VICTORIA – Bruce Ralston, MLA for Surrey-Whalley, paid tribute Tuesday in the British Columbia legislature to members of the Indian Army who fought alongside Canadians on the western front in Europe during World War One.

The Indian Army recruited soldiers from across India, yet the Punjab, although only ten per cent of the Indian population in 1914, formed 66 per cent of the cavalry, 87 per cent of the artillery, and 45 per cent of the infantry.

Ralston also acknowledged the work of Surrey resident Steven Purewal, who tells this important story through his exhibition: Duty, Honour, and Izzat: the call to Flanders Fields.

Many Canadians proudly trace their roots to ancestors who served in the Indian Army.