Veterans and Citizens Honour Parsi War Martyrs at Khareghat Colony Cenotaph

Military veterans joined members of the public on Wednesday morning at the century-old cenotaph at Khareghat Colony on N S Patkar Road to pay tribute to Parsi-Zoroastrian war martyrs who died during the First World War.

The annual commemoration was held on Frawardigan, the Zoroastrian ‘All Souls’ period dedicated to departed family members and guardian spirits, during which special prayers are offered in their memory.

At the memorial, wreaths were laid in memory of nearly 30 Parsi-Zoroastrians who died during the First World War, also known as the Great War, between 1914 and 1918. Beside the central cenotaph, more recent memorials commemorate members of the community who lost their lives in the Second World War from 1939 to 1945, the India-China conflict of 1962, and the India-Pakistan wars of 1965 and 1971.

Commodore (retired) Aspi Marker, a veteran of both the 1971 India-Pakistan war and the 1999 Kargil conflict, attended the ceremony in his service dress uniform. Marker highlighted the uniqueness of the Khareghat Colony cenotaph, noting that it was established by citizens rather than the military, unlike other war memorials.

Marker served in the Indian Navy from 1969 to 2005 after spending three years at the National Defence Academy in Khadakwasla near Pune. During his career, he served as Naval Officer-in-Charge, Gujarat, and Commanding Officer of INS Angre, the Indian Navy’s base depot in Mumbai. A resident of Godrej Baug on Nepean Sea Road, Marker helps ensure a Navy bugler participates in the gathering each year. He noted that attendees lay wreaths to remember the dead, adding that the event remains open to anyone who wishes to attend.

The names of the fallen service members are inscribed on plaques at the site. The memorial is maintained by the Bombay Parsi Punchayet (BPP), which manages the Khareghat Colony housing estate.

The ceremony was organised by the Bombay Parsi Association (BPA), which conducts memorial services across Parsi sites in Mumbai. Xerxes Dastur, who serves as a BPP trustee and BPA president, stated that the association has organised the gathering for more than 60 years to honour Parsi and Irani veterans from the Army, Navy, and Air Force. Dastur noted that this year’s gathering was particularly significant as it marked the centenary of the cenotaph, which was erected in 1926.