during the 2015 parade. To mark the Republic Day, an annual parade is held in New Delhi, starting at the
Rashtrapati Bhavan (the President's residence), and proceeding along the Kartavya Path, past the
India Gate. Prior to its commencement, the Prime Minister lays a floral wreath at the
National War Memorial (previously at the
Amar Jawan Jyoti memorial) at one end of Kartavya Path, which is followed by two minutes silence in the memory of fallen soldiers. Thereafter he/she reaches the main dais at Kartavya Path to join other dignitaries. Subsequently, the President arrives along with the chief guest of the occasion. They are escorted on horseback by the
President's Bodyguard. First, the president unfurls the
National flag, as the National Anthem
Jana Gana Mana is played, and a 21-gun salute is fired by the Indian Army Regiment of Artillery as the PBG renders the National Salute and its standard is dipped. Next, as the PBG trots off the dais, important awards like the
Ashok Chakra and
Param Vir Chakra are given away by the President. The President comes forward to award the medals of bravery to the people from the armed forces for their exceptional courage in the field and also the civilians, who have distinguished themselves by their different acts of valour in different situations, either in military, civilian or disaster scenarios. This is followed by the regiments of Armed Forces starting their march past, led by the parade commander and their second in command, followed by living recipients of gallantry medals of the Republic. Following the march past of the armed forces follows the march of personnel belonging to the federal security organizations and the Delhi Police, which marches also on behalf of all territorial, state, city and municipal police forces. Children who are recipients of the
National Bravery Award ride past the spectators on colourfully decorated elephants(in the past) or vehicles. . 18 to 24 different regiments of the Indian Army in addition to the Navy, and Air Force (total nearly 55)) with their bands march past in all their finery and official decorations. The
President of India who is the
Commander-in-Chief of the
Indian Armed Forces, takes the salute. Twelve contingents of various para-military forces of India and other civil forces also take part in this parade. One of the unique sights of the parade is the camel mounted
Border Security Force contingent, which is the only camel mounted military force in the world. The best
NCC cadets, selected from all over the country consider it an honour to participate in this event, as do the school children from various schools in the capital. They spend many days preparing for the event and no expense is spared to see that every detail is taken care of, from their practice for the drills, the essential props and their uniforms. 22 to 30 floats exhibiting the cultures of the various states and union territories of India, including floats of union ministries and state enterprises are in the grand parade, which is broadcast nationwide on television and radio. These moving exhibits depict scenes of activities of people in those states and the music and songs of that particular state accompany each display. Each display brings out the diversity and richness of the culture of India and the whole show lends a festive air to the occasion. People from different parts of the country enjoy watching the representation of their state rolling along in the parade. The 2016 Republic Day marked the return of K-9 Dog Squad to the parade after 26 years. The parade traditionally ends with dare devil motor cycle riding display by motorcycle units of the Armed Forces and civil security services and a
flypast by the
Indian Air Force jets and helicopters. In 2019, the flypast included aircraft such as
Su 30 MKI,
Jaguar,
Mig 29,
C-17 Globemaster and
HAL Rudra. A full dress rehearsal parade is organised on 23 January every year. To promote gender equality and women empowerment, in 2024, most of the contingents, including the motorcycle acrobat teams were composed entirely of women.
Tableaux passes through the Kartavya Path during the 2017 parade. The selection process of the tableaux is conducted by the
Ministry of Defence, which involves a number of guidelines. The ministry recommends that tableaux represent a historical event, heritage, culture, development programmes and environment. The tableaux must not carry any logos and should carry some animation and sound. A system was introduced in 2024, which gives every state and union territory a chance to showcase their tableau during the Republic Day parade once every three years.
Beating Retreat at
Vijay Chowk on 29 January 2018. The
Indian Beating Retreat ceremony officially denotes the end of Republic Day festivities. It is conducted on the evening of 29 January, the third day after the Republic Day. It is performed by the
bands of the three wings of the military, the
Indian Army,
Indian Navy and
Indian Air Force. The venue is
Raisina Hill and an adjacent square,
Vijay Chowk, flanked by the
north and south block of the
Rashtrapati Bhavan (President's Palace) towards the end of Kartavya Path. The Chief Guest of the function is the
President of India who arrives escorted by the Presidential Body Guard (PBG), a cavalry unit. When the President arrives, the PBG commander asks the unit to give the National Salute, which is followed by playing of the Indian National Anthem,
Jana Gana Mana, by the Army developed the ceremony of display by the massed bands in which Military Bands, Pipe and Drum Bands, Buglers and Trumpeters from various Army Regiments besides bands from the Navy and Air Force take part which play popular tunes like the National Song of India
Vande Mataram,
Mahatma Gandhi's favourite hymn
Vaishnava Jana To,
Saare Jahan Se Achcha,
Abide With Me and
Aye Mere Watan Ke Logo at the end. Mostly, after Republic Day Celebrations Schools and Colleges Observe Holiday on 27 January. ==Guest contingents==