India resumes border retreat ceremonies after nearly two weeks

F.P. Report

LAHORE: India on Tuesday resumed the daily flag-lowering ceremony at three border crossings with Pakistan, nearly two weeks after it was suspended without any formal explanation.

According to officials, the Border Security Force (BSF) has reinstated the ceremonial retreat at Attari, Hussainiwala, and Sadki borders. The ceremonies, held daily at sunset, feature a coordinated display of marching and flag-lowering by forces from both sides.

“The ceremonies resumed on May 20, with gates at the crossings remaining closed to the public during the parade,” a Pakistani security official told Dawn.

The BSF had unilaterally suspended the ritual on May 7, reportedly due to internal security reasons. However, Indian authorities did not issue any official statement regarding the pause.

The flag-lowering ceremony at Attari-Wagah is a decades-old military tradition and a major tourist attraction on both sides of the border. It is widely seen as a symbolic representation of the fraught but formalised relationship between the two nuclear-armed neighbours.