ASIANOVERLAND.NET SYDNEY TO LONDON DAY 109/325/21: AMRITSAR, INDIA

It is impossible to refer to Amritsar without mentioning the Amritsar Massacre, which was the beginning of the end of British India.

Amritsar had filled up over the days before 13 April, 1913, with farmers and merchants attending the annual Baisakhi horse and cattle fair. A large number of people congregated legally in the Jallianwala Bagh, a large open area enclosed by a brick wall in Amritsar.

The British officers took no actions to prevent the crowd assembling, nor to peacefully disperse the crowds, and gave no warning that they intended to massacre the crowd.

A group of ninety British soldiers, armed with .303  bolt-action rifles, arrived for the massacre. The British had also brought two armoured vehicles armed with machine guns, but they were left outside the wall, as they were unable to enter through the narrow entrances.

The British officers, without warning the crowd to disperse, blocked the main exits. They stated later that this act "was not to disperse the meeting but to punish the Indians for disobedience."

The British officers ordered their troops to commence shooting toward the densest sections of the crowd in front of the available narrow exits, where panicked crowds were trying to escape, firing continuously for approximately ten minutes. Cease-fire was ordered only when ammunition supplies were almost exhausted, with about 1,500 dead and injured.

The level of casual brutality, and lack of any accountability, stunned the Indian sub-continent, resulting in great widespread anger against the British among the Indian populace, and lead to the Non-cooperation Movement of 1920–22.

The Amritsar Massacre was a decisive step towards the end of British rule in India.

Our 1980 Kathmandu to London overland Trip Book again records parts of the bureaucratic mess left by British (de)colonisation:

“DAY 21.  8-10-80

We now have a fully functional Knackers.

We’re on the road again.

Following so closely the recent sugar shortages in India, the Government regrets to announce that due to a sudden influx of foreign capital, a dress shortage has been created in Delhi.

The f.....g post office made me remake and reshape my container, just because it was 2 cms too long -  Honestly.

A last minute spending spree caused a delay, which almost led to 2 people missing the bus -

But as usual a productive spree.

There will be a combined fashion show on the largest boat in Srinagar.”

↑ Day 324 ↓ Day 326