IMAGE: Members of Shwet Ashw, the motorcycle display team of the Indian army, display their skills during the Army Day Parade 2020 at Cariappa Ground, in New Delhi, on Wednesday. Photograph: Kamal Kishore/PTI Photo
The 72nd Army Day function was held at the Cariappa Parade Ground in Delhi Cantonment on Wednesday.
IMAGE: Soldiers during the Army Day Parade at Cariappa Ground. Photograph: Kamal Kishore/PTI Photo
General M M Naravane attended the Army Day parade for the first time as the Army chief.
IMAGE: T-90 Bhishma main battle tanks. Photograph: Kamal Kishore/PTI Photo
The Army Day is celebrated on January 15 every year to mark Lieutenant General K M Cariappa taking over as commander-in-chief of the Indian Army in 1949 from General Francis Butcher, the last British commander-in-chief of India.
IMAGE: Army helicopters fly with the national flag and the Army flag during the parade. Photograph: Kamal Kishore/PTI Photo
Carriappa later became a Field Marshal.
IMAGE: Soldiers salute from a truck loaded with Akash missiles during the Parade. Photograph: Kamal Kishore/PTI Photo
Air Chief Marshal R K S Bhadauria, Navy Chief Admiral Karambir Singh and Chief of Defence Staff Gen Bipin Rawat were also present on the occasion.
IMAGE: Special forces commandos descent from an Advanced Light Helicopter. Photograph: Kamal Kishore/PTI Photo
It was the first time that a chief of defence staff attended the Army Day parade.
IMAGE: Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Bipin Rawat, Army chief General Manoj Mukund Naravane, Chief of the Air Staff Air Chief Marshal R K S Bhadauria and Navy Chief Admiral Karambir Singh pay tribute at the National War Memorial, in New Delhi, on Wednesday. Photograph: PTI Photo
Before arriving at the parade ground, the three services chiefs and the Chief of Defence Staff paid homage to martyrs at the National War Memorial.
IMAGE: President Ram Nath Kovind, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Army chief Gen Naravane, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad and other dignitaries attend the Army Day reception in New Delhi. Photograph: Press Information Bureau of India
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday greeted army personnel on the Army Day, saying they are the pride of India.
IMAGE: PM Modi in conversation with the Army chief. Photograph: Press Information Bureau of India
'The Indian Army is the pride of Mother India. On the occasion of Army Day, I salute the indomitable courage, valour of all the soldiers of the country,' he wrote on Twitter.
IMAGE: Commandos along with soldiers on a Cheetah helicopter during the parade. Photograph: Kamal Kishore/PTI Photo
The Army showcased its military might and some of its state-of-the-art assets during the majestic parade, with artillery gun systems Dhanush and K9-Vajra taking part in it for the first time, officials said.
IMAGE: Captain Tania Sher Gill of Corps of Signals, the first woman Parade Adjutant, leads all-men contingents during Army Day celebrations. Photograph: Kamal Kishore/PTI Photo
Captain Tania Sher Gill, the first woman Parade Adjutant, led all-men contingents during the parade, drawing praise from senior officers and loud cheers from the audience, which included members of the diplomatic corps.
IMAGE: Special forces soldiers participate in a march-past. Photograph: Kamal Kishore/PTI Photo
The Army chief asserted that fast-tracked acquisitions have enhanced capabilities of the forces, as with the induction of Sig Sauer rifles, new Sniper rifles, M777 American Ultra Light Howitzers and the K-9 Vajra earlier.
IMAGE: PM Modi attends the Army Day reception along with Army chief in New Delhi. Photograph: Press Information Bureau of India
This year too, new weapon systems will be acquired, like AK-203 rifles and medium-range surface-to-air missiles, he added.
