Beating Retreat is a ceremony of calling the army back from a war zone or patrolling. It was first started in England in 16th Century.
In India, Beating Retreat is a ceremony which marks the end of Republic Day celebrations. It is conducted on the evening of 29th January. Beating Retreat starts with National Salute to President, the supreme commander of Armed Forces, and ends with unfurling of National Flag with full Military honour. The venue is Raisina Hills in Vijay Chowk near Rashtrapati Bhawan and the President, vice-president and prime minister are present on the occasion. The ceremony was started in the early 1950s when Major Roberts of the Indian Army developed the ceremony of display by the massed bands in which Military Bands, Pipes and Drums Bands, Buglers and Trumpeters from various Army Regiments besides bands of Navy and Air Force take part.
Ceremony starts with marching of bands from all the three wings in unison. Then Army bands perform with buglers, pipes and drums. The air is reverberated with mesmerizing tunes from the bands. They play rendition of traditional military tunes like Colonel Bogey, Drummer’s Call, Fanfare and also songs like Vande Mataram and Saare Jahan Se Accha. Air Force and Navy bands are the last to perform. The hour long ceremony is witnessed by thousands of people gathered along the Vijay Chowk. At last, bands march back in unison after unfurling of national flag. As soon as the bands reach Raisina Hills, a spectacular illumination is displayed in North and South blocks of Parliament. This is followed by National Salute to the President and marching back of President’s Bodyguards, a cavalry unit on horses.
On 29th January 2012, tabla and shehnai were included in the ceremony for the first time. 39 bands were the part of ceremony this year.