Punjab, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Chandigarh tableaux selected for Republic Day Parade

Tableaux from Punjab, Haryana, Uttarakhand and Chandigarh are among those selected to participate in the annual Republic Day Parade along Kartavya Path in New Delhi on January 26.

The tableau proposed by Delhi has been rejected for the second consecutive year. An official cited non-compliance with the laid-down criteria — meeting the theme, presentation and impact — as the reason for the rejection.

The selection process was conducted by an expert committee set up by the Ministry of Defence, with representatives from various ministries.

A Ministry of Defence official said this year’s parade would feature 15 tableaux from states and Union Territories, including Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Goa, Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh and Tripura. The Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli also made to the list.

The official added that under the policy of rotation adopted last year, 15 states and Union Territories were invited to submit proposals. This policy ensures that each state gets a chance to present a tableau once every three years.

Mizoram and Sikkim, despite being part of the initial list of 15, expressed their inability to present tableaux. Meanwhile, the Union Territories of Lakshadweep and Andaman and Nicobar Islands did not appear before the expert committee tasked with selecting proposals.

These absences, along with the rejection of Delhi’s proposal, created five vacancies. These were subsequently filled by tableaux from Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and West Bengal.

The Ministry of Defence dismissed allegations of favouritism towards Gujarat or Uttar Pradesh. “Delhi has presented a tableau seven times in the past two decades. Five other states — Jammu & Kashmir, Assam, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh and Karnataka — have had more appearances during the same period than Gujarat or Uttar Pradesh,” the official clarified.