New Delhi: The main venue of Independence Day celebrations, the Red Fort, has two lifts to help the Prime Minister of India to reach the ramparts of the huge 17th century edifice to deliver his annual address to the nation.
If the lifts were not there, any dignitary or person would have to climb 52 steps to reach the ramparts of the Red Fort.
This became a matter of concern for the civic authorities during the Prime Ministership of Atal Behari Vajpayee (1996 and 1998 to 2004).
Soon after Vajpayee finished his I-Day speech in 2000, security-men had to bodily lift him and carry him to the lift at the Red Fort ramparts.
Having stood for over half-an-hour after unfurling the tricolour, Vajpayee suffered a "locked knee" problem. That hampered his descent down the steep stairs.
When in June 2002, a high powered committee of secretaries met at the Red Fort on matters of security, the issue of providing a lift was taken up.
Among the several options before the committee, one was to modernise the existing old-fashioned lift installed in 1964 for former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri.
However, this one was located at a considerable distance from the point where the Prime Minister normally stands. Thus it was decided to install a second lift.
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