Beating Retreat Ceremony 2023: Mega drone show cancelled this year, here's why

The Beating Retreat ceremony, which marks the formal end of Republic Day celebrations, was held at Vijay Chowk in the national capital on Sunday amid rains. Indian tunes based on Indian classical ragas are among the highlights of the ceremony.

But the much-awaited mega drone show, involving 3,500 indigenous drones, was cancelled due to bad weather, officials said. "The drone show could not take place due to bad weather. Lot of preparations had gone into it," a senior official said.

The drone show was supposed to light up the evening sky over the Raisina Hills, weaving myriad forms of national figures, events through smooth synchronisation. Earlier on Saturday during the practice, it depicted the success of the startup ecosystem, technological prowess of the country`s youth and pave the way for future path-breaking trends.

The drone show is slated to be organised by Botlabs Dynamics. The event came to a close with the ever-popular tune of `Sare Jahan se Acha`.

Beating Retreat Ceremony

The ceremony traces its origins to the early 1950s when Major Roberts of the Indian Army indigenously developed the unique ceremony of display by the massed bands.

It marks a centuries-old military tradition when the troops ceased fighting, sheathed their arms and withdrew from the battlefield and returned to the camps at sunset at the sound of the Retreat.

Colours and Standards are cased and flags are lowered. The ceremony creates nostalgia for the times gone by.

(With inputs from PTI) 

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