New Delhi: This year’s Republic Day parade will have 16 marching contingents, 17 military bands and 25 tableaux of various states, departments and armed forces, the Indian Army said in a statement on Saturday.
The Army will be represented by a mounted column of cavalry, 14 mechanised columns, six marching contingents and a flypast by advanced light helicopters of its aviation wing at the Republic Day parade-2022 (RDP-2022), it said.
The mechanised columns of the Army will show one PT-76 tank, one Centurion tank, two MBT Arjun MK-I tanks, one APC TOPAS armoured personnel carriers, one BMP-I infantry fighting vehicle and two BMP-II infantry fighting vehicles, it stated.
One 75/24 Pack howitzer, two Dhanush howitzers, one PMS bridge-laying system, two Sarvatra bridge-laying systems, one HT-16 electronic warfare system, two Taran Shakti electronic warfare systems, one Tiger Cat missile system and two Akash missile systems will also be part of the mechanised columns.
The six marching contingents of the Indian Army will be of Rajput Regiment, Assam Regiment, Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry, Sikh Light Infantry, Army Ordnance Corps Regiment and Parachute Regiment, according to the statement.
One marching contingent each of the Indian Air Force and the Indian Navy will also participate in RDP-2022, the statement said.
From the central paramilitary forces, five marching contingents of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Central Industrial Police Force (CISF), Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), Indian Coast Guard (ICG) and Border Security Force (BSF) will participate in RDP-2022, it stated.
Overall, there will be 16 marching contingents from the armed forces, central paramilitary forces, Delhi Police, National Cadet Corps (NCC), National Service Scheme (NSS) along with 17 military bands, pipes and drum bands at the parade, it noted.
Two Param Vir Chakra and one Ashok Chakra awardees will also participate in this year’s parade.
Before the commencement of RDP-2022, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lead the nation in paying homage to the soldiers who made the supreme sacrifice by laying a wreath at the National War Memorial, the statement said.
RDP-2022 will begin at 10.30 am and end at 12 noon, it said.
Twenty-five tableaux of various states, departments and armed forces will be part of RDP-2022, it said.
Two teams — one male team of Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and one female team of Border Security Officer (BSF) — will do the motorcycle display.
Lieutenant General Vijay Kumar Mishra, General Officer Commanding Delhi Area, will be the parade commander and Major General Alok Kacker, Chief of Staff Delhi Area, will be the second-in-command of the parade, the statement said.
RDP-2022 will march from Vijay Chowk to the National Stadium through the traditional route of Rajpath, it said.
Gandhi’s favourite hymn dropped from Beating Retreat ceremony
One of Mahatma Gandhi’s favourite Christian hymns “Abide With Me” has been dropped from this year’s Beating Retreat ceremony on January 29, according to a brochure released by the Indian Army on Saturday.
“Abide With Me”, written by Scottish Anglican poet and hymnologist Henry Francis Lyte in 1847, has been part of the Beating Retreat ceremony since 1950.
This year’s ceremony will conclude with ‘Sare Jahan Se Acha’, the brochure stated.
The Beating Retreat used to end with the “Abide With Me” hymn.
The brochure also listed 26 tunes that will be played at this year’s ceremony at Vijay Chowk.
The 26 tunes that will be played at this year’s ceremony include ‘Hey Kanchha’, ‘Channa Bilauri’, ‘Jai Janam Bhumi’, ‘Nritya Sarita’, ‘Vijay Josh’, ‘Kesaria Banna’, ‘Veer Siachen’, ‘Hathroi’, ‘Vijay Ghosh’, ‘Ladaakoo’, ‘Swadeshi’, ‘Amar Chattan’, ‘Golden Arrows’ and ‘Swarn Jayanti’, according to the brochure.
‘Veer Sainik’, ‘Fanfare by Buglers, ‘INS India’, ‘Yashasvee’, ‘Jai Bharati’, ‘Kerala’, ‘Siki A Mole’, ‘Hind Ki Sena’, ‘Kadam Kadam Badhaye Ja’, ‘Drummers Call’, ‘Ae Mere Watan Ke Logon’ are also part of the 26 tunes that will be played on the evening of January 29, the brochure noted.
Beating Retreat is a centuries-old military tradition dating from the days when troops disengaged from battle at sunset, it mentioned.
As soon as the buglers sounded the Retreat, the troops ceased fighting, sheathed their arms and withdrew from the battlefield, it added.
