150 years of Vande Mataram to be the theme of Republic Day Parade 2026 at Kartavya Path

The Republic Day Celebrations 2026 at Kartavya Path on January 26, 2026, will be unique blend of 150 years of the national song 'Vande Mataram', India's military might and cultural diversity. Addressing a press conference in New Delhi on January 16, 2026, Defence Secretary Shri Rajesh Kumar Singh spelt out the broad contours of the unique activities being planned for this year's celebrations.

Chief Guest for Republic Day Parade

President of the European Council Mr Antonio Costa and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen will be the Chief Guests for the Republic Day Parade (RDP) 2026.

150 years of Vande Mataram

• 150 years of Vande Mataram will be the theme of the parade. A series of paintings created by Shri Tejendra Kumar Mitra in 1923, illustrating the verses of 'Vande Mataram' and published in the 'Bande Mataram Album' (1923), will be displayed as view-cutters along Kartavya Path during RDP 2026.
• A banner depicting 'वंदेमातरम्' will be unveiled along with the release of rubber balloons at the conclusion of the parade.
• Pan-India band performances on the theme 'Vande Mataram' will be organised from January 19 to 26, 2026 by the Indian Army, Indian Navy, Indian Air Force, Indian Coast Guard, and other CAPFs. The performance venues will also include the ancestral home and birthplace of Rishi Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay at Kanthalpara, Naihati, North 24 Parganas District, West Bengal, presently known as 'Bankim Bhawan Gaveshana Kendra' (also referred to as Rishi Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay's Residence and Museum or Bankim Sangrahashala).
• Floral decorations in front of the rostrum/dais will be executed based on the Vande Mataram theme.
• The invitation card/tickets for RDP-2026 has been designed on the theme of Vande Mataram.
• Videos on Vande Mataram will be played on screen at Kartavya Path.
• Tableaux will be presented under the broader themes "स्वतंत्रता का मंत्र - वंदे मातरम" and "समृद्धि का मंत्र - आत्मनिर्भर भारत".
• As in previous years, Various competitions, contests, and quizzes have been conducted on the MyGov and My Bharat portals on the theme of 'Vande Mataram' and 'Aatmnirbhar Bharat', which received a total participation of 1,61,224. In addition to cash prizes for the top 30 winners, the top 200 winners have been invited to witness RDC 2026.

Phased Battle Array Display

The Indian Army will be represented by a Mounted Column of 61 Cavalry & Battle Array Formation (first time), Seven marching contingents. HMRV (High Mobility Recce Veh - BFSR & ATGM) and Dhruv Heptr, T-90, Main Battle Tank Arjun, BMP-II & NAMIS-II Nag Missile System, IOC (Integrated Operational Centre), UGVs, ATV (All Terrain Veh), LSV (Light Strike Veh) with Trailer (Robotic Mules & UGV), Shaktiban, ATAGS and Dhanush, URLS and Brahmos, Akash & MRSAM, Drone Shakti and Glacier ATV will be the main attractions in the mechanized columns.

A total of Seven marching contingents of the Army, including animal contingent comprising of Zansker ponies, Bacterian camel and dogs with Handlers Contingent, SCOUTS Contingent, RAJPUT Contingent, ASSAM Contingent, JAK LI Contingent, ARTY Contingent, BHAIRAV Contingent in 'Uncha Kadam taal' and Ladakh Scouts will march post the saluting dais.

Total 18 Marching Contingents and 13 bands will take part in the RDC-2026. The flypast will showcase Rafale, Su-30, P8i, C-295, Mig-29, Apache, LCH, ALH, Mi-17 in different formations.

Another highlight of the parade will be veterans' Tableau by Indian Air Force. It will provide a glimpse of veterans' contributions for the Nation.

Special Guests

Around 10,000 people from all walks of the society have been invited to witness the RDP 2026 at Kartavya Path as Special Guests this year. People with exemplary work in connection with income and employment generation, technology, innovation, start-ups, Self Help Groups, best performers under key government initiatives have been identified with help of departments concerned and invited to witness the ceremony.

These special guests will be prominently seated at Kartavya Path.

Tableaux

A total of 30 Tableaux (17 from States/ UTs and 13 from Ministries/Departments/ Services) will roll down the Kartavya Path this year:

Cultural Performance

Approx 2,500 cultural artists will perform on Kartvyapath this year. The theme of the performance is"स्वतंत्रता का मंत्र - वंदे मातरम" and "समृद्धि का मंत्र - आत्मनिर्भर भारत". The creative team shall comprise Shri M.M. Keeravani as Music Director, Shri Subhash Sehgal as Lyricist, Shri Anupam Kher as Narrator, and Shri Santosh Nair as Choreographer, under the overall supervision and direction of Dr. Sandhya Purecha. Creative design and costumes shall be handled by Smt. Sandhya Raman.

Unique naming of enclosures for RDP/BR 2026

Nomenclature of Enclosures for RDP-2026 is based on the River, flowing across the nation, i.e. Beas, Brahmaputra, Chambal, Chenab, Gandak, Ganga, Ghagra, Godavari, Sindhu, Jhelum, Kaveri, Kosi, Krishna, Mahanadi, Narmada, Pennar, Periyar, Ravi, Sone, Sutlej, Teesta, Vaigai, and Yamuna.

Similarly, For Beating Retreat Ceremony 2026, naming of enclosures will be based on Indian Instruments I.e. Bansuri, Damaru, Ektara, Esraj, Mridangam, Nagada, Pakhawaj, Santoor, Sarangi, Sarinda, Sarod, Shehnai, Sitar, Surbahar, Tabla and Veena.

National School Band Competition

The Ministry of Education in collaboration with Ministry of Defence conducted a National School Band Competition at an All-India level for Republic Day Celebrations-2026 in order to evoke a feeling of oneness, belonging and a deep sense of pride in school children towards their school and country. Around 763 school bands from 33 different States/UTs took part in the competition wherein around 18013 students participated.

The levels of National School Band Competition are as under: -

• Level 1: State Level - conducted by States/UTs.
• Level 2: Zonal Level - States/UTs were divided into 04 zones.
• Level 3: National Level (Final) - Performance at National Stadium, New Delhi.

First two levels of competition have already been conducted and the Final level event would be conducted at Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium (MDCNS), New Delhi on 24 January, 2026.

A total 16 Bands selected from 15 States/UTs of India would perform during the Nation level event in MDCN Stadium. These finalist teams will be given prizes and some of the winners will also witness the Republic Day Parade at Kartvaya Path on 26^th January, 2026. One of winners team will be part of static band in front of dais to play Vande Mataram.

Veer Gatha 5.0

The Fifth edition of Project Veer Gatha was organized as a part of Republic Day Celebrations-2026 to inspire and spread awareness among children about the gallant deeds and sacrifices of the Armed Forces in the form of poem, paragraph/essay writing, painting, drawing, multi-media presentation on the topics like Gallantry Awards Winner/Rani Lakshmibai as role model, the 1857 struggle, role of tribal uprising in freedom struggle. The event was organised by Ministry of Defence in collaboration with Ministry of Education from 08.09.2025 to 10.11.2025. A total of approx. 1.92 crore school students have participated at pan India and a total of 100 school students have been declared winners of the Veer Gatha 5.0. These winners will be felicitated in New Delhi. They will also attend the Republic Day Parade at Kartavya Path.

Rashtraparv Portal

To facilitate citizens to have ease in information and getting access to witness the various events on Republic Day Celebrations - 2026 viz. booking tickets, getting location of the seating and parking arrangements etc. a comprehensive mobile App (on Apple play and Msewa) and Portal "Rashtraparv Portal" has been developed and will serve as a focus point for all the details relating events like RDP and BTR.

Couples in Traditional Attires

Invitation to minimum 50 Delhi based couples from each State/UT dressed in their traditional attires are being invited to witness the RDC-2026.

Fly-past

A fly-past by the aircraft of the Indian Air Force used to be a regular feature of the Republic Day Parade. This is a very popular item and the public look forward to see the fly-past, which is the grand finale to the Parade. This year, a total of 29 Aircraft of Armed forces will participate in various formation in RDC - 2026.

Bharat Parv

'Bharat Parv' will be organised at the Red Fort, Delhi from January 26-31, 2026 by the Ministry of Tourism. It will showcase Republic Day Tableaux, Regional Cuisine Display & Sale, Handicraft & Handloom, Culture & Heritage Performances, Central Ministries Stalls and Citizen Engagement Zone. The Tableaux, which will be showcased at the Red Fort as a part of 'Bharat Parv' are Chandigarh, Ladakh, Arunachal Pradesh, Bihar, Delhi, Goa, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Tripura, Uttarakhand and DRDO.

E-invitation

This year also, the invitation to the various dignitaries would be issued in electronic mode through the dedicated portal www.e-invitation.mod.gov.in. This ensured the whole process to be more secure & paperless and enabled people from all parts of the country to attend this national event.

E-ticket

In order to ensure maximum Janbhagidari, the number of seats for public has been increased. Accordingly, number of tickets for public has been increased which were available for online booking through www.aamantran.mod.gov.in as well as "Aamantran App" (available for download on MSewa/Apple app Store) and through offline counters at various locations including two major DMRC stations, from 5th January to 14th January, 2026, Additionally, free entry for RDP- FDR will be made to 10,000 initial registrations.

Park & Ride and Metro Facility

Free of cost Park & Ride and Metro Facility would be provided to the public for witnessing the Republic Day Parade. Metro will be operational on 26^th January, 2026. Guests and ticketholders may avail metro facility free of cost by showing their invitation/ticket. Free of cost Park & Ride bus facility may be availed by the guests and ticketholders from JLN Stadium and Palika Bazaar Parking area.

Post-event Swachhata Campaign

A post-event Swachhata Campaign in coordination with My Bharat Volunteers and NCC cadets covering a whole stretch of Kartavya Path have been planned and will be operated accordingly.

Convenience of citizen

Delhi Metro will start its operation from 3 AM in the morning and is free of cost with RDC invitation/tickets. QR codes are available with tickets as well as invitation. All enclosures are accessible and Divyang friendly with ramp facility. There will be volunteers from NCC and My Bharat to guide the guests. Drinking water, toilet facility and first aid booths will be available. Rain ponchoes will be provided as rain contingency measure for all the visitors.

PM's NCC Rally

As per practice, PM's NCC rally is scheduled to be organised at Cariappa Parade Ground, Delhi Cantt. on 28^th January 2026 where the Prime Minister reviews the multifarious activities of the NCC. The Prime Minister will also meet NCC Cadets, NSS Volunteers, Youth Exchange programme cadets, Tableaux Artists, Tribal Guests, etc. of Republic Day Celebrations-2026 after the rally.

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VK/Savvy