The inspiring story behind the symbol of the National Flag

Our national flag-called Tiranga meaning tricolour was adopted on July 22, 1947 by the constituent assembly. It is made from khadi which is domestically spun Indian

Our national flag-called Tiranga meaning tricolour was adopted on July 22, 1947 by the constituent assembly. It is made from khadi which is domestically spun Indian cotton as a symbol of nationalism and freedom. It has three equal horizontal bands. The top band consists is saffron which represents strength and courage. The middle part is white which denotes honesty, purity and peace of the nation. The bottom is green indicating the prosperity, fertility and growth.

HT Image

The chakra contains 24 equally spaced spokes. According to the Hindu religion, 24 Rishis wielded the whole power of the Gayatri mantra containing 24 letters. All the 24 spokes of the Dharma chakra are the representation of the 24 rishis of the Himalayas in which Vishvamitra is first and Yajnavalkya the last. The Ashoka chakra is also known as Samay chakra in which the 24 spokes represent 24 hours of the day and is the symbol of the movement of the time. The Ashoka Chakra is rendered in navy blue on a white background replacing the symbol of the charkha of the pre-independence version of the flag. The chakra signifies that there is life in movement and death in stagnation. It represents the dynamism of a peaceful change. India should not resist the change. It must move and go forward. Happy Independence day. Jai Hind!

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