15Th August “An Independance Day” INDEPENDANCE DAY means a day when we had got freedom from not only our brute rulers but freedom from want from fulfillment of right needs and from dishumilitation it means we have got our own identity and our own valves. India is celebrating her 63rd independence day. In these 62 years our independence, India became one of the world’s largest economies in terms of growth On 15 August 1947, India attained freedom from the British Rule. Every year, August 15 is celebrated as the Independence Day in India.
This national festival is celebrated with great enthusiasm all over the country. At the strike of midnight of the August 15, 1947, India shook off the shackles of British Rule and became free. It was a night of celebration all over the country. At the stroke of midnight, as India moved into August 15, 1947, Jawaharlal Nehru, India’s first Prime Minister, read out the famous speech proclaiming India’s independence. Independence was also the end of nearly a century of struggle for freedom, battles, betrayals and sacrifices.
It also created a situation where we were responsible for ourselves. But it wasn’t a period of unqualified joy. For a lot of people, in spite of a new era promised by independence, partition was a painful reality and so was the bloodshed that accompanied it. That was 60 years ago. Much has changed; the struggle for freedom lives on in history books and memoirs, and on the tombstones of valiant martyrs. But, come August 15, and the people put their troubles behind them for a while, as they stand up as a nation for the National Anthem.
Each year, August 15 gives us the reason to celebrate all this, and do much more – it is a time to contemplate what we have and how we achieved it. ‘Free India’ was a dream of all Indians under the British rule. Everyone during that rule fought in some way or the other with a common aim of ending British and other colonial authorities in India. After a century of revolutions, struggle, blood shedding, battles and sacrifices, India finally achieved independence on August 15, 1947.
India was free in 1947 from the British Empire but the country lost many men and women who were filled with undaunted courage and spirit of patriotism. Today, they are known as freedom fighters because they sacrificed their lives for their motherland. Indian freedom fighters with their true spirit and undaunted courage had faced various tortures, exploitations and hardships to earn us freedom. The pioneers of the freedom movement were Mangal Pandey, Tantia Tope, Rani of Jhansi and the great Indian leader Mahatma Gandhi who introduced non-violent ways of fighting the enemy.
Other notable freedom fighters of India are Annie Besant, Lala Lajpat Rai, Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Bhagat Singh, Bipin Chandra Pal, Sukhdev, Gopal Krishna Gokhale, Chandrashekhar Azad, Sarojini Naidu;, Dadabhai Naoroji, Sucheta Kriplani and Chakravarti Rajagopalachari. There are endless number of men and women other than the above list who daringly fought for India’s freedom. August 15, Independence Day, is celebrated in a mood of abandon and joy – no rituals, just festivities.
It is also a national holiday, with educational institutions, private and government organizations remaining closed, but for official celebrations in the morning. Schools and colleges mark the day with cultural activities, drills, flag hoisting and distribution of sweets. Government as well as private organizations celebrates it similarly. Commemorating the day India attained freedom (15th August); Independence Day is celebrated with flag hoisting ceremonies and cultural programs all over the country.
The main program is held at the Red Fort where the Prime Minster unfurls the National Flag and it is saluted by Guns. The Prime Minister’s speech at the Red Fort in Delhi is a major highlight. Patriotic presentations by school children add colors to the celebrations. Delhi’s skyline gets dotted with thousands of kites taking to the sky this day. Similar programs are held at all the State capitals also. Red Fort Ceremony On the morning of August 15, the Prime Minister addresses the nation from the ramparts of the Red Fort in Delhi.
In his speech, he highlights the achievements of the country during the past year and gives a call for further development. He also pays tribute to leaders of the freedom struggle. Independence Day should not merely become a part of our holiday list. There should be serious efforts in educating the future generations about the struggles which the freedom fighters underwent to give us the freedom that we enjoy today. There has to be a concerned effort by everyone to make available the lives and teachings of the sons of the soil, who sacrificed their all, so that we could enjoy the freedom.
