Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lead the 80th Independence Day celebrations at the Red Fort in New Delhi on August 15, with this year’s ceremony centred on 150 years of the National Song ‘Vande Mataram’ and the contribution of ‘Yuva Shakti’ towards Viksit Bharat @2047.
For the first time, Vande Mataram will be rendered as part of the Independence Day ceremony at the Red Fort. Around 5,000 special guests from different sections of society, along with more than 1,500 people from various States and Union Territories dressed in traditional attire, have been invited to witness the celebrations.
PM Modi to hoist Tricolour and address nation
After arriving at the Red Fort, the Prime Minister will receive a ceremonial Guard of Honour comprising personnel from the Army, Navy, Air Force and Delhi Police. He will then proceed to the ramparts, where he will be received by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Minister of State for Defence Sanjay Seth and the three Service Chiefs and Chief of Defence Staff.
PM Modi will hoist the National Flag with Captain Sonia Singh Chauhan assisting him. The flag hoisting will be synchronised with a 21-gun salute fired by the ceremonial battery using indigenous 105mm Light Field Guns.
The National Flag Guard comprising personnel from the three Services and Delhi Police will present the Rashtriya Salute. Following the flag hoisting, the Army band will play Vande Mataram, which will be sung by those present at the Red Fort, followed by the National Anthem.
Two Indian Air Force Mi-17 helicopters will shower flower petals over the venue. One helicopter will carry the National Flag, while the other will carry a flag depicting Vande Mataram.
The Prime Minister will subsequently address the nation from the ramparts of the Red Fort.
At the conclusion of his address, 2,500 NCC cadets and My Bharat volunteers will sing Vande Mataram followed by the National Anthem. The participants, seated along Gyanpath opposite the ramparts, will form the words ‘वंदे मातरम्’.
Special guests from across society
The government has invited around 5,000 special guests representing a wide range of sectors and government programmes. They include women entrepreneurs supported under the PM Mudra Yojana, beneficiaries of various welfare schemes, sanitation workers, street vendors, innovators, scientists, start-up founders, youth trained under PM Kaushal Vikas Yojana, artisans under PM Vishwakarma, farmers, healthcare workers, Metro employees and beneficiaries of the PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana.
Best-performing volunteers, students, interns, entrepreneurs and beneficiaries under various government programmes will also attend the ceremony.
Enhanced facilities for visitors
Several measures have been introduced to improve public convenience during the celebrations. Twenty-five cloak rooms at six locations have been established, while 200 NCC and My Bharat volunteers will assist visitors in reaching their designated enclosures.
Wheelchair assistance will be available at Metro stations and parking areas. Delhi Metro services will begin at 4 am on August 15, and Metro travel will be free for invited guests carrying valid e-invitation QR codes.
Parking facilities will be available at Parade Ground for visitors with valid parking labels, while additional ramps and stairs have been installed to facilitate pedestrian movement. Traffic restrictions on the day will also be reflected on Google and Mappls Maps.
Considering the possibility of rain, rain ponchos will be provided to invitees at Madhav Das Park and August 15 Park, besides dignitaries at the ramparts. Drainage and sewage systems around the Red Fort and adjoining areas are also being cleaned to prevent waterlogging.
Seating enclosures named after Indian lakes
Continuing the practice of moving away from VIP-centric nomenclature, the seating enclosures for this year’s Independence Day celebrations have been named after major Indian lakes.
The enclosures include Chilika, Dal, Loktak, Pangong Tso, Pulicat, Pushkar, Vembanad, Wular, Kolleru, Lonar, Hussain Sagar, Bhimtal and Kankaria, among others.
Swachhata campaign after ceremony
A post-event Swachhata Campaign will be organised at the Red Fort involving NCC cadets and My Bharat volunteers. The initiative will focus on systematic plogging and prompt removal of waste after spectators leave the venue.
Competitions and youth participation
As part of the run-up to Independence Day, the Ministry of Defence, in collaboration with MyGov, organised several quizzes and competitions. These included an essay competition on ‘Role of AI in building a Viksit Bharat by 2047’, a painting competition on ‘India 1947 vs India 2047’, and online quizzes on the Constitution, women in India’s freedom movement, technological progress and India’s achievements in space and nuclear technology.
Around 600 winners of these competitions will participate in the Independence Day celebrations.
The Delhi government and Delhi Police have also organised a series of cultural, educational and patriotic activities, including painting and collage competitions, quiz contests, runs and walkathons, debates, essay writing, patriotic song competitions, street plays and programmes on national unity, cyber awareness, women’s safety and drug abuse prevention.
Patriotic band performances across India
To mark Independence Day and promote patriotic spirit, military and uniformed-service bands will perform at 343 prominent locations across the country.
The performances will feature bands from the Army, Navy, Air Force, Indian Coast Guard, NCC, CRPF, ITBP, CISF, SSB, BSF, Integrated Defence Staff, Railway Protection Force and Assam Rifles. The performances will be open to the public.
Flag-hoisting ceremonies will also be organised by the Indian Navy and local administrations in Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep.
The 2026 Independence Day celebrations are thus set to combine the commemoration of Vande Mataram with a strong focus on youth participation, public inclusion, national development and the vision of Viksit Bharat @2047.
