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Thursday, April 30, 2026
TopicBeating the retreat

Topic: Beating the retreat

Indian popular tunes that are pushing out colonial martial music at Beating the Retreat

The Beating the Retreat ceremony this year featured Bollywood songs like Lakshya and Ae Mere Pyaare Watan.

Beating the Retreat — a musical military tradition celebrating the Republic for 7 decades

Tracing its origins to early 1950s, Beating the Retreat is held on 29 January at Vijay Chowk every year to conclude Republic Day celebrations.

J Ranade on India-China’s ‘cosmetic’ ties, Valson Thampu calls out ‘arbitrary exclusion’

The best of the day’s opinion, chosen and curated by ThePrint’s top editors.

‘Focus on more Indian tunes’ — Vande Mataram to replace Abide With Me at Beating Retreat

Abide With Me has traditionally concluded annual 45-minute performance of military music as last event of Republic Day celebrations at Vijay Chowk in Delhi.

Pakistani cricketer’s thigh-tapping antic is the latest ‘fake show’ at Wagah border

Introduced in 1959, the 45-minute flag-lowering ceremony at the Attari-Wagah border was a low-key affair for decades but now draws hundreds of visitors daily.

On Camera

New promo video by PLA Navy is a teaser of China’s deep blue capabilities

Rather than functioning as conventional propaganda, the video operates as a device for interpretation, subtly shaping expectations about future developments in China’s naval trajectory.

Adani’s giant copper plant hits technical setbacks in first year

The 500,000 tonne-per-year plant produced just 94,000 tonnes of refined copper from April 2025 to February this year.

Indian drone tech company ideaForge signs MoU with Japanese firm to develop next-gen AI powered drones

By pairing Indian drone engineering with Japanese semiconductor expertise, the two firms aim to develop more advanced autonomous systems tailored to both defence & commercial use.

Trump, Netanyahu’s Iran gamble: The regime change rebound

American objectives are unmet. They neither have muscle nor motivation to resume the war. As for Iran, the regime didn’t just survive, it’s now led by more radical individuals.