While commissioning the country’s first indigenous aircraft carrier INS Vikrant at Cochin Shipyard Limited in Kochi on September 2, 2022, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will also unveil the new Naval Ensign (Nishaan), in yet another move to shed India’s colonial past and befitting the rich Indian maritime heritage.
In this year’s Independence Day speech, the PM listed “an India free of colonial mindset” as one of the Panch Pran (five imperatives) for New India.
The latest step is part of a wider effort being made by PM Modi to dispose of the baggage of India’s colonial past.
Scrapping old laws
The Modi government has repealed more than 1,500 old and obsolete laws, most of which were remnants of the British era.
In his address during an event in New Delhi in April, the Prime Minister urged civil servants to work for freeing the nation from obsolete laws and compliance burdens. Sharing his vision, PM Modi said that he had removed over 1,500 obsolete laws during his first five years as the Prime Minister but there still was a long list of such laws that needed to be eliminated.
“I have directed the cabinet secretary to take charge of freeing citizens and the country from compliance burdens. The country is completing 75 years of independence. Why do we need to keep the citizens occupied in the shackles of compliance?” said PM Modi at the event.
Citing the example of a law mandating imprisonment for the offence of not white-washing toilets at factories every six months, the PM said that the law should not be looking to send citizens to jail for trivial issues.
Change of tune
The 2022 Beating Retreat Ceremony’s concluding piece ‘Abide With Me’ was replaced with Kavi Pradeep’s seminal ‘Aye Mere Watan Ke Logon’ sung by the legendary Lata Mangeshkar.
The ceremony saw some big changes in 2015 as well, with Indian musical instruments sitar, santoor, and tabla being added for the first time.
‘Ae Mere Watan Ke Logon’ was composed by Kavi Pradeep and C Ramchandra in 1963 to commemorate Indian soldiers who died during the Sino-Indian War the year before.
Budget shifts
The Union Budget earlier used to be announced on the last day of February. However, late finance minister Arun Jaitley changed that, presenting the Budget on February 1 in 2017. This seemingly minor tinkering of the budget cycle had a larger objective-reforming fiscal governance.
The Rail Budget was merged with the Union Budget in 2017 after it had been presented separately for 92 years, in yet another departure from British-era practises.
When Nirmala Sitharaman presented her maiden Budget in 2019, she drew the nation’s attention by breaking away from the long-standing colonial-era tradition of carrying Budget documents in a briefcase and opted for the traditional bahi khata.
Honouring Bose
Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled a hologram statue of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose at India Gate on January 23 this year, the independence icon’s birth anniversary. This hologram is to be later replaced with a statue of Netaji.
The statue will be unveiled at the same place to mark the year-long celebration of the 125th birth anniversary of Bose. This was done at the canopy where a statue of King George V had stood till its removal in 1968.
“At a time when the entire nation is marking the 125th birth anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, I am glad to share that his grand statue, made of granite, will be installed at India Gate. This would be a symbol of India’s indebtedness to him,” the Prime Minister had said in a tweet.
Remembering freedom icons
PM Modi recently inaugurated Biplobi Bharat Gallery at Victoria Memorial Hall, Kolkata, displaying the contributions of the revolutionaries in India’s freedom struggle.
The well-known colonial building in West Bengal’s capital has over the past few years taken up major initiatives highlighting the freedom struggle and the role of revolutionaries.
Biplobi Bharat focuses on the revolutionary movement, formation of significant associations by revolutionary leaders, the spread of the movement, formation of the Indian National Army, and contribution of the Naval Mutiny, among others.
Bridging language gap
The Prime Minister has also been a proponent of teaching in the mother tongue, as reflected in NEP 2020. This is a marked departure from the focus mainly on English-based education, the wheels of which were set in motion during the British era.
“Today is also World Mother Language Day. Education in mother tongue is related to the mental development of children. Teaching of medical and technical education in local languages has started in many states,” he tweeted on February 21 this year.
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