Parade, Parakram And Pride: India Witnesses Many Firsts at 73rd Republic Day Ceremony

Republic Day 2022: From drone show by 1,000 indigenously developed drones to grand flypast by 75 aircraft of Indian Air Force, a series of new events was conceptualised by the Ministry of Defence for the emblematic R-day event and the 'Beating the Retreat' ceremony at Vijay Chowk on Saturday (January 29).

New Delhi: India celebrated its 73rd Republic Day amid tight security with the iconic grand parade at the majestic Rajpath, however, this year the grand event witnessed many firsts. From drone show by 1,000 indigenously developed drones to grand flypast by 75 aircraft of Indian Air Force, a series of new events was conceptualised by the Ministry of Defence for the emblematic R-day event and the ‘Beating the Retreat’ ceremony at Vijay Chowk on Saturday (January 29).

The celebrations this year were special as India is in the 75th year of Independence – being celebrated as ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’. The government had said that the Republic Day celebrations will now be celebrated for a week – between January 23 and 30 – every year. The celebrations which commenced on January 23, the birth anniversary of great freedom fighter Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose will end on January 30 – (Martyrs’ Day).

Many firsts at R-Day Parade

For the first time, an Indian Air Force (IAF) showcased a grand flypast by 75 aircraft or helicopters.
In another first, 480 dancers performed during the cultural programme at the parade have been selected through a nationwide Vande Bharatam dance competition.
A drone show by 1,000 indigenously developed drones has also been planned for the ‘Beating the Retreat’ ceremony, along with projection mapping will be shown for the first time.
The main parade saw the launch of ‘Shaheedon Ko Shat Shat Naman’ programme by the National Cadet.
A display of ten scrolls each of 75 metres prepared during the ‘Kala Kumbh’ event and installation of 10 large LED screens for a better viewing experience of spectators.
For a better viewing experience at the parade, 10 large LED screens – five on each side of Rajpath has been installed.

Republic Day Parade

The Republic Day ceremony started with PM Modi visiting the National War Memorial. This year, the iconic parade at Rajpath began at 10:30 am, instead of 10 am, to provide better visibility to the parade and flypast. As per the tradition, the National Flag was unfurled followed by the National Anthem with a booming 21-gun salute.

In the wake of COVID-19, special arrangements have been made such as the number of seats for spectators has been significantly reduced and people were encouraged to register online to witness the live celebrations. Besides, only double vaccinated adults/one dose vaccinated children of 15 years and above were allowed entry at the parade. Children below 15 years of age were not permitted.

Tableaux of 12 States/Union Territories and 9 Ministries

This year, a total of 21 tableaux, 12 of various states and Union Territories, 9 of ministries were displayed at 73rd Republic Day Parade. 12 tableaus of States and Union Territories like Gujarat, Maharashtra, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Goa, Meghalaya, Jammu and Kashmir etc participated in the R-Day parade.

S No	State/UT	Theme
1	Arunachal Pradesh	Anglo-Abor (Adi) Wars
2	Haryana	Haryana: No 1 in Sports
3	Chhattisgarh	Godhan Nyay Yojana: A new path to prosperity
4	Goa	Symbols of Goan heritage
5	Gujarat	Tribal Revolutionaries of Gujarat
6	Jammu & Kashmir	Changing face of Jammu & Kashmir
7	Karnataka	Karnataka: The cradle of traditional handicrafts
8	Maharashtra	Biodiversity and State Bio-symbols of Maharashtra
9	Meghalaya	Meghalaya’s 50 years of Statehood and its tribute to Women-led cooperative societies and SHGs
10	Punjab	Punjab’s contribution in freedom struggle
11	Uttar Pradesh	ODOP and Kashi Vishwanath Dham
12	Uttarakhand	Pragati Ki Aur Badhta Uttarakhand

The list of tableaux of Ministries/Departments is as under:

S No	Ministry/Department	Theme
1	Ministry of Education & Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship	National Education Policy
2	Ministry of Civil Aviation	UDAN – Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik
3	Ministry of Communication/Department of Posts	India Post: 75 years @ Resolve – Women Empowerment
4	Ministry of Home Affairs (CRPF)	CRPF: Saga of Valour and Sacrifice
5	Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs (CPWD)	Subhash @125
6	Ministry of Textiles	Shuttling to the Future
7	Ministry of Law & Justice, Department of Justice	Ek Mutthi Aasmaa: Lok Adalat, Inclusive Legal system
8	Ministry of Jal Shakti, Department of Drinking Water & Sanitation	Jal Jeevan Mission: Changing Lives
9	Ministry of Culture	150 years of Shri Aurobindo

DRDO Tableaux

Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) also displayed two tableaux, signifying the defence technological advancements of country. The tableaux are titled ‘Suite of Indigenously Developed Sensors, Weapons and Electronic Warfare Systems for LCA Tejas’ and ‘Air Independent Propulsion System’ developed for the submarines of Indian Navy.

The first tableau showed an indigenously-developed Advanced Electronically Scanned Array Radar; five different aerials launched weapons and an Electronic Warfare Jammer to further enhance the capabilities of fourth generation LCA (Light Combat Aircraft) Tejas. The second tableau showcased indigenously-developed AIP System for propelling the Indian Naval submarines underwater. The AIP System is powered by indigenously-developed fuel cells with a novel onboard hydrogen generator.