A historical Battle of Haifa was fought on 23 September 1918. The protagonist of the battle was Major Thakur Dalpat Singh who led the battle and became “Hero of Haifa”.
Let us know some facts about Dalpat Singh:
Rawna Majar Dalpat Singh is the Indian hero of Haifa. He was born at Jodhpur and completed his graduation from Eastbourne College, London. His father was Thakur Hari Singh Shekhawat of Deoli village of Pali district. Today, this village is known by Deoli Harji. He was a young cavalryman, aged 25 years, of the Princely State of Jodhpur. However, his father passed away at the young age of 41 years.
After completion of graduation, DS Shekhawat joined the Jodhpur army as a Major. He played a crucial role during the first world war. He commanded the Jodhpur regiment to capture Haifa city of Israel. If the Indian army had not won Haifa, the whole of Israel would have come under the clutches of Hitler. Only a group of 5000 soldiers under the commandership of DS Shekhawat, armed with a lancer and most primitive rifle and mounted on horses took this challenge.
The lancers of Jodhpur, Mysore, and Hyderabad were sent to Turkey by the British and took part in the first world war. Soldiers of Hyderabad princely state were Muslims, so the British stopped them from taking part in the war against the Turkish. Only soldiers of Mysore and Jodhpur were allowed to go on war.
The war began between the Indian army and the Nazi army which had 1 lakh soldiers. The Nazi soldiers were well entrenched in bunkers and armed with automatic machine guns. Battle continued for two days. At the end of the second day of battle, the Indian army won Haifa from Germans and imprisoned more than 1500 Germans. Eventually, the British flag was unfurled in the city of Haifa. But there was also a setback for the Indian army that Major DS Shekhawat lost his life at the end of the second day of battle, at the young age of 28. In this battle, his cousin brother Subedar Major Sita Singh Shekhawat also lost his life. This war opened the way for the creation of the Israel nation. Israel came into existence on 14 May 1948.
Teen Murti Chowk:
Teen Murti Chowk was constructed in Delhi to commemorate the efforts of the Indian army during the First World War. The circle has statues of Major DS Shekhawat, Shri Anop Singh Jodha and the third one of commanding Hydrabad Lancers. Israel, Britain, and the Indian government have issued stamp tickets commemorating Haifa victory day.
However, Teen Murti Chowk was renamed after Israel city Haifa during the visit of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. PM Narendra Modi proposed this idea of renaming Teen Murti Chowk. Now, after renaming the Teen Murti Chowk is known as Teen Murti Haifa Chowk which shows a symbol of friendship between the people of India and Israel. This statue will be remembered forever by generation.
