last serving elephant of the Indian Army who was sold out of service in 1932.
Pieces written by author Mulk Raj Anand, ornithologist Dr Salim Ali and journalist Amita Malik, carried in previous editions make an appearance in the commemorative issue.
It also covers many firsts including India's first nuclear test, the launch of the first satellite Aryabhatta, the first woman general in the Indian Army etc.
The book is a comprehensive record of events that made India proud through her Army, Navy and Air Force.
Charting the course of the Indian Armed forces
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