Jana Gana Mana a daily ritual: These places in Telangana never missed the anthem

HYDERABAD: When the clock strikes 8. 30am, people of Thipparthi town in Nalgonda district stop in their tracks as the national anthem ‘Jana Gana Mana’ is played at the town junction. Motorists bring their vehicles to a grinding halt and everyone stands wherever they are to show their respect to the national anthem and Tricolour.


This ritual in Thipparthi began on January 27 this year and there was no looking back since then. An initiative of Jana Gana Mana Utsav Samithi, the ritual was lapped up in right earnest by people of Thipparthi.

Samithi president Karnati Vijay Kumar told TOI that ‘desh bhakti’ songs to instil national fervour are played on the loudspeaker from 8. 10 am everyday in Thipparthi. At 8. 29 am, an announcement is made and the national anthem is played at 8. 30 am. Motorists coming from three sides of the road at the junction stop when the national anthem is played.

Every citizen, no matter what he or she is doing, stands still for the 52 seconds every morning when the national anthem is played from the public address systems. “The objec- tive behind this is to instill a sense of national spirit among the people,” Vijay Kumar said. Thipparthi is on national highway between Hyderabad and Vijayawada, at a distance of 118km from Hyderabad. After the initiative introduced in Nalgonda town was well received by the people, Vijay Kumar spoke to the people of Thipparthi to launch it in their town as well. This was done after it was successfully implemented in Nalgonda town since January 23, 2021. The then SP and DIG of the district and now joint commissioner of police (traffic), Hyderabad, AV Ranganath appreciated the initiative of the samithi and extended the necessary assistance.

Vijay said they borrowed the idea from Jammikunta in Karimnagar district where the national anthem is played everyday at 8. 30am. The practice was introduced in Jammikunta on August 15, 2017, thanks to the initiative of local police officer P Prashanth Reddy.

“In Nalgonda town, the national anthem is played at 12 junctions in II Town police station limits. After road-widening in I Town police station limits is completed, we will introduce the practice in those areas,” Vijay said.

...and this small village hasn’t missed the anthem for 4 years

For more than four-and-a-half years, a small village in Rajanna Sircilla district has been singing the national anthem every day without fail. A group of people gathers at the gram panchayat office at Kolanur village sharp at 8am and sings the national anthem, which is played on the loud speaker.

“It is not just our villagers. Everyone who is passing by from the neighbouring villagers at that time stops as the national anthem is played and shows respect to the national flag,” sarpanch Tummala Mahesh told TOI on Wednesday. “There is patriotic fervour in the village. The flag and the national anthem is dear to our hearts as much as we love our country,” Mahesh said.

The practice was started on January 1, 2018, by former sarpanch Abul Rasheed, who got encouragement from the then Sircilla collector Krishna Bhaskar. There has not been a single break in this tradition since. No one in particular is invited, but the 20-30 people, mostly villagers who come to the gram panchayat office for work, participate.


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