Govt notifies Aug 14 as Partition remembrance day

The Union home ministry on Saturday issued a notification declaring that August 14 will be observed as Partition Horrors Remembrance Day to salute those who sacrificed their lives during the country's partition, hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi made the announcement to this effect.

The prime minister has said that August 14 will be observed as Partition Horrors Remembrance Day in the memory of the struggles and sacrifices of people, saying the pain of partition can never be forgotten.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah has welcomed Prime Minister Modi's decision to observe August 14 as Partition Horrors Remembrance Day.

"The wound of the partition of the country and the grief of losing loved ones cannot be described in words. I am sure that Partition Horrors Remembrance Day will strengthen peace, love and unity by eliminating the ill-will of discrimination and malice from society," he said in a tweet in Hindi.

In a notification, the Home Ministry said the people of India, while celebrating ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’, will salute those sons and daughters of the country who had to sacrifice their lives during the partition of India.

"...the Government of India has decided to declare 14th August as Partition Horrors Remembrance Day in remembrance of the people who lost their lives during the partition.

“Therefore, the Government of India declares 14th August as Partition Horrors Remembrance Day to remind the present and future generations of Indians of the pain and suffering faced by the people of India during the partition,” the notification said.

Modi has also noted that millions of people were displaced and many lost their lives due to mindless hate and violence caused by the partition.

Pakistan was carved out as a Muslim country after the division of India by the British colonial ruler in 1947, and millions of people were displaced and many lakh of them lost their lives as large scale rioting broke out.

India will be celebrating its 75th Independence Day on Sunday.