Folks, sharing some thoughts on the Republic Day Parade of yesterday. Reason being that I personally found this parade to be a lot ‘different’ from earlier ones.
Disclaimer: Purely my personal opinions. Feel free to disagree.
Here goes ..
As I mentioned, I found this parade to be different.
To me personally, it was as much a statement of intent, as it was the yearly parade.
And it was also a statement of achievement.
Especially in light of what has gone down over the past one year.
Tone for the event was set by the very first contingent itself – 61 Cavalry. Where they had been in their ceremonial uniforms for all these years, we now saw them in combat uniform. I may be wrong but this was perhaps for the first time ever that they marched in combat uniform.
Of course, another change if you noticed in the two screenshots above was that Lt Ahaan Kumar had now been promoted to Capt Ahaan Kumar!
The young lad looked equally dashing in both types of uniforms!
Right on their heels came the very aptly named ‘Prahaar‘ Formation, carrying the flag of Operation Sindoor!
THIS is what caught my eye and for the first time, it appeared that this parade was going to be much different!
And right on cue thereafter came the tanks and various other military vehicles, as they do every year.
But this time, well .. ‘different’!
This time not only were they more in numbers and variety, but also battle-ready, given the latest experiences of last year.
The tanks were kitted with what can be assume to be drone-protective measures, the BMPs had anti-tank missiles in addition to their guns, as well as drones.
The light strike vehicles too had drones and jammers as well.
Dare I say, much of this equipment seems to have only been inducted in the past few months and operationalized just as quickly.
The very aptly named ‘Dhwansak’ Light Strike Vehicle was especially a treat to watch, equipped with quite a bit of firepower!
However, the purpose of this thread is not to chronicle all pieces of hardware that marched past the Supreme Commander.
What was different in this time was the innate confidence and self-assured supremacy of a military that had achieved a mighty victory just a few months ago.
It was not just about the equipment and the body language of the troops that marched with or without it, but it was as much about the guests of honour and how they viewed it. The visuals of the dais flitted equally between the President of India taking the salute, and between the two apparently very happy and very inquisitive Chief Guests interacting with the Prime Minister of India regarding the various marching contingents / tableaus.
And of course, there also was the young man who was translating for the guests whenever the need arose. He sure had a busy day at office yesterday!
The forces were NOT shy of showcasing their latest means of destruction, most of which would have made their presence felt in Pakistan during Op Sindoor, while the others would be awaiting their turn in the next round, whenever it comes by.
This was a VICTORY MARCH of the armed forces who had rained death and destruction over the enemy with cold, surgical precision. And were equally willing now to rub it in the enemy’s face all over again!
Period.
The tableau too aptly said ‘Victory Through Jointness’
And then there was the ‘Sindoor Formation’ flypast in the middle of the parade, which was dutifully and beautifully MISSED by the Doordarshan cameras!
Don’t miss the Music Credits by the IAF in this video below!
The Bhairavs were there as well, शिव-गण in the form of Khalsas of Gobind!
The same Guru Gobind Singh Ji who hailed Lord Shiv in his beautiful hymn ‘Deh Shiva Var Mohe Ehe’!
Talk about symbolism, even if unintentional!
Bottomline : This year’s parade was VERY different from the past ones. It was not merely about the men and equipment on display .. it was about the sheer ENERGY that one could feel.
Energy of a Nation and its armed forces stamping their mark on History, and raring to go again.
As I conclude this short thread, I will leave this ode to Sepoy Badluram that was so beautifully sung on the Kartavya Path by the young ‘Rhinos’ of the Assam Regiment!
Do watch this vid for 20 seconds as they march past, saluting the Supreme Commander!
So this is what I wanted to share.
Hope you find this chain of thoughts agreeable.
If not, well, I can live with that as well!
Of course, I look forward to seeing how Pakistan showcases its own ‘victory’ on 23rd March!
Cheers and Jai Hind!
:Fin:
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