15 tableaux selected from states, UTs for Republic Day parade

The selection of tableaux for the Republic Day parade was based on a transparent process, the officials said.

Tableaux from 15 states and Union territories have been selected to take part in the Republic Day parade, India’s biggest ceremonial function, on January 26, 2025, government officials aware of the matter said on Saturday.

Defence personnel during Republic Day rehearsals at Kartavya Path in New Delhi on Friday. (HT Photo)

The tableau proposed by Delhi did not meet the selection cut, the officials said, asking not to be named.

The states and UTs selected include Bihar, Chandigarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, Goa, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Haryana.

The selection of tableaux for the Republic Day parade was based on a transparent process, the officials said. In the past, some states have expressed disappointment over the Centre rejecting their tableaux.

In 2022, for instance, chief ministers Mamata Banerjee and MK Stalin expressed disappointment over the Centre rejecting the tableaux of their respective states for the Republic Day celebrations, and sought Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s intervention in the matter.

To be sure, the tableaux proposed by different states and UTS are selected after several rounds of evaluation by a committee consisting of experts from the fields of arts, culture, music and dance.

The expert panel examines the tableaux proposals on the basis of theme, concept, design and its visual impact before making its recommendations.

The rejection of Delhi’s tableau for the fourth straight year is expected to raise eyebrows as the AAP government has been in a running feud with the Centre over a raft of issues. Delhi government officials did not respond to a request for comment.

“The selection process is transparent and has clearly laid-down criteria. Delhi’s tableau has featured in the parade seven times in the last two decades,” said one of the officials cited above. According to guidelines issued last year, every state and UT will get to feature in the parade once in three years if it meets the laid-down criteria.

Women stole the limelight at the 75th Republic Day parade in January 2024, with ample representation in every element of the ceremonial event including the flypast, mechanised columns, marching contingents, bands and the cultural extravaganza, as tens of thousands of spectators braved cold temperatures and congregated around Kartavya Path to be a part of the celebrations centred around the theme of Nari Shakti.

The national flag was unfurled on the arrival of President Droupadi Murmu by a woman officer, Major Saumya Shukla, amid the roar of a 21-gun salute presented the ceremonial battery of the army’s 871 Field Regiment. French President Emmanuel Macron was the chief guest.

For the first time in Republic Day history, instead of the traditional military bands, the parade was heralded by 112 women artistes playing a variety of Indian musical instruments from across the country, including folk and tribal percussion instruments.