Republic Day parade in New Delhi  |  Photo Credit: PTI
New Delhi: On this 73rd Republic Day, people will witness India’s military might and cultural diversity in a grand parade at Rajpath, New Delhi as a part of ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’.
To mark the occasion, the Ministry of Defence has conceptualised a series of new events during the main parade on January 26 and ‘Beating the Retreat’ ceremony at Vijay Chowk on January 29.
Interestingly, the Republic Day celebrations will now be week-long from January 23-30 every year.
The celebrations commenced on January 23, the birth anniversary of great freedom fighter Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and will culminate on January 30, which is observed as Martyrs’ Day.
Change in timings of parade
The parade at Rajpath will start at 10:30 am, instead of the earlier timing of 10 am to provide better visibility to the parade and flypast.
Watch parade online
In view of the pandemic, the number of seats for spectators has been significantly reduced and people are being encouraged to register on the MyGov portal to see the live celebrations online.
They will also get to vote for best marching contingent and tableau in popular choice category.
Special spectators
Those sections of society – auto-rickshaw drivers, construction workers, safai karamcharis and frontline health workers – which do not get to watch the parade usually will be invited to watch the Republic Day Parade as well as the ‘Beating the Retreat’ ceremony.
Covid protocols to follow
Fully vaccinated adults and children above 15 years with a single dose will be permitted entry at the parade. Children below 15 years of age will not be permitted.
Attendees will have to strictly adhere to Covid protocols like social distancing and wearing of masks.
Commencement of parade
The Republic Day Parade ceremony will commence with Prime Minister Narendra Modi visiting the National War Memorial. As per tradition, the National Flag will be unfurled followed by the National Anthem with a booming 21-gun salute.
The parade will commence with President Ram Nath Kovind taking the salute. The parade will be commanded by Parade Commander, Lieutenant General Vijay Kumar Mishra, Ati Vishisth Seva Medal, a second-generation Army officer. Major General Alok Kacker, Chief of Staff, Delhi Area will be the Parade Second-in-Command.
Indian Army contingents
A total of six marching contingents of the Army will be there including the Rajput Regiment, the Assam Regiment, the Jammu & Kashmir Light Regiment, the Sikh Light Regiment, the Army Ordnance Corps and the Parachute Regiment.
The combined Band of the Madras Regimental Centre, the Kumoun Regimental Centre, Maratha Light Regimental Centre, Jammu & Kashmir Light Regimental Centre, Army Medical Corps Centre and School, 14 Gorkha Training Centre, Army Supply Corps Centre and College, Bihar Regimental Centre and Army Ordnance Corps Centre will also march past the saluting dais.
Indian Navy contingent
The Naval contingent will comprise of 96 young sailors & four officers led by Lt Cdr Aanchal Sharma as Contingent Commander. It will be followed by the Naval Tableau which is designed with the aim to showcase the multi-dimensional capabilities of the Indian Navy and highlight the key inductions under ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’.
Indian Air Force contingent
The Indian Air Force contingent comprises of 96 airmen and four officers and will be led by Squadron Leader Prashant Swamyanathan. The Air Force tableau is titled ‘Indian Air Force, Transforming for the Future’.
The tableau showcases scaled down models of MiG-21, Gnat, Light Combat Helicopter and Rafale aircraft, as well as the Aslesha radar.
Tableaux
On display, there will be tableaux of 12 States/Union Territories and nine Ministries/Departments, which have been prepared on various themes under ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’. The list of tableaux of states/UTs is as follows:
The list of tableaux of Ministries/Departments is as under:
75-aircraft Fly Past
The grand finale and the most keenly awaited segment of the parade, the Fly Past, will, for the first time, witness 75 aircraft/helicopters of the Indian Air Force displaying a number of formations, as part of ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’.
Vintage as well as current modern aircraft/helicopters like Rafale, Sukhoi, Jaguar, Mi-17, Sarang, Apache and Dakota will display different formations, including Rahat, Meghna, Eklavya, Trishul, Tiranga, Vijay and Amrit.
The ceremony will culminate with the national anthem and the release of Tri-colour balloons. For the first time IAF has coordinated with Doordarshan to show cockpit videos during the fly past.
LED Screens
For a better viewing experience at the parade, 10 large LED screens – five on each side of Rajpath – will be installed.
Beating the Retreat Ceremony
Apart from military bands performing martial tunes, some new activities have been planned during the Beating the Retreat Ceremony on January 29, 2022 at Vijay Chowk.
Drone Show
A novel ‘Drone Show’ has been conceptualised, designed, produced and choreographed within the country. The show would be of 10 minutes duration involving around 1,000 drones fabricated through indigenous technology. Synchronised background music will also be played during the drone show.