PM to unfurl National Flag at Red Fort on I'Day

New Delhi, Aug 11: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will unfurl the national flag on the ramparts of the Red Fort on August 15 to celebrate the 61st Independence Day. After unfurling the Tricolour, Dr Manmohan Singh will address the nation.

On arrival at Lahore Gate of Red Fort, the Prime Minister will be received by Defence Minister A K Antony and the Minister of State for Defence M M Pallam Raju, Minister of State for Defence Production Rao Inderjit Singh and Defence Secretary Vijay Singh.

The Defence Secretary will introduce General Officer Commanding, Delhi Area, Major General KJS Oberoi to the Prime Minister. The GOC Delhi Area will then conduct the Prime Minister to the Saluting Base where a combined inter-services and police guard will present general salute to the Prime Minister.

Thereafter, Dr Manmohan Singh will inspect the guard of honour.

The Guard of Honour contingent for the Prime Minister will consist of five officers and 96 men drawn from Army, Navy, Air Force and Delhi Police. This year, the Air Force being the coordinating agency, the Guard of Honour will be commanded by Wg Cdr Y M Nadkarni.

The Army Contingent by Major Ravi Kumar Maney, Sena Medal, Naval Contingent by Lt Cdr R Jai Kumar, Air Force Contingent by Sq. Ldr.

Kamran Nazeer and the Police Contingent will be commanded by Shri M I Haider, ACP. Delhi Police Contingent has been participating in the Independence Day Parade ever since India became independent and has a distinct place among the other contingents because of its smartly dressed Jawans with a height between 5' 11" to 6' 4".

The Army Contingent for Prime Minister's Guard is from 6th Battalion of the Assam Regiment. This battalion was raised on April 1, 1964 at the Assam Regimental in Happy Valley, Shillong. During the 1971 Operations, the unit had the singular honour and proud privilege of accepting the surrender of the entire Nator Garrison of the Pakistan Army. More than 5500 officers and other ranks of the garrison along with a huge quantity of arms and ammunitions laid down their arms to the battalion.

The battalion is also the proud recipient of the GOC-in-C (Northern Command) 'Unit Appreciation for performance of an exceptional order while conducting counter terrorism operations during 2003-06. For the perseverance, grit and devotion to duty, the battalion has also been awarded with three Shaurya Chakra, six Sena Medal, one Ati Vishisht Seva Medal and two Vishisht Seva Medal.

After inspecting the Guard of Honour, the Prime Minister will proceed to the ramparts where he will be greeted by the Defence Minister, the Minister of State for Defence, Minister of State for Defence Production, Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Sureesh Mehta, Chief of Army Staff Gen Joginder Jaswant Singh and Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Fali Homi Major.

The GOC, Delhi area will conduct the Prime Minister to the dais to unfurl the National Flag. The Prime Minister will be assisted by Flt. Lt. R Gnana Prakash in unfurling the National Flag.

The unfurling of the tricolour will synchronize with the 21 gun salute fired by the valiant gunners of the elite 299 Field Regiment. The battery will be commanded by Lt Col Manu Mohan and the Gun Position Officer will be Capt Sameer Kalia. Gun Salute is fired while the National Anthem is being played by the band. The National Flag Guard comprising 133 men will form up in four combined inter services contingents of Army, Navy, Air Force and Delhi Police. They will present Rashtriya salute to the National Flag. The combined Guard will be commanded by Wg Cdr Rajesh Bhandari. Each contingent comprises 32 men and one officer. The Naval Contingent will be commanded by Lt Cdr Manish Gupta, the Army contingent by Lt. Rajender Negi and the Air Force contingent by Sq.

Ldr. Sachin Gupta. The Delhi Police contingent is being commanded by Additional DCP, H S Dhaliwal The Army contingent for National Flag Guard is from the 20 th battalion of the Sikh Regiment. Also known as 'Towering Twenty', the battalion was raised on March 1, 1976. The battalion has the unique distinction of being the first regular infantry unit to have served twice on the Siachen Glacier, the highest battlefield of the world.

The unit has been awarded with one Ati Vishisht Seva Medal, three Shaurya Chakras, 14 Sena Medal, 4 Mention in Dispatches and a host of Commendation Cards.

The Air Force Band will play the National Anthem when the National Flag Guard presents the Rashtriya Salute as the Prime Minister unfurls the National Flag. The band will be conducted by Junior Warrant Officer Alfred. The Guard of Honour will be positioned directly in front of the National Flag across the moat below the rampart.

After unfurling the National Flag, the Prime Minister will address the nation. After the Prime Minister's address, school children and NCC Cadets will sing the National Anthem.

About One thousand Junior Division Cadets of the National Cadet Corps from Delhi Directorate comprising Army, Navy, Air Force and Girls wings are participating in the Flag Hoisting Ceremony this year. The cadets will also participate in the singing of patriotic songs along with schoolchildren.

In the Flag Hoisting ceremony, 3550 girl students from 32 government and government-aided schools under the Directorate of Education, National, Capital Territory of Delhi will sing the National Anthem. They will also sing patriotic songs in different regional languages before the start of the Independence Day ceremony. These children will be dressed up in Saffron, White and Green colour dresses. About 5000 students from 30 schools of Delhi will also attend the ceremony as spectators.

UNI