Narendra Modi's swearing-in ceremony to be biggest ever event at Rashtrapati Bhavan; multi-layer security in Delhi

In the biggest-ever event held in the Rashtrapati Bhavan, the swearing-in of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday will be attended by nearly 8,000 guests, including foreign dignitaries and chief ministers and governors. A tight and multi-layered security arrangement has been made in the national capital with the deployment of around 10,000 security personnel from Delhi Police and paramilitary forces.

The swearing-in ceremony of PM Modi and his Council of Ministers will take place at 7 PM at Rashtrapati Bhavan in the national capital. "Over 10,000 security personnel from Delhi Police and paramilitary forces have been deployed on account of the swearing-in-ceremony," said an official. 

Additionally, Quick Response Teams (QRT) will be deployed at several crucial spots and snipers will also be deployed atop several important buildings as PM Modi will visit Rajghat, Sadaiv Atal Samadhi and National War Memorial to pay homage. Over 2,000 security personnel will also be deployed along the route to be taken by Modi and other foreign dignitaries. A number of heads of states, heads of governments, constitutional authorities, diplomats, senior political leaders, government officials and media persons are scheduled to attend the ceremony.

The oath-taking ceremony will be a grand spectacle at the forecourt of the historic premises and will be attended by four Presidents, three Prime Ministers, a special envoy, India's top political class and the entire diplomatic corp. The 4 Presidents at the ceremony are-- Bangladesh President Md Abdul Hamid, Sri Lanka President Maithripala Sirisena, Kyrgyzstan President Sooronbay Jeenbekov and Myanmar President U Win Myint. The three PMs include Mauritius Prime Minister Pravind Kumar Jugnauth, Nepal Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli and Bhutan Prime Minister Dr Lotay Tshering.

While the guests attending the ceremony will be treated to high tea, President Ram Nath Kovind will host a private dinner for the leaders. The size of the gathering is seen as a reflection of the massive mandate received by Modi government in the Lok Sabha election. Both the BJP and NDA have improved their tally compared to 2014. The event then was attended by about 5,000 guests.

The high tea will have snacks, including samosas, and paneer items apart from sweets, while at the President`s dinner, the visiting foreign dignitaries will be treated to "Dal Raisina" - a special delicacy of the Rashtrapati Bhavan that takes 48 hours to cook - among other delicacies. The Prime Minister will also attend the dinner, along with some officials. The dinner will be light as it will be served a little late in the evening. The dinner will have both vegetarian and non-vegetarian options and include soup, fish, chicken, vegetables and the "Dal Raisina" - a variant of popular 'maa ki dal'.

A traffic advisory has also been issued and several roads in New Delhi will be closed for movement of public between 4 PM to 9 PM. The advisory said that roads including Rajpath--from Vijay Chowk to Rashtrapati Bhavan, Vijay Chowk and adjoining areas including North and South fountain, South Avenue, North Avenue, Dara-Shikoh Road and Church Road will be closed for public between 4 PM and 9 PM.

A traffic official added that necessary traffic diversions will be given for several roads including Akbar Road, Rajpath, Teen Murti Marg, Krishna Menon Marg, Pandit Pant Marg, Talkatora Road, Gurudwara Rakab Ganj Road, Tyagaraj Marg and SP Marg. Similarly traffic diversions will be given on Khushak Road, K Kamaraj Marg, Rajaji Marg, Shanti Path, Raisina Road -- beyond Rail Bhawan roundabout towards Parliament House and Moti Lal Nehru Marg (beyond roundabout Udyog Bhawan towards RP Bhawan) which are expected to face congestion due to the ceremony, the traffic official added. Traffic signages have been provided for the information of invitees and public.