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Flag of India

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The Indian National Flag is also known as the tiranga, which in Sanskrit means tricolor.

Saffron, White and Green

Indian National Flag - "tiranga"

The Indian National Flag is a horizontal tricolor of saffron at the top, white in the middle and green at the bottom. The ratio of the width of the flag to its length is 2:3. The center of the white band consists of a navy blue wheel, known as the chakra. It is also known as the Ashoka Chakra. The diameter of the chakra approximates to the width of the white band and has twenty-four spokes. The official adaptation of the flag requires it to be on a cotton, silk or woolen cloth and the for the yarn to be handspun.

The Indian National Flag was adopted by the Constituent Assembly during an ad hoc meeting on July 22, 1947.

Display and use of the flag are strictly enforced by the Indian Flag Code.

Proper Display of the Tiranga

  • Wherever the Tiranga is flown, it should occupy the position of honour and be distinctly placed.
  • Where the practice is to fly the Tiranga on any public building, it shall be flown on that building on all days,including Sundays & Holidays. It shall be flown from sunrise to sunset irrespective of weather conditions.The flag may be flown on such a building at night also, but this should be only on very special occasions.
  • The Tiranga shall always be hoisted briskly and lowered slowly and ceremoniously. When the hoisting and the lowering of the flag is accompanied by appropriate bugle calls, the hoisting and lowering should be simultaneous with the bugle calls.
  • When the Tiranga is displayed from a staff projecting horizontally or at an angle from windowsill, balcony, or front of a building, the saffron band shall be at the farther end of the staff.
  • When the Tiranga is displayed flat and horizontal on a wall, the saffron band shall be uppermost and when displayed vertically, the saffron band shall be to the right with reference to the Flag, i.e it may be to the right of a person facing it.
  • When displayed over the middle of a street, running east-west or north-south, the Tiranga shall be suspended vertically with the saffron to the north, or to the east as the case may be.
  • When the Tiranga is displayed on a speaker's platform, it shall be flown on a staff on the speaker's right as he faces the audience or flat against the wall above and behind the speaker.
  • When used on occasions like the unveiling of a statue, the Tiranga shall be displayed distinctly and separately.
  • When the Tiranga is displayed alone on a motorcar, it shall be flown from staff which should be affixed firmly to the car in the middle front of the bonnet.
  • When the Tiranga is carried in a procession or a parade, it shall be either on the marching right, that is the Flag's own right, or if there is a line of other flags, in front of the centre of the line.

Pledge

In pledging allegiance to the National Flag, the following pledge is repeated while standing, with folded hands.

"I,... pledge allegiance to the National-Flag and to the Sovereign Democratic Republic for which it stands."


Flag code amendment

As of January 15, 2002, citizens of India could hoist the tiranga through out the year. Earlier they could only do so on special days such as the Republic Day and Independence Day. While the Supreme Court had observed that restrictions of flying the national flag appeared prima facie unsustainable, the Delhi High Court had ruled that the display of the tiranga was part of the fundamental right to freedom of expression.

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