Today, the bullet scarred walls of Jallianwala Bagh enclose a memorial symbolizing the eternal flame which is dedicated to those martyred here.

The Tragedy

On 13 April, 1919, people organized a peaceful general meeting at the Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar, against the proclamation issued by General Dyer on 12th April which forbade public meetings and processions. People were not adequately informed of this proclamation. Jallianwala Bagh was a large open space enclosed on three sides by buildings with only one exit. General Dyer, the military commander of Amritsar was determined to make an example of this meeting and wanted to terrorize the people into submission. He surrounded the Bagh with his troops, closed off the exit and then ordered his soldiers to shoot into the crowd with their machine-guns and rifles.

The massacre was brutal and heartless; the trapped crowd had nowhere to run or hide. Men, women and children ran helter-skelter, some jumping into the well to escape the volley of bullets. When their ammunition was exhausted, Dyer ordered his men to leave the area, his ghastly deed done. Thousands died and many more were injured. Martial law was imposed on Punjab and its people were subjected to many humiliating atrocities. Citizens of Lahore were ordered to crawl across a street, which was nicknamed the 'Crawling Street'. The wholesale slaughter at Jallianwala Bagh horrified the whole country. The brutality of the so-called civilized foreign rulers and the need to fight for freedom were reiterated by this incident.