Republic Day of India | |
---|---|
Observed by | India |
Type | Public |
Significance | Adoption of the Constitution of India |
Celebrations | Parades, speeches and cultural events |
Date | 26 January |
Next time | 26 January 2025 |
Frequency | Annual |
First time | 26 January 1950 |
Republic Day is a national holiday in India commemorating the adoption of the Constitution of India, and the country's transition to a republic which came into effect on 26 January 1950.
The constitution replaced the Government of India Act 1935 as the governing document of India, thus turning the nation from a dominion into a republic, following its independence from the British Raj in 1947. The constitution was adopted by the Constituent Assembly of India on 26 November 1949 and came into effect on 26 January 1950. The date was chosen because the Indian National Congress had proclaimed Purna Swaraj (complete independence) on that date in 1930.
Republic Day is commonly associated with parades, political speeches, cultural events and ceremonies, in addition to various other public and private events celebrating the history, government, and traditions of India.
India achieved independence from the British Raj on 15 August 1947 following the success of the Indian independence movement which was led by Congress under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi. This was enacted through the Indian Independence Act 1947, an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that partitioned British India into the two new independent dominions of the British Commonwealth. [1] India became a constitutional monarchy with George VI as head of state and the Earl Mountbatten as governor-general. Without a standalone constitution, its laws were based on the Government of India Act 1935 and governed by the Constituent Assembly of India. [2]
On 29 August 1947, a seven-member drafting committee was appointed to draft a permanent constitution, with Dr. B R Ambedkar as chairman. [3] A draft constitution prepared by the committee was submitted to the Constituent Assembly on 4 November 1948. [4] After the draft was discussed and debated, the constituent assembly adopted the constitution on 26 November 1949. [5] The major part of the constitution came into effect on 26 January 1950 with Rajendra Prasad becoming the first President of India and the constituent assembly became the Parliament of India under the transitional provisions of the new constitution. [6] [7] The date was chosen as the Indian National Congress proclaimed Purna Swaraj (complete independence) on this day in 1930. [8]
On the eve of the Republic Day, the President addresses the nation. [9] On the Republic Day, the President of India unfurls the national flag in the national capital New Delhi with the Governors and Lieutenant Governors unfurling the flag at the respective states and union territories. [10] [11]
The main Republic Day celebrations are held in New Delhi, at the Kartavya Path, a ceremonial boulevard that runs from Rashtrapati Bhavan on Raisina Hill through India Gate. [12] The event is hosted by the President of India with ceremonious parades and cultural events. [13] The Delhi Republic Day parade held during the same is organized by the Ministry of Defence. [14] The President who is the Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Armed Forces, takes the salute from various units of the army, navy, air force, para-military and police forces. [15]
Every year, a head of state or government of another country is invited as the state guest of honor for the Republic day celebrations in New Delhi. The guest country is often chosen on the basis of strategic, economic and political interests. French President Emmanuel Macron was the chief guest at the celebrations that marked India's 75th [16] Republic Day. [17]
The Beating Retreat ceremony, conducted on the evening of 29 January marks the end of Republic day festivities. It is performed by the bands of the three wings of the Indian armed forces at Vijay Chowk. [18] The President of India is escorted by the President's Bodyguard and post a ceremonial salute, the Indian National Anthem, Jana Gana Mana is played. Military bands then play popular tunes like Abide With Me and Saare Jahan Se Achcha at the end. [19] [20] [21]
On the eve of Republic Day, the President of India distributes various civilian Padma Awards. [22] These were instituted in the year 1954 and are awarded in three categories in decreasing order of precedence. [23]
The decoration comprises a certificate and a medallion and unlike national honors, the awards do not include cash allowances, benefits, or special concessions. [24] A commemorative brochure giving out brief details in respect of each award winner is also released on the day of the investiture ceremony. [25]
The Bharat Ratna is the highest civilian award of the Republic of India. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is conferred in recognition of "exceptional service/performance of the highest order", without distinction of race, occupation, position or gender. The award was originally limited to achievements in the arts, literature, science, and public services, but the Government of India expanded the criteria to include "any field of human endeavor" in December 2011. The recommendations for the award are made by the Prime Minister to the President. The recipients receive a Sanad (certificate) signed by the President and a peepal leaf-shaped medallion. Bharat Ratna recipients rank seventh in the Indian order of precedence.
The Constitution of India is the supreme legal document of India. The document lays down the framework that demarcates fundamental political code, structure, procedures, powers, and duties of government institutions and sets out fundamental rights, directive principles, and the duties of citizens. It is the longest written national constitution in the world.
Republic Day is the name of a holiday in several countries to commemorate the day when they became republics.
The national flag of India, colloquially called Tiraṅgā, is a horizontal rectangular tricolour flag, the colours being of India saffron, white and India green; with the Ashoka Chakra, a 24-spoke wheel, in navy blue at its centre. It was adopted in its present form during a meeting of the Constituent Assembly held on 22 July 1947, and it became the official flag of the Union of India on 15 August 1947. The flag was subsequently retained as that of the Republic of India. In India, the term "tricolour" almost always refers to the Indian national flag.
Rajpath, officially named Kartavya Path, and formerly known as Kingsway, is a ceremonial boulevard in New Delhi, India, that runs from Rashtrapati Bhavan on Raisina Hill through Vijay Chowk and India Gate, National War Memorial to National Stadium, Delhi. The avenue is lined on both sides by huge lawns, canals and rows of trees. Considered to be one of the most important roads in India, it is where the annual Republic Day parade takes place on 26 January. Janpath crosses the road. Rajpath runs in east-west direction. Roads from Connaught Place, the financial centre of Delhi, run into Rajpath from north. It was made during the Construction of New Delhi.
Beating Retreat is a military ceremony dating to 17th-century England and was first used to recall nearby patrolling units to their castle.
The Constituent Assembly of India was partly elected and partly nominated body to frame the Constitution of India. It was elected by the Provincial assemblies of British India following the Provincial Assembly elections held in 1946 and nominated by princely states. After India's independence from the British in August 1947, its members served as the nation's 'Provisional Parliament', as well as the Constituent Assembly. It was conceived and created by V. K. Krishna Menon, who first outlined its necessity in 1933 and enshrined it as an Indian National Congress demand.
Raisina Hill, often used as a metonym for the seat of the Government of India, is an area of New Delhi, housing India's most important government buildings, including Rashtrapati Bhavan, the official residence of the President of India on a citadel and the Secretariat building, housing the Prime Minister's Office and several other important ministries. The hill is seen as an Indian acropolis with Rashtrapati Bhavan as the Parthenon.
Independence Day is celebrated annually on 15 August as a public holiday in India commemorating the nation's independence from the United Kingdom on 15 August 1947, the day when the provisions of the Indian Independence Act, which transferred legislative sovereignty to the Indian Constituent Assembly, came into effect. India attained independence following the independence movement noted for largely non-violent resistance and civil disobedience led by Indian National Congress under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi.
The Declaration of Purna Swaraj was a resolution which was passed in 1930 because of the dissatisfaction among the Indian masses regarding the British offer of Dominion status to India. The word Purna Swaraj was derived from Sanskrit पूर्ण (Pūrṇa) 'Complete' and स्वराज (Svarāja) 'Self-rule or Sovereignty', or Declaration of the Independence of India, it was promulgated by the Indian National Congress, resolving the Congress and Indian nationalists to fight for Purna Swaraj, or complete self-rule/total independence from the British rule.
Sushma Swaraj was an Indian lawyer, politician and diplomat who served as the Minister of External Affairs of India in the first Narendra Modi government from 2014 to 2019. She was the second person to complete a 5-year term as the Minister of External Affairs, after Jawaharlal Nehru. A senior leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Swaraj was the second woman to hold the office of Minister of External Affairs, after Indira Gandhi. She was elected seven times as a Member of Parliament and three times as a Member of the Legislative Assembly. At the age of 25 in 1977, she became the youngest cabinet minister of the Indian state of Haryana. She also served as Chief Minister of Delhi for a short duration in 1998 and became the first female Chief Minister of Delhi.
Sayyid Bashir Hussain Zaidi, CIE, MP was a member of the first Lok Sabha and the Vice-Chancellor of Aligarh Muslim University from 1956 to 1962. He also served as a member of the Constituent Assembly of India from United Provinces. He was awarded Padma Vibhushan, the second highest civilian honour, by Government of India in 1976.
The Government of India has designated official national symbols that represent the Republic of India. These symbols serve as the representation of the identity of the country. When India obtained independence from the British Raj on 15 August 1947, the tricolour flag officially became the first national symbol of the Dominion of India. The Indian Rupee which was in circulation earlier was adopted as the official legal tender after independence. The official state emblem with the motto Satyameva Jayate was adopted later on 30 December 1947. The national anthem and song were adopted two days before the Constitution of India was adopted on 26 January 1950. After India became a republic following the enactment of the constitution, the national symbols officially came to represent the Republic of India. The last to be adopted as a national symbol was the national microbe Lactobacillus delbrueckii in October 2012.
Pakistan Day or Resolution Day, is a national holiday in Pakistan primarily commemorating the adoption of the first Constitution of Pakistan during the transition of the Dominion of Pakistan to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan on 23 March 1956 making Pakistan the world's first Islamic republic, which remains a member state of the Commonwealth of Nations. The day also celebrates the adoption of the Lahore Resolution by the Muslim League at the Minar-e-Pakistan which called for the creation of an independent sovereign state derived from the provinces with Muslim majorities located in the North-West and East of British India on 23 March 1940.
Lal Chowk is a city square in Srinagar, in the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
MoturiSatyanarayana was an Indian independence activist alongside Mohandas Gandhi until 1947 and then a member of the Constituent Assembly of India which drafted the Indian Constitution. He was a nominated member of the Rajya Sabha till 1966. He was instrumental in making Hindi an official language in the Indian Constitution, while tolerating the other major Indian languages. He devoted his later life to helping spread Hindi in South India.
The Delhi Republic Day parade is the largest and most important of the parades marking the Republic Day celebrations in India. The parade takes place every year on 26 January at Kartavya Path, New Delhi. It is the main attraction of India's Republic Day celebrations, which last for three days. The first parade was held in 1950, and it has been held every year since. The cultural pageant is a symbol of a diverse but united India.
The National War Memorial is a war memorial in New Delhi, Delhi, India, located at India Gate Circle. It has been built to honour and remember soldiers of the Indian Armed Forces who fought in armed conflicts of independent India. The names of armed forces personnel killed during the armed conflicts with Pakistan and China as well as the 1961 War in Goa, Operation Pawan, and other operations such as Operation Rakshak are inscribed on the memorial walls in golden letters.
Elections for the post of first president of India were to be held on 24 January 1950. There was only one nominee for the post, Rajendra Prasad and he was elected, unopposed, as the President.