Indian Navy is all set to get a new ensign this Friday with the commissioning of indigenous Aircraft Carrier INS Vikrant. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will unveil the new ensign while commissioning India’s first indigenous Aircraft Carrier. A statement released by Prime Minister’s Office said that the new ensign will do away with the colonial past and would be befitting India’s rich maritime heritage.
The details of the new ensign have not been shared yet but as per reports, the St George’s Cross present on the current ensign will not be present now. Following its unveiling on-board INS Vikrant, it will be subsequently used on all Indian Navy ships.
BIG: On Sept 2, PM @NarendraModi to unveil the @IndianNavy’s new ensign, which will shed the red ‘Cross of St George’, a relic of India’s colonial past. Apart from a brief period between 2001-04, the colonial cross has been a fixture in the naval ensign. pic.twitter.com/jqLRdN7ehE
— Shiv Aroor (@ShivAroor) August 30, 2022
The Indian Navy ensign has been changed 4 times previously
This is not the first time that Indian Naval ensign is being changed. It has been done 4 times in the past as well. However, St George’s Cross has remained in the ensign since Indian gained independence from the British, except during a brief period from 2001 to 2004.
St George’s Cross was removed from the naval ensign in 2001 but it was brought back in 2004.
Another step towards decolonising India
During the Independence Day speech from the Red Fort, PM Modi stressed the need of decolonising India. He called for decolonisation and urged everyone to look for the traces of slavery within and around them so that India could completely eliminate the traces of servitude.
PM Modi also pointed out that because of the colonised mindset, talent in India often gets stuck in the shackles of language. He urged the people of India to be proud of the Indian languages, whether they know them or not. As our ancestors gave those languages to the world, we should be proud of them.
Earlier, Modi government had dropped Christian hymn ‘Abide by me’ by Scottish Anglican poet Henry Francis Lyte from the Beating Retreat ceremony during Republic Day celebrations in order to add more Indian tunes to the ceremony.
The new Naval ensign is another step towards detaching India from its colonial past.
