India declared on Thursday that it will observe state mourning on April 26 in honour of the funeral of His Holiness Pope Francis, the Supreme Pontiff of the Holy See. The Union Ministry of Home Affairs issued a statement and further announced that it will lower the National flag to half-mast throughout India on all buildings where it is regularly flown. Additionally, there will be no official entertainment on that day. Earlier, the ministry had announced three-day state mourning as a mark of respect on the passing away of His Holiness Pope Francis.
The ministry observed two days of state mourning on April 22 and April 23, and it will observe one day of state mourning on the day of the funeral. Pope Francis passed away at the age of 88 on Easter Monday after prolonged illness. He was the first Latin American pontiff to lead the Roman Catholic Church after taking over from Pope Benedict XVI on March 13, 2013.
This comes a day after Pope Francis made a surprise appearance on Easter Sunday, greeting a crowd of more than 35,000 in St. Peter’s Square since recovering from a severe case of double pneumonia.
The Vatican has also released images of Pope Francis in an open coffin, dressed in a red robe with the papal mitre on his head and a rosary in his hand. The photographer took the pictures in the chapel of the Casa Santa Marta, Pope Francis’s residence at the Vatican.
The dean of the College of Cardinals, Giovanni Battista Re, will lead the funeral service. Cardinal Re will deliver the final commendation—a concluding prayer in which he will formally entrust the Pope to God- at the end of the funeral, and they will move the body to St. Mary Major for burial. (ANI)
