Jallianwala Bagh

Jallianwala Bagh

History Noted for its most infamous massacre under British rule, Jallianwala Baghis a beautiful public garden that houses a memorial of national importance. Located in the vicinity of the Golden Temple, Jallianwala Bagh is one of the major tourist attractions of Amritsar.  Spread over 6.5 acres of land, Jallianwala Bagh is associated with the saddest day in the history of the Indian Freedom Movement. This place was a popular ground for holding meetings and protests during the freedom struggle in India. On 13th April, 1919, on the occasion of Baisakhi, a large crowd of around 20,000 people had assembled at Jallianwala Bagh to protest against the arrest of two Indian freedom leaders. The crowd included women as well as children. As they were listening to the speeches of their leaders, the British General, Edward Dyer, ordered his soldiers to fire on the unarmed and helpless crowd. Continuous open-firing went on targeting the crowd while the people were trapped inside the Jallianwala Bagh. The place had only one narrow gate which had already been blocked by General Dyer and his troops.  This tragic incident has left a deep scar on the Indians. Post independence, the massacre memorial was inaugurated by Dr. Rajendra Prasad on 13th April, 1961. Today this ground has been changed to a beautiful public park. The memorial is managed by the Jallianwala Bagh National Memorial Trust. There is a narrow lane between the houses which leads to the lawn of the park. At the entrance there is a memorial tablet which gives an account of the history. There is a well at the site in which many people who tried to escape from the bullets were drowned. The memorial also preserves the remnants of the wall which have the bullet marks. At another side of the garden is an eternal flame of remembrance, named the ‘Flame of Liberty’, set up in commemoration of those who died at the Jallianwala Bagh massacre.

Best time to visit Jallianwala Bagh can be visited all year round. However, the best time to visit the place and Amritsar is from the month of October to March, as summers in the city are unbearable.

Trivia It is said that approximately 1600 rounds of bullets were fired by British troops at the crowd!

Timing The Jallianwala Bagh is open to public on all days. The timings for the memorial are 6:00 am – 9:00 pm in summers and 7:00 am – 8:00 pm in winters.