Standards for the standard

THE Bureau of Indian Standards has laid down precise guidelines for the manufacture of the national flag, with different sets of guidelines for cotton khadi, silk and woollen flags.

The standard for handspun and handwoven cotton khadi bunting was first published in 1951. It lays down, in minute detail, the specifications for the design and construction of each and every part of the flag.

The ratio of the length to the breadth should be 3:2. There are nine permitted sizes, specified in millimetres, and a deviation from the norm of only plus or minus two per cent (or 0.5 mm, whichever is greater) is tolerated. Similarly, dimensions are laid down for the Ashoka Chakra, wooden toggle, hemp cord, and loop. There is a choice of five species of wood to be used for the toggle. The method for determining the breaking load of the cord has been laid down.

The spectrophotometric values of the colours, Indian saffron (kesari), India green and the chakra's navy blue, have been tabulated for the manufacturer's reference, as also the quality test for colour fastness and shrinkage of the cloth.

The yarn used for the manufacture of the khadi bunting should be handspun, and the yarn count for the cloth's warp and weft has been prescribed. The quality and colour of cotton sewing thread used for the saffron, white, and green panels, and the type of stitching used to attach the panel together, have also been laid down.

The Ashoka Chakra of the prescribed design must be either printed, stencilled or embroidered and positioned exactly in the centre of the white panel on both sides of the flag.

Gadag in northern Karnataka is the only place where cotton khadi for the flag is woven according to specifications, and is certified by the Indian Standards Institute.

Chairman of the Karnatak Khadi Gramodyog Samyukta Sangh Federation in Hubli, Mr. B. S. Patil, points out that the 50th year of Independence saw a relaxation of controls over the flag's manufacture and plastic flags began to make their appearance. "People throw away plastic flags into the dustbin," he says. "It is an insult to the country's honour."

According to the Prevention of Insult to National Honour Act, 1971, whoever "defaces, defiles, disfigures, destroys, tramples upon the flag could be imprisoned for up to three years or with fine or both".

C.K.M.

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