About Police Commemoration Day
Police Commemoration Day, or Police Smriti Diwas, is observed every year on 21 October in memory of ten policemen killed by Chinese troops at Hot Springs, Ladakh, in 1959, and of every police officer who has died on duty since. Police lines across India hold parades and read out the names of the year's dead, and the national ceremony is held at the National Police Memorial in New Delhi. In 2027 it falls on Thursday, 21 October 2027. It is not a public holiday.
What happened at Hot Springs on 21 October 1959?
In October 1959, Hot Springs was a police post in the Chang Chenmo valley of north-eastern Ladakh, a few kilometres west of the Kongka Pass. Its men were Central Reserve Police Force personnel on loan to the Intelligence Bureau, which then guarded this frontier. The Army was not yet in charge of the border.
On 20 October, three small reconnaissance parties went out from the post. Two came back. The third, two constables and a porter, did not. The next morning a search party set out on ponies and on foot, led by Karam Singh, a Deputy Superintendent of the Intelligence Bureau who had patrolled Ladakh before. Near the pass, Chinese troops dug in on a hillside opened fire with automatic weapons and mortars, and threw grenades. The policemen had rifles.
Ten of them were killed. The survivors were taken prisoner and later described days of interrogation in harsh conditions. China returned the bodies in mid-November, and they were cremated at Hot Springs with police honours. One man from that patrol, Sonam Dorjey, was still alive in 2024, aged 86, when a police delegation visited him in Ladakh.
From 1 November 1959 the Army took over the posts in that sector, and the incident added to the tensions that led to the war of 1962.
How did 21 October become a day for all police?
In January 1960, the annual conference of Inspectors General of Police from every state decided that 21 October would be kept each year in all police lines as Commemoration Day. The same meeting decided to build a memorial at Hot Springs, and that police from across India would travel there every year to pay homage. That trip still happens. In September 2024, a 28-member team from state police and central forces laid wreaths at the Hot Springs memorial, which stands at about 15,400 feet near the Line of Actual Control.
The day now covers every police officer who dies on duty, not only the ten of 1959. Each force compiles the names of its dead from 1 September of the previous year to 31 August, and those names are read aloud at parades on 21 October. In 2024, parades read out 216 names from across India. In 2025 the list was close to 190.
The National Police Memorial
The national ceremony is held at the National Police Memorial at Chanakyapuri, New Delhi, at the top of Shanti Path. Prime Minister Narendra Modi dedicated it on Police Commemoration Day in 2018, after a plan first drawn up in 1984 and years of delay. A national parade had been held at the Chanakyapuri police memorial ground since 2012.
The memorial has three parts. The central sculpture is a 30-foot monolith of black granite, about 238 tonnes, quarried in Khammam, Telangana, and designed by the sculptor Adwaita Gadanayak. A thin stream runs at its base. The Wall of Valour carries the names of police personnel killed on duty since Independence: 34,844 when it opened, now more than 35,000. Below ground, the National Police Museum traces Indian policing from Kautilya's time to the central forces of today.
The forms vary by place. In the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the Inspector General leads the wreath-laying at the police lines parade, and families of the fallen and retired officers attend. The Nizamabad police in Telangana run a commemoration week for students and young people, with candlelight rallies and essay, photography and short film contests. In Leh, the district police gather at the police lines in Choglamsar to read out the names from every state.
The week of events ends just before National Unity Day on 31 October, the birth anniversary of Sardar Patel, India's first Home Minister.
What to write on Police Commemoration Day
A message on this day is a line of remembrance and thanks, not a greeting. Keep it short and specific. A festival they worked through, or the person a family lost, says more than general praise for "our heroes".
Papa, it's Police Commemoration Day. I know you'll stand at the parade this morning while they read the names. Thank you for every Diwali on duty and every night we waited up. We know what the uniform asks of you, and we are proud of you.
Thinking of you today. When the names are read out this morning, your father's will be among them, and we will be remembering him too. He went to work to keep others safe. I'm here this week if you want company or help with anything.
On Police Commemoration Day, remembering the colleagues our force has lost, and thanking you for turning up every day knowing the risk. Look after yourself out there.
On 21 October 1959, ten policemen died at Hot Springs in Ladakh, guarding a remote post high in the mountains. Today we remember them and every police officer who has died keeping us safe. Let us stand in silence for two minutes.
To everyone at our police station: on Police Commemoration Day, thank you for the festival nights, the floods and the 2 am calls. We remember the officers who did not come home, and we are grateful to you.
21 October. For the ten at Hot Springs in 1959, and for every police officer since whose name is read out today. Remembered with gratitude. #PoliceSmritiDiwas
Police Smriti Diwas par un sabhi pulis karmiyon ko shraddhanjali, jinhone duty par apni jaan di. Aapka balidaan hum kabhi nahin bhoolenge. (On Police Smriti Diwas, tribute to all the police personnel who gave their lives on duty. We will never forget your sacrifice.)
Do
- Use words like "remembering", "tribute" or "shraddhanjali", not greetings.
- If you knew someone who died on duty, name them. Saying the name tells the family that the person, not only the uniform, is remembered.
- Thank serving officers for specific things they gave up, such as festivals, sleep or time with their children.
Avoid
- Don't write "Happy Police Commemoration Day" or use festive stickers, balloons or party emojis.
- Don't turn the day into a debate about a particular case or a political point; it is about the dead.
- Don't ask a grieving family how the person died. Let them tell you if they want to.
Other days of remembrance include Martyrs' Day on 30 January and Anti-Terrorism Day on 21 May, when many police families also remember their own.
How to wish someone on Police Commemoration Day
Police Commemoration Day is a day of remembrance, so a message should honour, not celebrate. Never write "Happy Police Commemoration Day". Name the person or the force you are thinking of, thank them for something specific, such as festival duty, night shifts or time away from family, and keep it short. For a family that has lost someone, say the person's name and that they are remembered; don't ask how they died.
Write a few lines in your own words, pick a design and share it as one link on WhatsApp, Instagram or anywhere else. They open an animated card made just for them, with no app and no sign-up.
Language tip: English, Hindi.
Good to know: A day of remembrance for police personnel killed on duty. Never "Happy Police Commemoration Day"; no confetti.
When is Police Commemoration Day in each year?
Police Commemoration Day is on 21 Oct every year. Only the weekday changes.
- 2026
- 2027
- 2028
Frequently asked questions
When is Police Commemoration Day in 2027?
Police Commemoration Day 2027 falls on Thursday, 21 October 2027.
Why is Police Commemoration Day observed on 21 October?
Police Commemoration Day is observed on 21 October because on that date in 1959, ten Indian policemen were killed in an ambush by Chinese troops at Hot Springs in Ladakh. In January 1960, the heads of India's police forces decided to mark the day every year for them and for all police who die on duty.
Who led the police party at Hot Springs in 1959?
The police party at Hot Springs was led by Karam Singh, a Deputy Superintendent of the Intelligence Bureau. His men were Central Reserve Police Force personnel searching for two constables and a porter who had gone missing on patrol the day before. Ten were killed and the survivors, including Karam Singh, were taken prisoner.
Can you say "Happy Police Commemoration Day"?
"Happy Police Commemoration Day" is not appropriate, because the day remembers police officers who were killed on duty. Use words of remembrance instead, such as "Remembering our police martyrs on Police Smriti Diwas" or "Tribute to the police personnel who gave their lives for us".
Whose names are read out on Police Commemoration Day?
On Police Commemoration Day, parades across India read out the names of police personnel who died on duty between 1 September of the previous year and 31 August. The list covers state police and central forces such as the CRPF, BSF and CISF, and recently has run to roughly 190 to 220 names a year.
Where is the National Police Memorial and what is on it?
The National Police Memorial is at Chanakyapuri in New Delhi and was dedicated on 21 October 2018. It has a 30-foot black granite central sculpture, a Wall of Valour carrying the names of more than 35,000 police personnel killed on duty since Independence, and an underground police museum.
How can ordinary citizens mark Police Commemoration Day?
Citizens can mark Police Commemoration Day by attending the open parts of local events, joining a police blood donation camp in the week after 21 October, or visiting the National Police Memorial in Delhi. A short note of thanks to your local police station, or to a family that has lost an officer, also means a great deal.
Last verified by the Kehdoo team on .