THE UNPARALLELLED BATTLE IS RECORDED IN WORLD HISTORY IN GOLDEN LETTERS AS ONE OF THE UNIQUE ACTS OF BRAVERY WHERE ONLY 21 SIKH SOILDIER’S FACED THE MIGHT OF 10,000 AFRIDI & ORAKZAI PATHANS ON SUNDAY SEPT.I2TH,1897 AT SAMANA RANGE.
The Saragarhi battle occupies a special status as it was a Saga of unparalleled bravery in which valiant soldiers of 36th Sikh Regiment faced the onslaught of 10,000 Afridi and Orakzai tribals on Sunday 12th September, 1897 at Saragarhi Post, it made history over a 124th years (as of 2021) ago in an area that has been strategically critical to the Indian Subcontinent for over a millennium and remains important today to India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and others, including the Taliban, Al-Qaida, ISIS and United States.
Located at the entrance of the Khyber-Pass that over the centuries, has been the passage into the greater Punjab for a host of trades, as well as for the probable large scale migration of Aryans from the Censuses into Northwest India.
Alexander, Mughals and later by colonizers Russian and Britain. As a commercial route for trade with Central Asia. In 1891, Britain established Forts, Posts and conducted marches in this area to end Russian control during the “Great Game” and also constructed roads due to which the agriculture land of Pathans was destroyed. Pathans started looting the traders and later this took the form of a rebellion against the British.
The Pathans knew that, just like them, the Sikhs too, were invincible and brave. In the past 1,000 years the Pathans were defeated by the Sikhs during the regime (1799 – 1839) of Loin of Punjab, Maharaja Ranjit Singh whose General Hari Singh Nalwa (Pride of Khalsa) crushed the Pathans on their soil, raising the Khalsa insignia in the region from Jamrod Fort to Attock river.
