- India
- International
Coming Sunday, India will celebrate its 71st Republic Day. The occasion marks the day when India’s Constitution came into effect, and the country became a republic.
Breaking decades-old tradition, the Republic Day proceedings this year will not begin from India Gate, where the Prime Minister commemorates soldiers who have died in battle for India but instead will begin from the National War Memorial, where Prime Minister Modi will lay a wreath.
The Prime Minister will be accompanied by the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Bipin Rawat, Army chief General M M Naravane, Navy chief Admiral Karambir Singh and Air Force chief Air Marshal R K S Bhadauria. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Minister of State for Defence Shripad Yesso Naik and Defence Secretary Ajay Garg will also be present at the ceremony.
Following the wreath-laying ceremony, the Prime Minister will then head to Rajpath for the R-Day parade, which will begin at 10 am and last for 90 minutes.
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro will be the chief guest at the parade. This will be the third occasion that a Brazilian President will be the chief guest at the R-Day.
🔴 At the Parade, the Indian Army will be represented by a Mounted Column of 61 Cavalry, eight Mechanised Columns, six Marching Contingents and a flypast by Rudra and Dhruv Advanced Light Helicopters of Army Aviation. Three Param Vir Chakra and four Ashok Chakra awardees will also participate in this year’s parade.
🔴 The Republic Day parade will also include:
(a) A flypast by MI-17 & RUDRA armed helicopters.
(b) Display of latest weapons and equipment (155mm/45 Dhanush Gun System & K-9 Vajra T–that is a Self-Propelled Gun, Sarvatra Bridge System, 5 mtr Short Span Bridge, Transportable Satellite Terminal and AKASH Launcher).
(c) Sixteen marching contingents from the Armed Forces, Para Military Forces, Delhi Police, NCC, NSS along with thirteen Military bands. The Army Signal Corps contingent will be led by a Lady Officer, Captain Tanya Shergill.
(d) A motorcycle display by an all-women team of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF).
(e) A flypast by aircrafts of the Indian Air Force.
🔴 Lieutenant general Asit Mistry, AVSM, SM, VSM, General Officer Commanding Delhi Area will be the Parade Commander. Meanwhile, Major General Alok Kacker, Chief of Staff Delhi Area will be his Second-in-Command.
🔴 A total of 22 tableaus will participate in this year’s parade to showcase the country’s rich cultural heritage. The tableaus will represent states including-Chattisgarh, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, Telangana, Assam, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Goa, Odisha, Meghalaya, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Jammu and Kashmir, and Punjab.
Tableaus representing the Department of Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, Department of Financial Services, NDRF, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Ministry of Shipping and CPWD will also be displayed in the parade.
🔴 Winners of the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar will also participate in the parade in open jeeps. A total of 49 children have been awarded in different fields of Sports, Academics, Bravery, Innovations etc. This will be followed by cultural items by school children.
🔴 The motorcycle display this year will be performed by an all-woman team of the Central Reserve Police Force.