JOIN USA massive National Flag was hoisted atop a 207-ft-tall mast at the National Military Memorial on T Chowdaiah Road near Raj Bhavan on Thursday.
Said to be the tallest and the biggest in the country, the flag weighs 31 kg and measures 72 feet long and 48 feet wide. Made from weather-proof knitted polyester fabric, Deneir Polyester, the flag’s 21-spoke Ashoka Chakra has been painted using specialised printing.
As Governor H R Bhardwaj unfurled the tri-colour by pressing a remote button, people watched it fluttering violently in the air, with a sense of awe and patriotism.
Lok Sabha member and industrialist Naveen Jindal, who fought a decade-long legal battle in the Supreme Court to include the hoisting of the National Flag as a fundamental right, was also present at the ceremony.
Recalling his struggle, he said his stay in the United States of America had inspired him to allow every Indian to hoist the tri-colour.
“In the US, there is no restriction on hoisting their flag. I was even allowed to hoist our flag there. But in India, the citizens were not supposed to hoist their country’s flag. I took up the case with the apex court, which passed an order on January 23, 2004, in my favour,” said Jindal.
Governor Bhardwaj recalled how the National Flag helped in shaping the freedom struggle in the country.
The programme was sponsored by Naveen Jindal’s Flag Foundation of India and co-sponsored by Namma Bengaluru Foundation.
The concept of hoisting the National Flag at such a great height is known as ‘Monumental Flag.’ India imbibed the idea from countries such as North Korea, Brazil, Jordan, Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Turkmenistan and Malaysia. The special feature of ‘monumental flags’ is they are never lowered at the sunset, as they are adequately illuminated.