India goes tricolour on 63rd Republic Day
It was a celebration of India in all its diversity, complexities and colour. The 63rd Republic Day unfolded on Thursday with a grand pageant here showcasing a resurgent India's military power and culture kaleidoscope and also millions of tricolours hoisted across the country in ceremonies big and small.
There were boycott calls by insurgents in parts of the country, including restive Chhattisgarh and Orissa, where Maoists hold control over large swathes of territory, and in volatile northeast and Jammu and Kashmir, but the day passed off peacefully. And even in these cynical times, when fatigue with the government, corruption and rising prices dominates daily discourse, people came out in large numbers to celebrate the day.
The beginnings are traditionally sombre and so it was Thursday with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh laying down a floral wreath at the Amar Jawan Jyoti to pay tribute to an unknown soldier. Soon after, a grateful nation acknowledged one of its heroes when Pratibha Patil posthumously conferred the Ashok Chakra, India's highest peacetime gallantry award, to young army commando Lt. Navdeep Singh, who died battling terrorists in Kashmir.
As Thailand's first woman Prime Minister Yinluck Shinawatra, the guest of honour, watched along with the president, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and other dignitaries, the spectacle began with the uniformed men and women of armed and paramilitary forces marching down the famous boulevard.
The Indian Air Force will not make static display of any aircraft but its latest acquisition, the C-130-J Super Hercules tactical aircaft, makes its debut at the Republic Day Parade, with three of the six aircraft acquired from the US participating in the flypast.
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