Tributes are pouring in for Pingali Venkayya as the nation remembers the famous freedom fighter on his death anniversary, who designed the Indian National flag. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee was among those who took to Twitter to pay rich tributes to the ‘Flagman of India’.
‘Solemnly remembering Pingali Venkayya on his death anniversary. He was the freedom fighter who is best-known for designing our national flag,’ Banerjee said in an early morning tweet. Apart from her, senior Congress leader Ashok Gehlot remembered the freedom fighter. ‘Tributes to the designer of our tricolour, Sh #PingaliVenkayya, on his death anniversary. He was a freedom fighter and an educationist, who has been immortalised through his creation of our #NationalFlag,’ Gehlot tweeted.
On his 55th death anniversary, here are five facts you must know about Pingali Venkayya:
1: Pingali Venkayya , a Gandhian contemporary ,a great patriot, the designer of the Indian National Flag was also a linguist, a geologist and a writer.
2: Venkayya joined the British Army at a young age of 19 and took part in the Anglo-Boer war in Africa. During this time he met Mahatma Gandhi and formed an association with the leader which lasted for more than 50 years.
3: His admirers used to call him with titles such as Japan Venkayya,Patti (cotton) Venkayya, Janada Venkayya etc for his valuable contribution to different fields.
4: The National Flag designed by Venkayya was unanimously agreed upon and considered in the presence of Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi in the Congress Committee meeting held in Vijayawada on March 31st and April 1st 1921.
5: His last desire of seeing ‘Tiranga’ flutter atop the ramparts of the Red Fort remained unfulfilled because his family did not have the financial means to take him to Delhi. Decades after his death in 1963, Venkayya was also honoured with a postage stamp in 2009 for his contribution towards Indian freedom struggle.
