Independence Day: A Day to Celebrate Freedom

-- Mehwish Shihab, VIII-A, New Indian School, Mangaf

Tuesday, July 4, 2023

The beginning of democratic governance in India and the end of British colonial rule both occurred on August 15, 1947. Every year on this day, we remember the sacrifices made by all those who battled for independence despite the risk to their own lives. At the Red Fort in New Delhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, India’s first Prime Minister, raised the national flag. He also delivered his well-known address “Tryst with Destiny’’ proclaiming India’s independence. It also commemorates the anniversary of the subcontinent division into two countries, India and Pakistan, which took place at midnight on August 14/15, 1947 (In Pakistan, Independence Day is celebrated on August 14).

Following their victory at the battle of Plassey, the British established their dominion over India in 1757 when the English East India Company took up residence there. Following the Indian Mutiny in 1857-58, the East Indian Company dominated India for a century before being supplanted by direct British rule, sometimes known as the British raj. Mohandas K. Gandhi served as the movement’s leader and pushed for a nonviolent end to British rule. The movement for Indian independence started during World War I.

Independence Day serves as a reminder of the tremendous sacrifices made by our freedom warriors in the fight for independence from British domination. The history of the nation is filled with instances of revenge and uprising, led by independence fighters, which drove the British out and forced Lord Mountbatten, the Viceroy of India at the time, to declare the nation free on August 15, 1947.

Because of several independence fighters, we can proudly say that India is a free country today. People who fight for their country's freedom and frequently give their lives in the process are known as freedom fighters. Our heroic freedom fighters paid the price for it with their sacrifices, suffering, and commitment; it didn't just come to us on a silver platter. In order to create a free country where people might live and enjoy themselves without being subservient to the British, our freedom fighters resolved to assume the burden of a free India.

Mehwish Shihab, VIII-A, New Indian School, Mangaf