Railways to celebrate week-long programme on the occasion of 75 years of India's Independence
new delhi: The Idian Railways kicked off a week-long celebration on the occasion of 75 years of Indian independence. The celebration commenced on July 18 and will conclude on July 23. The events of this Iconic Week celebration focus both on the railway stations and trains, having historical importance.
Chairman and CEO of Railway Board, Vinay Kumar Tripathi inaugurated the Iconic Week Celebrations of the 'Azadi Ki Rail Gadi aur Stations' on Monday in Rail Bhawan here. 75 railway stations were identified as 'Freedom Stations' and 27 trains for spotlighting.
The Rail Board CEO said, "As a part of the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, the event 'Azadi Ki Rail Gadi aur Stations' will be held during this week called Iconic Week, under the overall spirit of Jan Bhagidari (Public Partnership) and Jan Andolan- will showcase the convergence of the values and glories of the freedom struggle of the past with the aspirations and dreams of a young, new and iconic India. This week will culminate with the Milestone function on 23rd July 2022."
Four stations from NCR zone- Prayagraj Jn, Agra Cantt, Deen Dayal Dham and Virangana Lakshmibai Jhansi, four stations from South-east zones- Balasore, Ranchi, Tatanagar and Chakradharpur, four stations from South-west zone- Dharwad, Maddur, Vidurashwattha, and Haveri, nine stations from Northeast Frontier Railway zone Gohpur, Naharlagun, Dimapur, Raha, Sibsagar Town, Agartala, Jiribam, Bhairabi and Mendipathar stations have been identified as 'Freedom Stations'.
South-central railways zone will be celebrating 'Azadi ki Rail Gadi Aur Stations' at Guntur, Vijayawada, Gadwal and Hyderabad, in North-west zone- Jaipur, Alwar, Rewari, Jaisalmer, Bhilwara, Jhansi and Sirsa, in West- central railway zone two stations Jabalpur and Bhopal will be celebrating.
Besides, four stations of the central zone- CSMT Mumbai, Pune, Satara and Nashik Road, five stations of East coast rail zone-Khurda Road, Visakhapatnam, Sakhigopal, Sambalpur, and Cuttack. Five stations of the west zone- Sabarmati, Porbandar, Navsari, Bardoli and Adas Road are also there in the list. Rail officials also informed that in five railway stations of the eastern railways, where 'Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav' takes place- Bardhaman, Jirat, Subhasgram, Naihati and Bhagalpur.
As per the ministry, the events of this 'Iconic Week' celebration are focused both on the Railway Stations and Trains having historical importance. In all these 75 stations across 24 states, besides lighting up and decorations, events such as Nukkad Natak in the local language, light and sound shows, display of video films or patriotic songs, etc would be held, increasing the outreach of public participation.
A photo exhibition and selfie point in the backdrop of 'Azadi Ki Rail Gadi' would be set up in these station premises. On the day of the Milestone Function in Delhi, family members of freedom fighters from the respective local area will be invited to share their stories, the chairman of the Rail Board said. 27 Spotlighting trains will be flagged off by Freedom Fighters' families from the originating stations.
