India // National Flag / 1947 to 1951
This national flag of India (ZFC1167) is a very early example of the national flag adopted in its present from by the Indian Constituent Assembly held on 22 July 1947, when it became the official flag of the Dominion of India. The flag was subsequently retained as that of the Republic of India.
The national flag of India is a tri-color (Tiranga) of deep saffron (Kesari) at the top, white in the middle and dark green at the bottom in equal proportions. The ratio of the width to the length of the flag is two is to three. In the centre of the white band, there is a wheel in navy blue to indicate the Dharma Chakra, the wheel of law in the Ashoka Lion Capital at Sarnath. This center symbol or the Chakra, is a Buddhist symbol dating back to 200th century BC.
The flag symbolizes freedom. The late Prime Minister Pandit Nehru said, it a flag not only of freedom for ourselves, but a symbol of freedom for all people.
It is derived from the flag of the Indian National Congress (INC), founded in 1885 with the objective of obtaining a greater share in government for educated Indians, the Indian National Congress was initially not opposed to British rule; in time, however, the demands of Indian National Congress became more radical in the face of constant opposition from the British government, and the party became very active in, and eventually assumed leadership in the independence movement
The INC flag was based on a flag designed by Mahatmas Gandhi. Gandhis original flag was white, red, and green horizontal stripes over which was placed am image of a traditional Indian spinning wheel. The red stood for Hindus, the green for Moslems and white for other religious minorities, the spinning wheel was reminiscent of his communal movement.
This evolved into the INC Swaraj (self rule) flag, which was first hoisted by INC President Jawaharlal Nehru on December 31, 1929.Ultimately the colors were rearranged and became saffron, white and green with the Ashoka Chakra, a wheel representing the impermanent things of the life are the 24 spokes, while the spiritually permanent thing, the truth, always remains the center. This replaced the communal spinning wheel. Subsequently, to avoid sectarian associations with the color scheme, officially represent courage and sacrifice, peace and truth, and faith and chivalry respectively.
The construction details, fabric and markings indicate that this was an early flag; made sometime after independence in 1947 and before the establishment specifications in 1951. These first official specifications for the flag were promulgated by the Indian Standards Institute (now the Bureau of Indian Standards or BIS) after India became a republic.
The Chakra is a pre-specification variant design, printed on a separate piece of fabric and joined to the center white stripe, which was then joined to the top and bottom stripes. This type of construction is seen only on the very early flags; when only a few were made. Eventually, to facilitate mass production, the chakra would simply be printed, or embroidered directly upon the white band, eliminating considerable sewing. The fabric is wool, typical of that woven with Pepys marks or bewpers, typical of flag bunting woven in the British Isles. The markings on the hoist Mackie are likely a reference to Bridge Mackie International, formerly a Northern Ireland textile company.
Currently the national flag of India, by law, is to be officially made of khadi, a special type of hand-spun cloth of cotton, silk or wool made popular by Mahatma Gandhi. The manufacturing process and specifications for the flag are laid out by the Bureau of Indian Standards.
ZFC Important Flag
