Colours of the national flag need standardisation
One charge levelled against P Chidambram recent remark on 'saffron terrorism' has been that 'saffron' color denotes one of the tricolors of the national flag; hence, his statement disparages the national flag.
A CHARGE levelled against home minister P Chidambram after his comment on ‘saffron terrorism’ has been that ‘saffron’ color denotes one of the tricolors of the national flag; hence, his statement causes disparage to a national symbol. The display and usage of the Indian flag is governed by the Flag Code of India, which states in clause 1.1, “The National Flag shall be a tricolor panel made up of three rectangular panels or sub-panels of equal widths. The color of the top panel shall be India saffron (Kesari) …”. Dr S. Radhakrishnan, the first vice-president of India, called the top color of the national flag to be “Bhagva or saffron”. The home ministry introduces the flag as a “horizontal tricolor of deep saffron (Kesaria) at the top…” Obviously, the official version comprises four incompatible terms, i.e. India saffron, deep saffron, Kesari and Bhagva.
An internet search regarding any standard color to be called as ‘India saffron’ is of no avail. ‘Saffron’ actually refers to the colour of dried stigma of the plant Crocus sativus. According to a professional website the carotenoid dye crocin which gives saffron its color has a rich golden-yellow hue. Wikipaedia calls it golden yellow. Himalyahealthcare defines color of the crocus stigmas as ‘orange’. Handbook of Herbs and Spices by KP Peter termed this color as bright red. According to Dr Lynette Morgan “Saffron spice consists of the dark red-gold, dried stigma of the saffron corm flower”. Ancient Indian literature defines the color of Kumkum or Ghusrun as like Rudhir, i.e. blood red. Evidently, the color of the saffron itself is also not defined. It can be anything from golden yellow to orange to blood red.
One widely used method categorizing colors is called as the RGB method, wherein various hues and shades of the three basic colors red, green and blue are made distinct and named. Accordingly, the light orange color of the flag will have the ratio of the three basic colors as 255/153/51 respectively; whereas this ratio for saffron is 244/196/48 and for Bhagva 226/80/55. Obviously, when one refers to the top color of the country’s national flag, it is not the same as saffron or Bhagva.
Mahatma Gandhi proposed a national flag with red, green and white banners, the first signifying Hindus, the second Muslims and the last one other religions. However, he moved towards a more secular interpretation of the flag colors around 1929, stating that red stood for the sacrifices of the people, white for purity and green for hope. Indeed, the religious symbolism and secular needs of the time overlapped again and again and this is still haunting Indian political circles every now and then. Unfortunately, the non-secular interpretation of colors and the alternative use of the term ‘Bhagva’ for the top band kept the flag colors beyond any objective and standard interpretation.
The experts who were assigned to write the flag code of India in various spells were swayed by identical sentiments as evident from their full treatment to Dr Radhakrishnan’s statement as a prologue of the Flag Code of India, wherein he not only termed the upper band as Bhagva but also stated that it denotes “renunciation or disinterestedness” and that Chakra depicts “the law of Dharma”, both comprising a faint reference to the Hindu traditions. The selection of the statement of this great Indian philosopher in the flag code seems selective and out of place. It is tragic that the flag code which elaborately defines the size, manufacturing process, hosting norms, etc in over 50 rules and sub-rules, hardly indicates any move away from the colonial days’ religious romanticism. The current confusion and controversy surfaced in the home minister’s saffron remark gives the nation a chance to remove ambiguity besieging the national flag by applying a scientific and secular treatment to the problem.
Understandably, Chidambaram’s remark was not an insult to the nation but it is certainly shameful for a nation not having standardised colours of its flag even after six decades of independence.
One widely used method categorizing colors is called as the RGB method, wherein various hues and shades of the three basic colors red, green and blue are made distinct and named. Accordingly, the light orange color of the flag will have the ratio of the three basic colors as 255/153/51 respectively; whereas this ratio for saffron is 244/196/48 and for Bhagva 226/80/55. Obviously, when one refers to the top color of the country’s national flag, it is not the same as saffron or Bhagva.
Mahatma Gandhi proposed a national flag with red, green and white banners, the first signifying Hindus, the second Muslims and the last one other religions. However, he moved towards a more secular interpretation of the flag colors around 1929, stating that red stood for the sacrifices of the people, white for purity and green for hope. Indeed, the religious symbolism and secular needs of the time overlapped again and again and this is still haunting Indian political circles every now and then. Unfortunately, the non-secular interpretation of colors and the alternative use of the term ‘Bhagva’ for the top band kept the flag colors beyond any objective and standard interpretation.
The experts who were assigned to write the flag code of India in various spells were swayed by identical sentiments as evident from their full treatment to Dr Radhakrishnan’s statement as a prologue of the Flag Code of India, wherein he not only termed the upper band as Bhagva but also stated that it denotes “renunciation or disinterestedness” and that Chakra depicts “the law of Dharma”, both comprising a faint reference to the Hindu traditions. The selection of the statement of this great Indian philosopher in the flag code seems selective and out of place. It is tragic that the flag code which elaborately defines the size, manufacturing process, hosting norms, etc in over 50 rules and sub-rules, hardly indicates any move away from the colonial days’ religious romanticism. The current confusion and controversy surfaced in the home minister’s saffron remark gives the nation a chance to remove ambiguity besieging the national flag by applying a scientific and secular treatment to the problem.
Understandably, Chidambaram’s remark was not an insult to the nation but it is certainly shameful for a nation not having standardised colours of its flag even after six decades of independence.
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