SYDNEY (Australia) : A contingent of the Indian Navy, which is in Australia currently to participate in ‘Exercise Malabar’, hoisted the Tricolour on Indian Naval Warships, INS Sahyadri and INS Kolkata, at Sydney on the occasion of 77th Independence Day.
The naval forces of India, the United States, Japan, and Australia began their Malabar joint defence exercise in Sydney on Friday, marking the first time Australia has hosted the war games amid China’s growing assertiveness in the region.
‘Exercise Malabar 2023’ is being conducted in two phases — the harbour phase and the sea phase. The Harbour Phase involves wide-ranging activities such as cross-deck visits, professional exchanges, sports fixtures and several interactions for planning and conduct of the Sea Phase, the Ministry of Defence said in a press release earlier.
The Sea Phase will include various complex and high-intensity exercises in all three domains of warfare, encompassing anti-surface, anti-air and anti-submarine exercises including live weapon firing drills, according to the press release.
Meanwhile, in the national capital, New Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi hoisted the tricolour from the ramparts of the Red Fort.
In his 10th Independence Day address, PM Modi dwelt at length on the strides the country has made, adding that the decisions taken by the country today will impact its future for 1000 years.
Continuing with his custom of wearing colourful turbans, PM Modi donned a multi-coloured Rajasthani-style turban and paired this with an off-white kurta and churidar and a black jacket.
Recalling the testing times during the Covid-19 pandemic, Prime Minister Modi said India helped out several countries with vaccines and emergency medical equipment at the time, emerging as the ‘Vishwa Mitra’ (friend of the world).
“We have to make our country so strong that it will contribute to ‘Vishwa Mangal’ (global welfare),” he added.
The Prime Minister added that after the Covid-19 pandemic, the world order and the definition of the geopolitical equation have changed and India has become the voice of the global South.
Balloons in the colours of the tricolour were released into the air as PM Modi concluded his address to the nation. (ANI)