The Republic Day programme commenced at Amar Jawan Jyoti. On behalf of the nation, the Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee paid homage to the soldiers who sacrificed their lives in the service of the nation.

The President and the Supreme Commander of the Defence Forces, Mr K R Narayanan arrived at Rajpath along with the President of Algeria, Mr Abdelaziz Bouteflika, the chief guest at the Republic Day Parade. Soon after his arrival, the President was given a 21-gun salute by the gunners of 81 Field Battery of the 12 Field Regiment. The Battery was commanded by Maj Thomas Joseph. These were the most versatile guns used in the second world war and are used now for ceremonial purposes.

The spectacular event started on the western sky above the Rashtrapati Bhawan where four
Mi-8 helicopters were flying towards the saluting dais in inverted `Y' formation. The helicopters were commanded by Wg Cdr A K Pradhan. The leading helicopter was trooping the national flag and the second one was trooping the Army flag. The third and fourth helicopters were trooping Navy and Air Force flags respectively and showered flower petals on the spectators below.

The parade was commanded by Maj Gen V Bhanot, General Officer Commanding, Delhi Area. He was followed by Brig R L Singh, Deputy General Officer Commanding, Delhi Area. He led the parade from India Gate to Chandni Chowk. With the tune of Cavalry Brigade, the horse - mounted contingent of the 61 Cavalry approached the saluting dais. This contingent was led by Maj Shailendra Singh. The 61 Cavalry is the only surviving horse cavalry in the world today. They have won twenty battle honours and six theatre honours.

The horse - mounted columns were followed by the indigenous Main Battle Tank (MBT) Arjun of the 43 Armoured Regiment. Maj N M Sharma commanded this contingent. Arjun is fitted with 120 mm gun, 12.7 mm anti-aircraft gun and coaxial 7.62 mm machine gun. True to its name, Arjun has an accurate and fast target acquisition capability during day and night in all types of weather. Following it was the 155 mm Field Howitzer 77 B. This contingent was drawn from 218 Medium Regiment and commanded by Maj Jangbir Singh Rangi. The guns were towed by Scania. The Howitzer has a maximum range of 30 kilometres and has a burst fire capability of three rounds in 14 seconds. It is the pride of the Indian Artillery.

Next approaching the saluting dais was Prithvi missile system, led by Maj S K Sahoo of the Missile Group. Indigenously developed and inducted into the Indian Army, the missile is capable of striking terror in the hearts of the enemy by its long reach and destruction capability. The Defence Research and Development Laboratory at Hyderabad developed this versatile weapon. It can deliver warheads upto one ton and its range is about 150 km with high precision.

Next was the three tracked vehicles of Tunguska Air Defence weapon system. This weapon system of 514 Air Defence Regiment was led by Lt Sandeep Duhan. Tunguska weapon system is the latest acquisition by the Indian Army and is used to provide low-level air defence to the mechanised forces.

Tunguska was followed by the improved Reporter Radar of 612 Radar Battery of 612 independent Mechanised Air Defence Brigade. The contingent commander was Capt Govind Singh. The Reporter Radar has been introduced to the Indian Army as a part of Air Defence Artillery in September 1998. The Reporters are a state-of- the-art equipment capable of low-level surveillance of flying aircraft and helicopters upto a range of 40 kms.

The T-72 tanks fitted with Engineer Mine Plough (EMP) of 114 Armoured Engineer Regiment were the next on display. This contingent was led by Lt Alip Kumar Roy. The PMS bridging equipment of 16 Engineer Bridge Regiment followed the EMP. This contingent was led by Lt Sheel Mohan Kala.

Maj Sharad Bikram Singh led the BMP-II infantry combat vehicles of the 8th Battalion of Mechanised Infantry Regiment. These most advanced infantry combat vehicles give the infantry soldiers a matching mobility with the armoured columns as well as protect them from small-arms fire of the enemy during assault.

The next contingent which approached the dais was the elite Paratroopers and the Para Commandos led by Maj A S Ranade.

The combined band of Bengal Engineer Group Centre and Guards Regimental Centre crossed the saluting dais playing the tune, queen of the battle. It was led by Sub Ganesh Chhetri and Sub B S Yadav. Following the band was the Madras Regiment led by Maj N Seshagiri Rao. This was followed by Maratha Light Infantry led by Capt Ravi Kiran.

Next was the combined band of Para Regimental Centre and the Jat Regimental Centre playing the tune vir kargil. It was led by Sub Rohtas Singh and Sub Maj Suresh Chander.

With bol bajrang bali ki jai as their war-cry the Rajput Regiment crossed the saluting dais. It was commanded by Capt Paras Tomar. The first Commander-in-Chief of the Independent India, late Field Marshal K M Cariappa was from this Regiment.

"Prosperity in peace and victory in war" is the motto of the Sikh Light Infantry which crossed the dais next under the command of Lt Rajesh Dahiya. The band following the two contingents was drawn from the Sikh Regimental Centre and Sikh Light Infantry Regimental Centre. The Band Masters were Sub Maj Dhir Singh and Sub Maj Wazir Singh.

The next contingent crossing the saluting dais was Garhwal Rifles commanded by Capt Vinod Singh Negi. The Garhwal Rifles, in 113 years of its history, has won 30 battle honours. It was followed by the highly decorated Regiment of the Indian Army-the Kumaon Regiment. Capt Shashank Shekhar commanded the contingent. This Regiment has the rare honour of giving three Chiefs of the Army Staff to the Army. The band playing the tune of chhatwal was drawn from the Bihar Regimental Centre and Assam Regimental Centre and was led by Sub Maj BP Sharma and Nb Sub Suk Bahadur.

Maj Sunil Edwin commanded the next contingent of the Assam Regiment. Maj Vikas Vohra, who won Vir Chakra for his gallantry in Kargil operations, commanded the Jammu and Kashmir Rifles contingent which followed the contingent of the Assam Regiment.

The next band, drawn from Mahar Regimental Centre and 39 Gorkha Training Centre playing the tune of vir gorkha, was led by Sub Maj S B Gurung and Sub Ram Bahadur. The legendary Gorkha Rifles contingent was drawn from 3 Gorkha Rifles of the 39 Gorkha Training Centre and was led by Maj Rajeev Nangyal.

The next contingent crossing the saluting dais was 5 Gorkha Rifles of 58 Gorkhas Training Centre and was commanded by Capt Sandeep Thapa. Following this contingent was a combination of bands from 1 EME Centre and Pioneer Training Centre led by Sub Maj Hari Prasad and Sub D Lambart. The contingent following Gorkha Rifles was 102 Infantry Battalion of the Territorial Army. This contingent was led by Capt Vikrant Kaushal.

Next came the Naval Band which led the Naval marching contingents. The band was led by Ramesh Chand, Chief Petty Officer, Master Musician 1. The sentinels of the sea were led by Lieutenant Commander Rajiv Ashok. The 144-strong marching contingent was led by Lieutenants J Ravi and S K Dutta and Sub Lieutenant Lalitha. It was followed by a model of an attack submarine of the Sindhu Shastra class. This submarine is capable of firing long range supersonic cruise missiles that can attack targets deep in land. The spectators were delighted to see the prestigious models of the Indian Navy's latest class of stealth destroyers and frigates, INS Mumbai and INS Talwar.

The Air Force contingent was heralded by a smart band group comprising 72 musicians and two Drum Majors. It was led by Junior Warrant Officer D Pal. This was followed by the Air Force marching contingent consisting of 144 Airmen in a box formation of 12 abreast and 12 deep in their smart uniforms. This contingent was led by Sqn Ldr Anuj Gupta. Next approaching the saluting dais was the aerial target system - Lakshya designed, developed and manufactured by the Aeronautical Development Agency of the DRDO. This state-of-the-art aerial system is designed to operate at subsonic speed at a maximum height of 30,000 feet. It is capable of high manoeuvers. It also has a realistic threat simulation for combat pilots and surface-to-air guided weapons. Following Lakshya was Indra-II radar designed by LRDE, Bangalore and produced by Bharat electronics. Indra-II is a low-level radar catering to the vital `gap filling' need in air defence network.

Another achievement of India to come next was OSA-AK-M combat vehicle which is a highly mobile surface-to-air guided weapon system. This weapon system provides a high probability of hitting a target flying within the effective fire area at a great variety of speeds and heights. It can select a target even when on move and also at halt and launch the missile in a very short time. Next came Mi-35 helicopter, the prestigious flying machine of the Air Force. The MiG-21 BIS, which followed Mi-35, is fitted with guided missiles, rockets and aerial bombs.

The turn of the Jaguar aircraft came next. This aircraft is equipped with state-of-the-art avionics, attack systems and lethal weaponry. The aircraft can not only attack ground based enemy targets but also maritime targets hundreds of kilometres deep into the sea. The Jaguar aircraft was followed by Sujav, a compact communication electronic warfare system used for spectrum monitoring and jamming. Then, Safari approached the dais. This is an electronic security system developed by the DRDO for vehicular convoy protection against remote control explosive devices. The next admirable invention of DRDO on display was the technology of making fresh food available locally in cold deserts using solar green houses and agro technologies.

The next float infront of the saluting dais was depicting the operation of mounted sonar Humsa, airborne sonar Mihir, towed array sonar Nagan, the AET torpedo and intelligent mines.

Next came the magestic columns of Pipes and Drums from various regiments of the Indian Army led by Band Master M N Chakraband. The proud ex-servicemen who devoted their youth to the service of the nation marched on the heels. Among the para-military and other auxiliary civil forces, BSF came first. Their band consisting of 84 personnel was led by Band Master Sub N C Nath. Following was the sturdy and smartly dressed foot contingent of the Border Security Forces commanded by Deputy Commandant, Sumer Singh. This force was raised in 1965 and is one of the single largest para military forces in the world. Next was the beautiful BSF camel contingent commanded by the Assistant Commandant, Shaitan Singh Bhati. The smartly decked camel mounted band of BSF was led by Sub Inspector Hassan Khan.

The magnificent force aptly called the sentinels of the North-East Assam Rifles, is the oldest paramilitary force of the country. Led by Capt Amit Srivatsav, its contingent crossed the dais with pride. The Assam Rifles band following the contingent was led by Nb Sub Nar Bhupal Sharma.

The smartly attired marching contingent of the Coast Guard crossed the saluting dais under the command of Deputy Commandant, M Venkatesan. The Coast Guard, known as the fourth Armed Force, protects India's 6.2 million sq km Exclusive Economic Zone. They also keep sea pirates at bay. The CRPF band, comprising 101 men, was commanded by Inspector Shiv Bahadur Singh. He has the distinction of participating 27 times in the Republic Day parade. The Assistant Commander, Manish Kumar Meena commanded the CRPF contingent.

The smartly dressed contingent of the Central Industrial Security Force was commanded by Assistant Commandant J K Tiwari. This force is entrusted with the security of 256 vital establishments including space centres, atomic energy plants, oil installations and steel plants and is also providing fire protection cover to 82 installations across the country. It was followed by the CISF band led by Sub Inspector S S Gill.

The Railway Protection Force contingent consisting of 3 subordinate officers and 144 other ranks was commanded by Assistant Security Commissioner Vijay Kumar Singh. The Delhi Police band was led by Sub Inspector Muralidhar and the contingent was commanded by Assistant Commissioner of Police, Deepak Purohit.

The NCC senior division boys contingent, comprising 148 young and energetic NCC cadets, marched towards the saluting dais under the command of Senior Under Officer S M Kalra. The next contingent was of boys NCC comprising 45 cadets led by Sergeant Imran Khan. After that the senior division NCC girls contingent marched under the command of Senior Under Officer Pramila Mohite, followed by the girls from Birla Balika Vidyapeeth, Pilani. Sergeant Vandana Rawat led the band. Then came the turn of the National Service Scheme contingent comprising 148 volunteers drawn from 138 schools and colleges and 71 universities from all over the country. The contingent was led by Renu Kumawat.

It was a joyful moment for the spectators to witness the colourful extravaganza presented by the cultural pageant tableaux from different states. The first tableau came from Kerala depicting the most colourful temple festival, Thrissur Pooram. The second tableau presented some scenes from Ghalib's Delhi.

The tableau of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on the theme of ‘Arogya’ exhibited the gifts of nature in the form of herbs and medicinal plants whereas the Gujarat tableau displayed uttarardh utsav and the Sun Temple. The Karnataka tableau depicted India's impressive growth in the information technology sector while the Manipur tableau showed artistes staging the last day of Kanglei Haraoba Lairoi festival.

Jaisalmer Fort, popularly known as ‘Sonar Kila’, and the music that flourished under its patronage were presented in the tableau of Rajasthan. The tableau of Assam highlighted the ‘silk story’ of the state through moths and caterpillars.

The tableau from Bihar, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir and from the ministries of Tourism, Petroleum and Natural Gas and Textile delighted the spectators very much.

The spectators responded with a thunderous applause as twentythree children, who bagged the National Bravery Award, crossed the saluting dais on elephants. Then the spectators witnessed colourful dances on various themes performed by groups of school children from all over the country.

The heartbeat of the spectators stopped for a moment as they saw the feats by the dare devils of ASC Tornadoes team, led by Capt S Das.

A flypast by 19 aircraft of the Indian Air Forces was the most memorable spectacle of the parade. Leading the flypast was the `Big Boy' formation comprising three types of transport aircraft. This formation was led by Gp Capt S P Singh at a speed of 300 kms per hour and at the height of 300 metres. It was followed by three Sukhoi-30 in ‘vic’ formations at a speed of 780 kms per hour and at a height of 300 metres. This formation was led by Wg Cdr S Mohan. This was followed by two formations of Jaguar aircraft in shockwave formation. The first formation was led by Wg Cdr A Bhaku and the second was led by Wg Cdr RKS Bhaduria. It was Sqn Ldr U Rakhra, who performed vertical charlie by Sukhoi-30 aircraft to draw the curtain on yet another grand spectacle that was the Republic Day 2001.