News Insights · August 3, 2025 · 2 minutes read
On 2 August 2025, Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tribute to Shri Pingali Venkayya on his birth anniversary, honouring his foundational role in the creation of the Indian National Flag.
Venkayya served in the British Indian Army and participated in the Second Boer War (1899–1902). Witnessing Indian soldiers saluting the Union Jack inspired his vision for a national flag for India. After attending the 1906 AICC session in Calcutta, he opposed the British flag’s use at Congress meetings.
In 1916, he published Bharatha Desaniki Oka Jatiya Patakam (A National Flag for India), proposing several flag designs. During the 1921 AICC session in Vijayawada, Mahatma Gandhi asked him to submit a design. Venkayya presented a flag with red and green stripes representing Hindus and Muslims. On Gandhi’s suggestion, a white stripe was added to represent peace and harmony between communities, along with a spinning wheel to illustrate the progress of the country.
Venkayya’s flag was extensively used at Congress meetings starting from 1921. In 1931, Congress adopted a new flag designed by Pingali Venkayya with some modifications. It had three colours: saffron, white, and green. Ultimately, this flag became the basis for the national flag adopted on 22 July 1947 by the Constituent Assembly.
In 2009, a postage stamp was issued in his honour, and in 2012, he was recommended for a posthumous Bharat Ratna, though no formal decision followed.
Source: PIB
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