A Rainy Republic Day

Grandpa had invited his friends to come over the next day and watch the parade together to celebrate. Diya and Aka were busy making flags to decorate the house.
"Orange colour is on top, and green at the bottom," Diya corrected Aka.
"The orange colour represents courage; white means peace and green is for growth. The blue chakra in the middle is for justice," said Grandpa as he handed them a bowl of roasted sweet potatoes.
"Is Delhi far?" Aka suddenly asked.
"If you look on the map, we are here, in the eastern part of India," Diya pointed in Grandpa's atlas book. "See, Delhi is all the way over here. In central Delhi is the India Gate, which is where the Republic Day parade happens every year on January 26." She tapped her fingers on the map.
"Why on January 26?" Aka asked, peeling a roasted sweet potato.
"Let me answer that," said Grandpa.
"Independence Day is the day of our nation's freedom from British rule and is celebrated on August 15 every year," he explained.
"I know, we got independence in the year 1947," Diya added.
Grandpa smiled and carried on, "Now after the independence, we as a free nation had to make our own set of rules and laws to run the country. So, the Indian Constitution was created. That rule book or the Indian Constitution came into effect on January 26, 1950. That day onwards, our own set of rules started being followed to maintain the law and order in India." Aka and Diya both nodded.
"So, Republic Day is the day on which the Constitution of India came into effect.
The first Republic Day parade happened in the year 1950," Diya said, excited.
"Because that was the first Republic Day!" Aka smiled, finishing his sweet potato.
Suddenly, there was a knock at the door.
It was their cousin Ajit, completely drenched. It was raining outside as usual.
Denne historien er fra January Second 2024-utgaven av Champak.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9500+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra January Second 2024-utgaven av Champak.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9500+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på

The Helmet Headache
Momo mouse was frantically running towards his burrow when he bumped into his friends Mimi and Rini under the peepal tree.

The Green Initiative
Dadi, why doesn’t the gardener uncle water the plants anymore?” 7-year-old Reyansh asked his grandmother.

NAYAN'S TREASURE
Nayan drove his vehicle past the gravelly mountain, along the log forest, and waded through the muddy water body before stopping in front of the towering grey steps.

Dr Zebra’s Scribble Trouble
Dr Zebra was well-known in the jungle for his medical skills.

THE HOLIDAY HOBBY PUZZLE
Sandhya had her vacation plans all sorted. First on the list was joining a painting class to pursue her passion for painting.

Nani's Quick Fix
Priyansh loved visiting his grandmother, whom she whenever he had school holidays.

The Puppy Plan
10-year-old Sunny was a menace. His parents Gopal and Meera tried to keep an eye on him, but he always dodged them and caused trouble.

Dhruv and His Basket of Mango Reveries
The golden morning light stretched its fingers through the windows of a little house in the bustling city of Vadodara, Gujarat. Dhruv, a ten-year-old boy with sparkling eyes, was already awake, his heart dancing with excitement.

A Mother's Day Surprise
Rohan always looked forward to Mother's Day with great excitement.

Kaa, The Thirsty Crow
Nine-year-old Akul was eagerly waiting for his cousin Karan, who was coming over to stay with him as his Mom and Dad were going away for the weekend.