The state capital my soon get a war memorial in memory of the martyrs of the 1971 Indo-Pak war. The Indian Air Force (IAF) officers called for this at the annual meeting of the Ex-Servicemen Welfare Association held at Gandhinagar on Sunday.

Air Marshal K D Singh, AOC-in-C, South Western Air Command (SWAC), said the war memorial would remind of the sacrifices made by the IAF during the 1971 war.

“The country is proud of our Armed Forces. We have proved ourselves to be among the best in the world,” he added.

According to Air Marshal Singh, not only the men in uniform and ex-servicemen, but even the public should assemble at the proposed memorial on December 16 (Vijay Diwas) every year to recognise the sacrifices made by the Indian soldiers.

He said the India servicemen have proved their potential during war exercises with different countries. “At the Exercise Red Flag held in the US, our SU 30s did extremely well. We are very adaptable and it is a matter of pride. We also did well during the recent exercise with China,” he said.

The Air Marshal emphasised on the need for spreading awareness about the activities of the IAF. “Like the Army, which regularly conducts the Know Your Army campaign, the IAF also has been undertaking Surya Kiran aerobatic shows for public awareness. Ex-servicemen must also educate the public about the Armed Forces,” he said.

He released a souvenir and honoured mother of (late) Major Joje Joseph, a martyr from Gandhinagar, on the occasion.

War widows, widows of Armed Forces veterans and meritorious children of the servicemen were also honoured.