Indian National Flag – History, Signification, And Importance

The Indian National Flag also called the tricolour is a horizontal rectangle of saffron white and India green and Ashoka chakra at the centre with 24 spokes in navy blue colour. It was adopted on 22nd July 1947 during a meeting of the constituent assembly.

The Indian National flag was designed by Pingali Venkayya and is based on the Swaraj flag. The Indian flag is to be made of khadi cloth which is a special hand-spun material. The Bureau of Indian Standards has laid out the manufacturing process and specifications of the flag. Karnataka Khadi Gramodyoga Samyukta Sangha is the sole manufacturer of the Indian Flag.

As per the Flag Code of India, the Width and height ratio of the flag should be 3:2 and all three horizontal bands should be equal in size. The spokes of the Ashoka Chakra are 24 and evenly spaced.

The use and display Guidelines of the Indian Flag are governed by the Flag Code of India 2002, The Emblem and Names Act, of 1950, and the prevention of insults of the National Honor Act, of 1971. The violation of the provisions of these acts is punishable by law with three years imprisonment or fine, or both.

National Identity Elements

The most important national identity element for any country is the National Flag. If we look at the case of India, there are many national identity elements along with the Indian National Flag. These are also known as National Symbols.

There are 10 elements known as national identity elements of India which define the perception of the public about India. The 10 national Identity elements / Indian Symbols are:

1. National Flag
2. National Anthem
3. The State Emblem
4. The National Bird
5. The National Animal
6. The National Flower
7. The National Tree
8. National Calendar
9. National Currency Symbol
10. National Song

Out of these 10 National identity elements, National Flag and National Anthem are the most respected.

Meaning of the Indian National Flag – Tricolour

The National Flag of India consists of three colours and an Ashoka Chakra. The Indian Flag is just not a simple coloured piece of cloth each and every feature of the flag has its significance. Let us decode the Indian flag.

1. Saffron

The saffron colour strip of the Indian flag denotes courage and selflessness. This colour signifies renunciation and absolution of the ego and it is the religious colour of Hindus, Jains, and Buddhists. This colour reminds the leaders to work without getting attracted to material gain. It reminds leaders to work for the benefit of the Nation.

2. White

This Strip on the Indian flag denoted cleanliness, peace, purity, honesty, and knowledge. It guides the citizens toward the path of truth. It reminds the Indian leaders to work in order to attain national peace and not to repeat the bloodshed which was witnessed by the nation during the partition and freedom movements.

3. Green

The Green strip denotes Fertility, prosperity, and Faith. It is a festive and stable colour which represents happiness and liveliness. This reminds the Indian leaders to save the nation from external enemies and human destruction.

4. Ashoka Chakra

The Ashoka Chakra at the centre of the flag represents motions and growth which tells that India cannot oppose the change and that National growth is the key to success in the fast-running world. It also represents the different religions in India as it is the Wheel of Dharma and all the religions of India subscribe to the concept of Dharma.

History of the Indian National Flag

Under the leadership of Gandhiji, the Indian national congress struggles for decades to rally the British-ruled people in the Indian subcontinent. They felt the need for national symbols to represent their national objective. In the year 1921, Pingali Venkayya came up with a design a flag consisting of 2 colours, red and green depicting two major communities of India. Red for Hindus and green for Muslims. Lala Has raj suggested placing a spinning wheel in the centre of the flag where the flag was divided horizontally. The idea of adding the spinning wheel on the flag was to make Indians self-dependent by fabricating their own cloth.

When this design was shown to Gandhiji, he suggested adding one more horizontal strip in between the red and green. The strip was white in colour for the other religious communities of India. This white stripe also provided a clear visible background for the spinning wheel. This flag was carried by thousands of Indian people during the peaceful protest against British rule in May 1923 in Nagpur and many of them were arrested by the British government. The congress flag became a national symbol for India and was recognized in August 1931 at an annual meeting and the red colour strip was replaced by the deep saffron colour.

To avoid the formation of communal organizations, new characteristics were associated with the three colours of the flag. The saffron colour was said to stand for courage and sacrifice, the white colour for Peace and truth, and the Green colour for Faith and Chivalry.

After the Britishers agreed to free India from its rule, this was officially hoisted as the national flag on July 22, 1947, but the spinning wheel was replaced by the blue chakra – Dharma Chakra (Wheel of the Law). The chakra was designed with 24 spokes of Navy blue colour.

Evolution of the Indian National Flag

The Indian flag has undergone various stages of evolution and finally reached the tricolour we have today. The journey of the Indian national flag evolution started in 1906 during the national freedom struggle.

The very first time the unofficial flag was hoisted was on 7th August 1906 in Calcutta. This flag was designed by Freedom activists Sachindra Prasad Bose and Hemchandra Kanungo. They designed it with 3 horizontal strips – Red, Yellow, and Green, and Vande Mataram Written in the middle of the flag on the Yellow strip, The sun and crescent moon on the red stripe, and eight half-open lotuses on the Green strip.

In 1907, Madame Cama hoisted the second flag along with other exiled revolutionaries. It was similar to the first flag but there were some changes like the top strip had 7 stars depicting the saptarishi and it was exhibited at the socialist conference which was held in Berlin.

During the Home rule movement, Lokamanya Tilak and Dr Annie Besant hoisted the third flag which had five red and Four green strips alternatively. It depicted the seven stars arranged in saptrishi configuration. One corner was occupied by the crescent and another by the union jack.

As the Activists felt the need for the Indian flag, in 1921, Pingali Venkayya designed a flag with a spinning wheel in the middle of the flag. This flag had 2 horizontal strips of red and green colour.

During the All India Congress meeting, Gandhiji 1921, Gandhiji suggested adding a white colour strip to represent the remaining communities of India. Initially, Pingali designed red and green strips to represent Hindu and Muslim communities respectively.

In the year 1931, the Indian flag was adopted with some changes. The red colour was replaced by the deep saffron colour and the white strip was moved to the middle of the flag and chakra was placed on it. The spinning wheel was replaced by the Ashoka Chakra and the attributes of the Saffron, White, and Green colours were changed to courage, peace, and chivalry respectively. The Chakra in the middle stands for movement and growth and 24 spokes represent 24 virtues.

Size of Indian National Flag

The ratio of width and the height of the National Flag of India is 3:2 check below the specific sizes of the Flag and Ashoka Chakra declared by the Bureau of Indian Standard:

Facts about Indian National Flag

1. On 29th May 1953, the Indian flag was hoisted on Mount Everest along with the Nepalese flag and union jack.
2. The First Indian who raised the Indian flag in Foreign land was Bhikaji Rustom Cama.
3. In the year 2002, the Right to Hoist the Indian flag was declared as a Fundamental right under Article 19 (i) A of the Indian Constitution.
4. As per the flag code, The Indian Flag should be hoisted in the day time and there should be no other flag or symbol above it.
5. If there are other flags lined up along with the Indian flag, the other flags should be placed on the left of the national flag.
6. The national flag should always be taken down during the evening.
7. While in Parade, the Flag should be on marching right or at the front of the centerline, in case there is a line of other flags.
8. The National Flag and its imitations can not be used for business or trade purposes.
9. The Flag should not touch the ground or water and should not be held upside down.
10. The Indian flag is flown at Half-mast in case of mourning at the death of the Prime Minister or the President of India.
11. There are 7 National Identity elements in total and National Flag is the most important one. It is also known as National Symbol.

Indian National Flag – FAQs

Q1. When was the Indian Flag adopted?
Ans. Indian National Flag was adopted on 22nd July 1947 during a meeting of the constituent Assembly after the Britishers agreed to leave India.

Q2. What is the proportion of the size of the National flag of India and is there a fixed size of the Ashoka Chakra?
Ans. The ratio of width and the height of the National Flag of India is 3:2 and there is no fixed size of the Ashoka Chakra but there are specific sizes of the flag and the chakra declared by the Bureau of Indian Standard.

Q3. Which Articles of the Indian constitution have provisions about the handling of the National Flag of India?
Ans. Flag Code of India 2002, The Emblem and Names Act, 1950 and the prevention of insults of National Honor Act, 1971

Q4. What is the punishment for the people violating the provisions of the Flag code of India 2002 and the emblem and Names Act 1950?
Ans. The people violating these acts will be punished with 3 years imprisonment or a fine or both.

Q5. What is the sequence of the colors in the Indian National Flag?
Ans. The saffron color strip remains at the top and white in the middle. The green color strip remains at the bottom and the Ashoka chakra along with 24 spokes in the middle of the flag on the white strip.

Q6. What is the importance of national symbols?
Ans. The National Symbols of any country are the representations that the country presents itself as a national community in the world. The National Symbols spreads patriotism and unity among the country’s citizens. The main aim of the National symbols is to unite people through verbal, visual, and iconic symbolism.

Q7. What are the national identity elements of India?
Ans. There are 7 Indian national Identity elements – National Flag, National Anthem, National Emblem, National Animal, National Bird, National Tree, and National Flower.

Q8. Do all the nations have national identity elements?
Ans. All the nations in the world have their national identity elements according to their history and culture.