Beating Retreat ceremony to celebrate 150 years of national song
Bands of the Indian armed forces and the paramilitary will play an array of lilting tunes and foot-tapping melodies, including ‘Vande Mataram’, ‘Kadam Kadam Badhaye Ja’, ‘Vijay Bharat’, ‘Sitare Hind’ and ‘Brave Warrior’, at the Beating Retreat ceremony on Thursday that will also celebrate 150 years of the national song. The majestic ceremony traditionally marks the culmination of Republic Day celebrations every year.
This year, the seating enclosures at Vijay Chowk for the ceremony have been named after Indian instruments such as ‘bansuri’, ‘damaru’, ‘ektara’, ‘esraj’, ‘mridangam’, ‘nagada’, ‘pakhawaj’, ‘santoor’, ‘sarangi’, ‘sarinda’, ‘sarod’, ‘shehnai’, ‘sitar’, ‘surbahar’, ‘tabla’ and ‘veena’. The dominant theme at this year’s ceremonial parade at the Kartavya Path and other associated celebrations has been the sesquicentenary of the national song, ‘Vande Mataram.’
Invitation cards to the ceremonial parade carried the logo of the song’s 150th anniversary, along with a silhouetted image of Bankim Chandra Chatterjee and ‘Vande Mataram’ as a watermark. Invitation cards issued for the Beating Retreat ceremony also carry the logo and the commemorative images.
Also, performances by the military and the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) bands were held from January 19 to 26 in many cities, on the theme of ‘Vande Mataram’.
The iconic Vijay Chowk is all set to reverberate with “captivating Indian tunes” during the Beating Retreat ceremony on January 29, marking the culmination of the 77th Republic Day celebrations, the defence ministry said on Tuesday.
The bands of the Indian Army, the Indian Navy, the Indian Air Force and the Central Armed Police Forces will play an array of foot-tapping melodies before a distinguished audience, comprising President Droupadi Murmu, Vice President CP Radhakrishnan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, several Union Ministers, senior officials, and other invited guests.
The ceremony will begin with the massed band’s ‘Kadam Kadam Badhaye Ja’, followed by melodious tunes by the pipes and drums band, such as ‘Atulya Bharat’, ‘Veer Sainik’, ‘Mili Jhuli’, ‘Nritya Sarita’, ‘Marooni’, and ‘Jhelum’. The Central Armed Police Forces bands will play ‘Vijay Bharat’, ‘Hathrohi’, ‘Jai Ho’ and ‘Veer Seepahi’, it said in a statement.
The tunes played by the band of the Indian Air Force will include ‘Brave Warrior’, ‘Twilight’, ‘Alert’, and ‘Flying Star’, while the Indian Navy band will play ‘Namaste’, ‘Sagar Pawan’, ‘Matribhumi’, ‘Tejasvi’, and ‘Jai Bharati’, it said. “It will be followed by the band of the Indian Army playing ‘Vijayee Bharat’, ‘Aarambh Hai, Prachand Hai’, ‘Aye Watan, Aye Watan’, ‘Anand Math’, ‘Sugamya Bharat’, and ‘Sitare Hind’,” the ministry said.
The massed bands will, then, play the tunes ‘Bharat Ke Shaan’, ‘Vande Mataram’ and ‘Drummers Call’.
Traffic restrictions for Beating Retreat
New Delhi: Traffic restrictions and diversions will be in force at several locations in New Delhi on Thursday in connection with the Beating Retreat ceremony and illumination events at and around Vijay Chowk, the traffic police said. According to the advisory, restrictions will be enforced from 2 pm to 9.30 pm on January 29 to facilitate the Beating Retreat ceremony and illumination of Rashtrapati Bhavan, North Block, South Block and Parliament House as part of the Republic Day celebrations.
Vijay Chowk will remain closed for general traffic during the period. Traffic will not be allowed on Rafi Marg between the Sunehri Masjid roundabout and the Krishi Bhawan roundabout and on Raisina Road from the Krishi Bhawan roundabout towards Vijay Chowk. Movement of vehicles beyond the Dara Shikoh Road roundabout, Krishna Menon Marg roundabout, and Sunehri Masjid roundabout towards Vijay Chowk will also remain restricted. Kartavya Path between Vijay Chowk and the C Hexagon will remain closed for general public traffic. General motorists have been advised to take alternate routes, including Ring Road, Vande Mataram Marg, Aurobindo Marg, Madarsa T-Point, Safdarjung Road via Kamal Ataturk Marg, Rani Jhansi Road and Minto Road. The advisory further informed that DTC and other city buses will be diverted from their normal routes between 2 pm and 9.30 pm to facilitate the movement of spectators and avoid congestion in the area.
