PIB TrackerThe man who gave India its Tricolour, at 150
The Prime Minister paid tributes to freedom fighter Pingali Venkayya on his 150th birth anniversary, remembering his role in giving the nation the flag that became the Tiranga.
What happened
- The PM paid tributes to Pingali Venkayya on his 150th birth anniversary.
- Venkayya is remembered for his role in giving the nation the Tricolour.
- He presented his flag design to Mahatma Gandhi at the 1921 Vijayawada Congress session.
- Gandhi suggested adding a white band and a spinning wheel to the original red and green.
- The Constituent Assembly adopted the national flag on 22 July 1947, with the Ashoka Chakra.
For Prelims
- Pingali Venkayya: born 2 August 1876 (Andhra Pradesh); designed the flag that became the Tricolour.
- 1921 Vijayawada session: he presented the design to Gandhi; originally red and green for two communities.
- Gandhi's additions: a white band for the rest of India and the charkha for self-reliance.
- 1931: the Congress adopted the saffron, white and green flag with the charkha.
- 22 July 1947: the Constituent Assembly adopted the national flag, replacing the charkha with the Ashoka Chakra (24 spokes).
- Legal frame: the Flag Code of India and the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, 1971.
For UPSC: A modern-history and national-symbols item. Use it for the freedom struggle's symbolism, the evolution of the national flag from 1921 to 1947, the Constituent Assembly's decisions on symbols, and the Flag Code and the 1971 Act.
What it is NOT: This is a commemorative tribute on a birth anniversary — not a change to the Flag Code or to how the national flag may be used.
For Mains
Syllabus: GS1.3 · GS2.1 · Linkage L1
Anchor
A flag designed by a schoolteacher became the emblem a republic salutes.
Substantiation (data)
Pingali Venkayya, born 2 August 1876, presented his design to Gandhi at the 1921 Vijayawada Congress session; the Constituent Assembly adopted the national flag on 22 July 1947.
Exemplification
The evolution from red-and-green to saffron-white-green with the charkha, and finally the Ashoka Chakra, tracks the widening of the national movement itself.
Problematisation
Symbols carry meaning only when the values behind them are practised, not merely displayed.
Way-forward
Pair commemoration with civic education on the Flag Code and the constitutional values the Tricolour represents.
Position
The Tricolour's history is a reminder that national symbols were built by inclusion, not imposition.
Deploys into: Freedom struggle + Constitution (GS1.3, GS2.1) · the evolution of the national flag, Constituent Assembly decisions on symbols, and the Flag Code and 1971 Act.
Prime Minister's Office · 2026-08-02 · PRID 2293516 · PIB source ↗