| National Flag |
|
The National Flag
is a horizontal tricolour
of deep saffron (kesaria)
at the top, white
in the middle and
dark green at the
bottom in equal proportion.
The ratio of width
of the flag to its
length is two to three.
In the centre of the
white band is a navy-blue
wheel which represents
the chakra. Its design
is that of the wheel
which appears on the
abacus of the Sarnath
Lion Capital of Ashoka.
Its diameter approximates
to the width of the
white band and it
has 24 spokes. The
design of the National
Flag was adopted by
the Constituent Assembly
of India on 22 July
1947.
Apart from non-statutory
instructions issued
by the Government
from time to time,
display of the National
Flag is governed
by the provisions
of the Emblems and
Names (Prevention
of Improper Use)
Act, 1950 (No. 12
of 1950) and the
Prevention of Insults
to National Honour
Act, 1971 (No. 69
of 1971). The Flag
Code of India, 2002
is an attempt to
bring together all
such laws, conventions,
practices and instructions
for the guidance
and benefit of all
concerned. |
|
|
| The
Flag Code of India, 2002,
took effect from 26 January
2002 and superseded the
‘Flag Code—Indias'
as it existed. As per the
provisions of the Flag Code
of India, 2002, there are
no restriction on the display
of the National Flag by
members of general public,
private organisations, educational
institutions, etc., except
to the extent provided in
the Emblems and Names (Prevention
of Improper Use) Act, 1950
and the Prevention of Insults
to National Honour Act,
1971 and any other law enacted
on the subject. |
|
|
|
| State Emblem |
|
The state emblem is
an adaptation from
the Sarnath Lion Capital
of Ashoka. In the
original, there are
four lions, standing
back to back, mounted
on an abacus with
a frieze carrying
sculptures in high
relief of an elephant,
a galloping horse,
a bull and a lion
separated by intervening
wheels over a bell-shaped
lotus. Carved out
of a single block
of polished sandstone,
the Capital is crowned
by the Wheel of the
Law (Dharma Chakra)
.
In the state emblem,
adopted by the Government
of India on 26 January
1950, only three
lions are visible,
the fourth being
hidden from view.
The wheel appears
in relief in the
centre of the abacus
with a bull on right
and a horse on left
and the outlines
of other wheels
on extreme right
and left. The bell-shaped
lotus has been omitted.
The words Satyameva
Jayate from Mundaka
Upanishad , meaning
'Truth Alone Triumphs',
are inscribed below
the abacus in Devanagari
script. |
|
|
|
|
| National Anthem |
| The
song Jana-gana-mana, composed
originally in Bengali by
Rabindranath Tagore, was
adopted in its Hindi version
by the Constituent Assembly
as the National Anthem of
India on 24 January 1950.
It was first sung on 27
December 1911 at the Calcutta
Session of the Indian National
Congress. The complete song
consists of five stanzas.
The first stanza contains
the full version of the
National Anthem:
Jana-gana-mana-adhinayaka,
jaya he
Bharata-bhagya-vidhata.
Punjab-Sindh-Gujarat-Maratha
Dravida-Utkala-Banga
Vindhya-Himachala-Yamuna-Ganga
Uchchala-Jaladhi-taranga.
Tava shubha name jage,
Tava shubha asisa mange,
Gahe tava jaya gatha,
Jana-gana-mangala-dayaka
jaya he
Bharata-bhagya-vidhata.
Jaya he, jaya he, jaya
he,
Jaya jaya jaya, jaya he!
Playing time of the full
version of the national
anthem is approximately
52 seconds. A short version
consisting of the first
and last lines of the
stanza (playing time approximately
20 seconds) is also played
on certain occasions.
The following is Tagore's
English rendering of the
anthem:
Thou
art the ruler of the minds
of all people,
dispenser of India's destiny.
Thy name rouses the hearts
of Punjab, Sind,
Gujarat and Maratha,
Of the Dravida and Orissa
and Bengal;
It echoes in the hills
of the Vindhyas and Himalayas,
mingles in the music of
Jamuna and Ganges and
is
chanted by the waves of
the Indian Sea.
They pray for thy blessings
and sing thy praise.
The saving of all people
waits in thy hand,
thou dispenser of India's
destiny.
Victory, victory, victory
to thee.
|
|
|
|
| National Song |
|
The song Vande Mataram,
composed in Sanskrit by
Bankimchandra Chatterji,
was a source of inspiration
to the people in their struggle
for freedom. It has an equal
status with Jana-gana-man
a. The first political occasion
when it was sung was the
1896 session of the Indian
National Congress. The following
is the text of its first
stanza:
Vande
Mataram!
Sujalam, suphalam, malayaja
shitalam,
Shasyashyamalam, Mataram!
Shubhrajyotsna pulakitayaminim,
Phullakusumita drumadala
shobhinim,
Suhasinim sumadhura bhashinim,
Sukhadam varadam, Mataram!
The English translation
of the stanza rendered
by Sri Aurobindo in prose
1 is:
I
bow to thee, Mother,
richly-watered, richly-fruited,
cool with the winds of
the south,
dark with the crops of
the harvests,
The Mother!
Her nights rejoicing in
the glory of the moonlight,
her lands clothed beautifully
with her trees in flowering
bloom,
sweet of laughter, sweet
of speech,
The Mother, giver of boons,
giver of bliss.
|
|
|
|
| National Calendar |
|
The national calendar based
on the Saka Era, with Chaitra
as its first month and a
normal year of 365 days
was adopted from 22 March
1957 along with the Gregorian
calendar for the following
official purposes:
(i)
Gazette of India,
(ii) news broadcast by
All India Radio,
(iii) calendars issued
by the Government of India
and
(iv) Government communications
addressed to the members
of the public.
Dates of the national
calendar have a permanent
correspondence with dates
of the Gregorian calendar,
1 Chaitra falling on 22
March normally and on
21 March in leap year. |
|
|
|
| National Animal |
The magnificent tiger,
Panthera tigris is
a striped animal.
It has a thick yellow
coat of fur with dark
stripes. The combination
of grace, strength,
agility and enormous
power has earned the
tiger its pride of
place as the national
animal of India. Out
of eight races of
the species known,
the Indian race, the
Royal Bengal Tiger,
is found throughout
the country except
in the north-western
region and also in
the neighbouring countries,
Nepal, Bhutan and
Bangladesh. To check
the dwindling population
of tigers in India,
‘Project Tiger'
was launched in April
1973. So far, 27 tiger
reserves have been
established in the
country under this
project, covering
an area of 37,761
sq km.
|
|
|
|
|
|
| National Bird |
|
The Indian peacock,
Pavo cristatus, the
national bird of India,
is a colourful, swan-sized
bird, with a fan-shaped
crest of feathers,
a white patch under
the eye and a long,
slender neck. The
male of the species
is more colourful
than the female, with
a glistening blue
breast and neck and
a spectacular bronze-green
train of around 200
elongated feathers.
The female is brownish,
slightly smaller than
the male and lacks
the train. The elaborate
courtship dance of
the male, fanning
out the tail and preening
its feathers is a
gorgeous sight. |
|
|
|
|
| National Flower
|
|
Lotus (Nelumbo Nucipera
Gaertn) is the National
Flower of India. It
is a sacred flower
and occupies a unique
position in the art
and mythology of ancient
India and has been
an auspicious symbol
of Indian culture
since time immemorial.
India is rich in
flora. Currently
available data place
India in the tenth
position in the
world and fourth
in Asia in plant
diversity. From
about 70 per cent
geographical area
surveyed so far,
47,000 species of
plants have been
described by the
Botanical Survey
of India (BSI).
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
