The grand ceremony was held to celebrate the 152nd birth anniversary of the Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi alongwith ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’, commemorating 75th anniversary of India’s Independence, reports Asian Lite News
On the occasion of Gandhi Jayanti on Saturday, the world’s largest National Flag made of Khadi cotton fabric was unfurled at Leh.
The Monumental Khadi National Flag has been prepared by the Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) to pay the highest respects to Mahatma Gandhi, who gifted Khadi, the most eco-friendly fabric, to the world.
The flag was unveiled by Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh RK Mathur, who said the Monumental National Flag would bind every Indian together with the patriotic spirit.
Chairman KVIC Vinai Kumar Saxena, MP from Ladakh JT Namgyal and Chief of Army Staff General MM Narawane were present on the occasion.
The Monumental National Flag measures 225 feet long, 150 feet wide and weighs (approx.) 1400 kg.
Making of this monumental National Flag has created nearly 3,500 man hours of additional work for Khadi artisans and allied workers.
A whopping 4600 meters of hand-spun, hand-woven Khadi cotton bunting has been used in making the flag which covers the total area of 33,750 square feet.
The Ashok Chakra in the flag measures a diameter of 30 feet.
It took 49 days for 70 Khadi artisans to prepare this flag.
KVIC has conceptualized and prepared the flag to celebrate “Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav”, the 75 years of Independence.
Since, handling and displaying the National Flag of this dimension required utmost care and precision, KVIC has handed over the flag to the Indian Army. The Army has displayed the flag on a hilltop in the main Leh city.
The Army has prepared a frame to display the flag so that it does not touch the ground.
The flag has been divided into 9 equal parts weighing 100 kg each and each part measures 50 x 75 feet.
Nefa has been provided on all four sides that contains 12 mm rope.
A total of 12 high quality nylon ropes – i.e. 3 ropes each on top & bottom sides and 3 ropes on left & right sides have been provided with the breaking load capacity of approx. 3000 Kgs.
Further, each rope has a loop on both the ends that can collectively hold the weight of the flag. These parts have been stitched together to make the flag and joints have been stitched in such way that the ropes inside the nefa will remain invisible.
The inner lining of nefa is made of chemically coated Khadi bunting that reduces the friction from the ropes and prevent damage to the flag’s fabric. Nefa has been provided in the tri-color so as to merge with the colors of the flag. (India News Network)
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