No change of guard ceremony on March 30 at Rashtrapati Bhavan

NEW DELHI: Rashtrapati Bhavan on Thursday informed that the Change of Guard Ceremony would not take place on March 30 due to the Bharat Ratna presentation ceremony. The thirty-minute ceremony is held every Saturday. The ceremony is a military tradition in which guards and sentries at palaces, forts and defence establishments get changed periodically to enable a fresh body of troops to take charge.

At Rashtrapati Bhavan, situated at Raisina Hills, where the main functions of the Republic Day are held, the Ceremonial Army Guard battalion is responsible for providing ceremonial guards and sentries for the President of India.

Bharat Ratna is the highest civilian honour conferred for exceptional service towards any field of human endeavour, without distinction of race, occupation, position, or sex. The provision of Bharat Ratna was introduced in 1954. Upon receiving the award, the recipient is presented with a Sanad (certificate) signed by the President and a medallion.

The Bharat Ratna does not come with any monetary grant, according to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). In 2024, this award was announced for five eminent personalities: Karpoori Thakur, L. K. Advani, P. V. Narasimha Rao, Charan Singh, and M. S. Swaminathan. It is worth mentioning that no formal recommendations for Bharat Ratna are necessary.

The recommendations for Bharat Ratna are made by the Prime Minister to the President of India. No Bharat Ratna Award has been given from 2020 to 2023.