In a first, the West Bengal government is set to organise the ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ campaign across the state from August 9 to August 17. This would be the first such observance of the nationawide campaign after the Bharatiya Janata Party came to power in Bengal.
The initiative which aims to promote patriotism and strengthen national unity among the citizens has been planned in line with a communication from the Union Ministry of Culture.
Based on the Centre’s directive, information and cultural affairs department secretary Soumitra Mohan has issued detailed guidelines outlining the implementation of the campaign across West Bengal.
This year’s campaign has been linked with the 150th anniversary of ‘Vande Mataram’, following a decision taken by a committee headed by the union home minister.
As part of the observance, renditions of Vande Mataram will be given prominence during all field-level and digital events alongside the display of the national flag.
People uploading selfies on the Har Ghar Tiranga portal will also find the lyrics of Vande Mataram automatically embedded on their photographs.
The state government has directed district administrations, the Kolkata Municipal Corporation, municipalities, panchayats and educational institutions to jointly implement the campaign.
Tiranga rallies, prabhat pheris, bicycle and e-bike processions will be organised at the district and block levels.
Government offices, heritage buildings, bus terminals and markets will be illuminated with Tiranga-themed decorations, while educational institutions have been asked to display murals and quotations of freedom fighters.
District headquarters and other prominent public places will also host exhibitions on the history of the national flag, along with quizzes, drawing competitions and Tiranga rangoli events.
To support the campaign, the government has allocated 150,000 national flags each for every district and the Kolkata Municipal Corporation, while 20,000 flags have been earmarked for Kalimpong district.
Financial assistance has also been sanctioned for organising the events.
Each district will receive Rs 100,000, each subdivision Rs 50,000, every block and municipality Rs 20,000, and each municipal corporation Rs 100,000.
Officials have also been instructed to ensure active participation of government employees and the public.
After the campaign concludes, district authorities have been asked to submit detailed reports and photographs of the events to Nabanna.