NEW DELHI, Oct. 30, 2025 — As the nation prepares to mark the 150th birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel tomorrow — coinciding with Rashtriya Ekta Diwas (National Unity Day) — the central and Gujarat governments have unveiled a detailed celebration schedule that blends tradition, spectacle and national symbolism.
Grand parade and national participation
Amit Shah, Union Home Minister, announced that beginning this year the birth anniversary of Sardar Patel will be marked every Oct. 31 with a “Republic Day-style” parade at Ekta Nagar (near the Statue of Unity, Kevadia, Gujarat). The first such edition features around 16 contingents drawn from CAPFs and state police forces representing regions from across India. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to lead the parade at 7:55 a.m., a timing mirroring the annual Republic Day ceremony in New Delhi.
Aerial spectacle and other high-profile events
The air-space above the Statue of Unity will be another highlight. The Indian Air Force (IAF)’s Suryakiran Aerobatic Team is scheduled to perform a nine-aircraft formation flight and conduct a flower-petal drop over the memorial. The display is indicative of the government’s ambition to elevate the anniversary into a national pageant of unity and strength.
Project inaugurations and investments
In conjunction with the celebrations, multiple developmental announcements are also planned. The Prime Minister is expected to inaugurate and lay the foundation for projects worth ₹1,219 crore at Ekta Nagar, further tying the commemoration of Patel’s legacy to tangible infrastructure development.
Nationwide community engagement
In addition to Gujarat’s flagship events, the “Run for Unity” initiative will be scaled up across India — involving schools, universities, police stations and civil society in a collective pledge for national integrity. The theme for 2025 — “Ek Bharat, Aatmanirbhar Bharat” — emphasizes the linkage between unity and self-reliance as India heads towards 2047.
Family participation and heritage acknowledgment
For the first time, direct descendants of Sardar Patel will attend the public ceremony at the Statue of Unity. His only living grandson, Gautambhai Dahyabhai Patel, along with his extended family spanning five generations, are expected to participate — signaling a symbolic bridging of heritage and public commemoration.
Why this matters
The occasion carries layered significance: it honors a foundational architect of India’s post-independence unity, it coincides with a growing national discourse of integration and self-reliance, and it marks a deliberate attempt by the government to elevate Sardar Patel’s legacy into a recurring national ritual. The scale of the parade, the infrastructural announcements and the multi-state involvement reflect a strategy to anchor national sentiment around unity and collective identity.
What to watch (Oct. 31)
- Attendance and leadership role of the Prime Minister in the parade at Ekta Nagar.
- Execution of the IAF aerial display and its impact in media coverage.
- How the laid foundation stones/projects announced are positioned — whether as symbolic gestures or with clear implementation timelines.
- Participation levels and media coverage of Run for Unity events across states.
- Role of Patel’s descendants in the public ceremony — how heritage is interwoven into the narrative.
As India marks this milestone anniversary, the celebrations serve not only as tribute but as a reaffirmation of a national ethos: diverse yet united, resilient yet forward-looking. The events of tomorrow will set the tone for how Sardar Patel’s legacy is carried forward into the nation’s next phase.
