Premium
This is an archive article published on February 29, 2008

President to honour her guards

President Pratibha Patil will honour her ceremonial bodyguards by presenting them a 8220;Silver trumpet and Trumpet banner8221;...

.

President Pratibha Patil will honour her ceremonial bodyguards by presenting them a 8220;Silver trumpet and Trumpet banner8221; during a traditional ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhawan foregrounds on Saturday. The ceremony, which dates back to 1922, is conducted once during the tenure of each President, usually a few months after taking over office.

The President8217;s Body Guard PBG is the senior most unit of the Army and has more of a ceremonial role and its personnel are regarded as the personal troops of the head of state.

8220;In the old horse cavalry, a trumpeter used to be stationed behind the commanding officer who would use the trumpet to pass on orders. A head of state trumpet banner is carried

whenever the President travels with his or her bodyguards,8221; said Col Ali Adil Mehmood, a sixth-generation Army officer who commands the PBG.

The presentation parade will be followed by an audio-visual show depicting the history of the regiment that is traced back to 1773 when it was raised at Benaras.

The PBG is trying to put behind an unpleasant memory of 2003 when a similar ceremony for President APJ Abdul Kalam was put off for two years after four of its personnel were arrested for raping a college student at Buddha Jayanti Park.

 

Latest Comment
Post Comment
Read Comments
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement