By Admin 
India celebrated its 77th Republic Day on 26 January 2026 in a very grand and emotional manner on the duty path in Delhi. This parade lasted for about 90 minutes and there was something special in every moment. It showed a beautiful glimpse of the country’s military strength, cultural diversity and progress.
‘Vande Mataram’ the focus of the parade
The main focus of the parade this year was the celebration of 150 years of ‘Vande Mataram’. Which had two big mantras:
- Mantra of Freedom: Vande Mataram- The spirit of the country’s freedom struggle and the Constitution was shown.
- Prosperity Mantra: Self-reliant India- a story of indigenous weapons, technology and progress.
In the parade which started at 10:30 am, the first 100 artists performed culturally on ‘Unity in Diversity’. 4 Mi-17 helicopters passed over the national flag and showered flowers. Seeing this everyone’s heart became happy.
President Draupadi Murmu took the salute of the parade
President Draupadi reached the duty path in Murmu Buggy along with chief guests European Council President Antonio Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. This was the first time that two chief guests were present on Republic Day. PM Modi welcomed him, paid tribute to the martyrs at the National War Memorial and spoke to the audience.
Operation Sindoor was the heart of the parade
In May 2025, the Indian Army carried out Operation Sindoor against Pakistan. In this, India had carried out a joint attack against Pakistan supported terrorists, which was shown in the table of Tri-Services (Army, Navy, Air Force). In this parade, weapons used in Operation Sindoor i.e. BrahMos supersonic missile, Akash air defense system, MRSAM, Apache AH-64E helicopter, Prachanda LCH, Dhanush cannon, ATAGS, S-400 air defense system and for the first time hyper-sonic glide missile were shown. Many animals including drone power, glacier ATV, bulletproof dogs, raptors (eagles) and Bactrian camels were involved.
Air Force created special ‘Sindoor Formation’
A total of 7 fighter jets including 2 Rafale, 2 Sukhoi-30, 2 MiG-29 and 1 Jaguar were seen. This formation was not just aerial, but emotional and traditional. This was to give the message of ‘Operation Sindoor’. In this, Dhruv helicopters in ‘Prahar Formation’ hoisted the flag of ‘Operation Sindoor’. A total of 29 aircraft did the flypast, which included Rafale, Jaguar, MiG-29, Sukhoi, C-295 transport and helicopters.
What happened for the first time in the 77th Republic Day Parade?
This time a total of 6,065 participants took part in the parade. 2,500 artists and 10,000 special invitees were present.
- 18 marching contingents demonstrated. This includes Rajput Regiment, Assam Regiment, Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry, Artillery Regiment and Sikh Light Infantry etc.
- For the first time, 9 women Agniveer joined the Agneepath band. A band of total 72 members played the tune ‘Sound Barrier’.
- For the first time, 13 military bands and the EU military contingent participated.
- Army showed live war display for the first time.
- 2 Humped Bactrian Camels, Advanced Surveillance Dog Unit and Raptors participated in the parade for the first time.