(TNIE)
Thousands of people braved the foggy and chilly weather on Friday and assembled at the India Gate in the nation’s capital to witness the 69th Republic Day parade that saw many firsts, including the presence of the heads of 10 ASEAN countries. Among the many firsts of the event, this year was an all-women motorcycle contingent of the Border Security Force. Christened Seema Bhavani, the contingent drew applause from the crowd as well as the dignitaries as it zoomed past.
The crowd livened up as Prime Minister Narendra Modi walked down Rajpath, while his security personnel following him on the motorcade. The cheers grew louder as Modi waved to the crowd to greet them. The presence of 10 ASEAN leaders as chief guests to commemorate 25 years of Indo-ASEAN ties was a first; the All India Radio’s tableau based on Prime Minister’s monthly radio address ‘Mann Ki Baat’ was another.
