220 ft-long Khadi tricolour to be flown over New York on Independence Day
FIA's team of 180 volunteers are working round the clock to prepare for the various events to be held on August 15 and 21st to celebrate "the motherland and the 'Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav' marking the 75th Anniversary of India's Independence."
Highlights of the massive events scheduled to honour 75 years of India's Independence in New York this week include a fly-past by a 220 foot long majestic Indian tricolour made of Khadi over the famous Hudson River and the exhibition of a huge billboard at Times Square.
For this year's Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, the Federation of Indian Associations NY-NJ-CT-NE (FIA) has organised a wide range of unique events to commemorate India's 75th anniversary of independence.
The ceremony will begin on August 15 with the raising of the Khadi-made Indian national flag in Times Square. The famous Empire State Building will once again be illuminated in the colours of the Indian tricolour.
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According to FIA, Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav will host a massive "India Day Parade" billboard in Times Square on August 15 as part of its major events to honour 75 years of India's independence.
A special 220-foot-long Indian tricolour made of Khadi will also be flown over the Hudson River in New York, according to the FIA. It will be a first-of-its-kind fly-past of the "biggest Indian tricolour" over the famous river, which will be seen by thousands of people.
Arjun, the Telugu actor whose films have seen success all across India, will serve as the Grand Marshal for the FIA's 40th India Day Parade on August 21, according to FIA President Kenny Desai. The biggest national flag for Khadi will be flown across the Hudson River between New York and New Jersey on August 15; he also expressed satisfaction and joy over this.
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Among the special guests for the India Day Parade are New York State Governor Kathy Hochul, New York City Mayor Eric Adams, Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda Gaston Alfonso Browne, NASA astronaut Raja Chari, well-known artists Shankar Mahadevan and Kailash Kher, and cricketing legends Courtney Walsh and Curtly Ambrose.
The FIA India Day parade is one of the biggest cultural extravaganzas in the US and is said to be the largest procession outside of India to commemorate the nation's independence.
The Indian-American community and the whole FIA team are prepared, according to the organisation, to make history with this year's lavish festivities of India's 75th Independence Day.
(with PTI inputs)