'Respectful homage to Sweeper Chunni of WWI lying commemorated in Merrut Military Cemetry, France' - by K J S Chatrath

In October 2016 I went to a small town named St. Martin Les Boulogne in north of France to visit 'Meerut Military Cemetery' where 312 Indian soldiers & non-combatants lie resting since the last 100 years. They sacrificed their lives in defending France during the World War I. Incidentally Meerut and Lahore Divisions were the first units of Indian army that reached France in Seprtember 1914.




Indicative location of Boulogne in the map of France.

I paid my respectful homage to all these braves. I had taken paper marigold flowers from India. I put one on each commemorative stone.

This stone remembers martyr Chunni whose designation was Sweeper, Army Serial No. 75 in the Indian army. He was a non-combatant not carrying any arms and obviously had died in the war as defenceless fodder. He belonged to the Army Hospital Corps,  Secunderabad General Hospital in India and died on 29th November 1914, that is within two months of arrival in France. Refernce no. for locating his place of resting in this cemetery is- I. A. 10.

Respectful salute to martyr Sweeper Chunni.


My book on Meerut Military Cemetery, France


That is me at the gate of this cemetery in October 2016.

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