NEW DELHI: Indian Navy this year has dedicated its tableau to highlight defining moments of naval operations during the 1971 Indo-Pak war. While Bangladesh Army Contingent will march on Rajpath as a special invitee the Indian Navy tableau will depict a missile boat firing the missile in the Republic Day parade on January 26 in Delhi.
The forward part of the tableau will display the attack on Karachi harbour by missile boats while the rear section would illustrate the aircraft carrier INS Vikrant conducting flying operations with Sea Hawk and Alize aircraft.
On December 3 and 4, Indian Navy’s boat missile carried attack on Karachi harbour as part of Operation Trident and Operation Python on night of December 8 and 9. This year’s theme is Indian Navy - Combat Ready, Credible and Cohesive. The nation is also commemorating the golden jubilee of the victory in 1971 war as Swarnim Vijay Varsh when Bangladesh became an independent nation.
Vice Admiral SN Ghormade said, “The tableau is an attempt to highlight the most significant aspects of Naval operations conducted during 1971 war and pay rich tributes to those who were involved in these. I sincerely hope the Naval tableau would evoke the spirit of pride and patriotism amongst the audience witnessing the parade and a sense of nostalgia amongst those who participated in 1971 war.”
“The air operations from INS Vikrant led to sizeable damage to ships and shore installations of East Pakistan and contributed immensely towards the liberation of Bangladesh,” Indian Navy spokesperson Commander Vivek Madhwal said.
“While we celebrate our victory, we also acknowledge the courage and sacrifice of the Naval personnel who wrote this glorifying chapter of the Naval history. The tableau showcases photographs of eight naval awardees of Mahavir Chakra one of which was posthumous,” he said.
On the sides of the trailer are murals depicting various ships that participated in the war, commando operations (Operation X) undertaken by the Navy along with Mukti Bahini and the surrender ceremony at Dhaka.