English
August 15, 1947, was the day India was reborn as a free nation. People across the country celebrated with joy, waving the national flag and marking the end of British rule. For the first time, the tricolour became the proud symbol of an independent India. But what many are not aware that the very first official flag hoisting on Independence Day did not take place in Delhi. Instead, it took place in a different city.
India’s first official flag hoisting
On the morning of August 15, 1947, at around 5:30 a.m., as the first rays of the sun lit up the sky, India’s first official flag hoisting took place at Fort St. George in Chennai (then called Madras). This was the same place where the British had set up their biggest headquarters in South India.
For this historic moment, a special tricolour was made, 12 feet long and 8 feet wide, crafted from silk.
Independence and the transfer of power were not limited to Delhi alone; they were happening across the nation at the same time. Raising the tricolour at the British stronghold in the south became a powerful symbol of India’s freedom.
This historic flag is still preserved in the Fort Museum in Chennai. It is kept in a special airtight glass case to protect it from damage over time, with silica gel placed nearby to maintain its condition.
When was the Tricolour first hoisted at the Red Fort?
Although the Prime Minister hoists the tricolour at the Red Fort every Independence Day now, this was not the case in 1947. On August 15, 1947, India’s first Prime Minister, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, raised the national flag at Princess Park near India Gate in Delhi. That same night, he delivered his historic “Tryst with Destiny” speech at the Parliament House.
Since then, it has become a tradition for the Prime Minister to unfurl the flag and address the nation from the Red Fort every year on August 15.
