Officials said the process for this required only a resolution on the part of the concerned Gram Panchayat or Municipal Council.
Over seven years after the Haryana government permitted “government/aided educational institutions” in different cities, towns and villages to be named after martyrs, freedom fighters or eminent personalities belonging from there, the Palwal District Administration last week honoured 18 martyrs by naming government schools after them.
According to officials, the delay in following these directions was brought to the notice of the Deputy Commissioner of the district, Naresh Narwal, when the ex-gratia payments owed to the family of Flight Lieutenant Ashish Tanwar, who was martyred in Arunachal Pradesh last June, was found to be delayed. While taking up the matter and expediting the payment of Rs 50 lakh, the Deputy Commissioner directed the Secretary and Welfare Officer of the Zila Sainik Board to compile a list of all martyrs of the district.
“There were 39 martyrs… During talks, it was found that the names of 18 of 39 selected schoo-ls in the district had not yet been changed, even though the 2013 directions of the government allowed the Deputy Commissioner to do so,” said a spokesperson of the district administration.
Officials said the process for this required only a resolution on the part of the concerned Gram Panchayat or Municipal Council. The concerned bodies were asked to immediately enable this resolution and send the same to the Deputy Commissioner, who then sanctioned this change and issued direction to the District Education Officer and District Elementary Education Officer to effect the change on the ground.
The spokesperson said the martyrs hence honoured are associated with a range of battles including the 1962 Indo-China war, 1965 and 1971 Indo-Pak conflicts, Operation Meghdoot, Pawan, Kargil, Rakshal, and other counter-insurgency operations.
Apart from this, officials said the district administration has also decided to visit each martyr’s village before August 15 to honour their family and carry out a plantation programme at the school named after them. The Deputy Commissioner has also directed the Zila Sainik Board to explore the possibility of creating a “Martyr Gallery” in the district, so that all the contribution of martyrs can be kept in public domain and serve as an encouragement to young people.