Rajnath Singh lays wreath at INA memorial in Singapore

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, November 18

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh , on his way back from a visit to Indonesia, made a brief halt at Singapore and paid tributes to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose by laying a wreath at the Indian National Army (INA) marker there.

Netaji laid stone in ’45

• Construction of a monument to commemorate the “Unknown Warrior” was proposed by Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. He himself laid the foundation stone in July 1945
• In 1995, the National Heritage Board of Singapore erected the INA marker on the same spot as the original memorial

Construction of a monument to commemorate the “Unknown Warrior” was proposed by Netaji himself and he had laid the foundation stone in July 1945. In 1995, the National Heritage Board of Singapore erected the INA marker on the same spot as the original memorial.

The minister also offered prayers at the Sri Srinivasa Perumal temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu, which is among the oldest Hindu temples in Singapore dating back to 1855. He also visited the Indian Heritage Centre in Little India. The Centre was set up under the National Heritage Board in 2015 documenting the story of the journey of Singaporean Indians. It houses five permanent galleries.

Rajnath was returning from ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting - Plus (ADMM-Plus) in Jakarta where he had had committed to freedom of navigation, overflight and unimpeded lawful commerce in the international waters in accordance with international laws, including United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) 1982. Singapore is a member of the ASEAN.

India and Singapore have deep defence ties. At the start of this month the 15th India-Singapore Defence Policy Dialogue was held in New Delhi. At the meeting, both sides reviewed the existing defence cooperation and had agreed to enhance collaboration in Service-to-Service interactions and bilateral exercises.

Both sides have identified means to enhance existing areas of collaboration, especially in the field of maritime security and multilateral cooperation. Singapore co-hosted the maiden ASEAN-India Maritime Exercise in May 2023.

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