India’s vibrance was on full display on the world stage on Friday, with Indians celebrating the 69th Republic Day at Indian missions where the tricolour fluttered proudly amid melodious strains of the national anthem. In China, Indian envoy Gautam Bambawale hoisted the tricolour at the embassy in Beijing and read out President Ram Nath Kovind’s address to the nation. The event was followed by a cultural programme. Over 300 Indian expats and diplomats participated in the celebrations.
The Republic Day was also celebrated at the Indian embassy in Jakarta. Prakash Gupta, Charge de Affairs, hoisted the flag at the embassy premises as large gathering of Indian nationals and members of Indian diaspora watched.
Similar ceremonies took place at the Indian Consulates at Bali and Medan. In Singapore, over 600 Indians joined acting High Commissioner Ninad S Deshpande in celebrating the Republic Day. Deshpande read out the president’s speech. Students from Indian schools sang patriotic songs. The High Commission hosted a reception for the community.
In Bangladesh, Indian nationals rallied at the country’s High Commission in Dhaka while the celebrations began with the hoisting of the national flag as the national anthem was played on the backdrop. “The Republic Day has taught us to be respectful to all,” High Commissioner Harsh Bardhan Shringla told the celebration after hoisting the flag. He said the 1950 adoption of the Indian constitution, which is marked as the Republic Day, was the second most crucial event in nation building process of India.
The High Commission organised day-long cultural programmes to mark the day while set to host a reception for distinguished Bangladeshis and foreign dignitaries in the evening. In Russia, a large crowd of over five hundred people, including Indian citizens, people of Indian-origin and Russian nationals, participated in the joyous celebration braving the bitter January cold of Moscow.
The ceremony commenced with the unfurling of the National Flag by Ambassador of India Pankaj Saran followed by singing of National Anthem and reading out of the president’s address to the nation. On the occasion, the envoy greeted the Indian community in Russia and also thanked all those who participated in the function. The event also included a cultural performance by the children from the Embassy of India School, Moscow.
To mark the occasion, the national daily newspaper ‘Kommersant’, one of the most prominent and widely circulated dailies of Russia, brought out a special supplement on India in cooperation with the Embassy of India.
The publication contained articles, providing an interesting insight into the special and privileged India-Russia ties. It covered unique facets of the relationship in many fields including Defence, nuclear energy, hydrocarbon and culture. The publication also covered various aspects of India’s progress, including scientific and technological advancement, and other achievements over the years.
The Indian embassy in Nepal celebrated the 69th Republic Day of India at a special function. Ambassador of India to Nepal Manjeev Singh Puri hoisted the national flag and read the president’s message. The flag hoisting ceremony was attended by over 1,000 people. The students of the Kendriya Vidyalaya and the Indian Cultural Centre, Kathmandu sang patriotic songs followed by a scintillating performance by the Nepal Army Band.
On the occasion, Puri felicitated seven widows, four next of kins of deceased soldiers and one disabled soldier of Indian Armed Forces by distributing them a total sum of 41.4 million rupees as award. India also gifted 30 ambulances and six buses to various hospitals, non-profit charity organisations and educational institutions of different districts of Nepal. The embassy also gifted books to 41 educational institutions and libraries across Nepal as part of its initiative for providing educational material to students in remote areas.
The envoy also hosted a reception at India House in the premises of the embassy to observe the Republic Day of India which coincides with 70 years of establishment of diplomatic relations between India and Nepal. Vice President of Nepal Nanda Bahadur Pun graced the occasion.
In Egypt, Indian envoy Sanjay Bhattacharyya hoisted the Indian flag. Members of Indian community attended the celebrations which was held at the India House premises in Zamalek, Cairo. After hoisting the flag, the attendees sang the national anthem. “We are celebrating the 69th Republic Day of India, for us in Cairo it’s a very special occasion because this coincides with the 70th anniversary of our independence and also the 70th independence of India-Egypt relations. Our relations have been very deep at a political security level, we have strong economic content and we also have a very active cultural exchange,” Bhattacharyya told PTI.
The event also included patriotic singing by a choir consisted of young Indians. The songs were in three languages – Bengali, Malayalam and Hindi. Also Indian students who study at Al-Azhar University, recited an patriotic poem in Arabic dedicated to India. “This morning we had a very wide cross section of the Indian community who sang patriotic songs of different languages exhibiting the diversity of India and we also had a rendering of a very popular song of India in its Arabic version which shows the string connection between the Nile and the Ganga,” the envoy added.
On the occasion of the Republic Day, the envoy will hold a reception for Indian community and diplomats to share the bonds of friendship and make it deeper. “We believed that India is today poised to assume a more active role in global affairs and to lend our principles and values towards the betterment of mankind,” the envoy added.