Masked, vaccinated, socially distanced - only 5,000 people attend R-Day parade

Crowds at the Republic Day parade on Wednesday were curtailed to just 5,000 people, all double-masked, vaccinated and maintaining strict do gaz ki doori in view of the COVID-19 situation.

Crowds at the Republic Day parade on Wednesday were curtailed to just 5,000 people, all double-masked, vaccinated and maintaining strict 'do gaz ki doori' in view of the COVID-19 situation. Only double vaccinated adults and children above the age of 15 who have taken at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine were allowed to enter the venue. Children below 15 years were not permitted to attend. Chairs were placed at a distance to ensure social distancing. Participants also received a white cap with 'Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav' printed on it.

''I used to watch Republic Day every year on TV. This year I was visiting a friend here and didn't want to lose this opportunity to attend the historic parade taking place on the 75th year of independence,'' said Amrita Singh who travelled all the way from Ludhiana to attend the parade.

For Ashmit Parekh, it was the last opportunity to see the parade in person before moving abroad this year.

''I know there is COVID-19 but I wanted to see the parade once,'' he said.

Asked if he is scared of contracting the virus, Parekh said he is double vaccinated and taking all precautions.

''Honestly it is much safer here with all the protocols in place'' the IT professional said.

The annual ceremonial event at Rajpath which used to witness huge bustling crowds across many age groups has been scaled down since last year in view of the coronavirus pandemic. The spectators' size was drastically cut to 5000 this year from the 25,000 last year.

In the pre-pandemic times, over one lakh spectators used to witness the parade.

Shibani Kapoor, a class 12 student, said the experience of seeing the parade in person was ''awesome''.

''I am glad I attended the parade. The best part for me was the flypast, it was so beautiful and glorious,'' she added.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi after the conclusion of the parade walked on Rajpath and waved at the people and greeted them.

India is presently battling the third wave of COVID-19 driven by the Omicron variant. The country logged 2,85,914 new coronavirus infections taking the total tally of COVID-19 cases to 4,00,85,116, according to Union Health Ministry data updated on Wednesday.

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