President Ram Nath Kovind, on the eve of India’s 72nd Republic Day, began his address by greeting the nation and acknowledging the efforts of the farmers and the army, who relentlessly work to feed and protect the nation.

“Every Indian salutes our farmers, who have made our vast and populous country self-reliant in food-grains and dairy products. Despite adversities of nature, numerous other challenges and the Covid-19 pandemic, our farmers sustained agricultural production,” he said.

The President also spoke about the three farm laws passed by the BJP-led government in September 2020. He said, “Economic reforms continue apace and supplemented by long-pending reforms in areas of labour and agriculture through legislation. Path to reform at initial stages may cause misapprehensions. However, it’s beyond doubt that the government remains singularly devoted to farmers’ welfare.”

Kovind also spoke at length about the economic reforms by the central government in view of the pandemic. He maintained that the economic slowdown during the pandemic had actually transformed into a transitory period for the nation to turn it into an opportunity.

He also mentioned in his speech that the phase-wise unlocking process post lockdown had turned out to be beneficial for India’s economic recovery.

He said, “In order to open up the economy without risking the lives of the people, the process of unlocking was carefully calibrated. This has proved effective and the economy has started showing indications of recovery faster than anticipated. The latest unprecedented collection of GST and India’s emergence as a most favoured destination for the foreign investment are indicative of our faster economic recovery.”

The President also spoke about how the central government’s self-reliant schemes like Atma-Nirbhar Bharat, managed to generate employment.

He pointed out about how a self-reliant India succeeded to manufacture its “own vaccine for Covid-19”. He said, “Our scientists have been working day and night for decoding the Coronavirus and they have succeeded in developing the vaccine in record time. With this accomplishment, our scientists have added a glorious chapter of contribution to the well-being of humanity.”

During his speech he even took a veiled dig at China for the Indo-China border standoff in Ladakh. “The past year was a time of adversity, and it came from many fronts. We faced an expansionist move on our borders, but our valiant soldiers foiled it. To achieve this objective, 20 of them had to lay down their lives,” Kovind said.

The President added, “The nation shall remain grateful to those brave soldiers. Though we reiterate our commitment to peace, our defence forces - Army, Air Force and Navy - are adequately mobilised in a well-coordinated move to thwart any attempt to undermine our security. Our national interest will be protected at all costs. We have also ensured a widespread understanding in the international community of India's firm and principled stand.”

However, with Covid-19 protocols in place and the proposed farmers’ tractor rally at New Delhi, this year’s Republic Day celebrations in New Delhi will look different.