The Bengali nation on Saturday celebrated the 52nd Independence Day and National Day with a fresh vow of taking the nation towards prosperity in the spirit of the great War of Liberation.
The occasion was celebrated daylong through various programmes with the highest honour and tributes to the martyrs and others who sacrificed their today for our tomorrow.
On March 26, 1971, Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman proclaimed the independence of Bangladesh, following a crackdown on unarmed Bengalis on the midnight of March 25 by Pakistani occupation forces.
After a nine-month war, and the supreme sacrifices of over 30 lakh people as well as the honour of 200,000 women, Bangladesh finally achieved the victory on December 16, 1971.
As part of the celebrations, in the morning, President Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina paid rich tributes to the Liberation War martyrs at the National Memorial in Savar.
The head of state first placed a wreath at the altar of the memorial, followed by the Prime Minister.
After placing the wreaths, the President and the Prime Minister stood in solemn silence for a while as a mark of profound respect to the memory of the martyrs of the 1971 Liberation War.
Prime Minister Hasina also paid tributes to the Father of the Nation by placing a wreath at his portrait in front of Bangabandhu Memorial Museum at Dhanmondi.
Later, she unveiled a commemorative postage stamp on Salimpur Wireless Station, the receiving and transmitting station of the declaration of Independence by the Bangabandhu.
Sheikh Hasina released the stamp of Tk 10, along with an opening day cover of Tk 10 and a data card of Tk 5, at a ceremony at her official residence Ganabhaban in Dhaka on the occasion of the Independence Day.
National anthem 'Amar Sonar Bangla' was sung simultaneously across the country and Bangladeshi missions abroad in the morning.
The national flag was hoisted atop government and private buildings while the government and semi-government buildings and other public places were illuminated.
Besides, different socio-cultural and political organisations celebrated the day with elaborate programmes.
National dailies brought out special supplements while Bangladesh Betar, Bangladesh Television, and private radio and television channels aired special programmes highlighting the significance of the day.
Special prayers were offered at all mosques, temples, churches and other places of worship across the country, seeking divine blessings for the eternal peace of the departed souls of the Father of the Nation, four national leaders, martyrs of Liberation War and all other patriotic sons of the soil.
The day was also celebrated abroad by all Bangladesh missions across the globe.