Surat, May 1 (IANS) Surat on Friday became the center of celebration of the state’s 66th ‘Gujarat Pride Day’. The festival was celebrated with a grand police parade, cultural presentations and public participation under the leadership of Governor Acharya Devvrat and Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel.
The celebrations began with Governor Acharya Devvrat taking the salute at the Y Junction, after which he formally flagged off the grand parade leading to the Lalbhai Contractor Stadium.
In this program, Union Jal Shakti Minister C.R. Patil and Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghvi along with senior leaders of the state Cabinet, Parliament, Assembly and top administrative and police officials were also present.
More than 750 personnel from 18 platoons of Gujarat Police participated in the parade under the leadership of IPS officer Dr. Naveen Chakraborty.
The parade included formal drill formations as well as thematic tableaux depicting Gujarat’s journey of development.
Police motorcycle stunts were part of the procession and attracted the attention of spectators gathered along the route.
At the beginning of the ceremony the Governor took the salute and then the parade started.
The Chief Minister and other dignitaries sang Vande Mataram, while slogans of ‘Jai Jai Garvi Gujarat’ and ‘Bharat Mata ki Jai’ were repeatedly echoed by the crowd. Cultural performances were an important part of the programme, with Garba and tribal dance performances showcasing the traditional art forms of the state.
The musical performance presented by singer Bhavin Shastri and his band as part of the evening program of the district administration included patriotic songs like ‘Jai Jai Garvi Gujarat’.
A huge crowd gathered at various places on the parade route to watch the event.
Those present included Finance Minister Kanubhai Desai, Energy Minister Hrishikesh Patel, Agriculture Minister Jitu Vaghani, Forest and Environment Minister Arjun Modhwadia, Health Minister Praful Panshariya, Assembly Deputy Speaker Purnesh Modi, MP Mukesh Dalal and MLAs Arvind Rana, Mohan Dodiya, Sandeep Desai, Mukesh Patel and Sangeeta Patil.
–IANS
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