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Happy Independence Day!

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I'm sure you're enjoying the long weekend with our 70th Independence Day being celebrated on Monday. In honour of our great nation, here are some amazing facts about our Independence Day.

Other countries that celebrate their Independence on 15th August include South Korea (from Japan) in 1945, Bahrain (from UK) in 1971 & Republic Of Congo (from France) in 1960.

The national flag was hoisted first on August 7, 1906 at the Parsee Bagan Square in Calcutta. The flag was composed of horizontal strips of red, yellow and green. The red strip at the top had eight white lotuses embossed on it in a row. The green strip had a white sun on the left and a white crescent and star on the right.



The current flag has three colours in it. The top strip saffron stands for courage and sacrifice; the middle portion white for peace, truth and purity and green for faith, fertility and chivalry. The blue Ashok Chakra at the centre of the flag stands for righteousness.

On August 15, 1947, when India became free from the foreign rule, Mahatma Gandhi was in Calcutta. Gandhiji spent his day in prayers, fasting and spinning - protesting the madness of communal hatred.

The first cabinet of India took oath on August 15th, 1947. It consisted of 13 ministers belonging to 5 different religions and also included 1 woman cabinet minister, Rajkumari Amrit Kaur (She was assigned the Ministry of Health).

When India became independent on August 15, 1947 there was no National Anthem. Even though the Bengali invocation of Jana Gana Mana was written in 1911, it was not considered as the national anthem till 1950.

The Border between India and Pakistan was drawn by a British Lawyer named Sir Cyril Radcliffe.

Every year, independence day celebrations are officially carried out at the Red Fort, Delhi - a tradition that is believed to be followed since August 15th 1947.

The first Prime Minister, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru had the privilege of hoisting the national flag & addressing the nation from the ramparts of the Red Fort 17 times.

After gaining Independence in 1947, India became a dominion: a constitutional monarchy with King George VI as its head of state. The monarchy was abolished on 26th January 1950, when India became a Republic.

Though many believe Hindi is India’s national language, India has no national language. According to article 343 of the Constitution of India, Hindi is the official language of India.

In 1947, the exchange rate was 1 rupee to 1 US dollar.

Very few are aware of the fact that khadi or hand-spun cloth is the only material allowed to be used for making the national Indian flag.
The Khadi and Village Industries Commission has certified the Karnataka Khadi Gramodyoga Samyukta Sangha based in Hubli as the sole manufacturer and supplier of the Indian flag to the entire country.

Hope you found these facts informative & interesting.

As we gear up to celebrate our independence day, I have 1 small request - if you are displaying the Indian flag, please do look after it after 15th August as well. Our national flag will always be a reflection of our pride, honour & love for the country, irrespective of whether it is Independence Day, Republic Day or just another day. Let's treat it with respect everyday.


Jai Hind!
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