NAVAL ENSIGN

NAVAL ENSIGN

On India attaining Independence, the Royal Indian Navy consisted of 32 ageing vessels suitable only for coastal patrol, along with 11,000 officers and men. The prefix was dropped on January 26, 1950 with India being constituted as aRepublic. On September 2, 2022 Indian Navy adopted an Indian ensign (Niishaan). This was unveiled by the Prime Minister at the commissioning ceremony of thefirst indigenously built aircraft carrier INS Vikrant at Cochin Shipyard Limted and dedicated it to Chhatrapati Shivaji. Resonant to the ongoing nationalendeavour to move away from colonial past, need was felt to transition to a new design that drew inspiration from our history. The White Ensign identified nationwide with the Navy, now comprises of two main constituents - the National Flag in the upper left canton, and a Navy Blue - Gold octagon at the centre of the fly side (away from the staff). The Octagon is with twin golden octagonal borders encompassing the golden National Emblem (Lion Capital of Ashoka - underscribed with ‘Satyamev Jayate’ in blue Devnagri script) resting atop an anchor and superimposed on a shield. Below the shield, within the octagon, in a golden bordered ribbon, on a navy-blue background, is inscribed the motto of the Indian Navy ‘Sam No Varunah’ in golden Devanagari script. The design encompassed within the octagon has been taken from the Indian Naval crest, wherein the fouled anchor, which is also associated with colonial legacy, has been replaced with a clear anchor underscoring the steadfastness of the Indian Navy. The National Emblem and the Anchor are put in an octagonal border to represent eight directions, symbolising the multi-directional reach and multi-dimensional operational capability of the Indian Navy. The border is an offtake from the Roya Seal of Chhatrapati Shivaji.