A special demonstration of counter-terrorism tactics by ‘Garuda’, a striking motorcycle stunt display by the Tornadoes of Army Service Corps (ASC), and cultural programmes by over 2,000 schoolchildren were some of the key highlights of the 71st Republic Day celebrations at the Field Marshall Manekshaw Parade Ground on Sunday.
Contingents of the Indian Air Force, Indian Army, Border Security Force, Central Reserve Police Force, National Cadet Corps, among others, took part in the march past, with the Goa State Police participating as the guest contingent.
Students from the Shree Ramana Maharishi Academy for the Blind, differently-abled students from Samarthanam Trust for the Disabled, and a group of BBMP pourakarmikas, who were also a part of the parade, drew special attention and cheer from the audience.
Appu Raj, Assistant Executive Engineer, BBMP, who was in charge of the pourakarmika contingent, said that such initiatives will not only help in creating awareness about cleanliness but also in enhancing dignity of labour.
“The 31 pourakarmikas from seven wards who participated will be an inspiration to others. Today, they marched along with the likes of the Army, BSF, CRPF. It was a huge morale booster for them,” he said.
He requested citizens to cooperate with pourakarmikas in keeping the city clean.
Achievements of the State
Governor Vajubhai Vala, who unfurled the tricolour, outlined the achievements of the State. He lauded the State government’s ‘swift and well-coordinated’ response and ‘timely relief efforts’ during the floods in north Karnataka in August 2019.
“Timely relief of ₹10,000 each has been paid to 2.7 lakh affected families. Financial assistance ₹5 lakh for severe house damage and ₹50,000 for partially damaged houses has been sanctioned to facilitate re-construction and repair,” he said.
The Governor expressed happiness over the fact that Karnataka stood first among major States in increasing its forest cover, according to the 2019 edition of India State of Forest Report. He said that a new scheme, ‘Watershed Development to Prevent Drought’, was being implemented in 100 drought-hit and low groundwater-level taluks.
Mr. Vala said that the e-office initiative was implemented in all the major departments and district offices from January 1, 2020, and that the State government had launched the publication of an e-gazette.
He said that Karnataka stood second in the country as an investment destination attracting over ₹59,000 crore investment in 2019. “To attract investment in north Karnataka, the Invest Karnataka Conference will be organised in Hubballi in February this year,” he said.
Safety of women
Speaking about safety of women, he said, “Our men and boys must be educated in such a way that they learn to treat women and girls with respect. I hope Karnataka, which stood third in the recently released Good Governance Index rankings, will set a stellar example for the rest of the country.”
He said that during the current financial year, about 16 lakh pre-matriculation students and about 9 lakh post-matriculation students will be given scholarships through ‘Integrated State Scholarship Portal’.
Motorcycle stunts
The motorcycle stunts display team of Army Service Corps (ASC) performed various stunts, including fire jump, tubelight jump, path of fire, brick wall jump and scissors crossing winning a standing ovation from the audience.
‘Bus intervention’, a special demonstration of counter-terrorism tactics by ‘Garuda’, a special squad of the Centre for Counter-Terrorism (CCT), was the highlight of the event. ‘Bus intervention’ was the demonstration of their capability in handling a situation where terrorists take control of a public bus. The commandos demonstrated various counter-terrorism techniques, including countering enemies and handling hostage situations.
Trained Belgia Malinois Shepherds took part in the demonstration winning huge applause.
Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa, Chief Secretary T.M. Vijay Bhaskar, DGP Neelamani Raju, City Police Commissioner Bhaskar Rao, BBMP Commissioner B.H. Anil Kumar were present.
Problem of dust
While the Governor was hoisting the flag, an Indian Air Force (IAF) helicopter flew low over the main podium showering flower petals. This resulted in a massive dust cloud. Dignitaries on the podium, including the Governor and the CM, were affected. People were seen covering their faces.
BBMP Commissioner B.H. Anil Kumar said that he would write to the IAF regarding this issue.
