Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday inaugurated the year-long commemoration of the National Song, ‘Vande Mataram’, at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in New Delhi. At the event, he also released a commemorative stamp and coin.
PM Modi also participated in the mass singing of the full version of ‘Vande Mataram’ at the stadium.
The programme marked the formal launch of the year-long nationwide commemoration, from Friday to November 7, 2026, celebrating 150 years of the timeless composition that inspired India’s freedom movement and continues to evoke national pride and unity.
This year marks 150 years since ‘Vande Mataram’ was composed. At the event, PM Modi also launched a portal commemorating the 150th anniversary of the ‘Vande Mataram’ song.
For the event, an appeal had been extended to every citizen, from the bustling metropolises to the serene villages, to join in the resounding chorus of Vande Mataram, fostering a symphony of collective harmony that echoes the ethos of ‘Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat’.
On Friday, a nationwide cascade of programmes shall unfold under the auspices of the Central Government, inviting people across the length and breadth of our sovereign land to unite in solemn rendition of this timeless ode, reaffirming our shared legacy of sacrifice and sovereignty, an official release mentioned.
The release further read, furthering this patriotic fervour, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), guided by BJP’s National President JP Nadda, has announced a series of inspiring initiatives from November 7 to November 26, culminating on the auspicious occasion of Constitution Day.
Through these endeavours, the BJP will orchestrate multifaceted events to reverberate ‘Vande Mataram’ in every corner, galvanising the youth, families, and communities to honour our constitutional pillars of justice, liberty, equality, and fraternity.
‘Vande Mataram’ was written by Bankimchandra Chatterji during the auspicious occasion of Akshaya Navami, which fell on November 7 in 1875. ‘Vande Mataram’ first appeared in the literary journal, ‘Bangadarshan’, as part of Chatterji’s novel, ‘Anandamath’.
The song, invoking the motherland as the embodiment of strength, prosperity and divinity, gave a poetic expression to India’s awakening spirit of unity and self-respect. It soon became an enduring symbol of devotion to the nation, the statement said.
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