In perfect step: Indian soldiers marching in formation during the Republic Day parade in New Delhi. — Reuters
European Union leaders joined India’s Republic Day parade as the guests of honour, a day before New Delhi and Brussels are expected to seal a long-awaited free trade agreement.
Military bands and horse and camel cavalry units paraded through capital New Delhi yesterday, while fighter jets buzzed overhead and India’s latest military hardware was put on display.
“The occasion inspires us in our collective resolve to build a developed India,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said before the parade.
The fanfare also featured Indian air defence systems – including missiles and drones –that were deployed in the four-day conflict with arch-enemy Pakistan last year.
European Council President Antonio Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen are both in attendance, before an EU-India summit scheduled for today, when the two sides are widely expected to announce a landmark free trade deal and security partnership.
They had been working on a trade agreement for over a decade before US President Donald Trump’s trade tariffs pushed India and the 27-nation EU to expedite their efforts last year.
Republic Day marks the adoption of India’s post-independence constitution in 1950 with the parade staged along a colonial-era boulevard that also hosts important government buildings.
Guest of honour: Modi (left) greeting von der Leyen as India’s President Droupadi Murmu (centre) looks on at the Republic Day parade in New Delhi. — Reuters
The annual show is a colourful and tightly choreographed spectacle that also features floats from different Indian states to highlight the diversity of the country’s 1.4 billion people.
India is on track to become the world’s fourth-largest economy this year, according to International Monetary Fund projections.
Bilateral India-EU trade in goods reached €120bil in 2024, an increase of nearly 90% over the past decade, according to EU figures, with a further €60bil in trade in services.
The pact would be a major win for Brussels and New Delhi as both seek to open up new markets to counter US tariffs and Chinese export controls.
While the EU sees India as an important market, New Delhi sees Brussels as an important source of much-needed technology and investments to rapidly upscale its infrastructure and create millions of new jobs for its people. — AFP
