PARSIPPANY — Brightly colored saris fluttered in the breeze and traditional music filled the air as India’s 72nd Independence Day and Flag Raising Ceremony was celebrated outside Parsippanys Municipal Building on Saturday, August 18.
Joining Mayor Michael Soriano was the Indian-American Seniors Association of Morris County to celebrate the Indian Independence Day and Flag Raising Ceremony, the first of its kind in Parsippany.
Mayor Michael Soriano was the master of ceremonies with guest speakers Raj Patel, President Indian-American Senior Association, Abhay Patel, Yogi Devine, K. Devadasan Nasir, Consul of India and Assemblyman Raj Mukherji.
Raj Mukherji is an Assemblyman in the New Jersey State Legislature who represents the 33rd Legislative District, as well as a lawyer, businessman, former Deputy Mayor of Jersey City, and political science professor.
Parsippany-Troy Hills Volunteer Fire District 6 member Raj Patel and Lake Parsippany Volunteer Fire Department member Mirhi Patel raised the National Flag of India, a horizontal rectangular tricolour of India saffron, white and India green; with the Ashoka Chakra, a 24-spoke wheel, in navy blue at its center.
By law, the flag is to be made of khadi, a special type of hand-spun cloth or silk, made popular by Mahatma Gandhi. The manufacturing process and specifications for the flag are laid out by the Bureau of Indian Standards. The right to manufacture the flag is held by the Khadi Development and Village Industries Commission, who allocates it to regional groups. As of 2009, the Karnataka Khadi Gramodyoga Samyukta Sangha has been the sole manufacturer of the flag.
India celebrates Independence Day on August 15 each year. India became an independent nation on August 15, 1947, so a gazetted holiday is held annually to remember this date.
Independence Day is a day when people in India pay homage to their leaders and those who fought for India’s freedom in the past. The period leading up to Independence Day is a time when major government buildings are illuminated with strings of lights and the tricolor flutters from homes and other buildings. Broadcast, print and online media may have special contests, programs, and articles to promote the day. Movies about India’s freedom fighters are also shown on television.
The president delivers the ‘”Address to the Nation” on the eve of Independence Day. India’s prime minister unfurls India’s flag and holds a speech at the Red Fort in Old Dehli. Flag hoisting ceremonies and cultural programs are held in the state capitals and often involve many schools and organizations.
