Sidelights of I-Day celebrations at Red Fort

-- The prime minister, accompanied by the GOC, proceeded towards the saluting base where a combined Inter-Services and Police Guard presented a general salute to him. -- He walked to the ramparts of the Red Fort and unfurled the tricolour around 7.30 am.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday delivered his seventh consecutive address from the Red Fort on the 74th Independence Day during which he unveiled his vision of 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat' to make India a global manufacturing hub. -- Modi arrived at the Red Fort at 7:18 am.

-- The prime minister, who unfurled the national flag at the 17th-century Mughal monument, paired a cream and saffron turban and a half-sleeve kurta. -- Modi was received by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Defence Secretary Ajay Kumar.

-- The secretary introduced the General Officer Commanding (GOC), Delhi area, to Modi. -- The prime minister, accompanied by the GOC, proceeded towards the saluting base where a combined Inter-Services and Police Guard presented a general salute to him.

-- He walked to the ramparts of the Red Fort and unfurled the tricolour around 7.30 am. Major Shweta Pandey assisted PM Modi in unfurling the national flag. -- The guards presented the national salute as the band played the national anthem amid a 21-gun salute.

-- The prime minister addressed the nation for 86 minutes. For the seventh year in a row, he spoke from an open-air podium and not a bullet-proof glass enclosure. -- The coronavirus pandemic cast a shadow on this year's celebrations. The guest list was pruned significantly.

-- The attendees, including the guests, ministers, diplomats, officials and security staff, all sported masks and followed physical distancing measures. -- Even security personnel frisking invitees were wearing Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) kits. -- The school children, who have been an important element of the celebrations every year, were missing this time. Instead, 500 NCC cadets were present at the event.

-- Usually, the Red Fort lawns are filled to the brim during the Independence Day. But this time, some chairs remained empty. -- Among the dignitaries present on the occasion were Union ministers Rajnath Singh, S Jaishankar, Nitin Gadkari, Piyush Goyal, Ramesh Pokhriyal, Harshvardhan and Prakash Javadekar.

-- Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat, and chiefs of the three services Gen Manoj Mukund Naravane, Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria and Admiral Karmabir Singh were also present on the occasion. -- A cloud cover kept the mercury in check but high humidity levels caused some inconvenience to the attendees.

--The prime minister applauded the grit and resilience of the frontline workers in the fight against COVID-19. He also stressed the need to become self-reliant..

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)