Evolution of the Indian National Flag (1906-1947): From Calcutta Flag to the Ashoka Chakra
There is an interesting story behind the National Flag of India that goes back for several decades before the country gained independence. The Tricolour that is being used by Indians was not created in one go but had gone through several iterations before it became the national flag of India.
These iterations included the Calcutta Flag of 1906, Madam Bhikaji Cama’s flag in 1907, the design based on the charkha of Mahatma Gandhi and Pingali Venkayya among others, which were instrumental in creating the national flag.
On 22 July 1947, the Constituent Assembly adopted the present Tricolour where charkha was substituted with the Ashoka Chakra few days before the country gained independence.
| Flag | Year | Key Features |
| Calcutta Flag | 1906 | Green, yellow and red stripes, lotuses, sun, moon and Vande Mataram |
| Berlin Committee Flag | 1907 | Modified tricolour associated with Bhikaji Cama |
| Home Rule Flag | 1917 | Red and green stripes, seven stars and Union Jack |
| Gandhi–Venkayya Flag | 1921 | Red, green and later white with the charkha |
| Swaraj Flag | 1931 | Saffron, white and green with charkha |
| National Flag | 1947 | Saffron, white and green with the 24-spoke Ashoka Chakra |
The history of Indian flag can be traced back to the time of the Swadeshi Movement after the partition of Bengal in 1905.
There was a need for a symbol which would symbolize the emergence of the anti-colonial nationalist movement. On August 7, 1906, a flag was hoisted at Parsee Bagan Square in Calcutta, which is Kolkata today.
The flag is often called Calcutta Flag and has three horizontal strips of green, yellow and red color respectively. It had eight lotuses, “Vande Mataram” written on it and symbols of the sun and the moon.
It was an unofficial flag but it gained significance in the context of the fight for freedom.
This was followed by another important event in 1907 when Madam Bhikaji Cama hoisted an Indian flag in Stuttgart, Germany during the International Socialist Congress.
It was similar to the nationalist flag but there were changes. By this act, Indian nationalist movement gained international recognition.
She was known for being one of the earliest Indian nationalists who had raised an Indian flag abroad.
Along with the Home Rule Movement, yet another flag made an appearance.
This flag, designed in 1917, had been designed by Annie Besant and Bal Gangadhar Tilak, and contained five red and four green horizontal stripes, along with seven stars in the Saptarishi constellation and the Union Jack in the one corner of the flag.
Unlike the latter nationalistic flags of India, which stood for total independence of the country, the demand of the Home Rule Movement had been self-government or the dominion status.
It was therefore the flag, that represented the political aspirations of that time.
One of the milestones in the history of the Indian flag was the presentation of a flag by Pingali Venkayya to Mahatma Gandhi in 1921 at the Congress session in Vijayawada.
The original flag design had included the red and green colouring, which then represented two Indian communities – the Hindu and Muslim. The addition of the white colour to represent the other communities, thus uniting all Indians under one flag, had been Gandhi’s suggestion.
Another suggestion by Gandhi was to put the charkha on the flag.
Charkha stood for the economic aspect of the freedom struggle, for self-reliance and indigenous production and manufacturing.
By the beginning of the 1930s decade, there were worries that associating certain colours to certain communities might lead to the flag being perceived from the religious point of view.
The new flag, known as Swaraj, was adopted in 1931.
The flag had saffron, white and green horizontal bands, with the charkha placed in the centre. The colours became less and less associated with certain communities.
This became an essential precursor of the future national flag that was accepted in 1947.
The last important alteration of the flag occurred shortly before the Independence.
On July 22, 1947, the Constituent Assembly accepted the current Indian national flag. The same basic design of the flag with saffron, white and green bands remained; however, the charkha was changed for the Ashoka Chakra.
The idea of the Ashoka Chakra was derived from the Dharma Chakra in the Lion Capital of Ashoka in Sarnath.
The Ashoka Chakra contains 24 spokes and is placed in the centre of the white band. It brought the meaning of dharma, movement, progress and righteous conduct into the national flag.
India has an Indian national flag, which has three horizontal strips.
There is saffron colour, which is the upper strip and symbolises courage and sacrifice.
There is white in the middle strip, which represents peace and truthfulness.
Lastly, there is green colour, which is the lower strip and it represents fertility and prosperity.
Moreover, the Ashoka Chakra that is located in the middle of the white strip has navy blue colour and has 24 spokes. It stands for the continuous progress of the eternal wheel of dharma.
Most importantly, the colours of the national flag of India do not have any representation of religion.
It was formally adopted by the Constituent Assembly on 22 July 1947, just 24 days before independence of India.
The national flag of India has three equal horizontal strips of saffron, white and green, with navy blue Ashoka Chakra in the middle of the white strip.
Proportions of the Indian national flag are 2:3.
The history of Indian National Flag shows how the struggle for freedom had evolved over time.
The Calcutta Flag was designed at the time of Swadeshi Movement in 1906. Bhikaji Cama took the national flag abroad in 1907. The Home Rule Flag was yet another period in the political history of India, while the design of Gandhi and Venkayya featured the charkha which stood for self-reliance.
The Swaraj Flag of 1931 was another step toward the present flag, and lastly, the adoption of the Ashoka Chakra in place of the charkha in 1947 resulted in the national symbol we have today.
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