Punjabi Soldiers Who Fought for Britain in World War I Are Recognized for First Time

Nearly 10,000 Punjabi soldiers who died in World War I have been added to casualty records for the first time. The young soldier died fighting for Britain, yet for over a century he did not appear on the country’s official list of war dead. According to his family, Kesa Singh left his village in India — a British colony at the time — to fight in what is now Iraq during World War I. He never returned, and few details of his life and military service were known beyond the memories of his wife and two young sons. That changed this summer, when Mr.

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Scoop News DeskBritain · Published Saturday, August 8, 2026 at 4:01 AM UTCUpdated Saturday, August 8, 2026 at 4:51 AM UTC

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Singh became one of nearly 10,000 Punjabi soldiers whom researchers identified as having died for Britain in that war without being recognized for it by the authorities — the result of bureaucratic failings that historians say reflected the views of colonial administrators toward non-British troops from its empire. “These men served honestly, they died sadly, and they weren’t afforded the same treatment as the other men whom they served alongside,” said Amandeep Madra, a British historian and the chairman of the U.K.

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