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Lesson 1 of 8 · Static General Knowledge: Symbols, Firsts, Awards, Sports and Organisations

National Symbols of India: Flag, Emblem, Anthem, Song, Calendar and More

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The National Flag

The tricolour was adopted by the Constituent Assembly on 22 July 1947, on a resolution moved by Jawaharlal Nehru, and it is based on a design by Pingali Venkayya. It has three equal horizontal bands: deep saffron at the top, white in the middle and dark green at the bottom, and the ratio of its width to its length is 2:3. In the centre of the white band is a navy blue wheel, the Ashoka Chakra, with 24 spokes; its diameter approximates the width of the white band, and it is taken from the wheel on the abacus of the Sarnath Lion Capital. The chakra replaced the spinning wheel (charkha) that the Congress tricolour of 1931 carried. Saffron stands for strength and courage, white for peace and truth, and green for the fertility, growth and auspiciousness of the land.

Flag history and rules

The first national flag is said to have been hoisted on 7 August 1906 at Parsee Bagan Square in Calcutta, and in 1907 Madame Bhikaji Cama unfurled a flag at Stuttgart in Germany. Today the display of the flag is governed by the Flag Code of India, 2002, which came into force on 26 January 2002, and by the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, 1971. In Union of India v. Naveen Jindal (2004) the Supreme Court held that flying the flag with respect and dignity is part of the freedom of expression under Article 19(1)(a).

The State Emblem

The emblem is an adaptation of the Lion Capital of Ashoka at Sarnath, carved from polished sandstone in the 3rd century BCE and now kept in the Sarnath Museum. The original has four lions standing back to back on a circular abacus whose frieze carries an elephant, a galloping horse, a bull and a lion separated by wheels, all resting on a bell-shaped lotus. In the emblem adopted on 26 January 1950 only three lions are visible, the wheel appears in the centre of the abacus with a bull on the right and a horse on the left, and the bell-shaped lotus is left out. Below the abacus is the motto Satyameva Jayate (Truth alone triumphs) in Devanagari script, taken from the Mundaka Upanishad. Its misuse is barred by the State Emblem of India (Prohibition of Improper Use) Act, 2005.

The National Anthem

Jana Gana Mana was written in highly Sanskritised Bengali by Rabindranath Tagore. It is the first stanza of a hymn of five stanzas that was first sung on 27 December 1911 at the Calcutta session of the Indian National Congress, and Tagore himself rendered it into English in 1919 as The Morning Song of India. The Constituent Assembly adopted it as the National Anthem on 24 January 1950. The full version takes about 52 seconds to play, and a short version of the first and last lines takes about 20 seconds. Tagore also wrote Amar Sonar Bangla, the national anthem of Bangladesh.

The National Song

Vande Mataram was composed by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay in a mix of Sanskrit and Bengali (the government's own description calls it a Sanskrit composition) and appeared in his novel Anandamath (1882). Rabindranath Tagore sang it at the 1896 session of the Congress in Calcutta, and it became the rallying cry of the Swadeshi movement after the partition of Bengal in 1905. On 24 January 1950 Rajendra Prasad, as President of the Constituent Assembly, declared that it would be honoured equally with Jana Gana Mana and have equal status with it. Sri Aurobindo translated it into English prose.

The National Calendar

The Saka calendar was adopted on 22 March 1957, on the recommendation of the Calendar Reform Committee headed by Meghnad Saha, for use alongside the Gregorian calendar in the Gazette of India, All India Radio news and official communications. Its first month is Chaitra, and 1 Chaitra falls on 22 March in a normal year and on 21 March in a leap year. The Saka era begins in 78 CE, so for most of the year the Saka year is the Gregorian year minus 78. A normal year has 12 months and 365 days.

Animal, bird and the rest

The tiger (Panthera tigris) is the national animal; it replaced the lion in 1972 on the decision of the Indian Board for Wildlife (some books give April 1973), and Project Tiger was launched on 1 April 1973. The Indian peafowl (Pavo cristatus) has been the national bird since 1963 and is fully protected under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. The lotus (Nelumbo nucifera) is the national flower, the banyan (Ficus benghalensis) the national tree and the mango (Mangifera indica) the national fruit. The Ganga was declared the national river in 2008, the Gangetic river dolphin (Platanista gangetica) the national aquatic animal in 2009 and the elephant the national heritage animal in 2010. The rupee symbol, designed by D. Udaya Kumar, was approved on 15 July 2010, and the national pledge was written in Telugu by Pydimarri Venkata Subba Rao in 1962.

Exam traps

The flag (1947) is older than the emblem, anthem and song (all 1950). Satyameva Jayate comes from the Mundaka Upanishad, not the Rigveda. No game, not even hockey, has been officially declared the national game.

Key facts

Flag: adopted 22 July 1947; ratio 2:3; saffron, white and green; navy blue Ashoka Chakra with 24 spokes; based on Pingali Venkayya's design; Flag Code of India in force from 26 January 2002.
Emblem: from Ashoka's Lion Capital at Sarnath; adopted 26 January 1950; three lions visible, bull on the right and horse on the left of the wheel; motto Satyameva Jayate from the Mundaka Upanishad.
Jana Gana Mana: Rabindranath Tagore; first sung 27 December 1911 at the Calcutta Congress; adopted 24 January 1950; full version about 52 seconds, short version about 20 seconds.
Vande Mataram: Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay; from the novel Anandamath (1882); sung by Tagore at the 1896 Congress session; given equal status with the anthem on 24 January 1950.
Saka calendar: adopted 22 March 1957 on the Meghnad Saha committee's advice; first month Chaitra; 1 Chaitra = 22 March (21 March in a leap year); Saka era starts in 78 CE.
Fauna and flora: animal tiger (1972; some books say 1973), bird peacock (1963), aquatic animal Gangetic dolphin (2009), heritage animal elephant (2010); flower lotus, tree banyan, fruit mango; river Ganga (2008).
Early flags: 7 August 1906 at Parsee Bagan Square, Calcutta; Bhikaji Cama's flag at Stuttgart in 1907; Congress tricolour with the charkha in 1931; present flag 22 July 1947.
Rupee symbol approved 15 July 2010 (designed by D. Udaya Kumar); national pledge written in Telugu by Pydimarri Venkata Subba Rao (1962).

Quick revision

Flag adopted 22 July 1947, ratio 2:3, navy blue chakra with 24 spokes, Pingali Venkayya's design, Flag Code 2002; emblem from Sarnath Lion Capital, adopted 26 Jan 1950, Satyameva Jayate (Mundaka Upanishad); anthem by Tagore, first sung 27 Dec 1911, adopted 24 Jan 1950, 52 seconds; Vande Mataram from Anandamath (1882); Saka calendar 22 March 1957, first month Chaitra; tiger, peacock, lotus, banyan, mango; Ganga 2008, dolphin 2009, elephant 2010.

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