Commemoration and Applause for Navy Day in India-Puri
Jaswant Singh Puri
The Maratha Emperor of the 17th Century, Chhatrapati Shivaji is credited with the Father of the Indian Navy. The Commander-in-chief of the Indian Navy is President of India. Its paramount role is to secure the marine edges of the country and go ahead with the global relations of India through seaport visits, joint exercise and altruistic goals and bring finesse in the circumstances in the Indian Ocean Zone. The Navy has three commands, each under the control of a Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, the Western Naval Command, the Eastern Naval Command and the Southern Naval Command. Modern-day Indian Navy has been transformed to fight with the other nations in times of need.
The Royal Indian Navy celebrated Navy Day for the first time on 21 October, 1944 with the motive to increase awareness about the Navy among the public. It proved to be a great success. Until 1972, Navy Day was organized on 15 December. However, in the coming years, it was decided to celebrate Navy Day on 4 December every year to commemorate the successful operation of navy in the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal in the Indo-Pak War. Personnel of the Indian Navy were honoured with the Nau Sena Medal and MahaVir Chakra for their gallantry.
Navy day is celebrated in India on 4 December every year to appreciate the efforts and achievements of the Indian Navy during the 1971 Indo-Pak war. It signifies and commemorates the victory of Operation Trident in Karachi by the Indian Navy. The honourable and praise-worthy day is celebrated by the Western Naval Command of the Indian Navy with Headquarters in Mumbai by anchoring their ships and sailors together. A lot number of activities and events are held by the Eastern Naval Command at Vishakhapatnam. A wreath-laying ceremony is performed which follows the remarkable and heart-throbbing skills of the submarines, ships, aircrafts and other events. The Military Photo Exhibition is arranged by the journalists of Emakulum in the naval festivity.
The Indian Navy is a well-knit three-dimensional force which has accomplished deftness and acumen of utmost capability to combat above, on and underneath the surface of oceans. It is eveready to safeguard our national interests. Its operation Trident is well acclaimed in the Indian history and the world.
It was the night of December 4-5, 1971when the Indian Navy planned the attack at night to carry out bombings. The attack yielded success as it sank a minesweeper, a destroyer and ammunition supply ship. It was a day of triumph, a day of success and a day of jubilation. On 4 December, we ought to honour naval force’s splendour, their achievements of fearless fights and adventures and to sing their praises to the nation. The Navy had sent three missile boats INS Veer, INS Nipat and INS Nirghat,Vidyut class boats towards Karachi. Commodore Kasargod Patneshetti Gopal Rao led the attack and caused colossal loss to Pakistani forces.
This year’s Navy Day Celebration is expected to be a magnificent and excellent showwhen President of India, DroupdiMurmu, will be the Chief Guest – the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces. She is likely to be attended by Defence Minister, Rajnath Singh, Minister of State for Defence Ajay Bhat, Chief of the Naval Staff and other distinguished dignitaries. A number of shows are being planned. Each year, a theme is proposed to commemorate Navy Day. Our Indian Navy’s Motto is ‘Sham no Varunah’ which means that the God of water Varuna should be auspicious to us. Recently, Indian Navy has been in its possession withINS Arihant with nuclear – powered ballistic missile submarine. It also possesses INS Vikramaditya which is an aircraft carrier. The indigenous Aircraft Carrier named INS Vikrant has been equipped with unique features. Very recently, on 26 November, 2022 Survey Ship ‘Ikshak’ has been launched at Kattupalli, Chennai. ‘Ikshak’ is the third vessel of the ‘Sandhayak’ class. It will be delivered by L&T Shipyard to the Navy by 2023 end. The theme for Indian Navy Day for 2022 is ‘Swarnim Vijay Varsh’ celebrating fifty years of India’s Victory in the Indo-Pak Warin 1971. Indian Navy at present consists of about 67000 personnel and 150 ships and submarines in its fleet. “Indian Navy shields the nation from any risk all the time.” They should be remembered “for their courage, commitment and loyalty.”
Note: This article is dedicated to Smt. Alka Puri, M.A. (Hindi, B.Ed.) who was the Secretary, Ladies Club, Punjabi University, Patiala during the tenure of Vice Chancellor Dr. S.S. Johal, awarded with Padma Bhushan in 2004. Smt. Alka Puri was the wife of Dr. Ajit Singh Puri and mother of Jaswant Singh Puri.
(The views expressed are personal)
December 4,2022
