“Verum! Felix! Scorch! Hurry up! Ah, my throat gets a shock every time I have to shout,” Orak said as he cleared his throat. He adjusted his cape neatly on the seat of his tempus machine.
“We are here!” Verum said. They took their seat in the machine and Off the Mysticals went! They had set off to Delhi, India, to see a major revamp at one of its landmark sites.
“Who doesn’t know why we requested Orak to take us to Delhi today?” said Verum.
“Me! Me! Me!” replied Scorch, “I was busy with fireball practice, so I missed your update.”
“Right! Listen carefully! On Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose’s 125th birth anniversary, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated a hologram statue of the freedom fighter at India Gate in New Delhi. A hologram is like a three-dimensional photograph: they show height, width, and depth. By moving from side to side, a viewer can see the front and the sides. It is created with a laser.
Netaji’s hologram is a temporary placeholder until a granite statue is installed around August this year,” Verum said.
“Netaji… Yes, I have heard about him. India was once under British Rule. Many Indian men and women fought for independence and Netaji was one among them,” said Scorch.
“Yes! Netaji was born on 23rd January 1897 in Cuttack. He was known for his bravery, and he refused to bow before the British. PM Modi said this statue is a tribute to him,” added Verum.
“You mentioned landmark changes. What is that,” asked Felix.
“Netaji’s statue is to be installed at the old Amar Jawan Jyoti site, which was built to mark India’s victory over Pakistan in 1971 war…”
“Yes, right. This conflict resulted in the creation of our neighboring country, Bangladesh. Amar Jawan Jyoti is a tribute to the martyred soldiers and as a tribute to them, it has a flame that has been burning since the last 50 years,” interrupted Felix.
“Good!” said Verum with a smile, “the eternal flame was put off last week.”
“Oh! So, we don’t have the flame anymore?” said Scorch.
“The flame was taken from Amar Jawan Jyoti and merged with the one at the newly-built National War Memorial. Both the sites are at a short distance of 400 meters from each other.
“And here we are at India Gate!” Orak cut in on Verum’s narration.
“Let’s head out and see the revamp Delhi has got,” said Scorch as the Gifted Four stepped out and went on a stroll.