Lachit Borphukan is a revered figure in the history of Assam. Borphukan led the Ahom army which repelled the amphibian assault of the Mughals on the banks of Brahmaputra river in 1671. The fierce resistance of the Ahom army is historically remembered as the Battle of Saraighat. On November 24 every year, ‘Lachit Divas’ is celebrated as the birth anniversary of Borphukan.
Under Borphukan’s leadership, the Ahom army successfully retook Guwahati from Mughal control. In the aftermath, Mughal emperor Aurangzeb sent an expeditionary force from Dhaka. The Ahom army was numerically inferior which motivated Borphukan to wage guerrilla warfare against the incoming Mughal reinforcements.
To honour the achievements of Borphukan and celebrate the success of the Battle of Saraighat, the state government constructed a war memorial in Guwahati in 2016.
The park has four bronze statues of Ahom warriors in combat postures. A bronze plate has also been inscribed to narrate a part of the Saraighat battle. Two more fibreglass statues of Ahom warriors have been built at the entrance of the park. Apart from the Batte of Saraighat, the war memorial also honours the India-Pakistan war of 1971 which resulted in the inception of Bangladesh.
During the last stage of the Battle of Saraighat, when the Mughals attacked by the river in Saraighat the Assamese soldiers began to lose their will to fight. Some elements retreated. Though Borphukan was seriously wounded, he boarded a boat and with seven boats he led the advance against the Mughal fleet.
On November 24 each year, ‘Lachit Divas’ is celebrated in Assam to commemorate the heroism of Lachit Borphukan and the victory of the Ahom troops at the Battle of Saraighat.
In his honour, the best cadet at the Indian Army’s National Defence Academy is awarded with the Lachit Barphukan Gold Medal since 1999.
