India is gearing up to celebrate its 74th Independence Day in 2020, where the Prime Minister will traditionally hoist the National Flag at the Red Fort. The tricolour flag of India is a symbol of pride and carries historical importance and meaning behind its design.
The Design of the Tricolour
Indian freedom fighter Pingali Venkayya largely contributed to the design of the Indian tricolour. His initial proposal for the flag included two bands of red and green, representing the two primary communities – Hindus and Muslims.
Mahatma Gandhi later suggested the inclusion of a white band to symbolize peace and other communities in India. He also recommended adding a spinning wheel as a symbol of the nation’s progress. Post his death in 1963, Venkayya was honoured with a postage stamp in 2009 and a proposed Bharat Ratna in 2014 for his significant contribution to the Indian freedom struggle.
Evolution of the Indian Flag
The first Indian national flag is believed to have been hoisted on August 7, 1906, in Kolkata. This flag contained three horizontal strips of red, yellow, and green.
In 1907, Madame Cama and her group of revolutionaries hoisted an Indian flag in Germany, marking the first incidence of the Indian flag being raised on foreign land.
During the Home Rule Movement in 1917, Dr Annie Besant and Lokmanya Tilak introduced a new flag design. Subsequently, in 1931, the Congress Committee met in Karachi and adopted the tricolour proposal by Pingali Venkayya as India’s national flag.
The Symbolism and Legal Aspects of the Flag
The colour saffron on top symbolises “strength and courage”, the white in the middle represents “peace and truth”, while the green at the bottom stands for “fertility, growth and auspiciousness of the land”. The Ashok Chakra with 24 spokes replaced the spinning wheel as the emblem on the flag, intended to depict life in movement and death in stagnation.
The legal aspect of the flag was formulated on 22nd July 1947, when the Constituent Assembly adopted the motion of the national flag. It proclaimed that the National Flag of India should be a tricolour of deep saffron, white, and dark green in equal proportion, with a navy blue wheel.
Respecting the National Symbols
As per Article 51A (a) of the Constitution, it is the duty of every Indian citizen to respect the national symbols, including the flag and the anthem. Insulting these symbols or preventing the singing of the National Anthem are considered offences, attracting a ban on contesting in the elections for six years under the The Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act of 1971.