PM Narendra Modi to deliver last Independence Day speech of term; address to include topics of education, reservation system

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will unfurl the national flag and address the nation from the historic Red Fort on the 72nd Independence Day on Wednesday. The unfurling of the tri-colour will synchronise with the 21 Gun Salute fired by the valiant gunners of the elite 2281 Field Battery (Ceremonial). The ceremonial battery will be commanded by Lieutenant-colonel C Sandeep and the Gun Position Officer will be Regiment Havildar Major Kolate Rajesh Shripati. After unfurling the national flag, the Prime Minister will address the nation. This will be followed by school children and the National Cadet Corps (NCC) Cadets singing the national anthem. [caption id=“attachment_4968431” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File photo of Prime Minister Narendra Modi talking on the occasion of Independence Day in 2015. PIB[/caption] This will be the Prime Minister’s fifth speech after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) came to power in 2014. He will be received by the Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Minister of State (MoS) for defence Dr Subhash Bhamre and Defence Secretary Sanjay Mitra. Seven hundred cadets of the National Cadet Corps drawn from 16 schools of the Delhi Directorate comprising the Army, Navy and Air Force wings are participating in the flag hoisting ceremony this year. According to media reports, Prime Minister Modi asked for ideas and suggestions directly from the common masses — a practice he has followed for the past three years. The topics that he would be discussing are cases of rape, education, employment, reservation system and open defecation. The cadets will take part in the singing of patriotic songs and the national anthem along with the school children. While 3,500 girls from 36 schools of Directorate of Education, Government of Delhi will sing the national anthem, 5,000 boys from 72 schools will witness the event. On this occasion, these school children will display the formation of ‘Bharat’. Security in the national capital has been tightened. The Red Fort from where Prime Minister Modi will address the nation has been put under a high-security cover. Around 70,000 Delhi Police personnel and about 90 companies of security forces have been deployed. As far as the celebrations are concerned across the country, the Attari-Wagah border in Amritsar has been illuminated in tri-colours of the national flag. Along with that, the Parliament, Vayu Bhawan and North and South Block have also turned tri-coloured. Meanwhile, Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus and Moradabad railway station have beautifully been illuminated in tricolour. At the stroke of 12, locals in Kanpur celebrated Independence Day by burning crackers and dancing on the streets. West Bengal Minister Arup Biswas attended a celebration at midnight in Kolkata city. Follow 72nd Independence Day LIVE updates here