The Indian Embassy in Abu Dhabi and the Indian Consulate in Dubai celebrated India's 80th Independence Day on August 15, drawing unusually large crowds since the milestone fell on a Saturday holiday.
Indian Ambassador Dr Deepak Mittal unfurled the tricolour at the Embassy in Abu Dhabi, while Consul General Dr E Vishnu Vardhan Reddy hoisted the flag at the Consulate in Dubai.
Consul General Vishnu, while addressing the crowd, said, "All applications submitted up to last Saturday have been processed. Normal passport applications are currently being processed within five working days, while Tatkal applications are being processed the next day and dispatched on the third day from the applicant's perspective."
The Abu Dhabi ceremony formed part of a coordinated flag-hoisting relay across 54 Indian missions worldwide, following a sequence timed after Muscat and ahead of Doha under a new initiative called Surya Path Tiranga.
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Both missions opened their programmes with a rendition of Vande Mataram, marking 150 years since the song was written, followed by flag-hoisting and the national anthem. Winners of the "Bharat Ko Janiye" quiz and other community competitions were felicitated at both venues, alongside cultural performances by students and community members.
Ambassador Mittal spoke about India's progress over the past eight decades and the push toward a Viksit Bharat by 2047, while also highlighting the India-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement and growing cooperation across trade, defence and technology.
He described the over 4.5 million-strong Indian community in the UAE as a living bridge between the two nations. Consul General Reddy used his first Independence Day address to announce that the Consulate cleared its passport application backlog, with normal applications now processed within five working days and Tatkal applications dispatched within three days.
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Sunny Dungrawal, who attended with his wife and young son, said he reached the Consulate at 6.40 AM and still had to wait in a long queue, calling the turnout surprisingly large.
Amit Kango, who attended the celebration for nearly two decades, said this year's crowd exceeded anything he had seen before, adding that the moment gave him goosebumps to watch so many people celebrating India from outside the country.
Masiuddin Mohammed of the Telugu Association said several hundred community members attended, calling it the largest gathering he witnessed at the event. Reshma Regi, who works as an engineer in Abu Dhabi, said such celebrations give expats a rare chance to reconnect with Indian culture while living abroad. Zeeshan Faraz, visiting with his parents from Hyderabad, said the patriotic spirit felt no different from celebrations back home.