PM Modi set to address nation on I-Day for 9th straight time

India

oi-Prakash KL

New
Delhi,
Aug
14:
Come
Monday,
Prime
Minister
Narendra
Modi
will
hoist
the
national
flag
at
the
ramparts
of
Red
Fort
and
address
the
nation
for
the
ninth
consecutive
time.
The
August
15
ceremony
is
particularly
significant
this
year
as
it
marks
the
75th
anniversary
of
India’s
independence,
with
the
government
launching
a
host
of
exercises
to
add
to
the
verve
around
the
celebration.

The
Independence
Day
celebration
comes
at
a
time
when
India,
like
most
countries,
is
seen
to
be
coming
out
of
the
grim
shadows
of
Covid-19,
which
crippled
normal
life
and
marred
economic
activities
after
its
outbreak
in
2020.

Defence
Minister
to
Receive
PM
Upon
his
arrival
at
the
Red
Fort,
the
Prime
Minister
will
be
received
by
Defence
Minister
Rajnath
Singh,
MoS
Defence
Ajay
Bhatt
and
Defence
Secretary
Dr
Ajay
Kumar.
The
Defence
Secretary
will
introduce
the
General
Officer
Commanding
(GoC),
Delhi
Area,
Lieutenant
General
Vijay
Kumar
Mishra,
AVSM,
to
the
Prime
Minister.
The
GoC
Delhi
Area
will
then
conduct
Narendra
Modi
to
the
Saluting
Base
where
a
combined
Inter-Services
and
Delhi
Police
Guard
will
present
general
salute
to
the
Prime
Minister.
Thereafter,
the
Prime
Minister
will
inspect
the
Guard
of
Honour,
as
per
a
statement
from
the
Prime
Minister’s
Office.

Guard
of
Honour
contingent
The
Guard
of
Honour
contingent
for
the
Prime
Minister
will
consist
of
one
officer
and
20
men
each
from
the
Army,
Navy,
Air
Force
and
Delhi
Police.
Indian
Air
Force
is
the
coordinating
service
this
year.
The
Guard
of
Honour
will
be
commanded
by
Wing
Commander
Kunal
Khanna.
The
Air
Force
Contingent
in
the
Prime
Minister’s
Guard
will
be
commanded
by
Squadron
Leader
Lokendra
Singh,
the
Army
contingent
by
Major
Vikas
Sangwan
and
the
Naval
contingent
by
Lt
Commander
Avinash
Kumar.
The
Delhi
Police
contingent
will
be
commanded
by
Additional
DCP
(East
Delhi)
Achin
Garg.

The
GoC
Delhi
area
will
conduct
the
Prime
Minister
to
the
dais
on
the
ramparts
to
unfurl
the
National
Flag.

‘Ratya Health’
After
being
unfurled,
the
Tricolour
will
receive
a
‘Rashtriya
Salute’.
The
Air
Force
band,
consisting
of
20
men
will
play
the
National
Anthem
during
unfurling
of
the
National
Flag
and
presenting
of
the
‘Ratya
Salute’.
The
Band
will
be
conducted
by
Master
Warrant
Officer
Raghuvir.

Who
Assists
PM
to
Unfurl
Flag?
Squadron
Leader
Sumita
Yadav
will
assist
the
Prime
Minister
in
unfurling
the
National
Flag.
It
will
be
synchronised
with
the
21
Gun
Salute
fired
by
the
valiant
gunners
of
the
elite
8711
Field
Battery
(Ceremonial).
The
ceremonial
battery
is
commanded
by
Lt
Col
Vikas
Kumar,
SM
and
the
Gun
Position
Officer
will
be
Naib
Subedar
(AIG)
Anoop
Singh.

The
National
Flag
Guard
comprising
five
officers
and
128
men
from
the
Air
Force,
Army,
Navy
and
Delhi
Police
will
present
Rashtriya
Salute
at
the
time
of
unfurling
of
the
National
Flag
by
the
Prime
Minister.
Wing
Commander
TVR
Singh
from
the
Indian
Air
Force
will
be
in
command
of
this
Inter-Services
Guard
and
Police
Guard.

The
Air
Force
Contingent
in
the
National
Flag
Guard
will
be
commanded
by
Squadron
Leader
Mihir
Zokarkar,
the
Army
contingent
by
Major
Akash
Joshi,
the
Naval
Contingent
by
Lt
Commander
Praveen
Saraswat.
The
Delhi
Police
contingent
will
be
commanded
by
Additional
DCP
(Central
Delhi)
Akshat
Kaushal.

Showering
of
Flower
Petals
As
soon
as
the
National
Flag
is
unfurled
by
the
Prime
Minister,
flower
petals
will
be
showered
at
the
venue
in
Amrit
Formation
by
two
MI-17
1V
Helicopters.
The
formation
is
of
129
Helicopter
Unit,
the
Nubra
Warriors,
led
by
Wing
Commander
Anand
Vinayak
Agashe
with
Wing
Commander
Nikhil
Mehrotra
in
second
helicopter.
Following
the
two
Mi-17
in
line
astern
formation
will
be
two
Dhruv
helicopters
from
111
Helicopter
Unit,
‘The
Snow
Tigers’.
The
formation
is
led
by
Wing
Commander
Abhijeet
Kumar
with
Wing
Commander
KS
Vishal
in
the
second
helicopter.

After
the
showering
of
flower
petals,
the
Prime
Minister
will
address
the
Nation.
At
the
conclusion
of
the
speech
of
the
Prime
Minister,
the
cadets
of
National
Cadet
Corps
(NCC)
will
sing
the
National
Anthem.
Seven
hundred
ninety-two
boy
and
girl
NCC
cadets
(Army,
Navy
and
Air
Force)
from
different
schools
across
the
country
will
take
part
in
this
festival
of
National
Fervour.
These
cadets
will
be
seated
at
‘Gyan
Path’ in
front
of
the
Red
Fort’s
ramparts
in
a
geographical
formation
of
the
Map
of
India.
They
will
adorn
dresses
of
the
regions
they
are
representing,
symbolising
India’s
cultural
diversity.
It
is
being
done
to
carry
forward
the
message
of
‘Ek
Bharat
Shrestha
Bharat’.

Ceremonial
21-gun
Salute
For
the
first
time,
a
home-grown
howitzer
gun,
Advanced
Towed
Artillery
Gun
System
(ATAGS),
developed
under
the
Government’s
‘Make
in
India’
initiative,
will
fire
during
the
ceremonial
21-gun
salute.
The
gun
is
completely
indigenous,
designed
and
developed
by
DRDO.
The
gun
will
stand
as
a
testament
to
India’s
growing
capacity
of
developing
arms
and
ammunition
indigenously.
Lt
Colonel
Gagandeep
Singh
Sandhu
is
commanding
the
gun
unit
with
the
firing
instructor
Naib
Subedar
Gulab
Wable.
The
gun
has
been
especially
customised,
with
certain
technical
specifications
being
tweaked
for
the
ceremony.

Unsung
Heroes
Invited
In
continuation
to
the
initiative
taken
during
the
Republic
Day
2022,
the
unsung
heroes
of
the
society,
who
are
usually
overlooked,
have
been
invited
as
special
guests
for
the
Ceremony.
These
include
anganwadi
workers,
street
vendors,
mudra
scheme
borrowers
and
mortuary
workers.

As
part
of
‘Azadi
ka
Amrit
Mahotsav’,
Ministries
of
Defence
and
Culture
came
together
in
partnership
with
the
National
gallery
of
Modern
Art
to
pay
a
unique
tribute
to
the
bravehearts
of
India’s
struggle
for
freedom.
In
a
mammoth
art
project,
Kala
Kumbh,
five
hundred
master
artists
worked
tirelessly
to
create
ten
scrolls,
each
75
meters
long,
out
of
which
eight
are
displayed
here.
The
monumental
scrolls
continue
the
ancient
Indian
tradition
of
narrative
art
and
bring
to
life
historic
events
that
led
India
to
break
away
the
shackles
of
colonial
rule.

This
year,
wall
hanging
of
prominent
Freedom
Fighters
and
from
different
States
and
Union
Territories
are
adorning
the
magnificent
walls
of
Red
Fort.
These
hanging
walls
will
also
have
different
cultural,
natural
and
religious
heritage
of
that
particular
State
and
UT.

These prominent freedom fighters are Pattabhi Sitaramaiyya from Andhra Pradesh, Moje Riba from Arunachal Pradesh, Kushal Konwar from Assam, Vir Kunwar Singh from Bihar, Vir Narayan Singh from Chhattisgarh, Lala Har Dayal from National Capital Territory of Delhi, Pursottam Kesava Kakodkar from Goa, Bhikaji Cama from Gujarat, Rao Tula Ram from Haryana, Padam Dev from Himachal Pradesh, Saifuddin Kitchlew from UT of Jammu & Kashmir, Bhagwan Birsa Munda from Jharkhand, Karnad Sadashiva Rao from Karnataka, Accamma Cherian from Kerala, Abdul Sattar UT of Ladakh, Chandra Shekhar Azad from Madhya Pradesh, Bal Gangadhar Tilak from Maharashtra, Rani Gaidinliu from Manipur, Phan Nonglait from Meghalaya, Ropuiliani from Mizoram, Khaikhojam Kuki from Nagaland, Laxman Nayak from Odisha, Bhai Parmanand from Punjab, Sagarmal Gopa from Rajasthan, Trilochan Pokhrel from Sikkim , K Kamaraj from Tamil Nadu, Sarojini Naidu from Telangana, Sachindra Lal Singh from Tripura, Anushuya Prasad Bahuguna from Uttara khand, Mangal Pandey from Uttar Pradesh and Chittranjan Das from West Bengal. This gesture is a fitting tribute to these towering personalities for their unparalleled contributions, sometimes unsung, for the cause of Freedom.

Another
beautiful
addition
to
the
celebration
is
one
of
India’s
favourite
pastime,
the
kite
flying.
Murals
on
kite
flying
are
displayed
at
Meena
Bazar
depicting
diverse
colours,
sizes
and
techniques
of
kites
representing
Unity
in
Diversity
mantra
of
our
Motherland.

For
the
first
time
as
part
of
Independence
Day
celebrations,
a
special
Youth
Exchange
Programme
has
been
organised
between
August
09-17,
2022.
A
total
of
26
officers/supervisors
and
127
cadets/youths
from
14
countries
–
US,
UK,
Argentina,
Brazil,
Fiji,
Indonesia,
Kyrgyzstan,
The
Maldives,
Mauritius,
Mozambique,
Nigeria,
Seychelles,
UAE
&
Uzbekistan
–
are
already
in
India
for
the
Independence
Day
celebrations.
Apart
from
attending
the
main
event
at
the
Red
Fort,
the
youth
will
be
visiting
places
of
cultural
and
historical
importance
in
Delhi
and
Agra.