"You are requested to organise appropriate programmes, including the pledge-taking ceremony, to observe the anti- terrorism day in a befitting manner," Joint Secretary in the Union Home Ministry, Satpal Chouhan, wrote to the chief secretaries of all state governments and Union Territories as well as the secretaries of central ministries.
The ministry told the states that the objective behind observing the day was to wean youths away from terrorism and violence by highlighting the sufferings of the common people and showing how that is prejudicial to national interest.
Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated on May 21, 1991, by LTTE cadres in a suicide bombing attack at a rally at Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu.
This will be the first anti-terrorism day to be observed since the NDA government came to power last year. The observances were toned down in 2014 event with the new government being sworn-in only on May 26.
In the run up to its completing one year in office, the Modi government has been under attack from Congress both inside and outside Parliament with the party's vice president Rahul Gandhi leading the charge against it on issues such as its alleged failure to carry out development work and "taking credit" for work done under the previous UPA rule.