The Eve of Pakistan's 61st Independence Day

Pakistanis will be celebrating their 61st Independence Day tomorrow, August 14. At the crack of dawn, there will be a booming 31-gun salute in Islamabad and 21 guns salute at the provincial capitals: Karachi, Lahore, Quetta and Peshawar.

A flag hoisting ceremony will be held in Islamabad where Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani will unfurl the national flag followed by the playing of the national anthem. School children will sing the anthem in their schools and put up shows and dances and sing songs.

For the past 2-3 weeks  national flags, as well as buntings, stickers, caps and badges bearing the colours of the national flag....green and white (green denotes the Islamic colour, while the white portion is for the minorities living in Pakistan), together with the crescent and star, are being sold everywhere. This evening, colourful lights have lit up the entire country. Special plays and programmes have been prepared by all the local television channels. Wreaths and garlands will be placed by thousands of people who visit Mohammad Ali Jinnah's mausoleum in Karachi...the Father of the Nation, referred to as 'Quaid-e-Azam'.