HH the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani yesterday attended celebrations to mark the National Day. HH the Emir toured a number of celebratory functions organised by Qatari tribes in different parts of the country.
By Ramesh Mathew
Staff Reporter
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The magnificent parade by Qatar’s Armed Forces, to be held along the scenic Doha Corniche this morning, as in the last five years, will be the main attraction of the Qatar National Day celebrations.
Not withstanding the chilly morning conditions, several thousands of the country’s residents, both the citizens and expatriates, are expected to line up along the more than 1.6km stretch between the Qatar National Theatre and Emiri Diwan signals to view the parade.
Personnel from all departments of Qatar Armed Forces, along with men from many units of the Ministry of Interior (MoI), covering different spheres of the state policing activity, will also take part in the colourful march-past, which would also feature a parade of armoured vehicles, apart from vehicles and other heavy equipment from the General Directorate of the Civil Defence.
As seen during the rehearsal on Saturday, ever alert members of the dog squad, cavalry of horses and camels led by experienced jockeys, and vintage cars manned by the armed forces personnel would also be among the other attractions. Schoolchildren will also join the parade.
Aerial sorties by various types of military aircraft, scintillating demonstrations by para-jumpers, a flotilla of traditional dhows along the Doha bay and a display of patrolling vehicles of the Coast Guard are also features of the parade.
Fateh Al Kheir, a nearly month-long boat voyage organised by the Katara Cultural Village and covered all the GCC states, will return to Doha today.
Stands, capable of seating thousands of spectators, have been erected along the Al Rumelia Park for Families.
Other than the military parade, the fireworks to be held at the Cultural Village in the evening will be another highlight of the celebrations. Already traditional villages and a “Qatar of future” pavilions have been set up near the Sheraton Park and a large number of the residents and visitors have thronged the venue in the last one week. The authorities will also display vintage cars and some other vehicles in the same place for the next one week, it is learnt.
To involve the residents in large numbers this year, the authorities have constituted the Committee of Associated Programme for Qatar National Celebrations 2013 under the Ministry of Interior (MoI) and a number of events, including sport and cultural items, are on schedule.
A four-nation cricket T20 tournament is to be played at the West End Park in the vicinity of Karwa City. India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh teams are playing the tournament, which has a total prize money of QR15,000 for the winners, besides a number of prizes for the spectators. A volleyball tournament is being organised at Al Wakrah Stadium.
West End park at Industrial Area will host programmes by Indian and Sri Lankan community, Al Wakrah Sports Club will witness shows of Pakistani and Bangladesh communities, Al Rayyan Sports Club will show programmes of Filipino, Indonesian and Malaysian communities while Al Khor stadium will have presentations by Nepalese community and residents of Al Khor Community.
The community programmes with theme of ‘One Love’ would showcase the bond between Qataris and expatriate communities living in Qatar.
Special plan for celebratory fireworks
Brigadier Ghanim al-Hidaifi, commander in the explosives section of the Internal Security Force (Lekhwiya), said an integrated plan has been prepared for the use of fireworks during National Day celebrations, according to local Arabic daily Al Arab.
The plan has taken into account aspects such as security standards and specifications, supply of materials as well as removal of waste. Brig al-Hidaifi said inspections had been carried on the Corniche and necessary equipment has been installed. He also said the fireworks that will be used during the celebrations are safe and will be launched under proper supervision and conform to high standards.
