ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Independence Day celebrations will begin on Friday, August 14, with gun salutes, prayers, flag-hoisting ceremonies and cultural events nationwide
President Asif Ali Zardari will hoist the national flag at the main ceremony in Islamabad. Similar ceremonies will take place at provincial, divisional and district headquarters.
The day will begin with a 31-gun salute in the federal capital and 21-gun salutes at provincial headquarters. Mosques will hold special prayers after Fajr for Pakistan’s peace, solidarity and prosperity.
A national programme at Yaadgar-e-Fatah in Islamabad is scheduled for Thursday night. Organisers said the event would showcase Pakistan’s cultural heritage and its journey since independence in 1947.
Public buildings, streets and markets have been decorated with national flags, buntings and lights. Seminars, exhibitions and cultural programmes will commemorate Pakistan Movement leaders and others involved in the independence struggle.
The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the military’s media wing, has released a national song titled “Mera Pyara Watan Pakistan” for the occasion.
Read: Pakistan Awards National Heroes in 78th Independence Day Ceremony
Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) will begin observances with a 21-gun salute in Muzaffarabad. Sirens will sound at 7:59 am, followed by a one-minute silence during which road traffic will halt/
Flag-hoisting ceremonies are scheduled across AJK, while the AJK prime minister will lay a floral wreath at the Shuhada Monument.
