Led by a ceremonial army band and a 24-horse mounted police escort, the SAARC Car Rally set out in an impressive procession from Dhaka on day-3 morning to move further up north in Bangladesh. Cheered by huge crowds along the road, the procession marched up to the Parliament of Bangladesh, from where the vehicles sped off towards Bogra, a district town in north Bangladesh.

No visit to Bangladesh can be complete without paying homage at the National Martyrs’ Memorial, popularly known as the ‘War Memorial’, the most famous landmark of Bangladesh, situated at the outskirts of Dhaka. And that indeed was the first stop for the Rally today. The Memorial is dedicated to the memory of the martyrs of 1971 Bangladesh liberation war. As per the plaque at the site, ‘the monument with its pointed spires stands to speak of the victory and triumph and links the patriotic people, the shaheed and the living freedom fighters in an eternal bond.’ The tower tapers upwards on seven isosceles triangles signifying the seven stages of the movement that led to the independence of Bangladesh. Seven wreaths representing SAARC countries were laid by the rallyists at the memorial.

The next stop was an unscheduled one. Just after the lunch halt at Jamuna resort in Tangail district, there was this large and gathering of cadets and school children at the Mirzapur Cadet College grounds. The moment the rally reached the spot, more than 300 children started performing amazingly synchronised and colourful formations, quite similar to the ones seen during the Republic Day parade on January 26. The rally was already behind schedule, but such was the love and affection displayed by the children that the rallyists just couldn’t help stepping out of their vehicles and mingling with the crowd.

But that was not the end of pleasant surprises for the day. Just as the rally reached Shergarh, a small town enroute to Bogra, one could see a never –ending chain of residents, cheering, clapping and waving SAARC countries’ flags at the rally. Witnessing such a large crowd at a relatively small town, the rally participants were simply left speechless when told that the entire town had come out of their homes to welcome the rally. There were elderly women clapping as enthusiastically as school children, and there were grandfathers cheering with gay abandon, their grand children in tow. The rally was allowed to proceed only after much hand shaking, hugging and drum-beating.

The rally reached Bogra in the evening after covering a distance of about 225 km, accepting greetings from waiting crowds at every single village on the route. Tomorrow, the rally will resume its northward journey at 5.30 am. The target is to drive 300 km to enter India at Burimari, and then cover another 150 km to reach Chalsa for the night-halt.

Sourced From: Confederation of Indian Industry