Paris, July 14: Four hundred soldiers from the Indian armed forces on Tuesday led the parade down the historic Champs Elysees in Paris on the occasion of the French National Day.
Watching the marchpast was a proud Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who is the chief guest at the parade. Dr Singh is the first foreign leader to be accorded the honour – a reciprocation of India’s gesture of inviting French President Nicolas Sarkozy as chief guest for its Republic Day parade in January this year.
On this day, France celebrates the beginning of its revolution more than 200 years ago with the storming of the Bastille prison in 1789.
Comprising the Indian contingents marching down the famed Champs Elysees were soldiers of the Maratha Light Infantry, one of the oldest and most famous regiments whose history goes back 235 years.
In the 18th and 19th centuries, the units of the regiment fought in several campaigns, including China, Burma, Africa and Abyssinia. It also fought during World War I and in World War II.
A million Indian soldiers fought in World War I, including at two places in France — Somme and Givenchy. Around 100,000 Indians died in that war. More than 2.5 million Indians fought on the side of the Allies in World War II, apart from the country providing military bases and feeding a large percentage of Allied soldiers.
More than six decades later, as the Maratha Light Infantry conquered another frontier with thousands of Parisians watching as 93 of its personnel marched down, led by Captain Vivek Khanduri.
Also seen were the Indian Navy and Air Force contingents with their bands. With pipes and drums playing the familiar tunes of “Kadam, kadam badhaye ja” and “Haste Lushai”, it was an evocative moment for India-France ties.
Manmohan Singh landed here Monday evening for his brief visit and was received by Justice Minister Michelle Alliot-Marie. He will be hosted to a working lunch by French President Nicolas Sarkozy during which the two leaders will discuss the gamut of global and bilateral issues.
After meeting sarkozy, Dr Singh will leave for the Egyptian town of Sharm-el-Sheikh, where he will attend the 15th Non Aligned Movement (NAM) summit on Wednesday. He is expected to meet his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani on the sidelines of the summit.
–Agencies