Press Information Bureau

On 13 August 2022, a grand “आज़ादी के अमर शहीदों का सम्मान”, as well as the “Flagin” Ceremony of the All India Motorcycle Rally of the Railway Protection Force was organized in the premises of the historical Red Fort. Minister of Communications, Electronics and IT and  Railways, Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw presided over the function as the Chief Guest and honoured family members of 6 Amar Shaheeds of the freedom struggle hailing from all parts of the Country, Shaheed Shri Shivram Hari Rajguru from Maharastra, Shaheed Shri Khudiram Bose from West Bengal, Shaheed Shri Alluri Sitarama Raju from Andhra Pradesh, Shaheed Shri Kushal Konwar from Assam, Shaheed Shri Laxman Nayak from Orissa and Shaheed Shri Komaram Bheem from Telangana. Minister of State, Railways Smt. Darshana Jardosh and several other dignitaries attended the event.

In addition, the Minister of Railways, “Flagged-in” RPF motorcycle rally consisting of 75 motorcycles in, one of its kind event,  organised by the Railway Protection Force in the premises of iconic Red Fort, who stands witness to the struggles faced and sacrifices made by innumerable freedom fighters to free our country from the shackles of slavery.

Speaking on the occasion, Minister of Railways Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw, honoured the family member of the freedom fighters. He also sanctioned a reward of Rs 5 lakh for the RPF bikers and pillion riders.

Emphasising on honoring the freedom fighters who gave their life for India’s Independence, Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw said that the amount of pain & hardship they have endured would not be put into words, we are indebted to them for their selfless sacrifices and hard work. The families of the martyrs present in the function had made all of us proud.

He further stressed upon taking responsibility for the generations to come. He said that we need to create a better future for our future generation. We need to lay down foundation of the future glory for India and build upon it to take our country to the pinnacle of its glory by the end of the Amrit Kaal, when we will be celebrating the 100^th anniversary of India’s Independence.  He exhorted the youth to come forward and work towards the goal envisioned by the Hon’ble PM and make our nation, the leader of the world.

The rally will boost the morale of the citizens of country and will encourage and motivate them to contribute to the collective effort towards nation building by overcoming the barriers of caste, creed, class and community. The function will also motivate RPF men and women to do their best in the service of the nation and realize their pledge of SEWA HI SANKALP.

Speaking on the occasion, Minister of State, Railways Smt. Darshana Jardosh, stated that  India is going forward in great strides under the leadership of Hon’ble PM. The freedom struggle was not only the domain of the males, we had so many examples of women like Rani Lakshmibai who made the ultimate sacrifice for the independence of our country. Further, she pointed out that the women staff of RPF have done wonders in providing protection to women passengers.

 As part of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav to celebrate 75 glorious years of Independence of our nation, the Railway Protection Force launched a 75 day long massive, public outreach programme across the nation. Leveraging its pan India reach and a strong unitary command and supervision, RPF launched a slew of initiatives in remote parts of the country to spread the message of patriotism and nationalism with an appeal to the youth to come together for nation building in the Amrit Kaal starting this year till 100th year of our freedom in 2047. The public outreach programme started in June 2022 and concluded in the grand ceremony held at the Red Fort today, on the 13 August 2022.

Earlier in his welcome address, DG/RPF Shri Sanjay Chander, dwelt in brief about some of the activities undertaken by RPF as part of AZADI KA AMRIT MAHOTSAV.

A nationwide tree plantation programme was initiated with objective to plant 7.5 lakh saplings. Till yesterday, we have planted about 6 lakh saplings, and our responsibility does not end there, we will continue to nurture them till they can support themselves.

During the scorching summer, RPF personnel participated in providing drinking water to the thirsty. The operation Jal Sewa has been undertaken at more than 7189 locations so far.

As a novel initiative for reaching out to public, trucks fitted with video wall were rolled out to showcase the sacrifices of freedom fighters, efforts being undertaken in nation building and make the people aware about various social and safety issues. The mobile video wall display for public awareness was conducted at more than 1149 locations across the country so far. Out of these 1149 locations, the RPF band displays, were also dovetailed at more than 736 locations, wherein the RPF band played patriotic tunes to enthral the public.

During the celebrations, more than 800 freedom fighters or their next of kin in various parts of the country were felicitated by organizing simple functions in schools or public buildings like panchayat bhavan, local library etc.

RPF personnel participated in Run for Unity at various locations and logged an excess of 3 lakh kilometres spreading the message of unity and integrity.

Mahatma Gandhi always emphasised on Cleanliness. The “Swacchta Abhiyan” was organized through shramdam of RPF personnel at more than 6300 locations across the country wherein RPF personnel participated spreading the message of “Clean India” among the public.

Motorcycle rally by RPF personnel was flagged off from 75 locations across the country on 1st July. They further congregated at 4 iconic locations, having significance in the history of our freedom struggle or unification of the country, viz. Bapudham, Motihari (Bihar), Jalliawala bagh (Punjab), Sabarmati Ashram (Gujarat) and Husaain Sagar Lake, Hyderabad (Telangana). From there, spreading great enthusiasm and infectious energy along the way, they moved towards the capital, Delhi. After having traversed the length and breadth of the country having travelled more than one lakh kilometres, they were received today, on 13th August in a “flag-in” ceremony, by the Hon’ble Minister of Railways in presence of Mrs. Darshana Vikram Jardosh, Hon'ble Minister of state for Railways and other Dignitaries. Along the way, the RPF bikers conveyed the message of peace, brotherhood, nationalism and collective effort towards nation building. The points of their halt were turned into points of celebration with mobile video walls and band shows also pitching in. The motorcycle rally is a unique effort to reach the masses covering 1650 blocks and 550 districts of the country till date.

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RKJ/M