The iconic ‘beating retreat’ ceremony at the Attari-Wagah border between India and Pakistan is set to resume from Tuesday (May 20).
The flag-lowering ceremonies would resume at 6 pm on Tuesday, said BSF IG of Punjab Frontier Atul Fulzele.
The ‘beating retreat’ ceremony will resume at Amritsar’s Attari, Ferozepur’s Hussainiwala, and Fazilka’s Sadiqi border check posts.
Notably, the ceremony was briefly halted in the wake of the deadly Pahalgam terror attack in Jammu & Kashmir on April 22.
The ceremony, however, will resume under altered protocols. The gates will remain closed, and BSF jawans will not shake hands with their Pakistan Rangers’ counterparts.
The flag was being lowered each day by BSF troops since May 8 but only the public entry was cancelled.
The BSF on May 8 had stopped public entry for this event at these three locations in view of “public safety”.
The audience will be allowed to witness the ceremony from the Indian side under heightened security arrangements.
The beating retreat ceremony has been a custom between the two countries since 1959.
As per standard protocol, every evening the border gates are opened by both forces at the Attari-Wagah border during the ceremony and also the customary handshake takes place, but the BSF chose to send a strong message post Pahalgam attack.
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The tensions escalated between India and Pakistan after Indian forces launched airstrikes under Operation Sindoor at terror infrastructure across the Line of Control, including areas in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (POK).
Earlier, the ceremony remained suspended during the 2014 Wagah suicide bombing and post Pulwama attack on CRPF personnel in 2019.
