The Indian Navy celebrates Navy Day on 4 December 2019 to commemorate its achievements during the 1971 India – Pakistan War. But it is quite interesting to note the developments preceded the practice.
The first Navy Fay was celebrated on 21 October 1944. It was met with a resounding success and also piqued interest at not only the ports, but also the inland establishments. It was decided that such functions should be organised every year. In addition to it, organising the event on a larger scale when the weather was comparatively cooler was also taken into consideration. With these things in mind, Navy Day was celebrations were shifted to 1 December 1945 in Bombay and Karachi.
The practiced remained in vogue and till 1972 and Navy Day came to be celebrated annually on 15 December. The week astride 15 December was also observed as the Navy Week.
In May 1972, at the Senior Naval Officers Conference, it was decided that Navy Day would be celebrated on 4 December hereon to commemorate the successful naval action – Operation Trident – during the 1971 India-Pakistan War. The tradition of celebrating Navy Week has also continued, with 1 to 7 December being celebrated as Navy Week every year.
Aditi Parida
