Floods dampen Pakistan

Defense Day enthusiasm

In view of the devastations wrecked by the ongoing floods in the country, the 45th Defense Day

was observed in Lahore, and other parts of Pakistan, with simplicity on Monday. All the state functions were called off and the funds thus saved will be donated towards the relief efforts.However, a guards’ changing ceremony was held as per routine at the mausoleum of poet/philosopher Allama Muhammad Iqbal. It was this great thinker who first gave the idea of a separate Muslim state in the sub-continent. During the ceremony, Garrison Commander Major General Mazhar Jameel paid homage to the great poet.Pak Army officers laid flower wreath at the mausoleum of the poet of east. On this occasion the Rangers presented the Guard of Honour. The Pakistan Navy observed the Defence Day of Pakistan with respect and solemnity to commemorate its bold operations and sacrifices of its Shuhada (martyrs) during the 1965 Pak-Indo war.Earlier, special prayers were made in mosques for the solidarity of the nation. People also paid homage to those who sacrificed their lives for the sake of the country. The Defence of Pakistan Day is celebrated every year with traditional fervour to commemorate the heroic deeds of the Pakistan Army in defending the motherland during the 1965 war with India. A special ceremony was held at the grave of Major Shabbir Sharif (Shaheed), Nishan-e-Haider to pay homage and commemorate his sacrifice. General Officer Commanding Major General Azeem Asif along with the family members of the martyr laid floral wreath and offered ‘Fateha’. A smartly turned out contingent of Frontier Force Regiment of Pakistan Army presented the salute. Members belonging to all cross-section of society kept on visiting the grave throughout the day to pay their respect to the Great War hero. Similar ceremonies were also held at Army Graveyard in Lahore and Gunj-e-Shuhada, near Kasur, where floral wreaths were laid on the memorial of Brigadier Ahsan Rashid Shami (Shaheed), Hilal-e-Jurrat and graves of other Shuhada.