New Delhi, October 21, 2026: India marked Police Commemoration Day on Wednesday with solemn tributes at the National Police Memorial in Chanakyapuri, where Intelligence Bureau Director Dr Mahesh Dixit announced that 154 police personnel had laid down their lives in the line of duty over the past year. This brings the total number of police martyrs since Independence to 36,852.
The national ceremony featured a joint commemorative parade involving personnel from the Border Security Force (BSF), Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), National Security Guard (NSG), Assam Rifles, Railway Protection Force (RPF), National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), and Delhi Police. Dr Dixit read out the names of the 154 fallen personnel so that tributes could be paid.
Addressing the gathering, Dr Dixit recalled the historic origins of the observance. “On this day, October 21, 1959, ten valiant CRPF personnel, led by Karam Singh, DCIO of the Intelligence Bureau, sacrificed their lives while confronting an armed Chinese military contingent along the India-China border at Hot Springs in Ladakh.
Since then, we have observed this date every year as Police Commemoration Day,” he said. He added that since Independence, 36,852 personnel had made the ultimate sacrifice “while serving to uphold the nation’s unity and integrity and ensure the safety of its citizens.”
Union Home Minister Amit Shah, who presided over the event as chief guest, paid homage and described the National Police Memorial as a place of pilgrimage. “In 2018, Prime Minister Modi inaugurated this National Police Memorial dedicated to all the police personnel from across the nation who have been martyred in the line of duty.
The intent behind this is for future generations of police personnel to draw inspiration here, remain ever-vigilant in their responsibilities, and stay prepared to make the supreme sacrifice in the discharge of their duties,” Shah said.
He noted that 154 new names had been added to the Wall of Valour this year and offered salutations to the martyrs. Shah also expressed gratitude to Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) personnel deployed on borders and across the country, highlighting their role in internal security, elections, and democratic processes.
He specifically commended CAPF personnel for conducting the West Bengal Assembly elections without any loss of life, calling it a new benchmark in a state historically associated with election-related violence.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also paid tributes, stating on social media that Police Commemoration Day was an occasion to express deepest gratitude to police personnel who serve with remarkable commitment in challenging circumstances, from maintaining law and order to combating crime and responding to emergencies. Their supreme sacrifice, he said, would remain etched in the nation’s memory.
Police Commemoration Day is observed annually on October 21 across the country through programmes in state capitals, districts, and police stations. The National Police Memorial, inaugurated by Prime Minister Modi on October 21, 2018, comprises a 30-foot black granite central sculpture (cenotaph), the Wall of Valour engraved with the names of martyrs, and an underground museum documenting the history of policing in India.
Further commemorative events, including participation by families of the fallen, will be organised by CAPFs at the memorial from October 22 to 30, following recommendations from the 2019 Conference of Directors General and Inspectors General of Police.
The day serves as a national reminder of the continuous sacrifices made by police forces—both state and central—in safeguarding citizens and the country’s integrity.
