Venkatesh Iyer
BENGALURU: August 15: The 74th Independence Day was celebrated by the Indian community in Sri Lanka with enthusiasm and nationalistic fervor, according to an AIR Tweet.
The observance was held at the India House in Colombo this morning where Gopal Bagalay, the Indian diplomat in Sri Lanka, unfurled the Indian tricolour and released the excerpts of a speech of the President Ramnath Kovind.
The event was, attended by officials and relatives of Indian High Commission. A Border Security Force (BSF) contingent staged march past while the Sri Lankan naval band played Indian patriotic songs. The
ceremony culminated with artistes from Colombo’s Swami Vivekanand cultural centre staging dance performances followed by diplomats and officials of the Indian High Commission paying floral tributes to the martyrs at the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) Memorial at Battaramulla in Colombo. Indian officials posted at Jaffna, Hambantota and Kandy also celebrated the day.
Bangladesh
The Border Security Force (BSF) and Border Guards Bangladesh (BGB) on Saturday distributed and swapped sweets on the occasion of India’s 74th Independence Day at Petrapole outpost in West Bengal’s North 24 Parganas district.
Addressing the border guards on the occasion, Ashwini Singh, IG, South Bengal Frontier, BSF, said Bangladesh was a friendly nation with which India had traditional ties. He agreed there were transporter crimes by the anti-social elements across the border but expressed the confidence that such activities would be dealt with severely.
Pointing out that connections between the two countries had been established in various sectors including trade, maritime and economy, Singh referred to the launching of the trial container vessel from Kolkata to Agartala via Chattogram in Bangladesh by the union minister of state for shipping Mansukh Mandaviya last month and said the move would open new sea routes between the two countries. He said the move would help improve transportation of Indian products to Bangladesh through Chattogram and Mongla ports.
(Manas Dasgupta)
