An event held to mark the 123rd death anniversary of General Balaram on Wednesday. Telegraph picture

Imphal, May 2: The General Balaram Foundation has called for recognition of all Manipuri heroes by the government, who defended the state from invaders and setting up of a research centre for constructing “undisputed facts” of Manipur’s history.

The call for such initiatives came during observance of the 123rd death anniversary of General Balaram Sougaijam, organised by the foundation at the Sougaijam ground, close to his home at Moirangkhom Sougaijam in the city today.

“There are many discrepancies in the facts and dates of Manipur’s history. All these need to be corrected. There is a pressing need for creating a clear and undisputed history of the state for the posterity and younger generation,” Sougaijam Saraju Devi, foundation president and granddaughter of General Balaram said, addressing the function.

General Balaram (1816-1889) had served and helped Maharaja Gambhir Singh in defeating the Burmese after seven years’ brutal occupation of Manipur by the Burmese. Saraju Devi said the general has remained an “unsung hero” till today.

However, only a few scholars and historians know General Balaram. In fact, majority of the people in Manipur would not know about his 123rd death anniversary, if not for the small function held at his locality today.

Scholar Arambam Lokendra Singh said the state government had not given recognition to the contribution of General Balaram to Manipur’s history.

To mark the occasion, the foundation released a book on Balaram, The Life Story of General Balaram Sougaijamba. The book, authored by biographer B. Kulachandra Sharma, is the result of research by the foundation.

The biographer agreed there were controversies on the year Balaram was born and all these differences should be corrected.