It was the 15th of August, 1994, the 46th Anniversary of our Independence. I was entrusted with the work of organising the Independence Day celebrations at my school.
Instructions had been issued by the Government as to how the Day should be celebrated but I was given a free hand to draw up a programme and to make arrangements for the celebration of this momentous
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Day. I called a meeting of the monitors of the different classes, and told them that it was our function of the school and we had to make it a great success. Each class was given the job of whitewashing the walls of its class-room, paintings its floors and varnishing the furniture.
Our school authorities also gave us full cooperation in making us do this work very successfully and a week before the 15th August, it appeared that some marriage ceremony was to take place.
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The students were busy in preparing festoons and flags for the occasion. The walls were being whitewashed, doors were being painted up and the furniture was varnished. There was activity on every side.
At last the 15th of August came and early in the morning all the students of the school had gathered. The flag hoisting ceremony was to start at 8-00 a.m. but we were there at 6-00 a.m. in the morning in order to clean the lawn, put up the flag and arrange the chairs. At 7-30 a.m. everything was spike and span.
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The chairs had been placed, flower-pots had been arranged and the dais for the flag hoisting had been neatly put up and in the morning sun-light was shining brightly. Every one of us was full of enthusiasm and thrill. It appeared that we were the soldiers in the march of our country’s freedom.
I had also picked up a few of my friends and given them a good practice in singing Jan Gan Man, the National Song and they were seated in one small corner in spotless white clothes.
At 8-00 a.m. everybody was in his seat and the Day began with the unfurling of the National Flag and the national song was sung in chorus.
The flag hoisting ceremony came to a close with slogans of Jai. After the flag hoisting ceremony, the principal gave a short speech pointing out the importance of the colours and the symbol on the flag. The poor of the city were fed and given doles from the side of the Students’ Union.
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At 10-00 o’clock, we had invited the Chief Commissioner to plant a mango sapling in our school compound. The students of the N.C.C. were gaily and smartly dressed to present a Guard of Honour to him.
When the Chief Commissioner planted the mango sapling, the school band was in attendance and seven students under the guidance of our Sanskrit teacher blew a conch-cell. It appeared that the whole atmosphere was full of great gusto and zeal.
After these two items were over, we removed the chairs and the school ground was converted into the play-field that it was.
We had a number of sport items and intelligence competitions in which all the classes took part. We also had inter-class Volleyball and Football tournaments. In this way the day was enjoyed and all of us came back to our homes at about 3.00 p.m..
This occasion gave me an opportunity to understand what I require for organising such a function. Just a will to do things and co-operation from the side of the people was enough to take me along and guide me in doing those things which are of such a great interest to the organisation of such functions.
The occasion was a success because of the team-spirit shown by all the students of the school and by the fact that we took it as if we were organising some function in the family with all members of the family actively taking part in it.