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    The Indian Eye
             EYE ON INDIA                                                              AUGUST 21, 2026                                       7

            guage surrounding the celebrations.                                                                   has appealed for broad public partic-
            Union Home Minister Amit Shah,                                                                        ipation.
            after hoisting the national flag at his                                                                   The sheer variety of these events
            residence, called upon citizens to                                                                    points to how the idea of Indepen-
            “celebrate patriotism” by displaying                                                                  dence Day has expanded. The cele-
            the Tricolour. He described the flag                                                                  bration is no longer confined to the
            as a symbol of national pride and uni-                                                                flag being raised at government build-
            ty and encouraged people to join the                                                                  ings or to the Prime Minister’s address
            campaign by uploading photographs                                                                     from the Red Fort. It is increasingly
            of themselves with the flag.                                                                          being transformed into a participato-
                Shah has also  framed  the  cam-                                                                  ry public spectacle — on roads, cam-
            paign as a means of strengthening                                                                     puses, lakes and social media.
            patriotism and the idea of ‘Ek Bharat,                                                                    The Bharatiya Janata Party has
            Shreshtha Bharat’. The emphasis is                                                                    also organised Tiranga Yatras and Ti-
            therefore  not  simply on  ceremonial                                                                 ranga Abhiyan programmes between
            flag-hoisting but on creating a sense                                                                 August 9 and 15. Union Minister JP
            of shared national participation.                                                                     Nadda said the objective was to in-
                Perhaps the most significant fea-                                                                 volve people in patriotic activities and
            ture of this year’s celebrations is the                                                               connect the sentiment of national
            effort to bring young Indians into the                                                                pride with the goals of self-reliance
            centre of the patriotic narrative.                                                                    and development.
                At Banaras Hindu University in                                                                        This political involvement is sig-
            Varanasi, students and National Ser-                                                                  nificant because it shows how patrio-
            vice Scheme volunteers took part in                                                                   tism has become an important part of
            a Tiranga rally that moved through                                                                    the political vocabulary surrounding
            the  university campus. Participants                                                                  Independence Day. Yet the broad-
            carried the national flag and raised                                                                  er campaign extends beyond party
            patriotic slogans. Vice-Chancellor                                                                    politics. Schools, universities, local
            Prof Ajit Kumar Chaturvedi de-                                                                        administrations, cultural institutions
            scribed Independence Day as a festi-                                                                  and ordinary citizens are participating
            val that belongs to the entire country                                                                in events that use the Tricolour as a
            rather than to any particular institu-                                                                common national symbol.
            tion or household.                                                                                        The challenge, however, is to en-
                The university’s messaging went                                                                   sure that patriotism does not become
            beyond remembrance. Students were                                                                     merely a visual exercise.
            urged to draw inspiration from the                                                                        A flag outside every home, a ral-
            sacrifices of freedom fighters and to                                                                 ly through a city or a photograph on
            contribute actively to society and na-  School students carry the Tricolour flags during a Tiranga Yatra in Shimla on Thursday. (ANI Photo)  social media can create a powerful
            tional development. The university                                                                    sense of participation. But the deep-
            also linked today’s youth with the vi-  In Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh   on the water, while the chief minister   er meaning of independence lies in
            sion of a developed India by 2047.  Chief Minister Mohan Yadav partic-  described the event as a reflection of   what follows the celebration. The call
                That attempt to connect the free-  ipated in a ‘Tiranga Boat Yatra’ on   India’s spirit and resolve. The state   from organisers across the country is
            dom struggle with the future is being   the Upper Lake. People carrying the   is conducting the Har Ghar Tiranga   increasingly that young people should
            repeated elsewhere.               national flag created a striking display   campaign from August 9 to 17 and   translate patriotic sentiment into civic
                In Markapuram  in Andhra                                                                          responsibility, social contribution and
            Pradesh, students and young people                                                                    national development.
            participated in  a Tiranga rally  car-                                                                    India’s 80th Independence Day
            rying  a  330-foot-long  national  flag.                                                              therefore arrives amid an unusual
            The event was organised around the                                                                    combination of remembrance and
            theme ‘Youth for Viksit Bharat’, with                                                                 ambition. The country is looking back
            organisers stressing that young Indi-                                                                 at  the  sacrifices  that  made  freedom
            ans would be central to the country’s                                                                 possible, while political and institu-
            future. A cycle rally was also planned                                                                tional messaging is firmly focused on
            as part of the continuing celebrations.                                                               what India should become by 2047.
                In neighbouring NTR district,                                                                         The patriotic wave sweeping the
            another major rally brought together                                                                  country ahead of August 15 may ulti-
            students and young people. District                                                                   mately be measured not by the num-
            officials said the objective was to moti-                                                             ber of flags displayed or rallies held,
            vate citizens to reflect on India’s jour-                                                             but by whether the emotion generat-
            ney since independence while also                                                                     ed by them survives beyond Indepen-
            looking towards the centenary of free-                                                                dence Day.
            dom. The period leading up to 2047,                                                                       For now, however, the message is
            they argued, should be used to build                                                                  visible almost everywhere: the Trico-
            awareness and encourage collective                                                                    lour is flying, Vande Mataram is be-
            participation in national development.                                                                ing remembered, young Indians are
                The celebrations are also taking   School students parents and teachers hold the national flag and participate in the ‘Abhinav   being mobilised and the language of
            patriotic  expression  beyond  conven-  Bharat Yatra Vande Mataram’ as part of the Tiranga Yatra, in Ahmedabad on Thursday (ANI Photo)  patriotism is once again dominating
            tional rallies.                                                                                       the public space.

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