Gwalior: As the nation is set to celebrate its 72nd Republic Day, the National Flag has hit the market and is being sold everywhere across the country.
Production of the National Flag may be a temporary affair, particularly in the run-up to the Independence Day or the Republic Day, for thousands of units across the country, but for a factory in Gwalior, it's an activity all year round.
The National Flag, which is the identity of our country in the world has been manufactured since decades at the Central Indian Khadi Union Centre.
The centre oversees the whole process from the knitting of the flag to insertion of the thread which ties it to the poles. The head of the centre also stated that every flag needs a period of 5-6 days to be ready. He also said that it gave them great pride that the flags made in Gwalior adorn various defence buildings too.
Speaking to ETV Bharat, Neelu, Manager, Flag Maker Unit, said, "Currently, the units are preparing flags for the upcoming Republic Day celebrations. Flags made here shall reach more than a dozen states including MP, Bihar, UP, Gujrat, Rajasthan and other 18 states of the country. For the celebration of Republic Day, 18 lakh tricolours have been supplied by the Central India Khadi Association."
"But this time the supply of flags are much less than before and it is most affected by the coronavirus. Due to the pandemic, the flag sales have been affected," she added.
"Even the thread for the flag is prepared painstakingly by hand, at the centre. Currently, the centre prepares three kinds of flags(2 X 3 feet), (4X 6 feet) and the largest type is prepared to fulfil around 75-85 orders annually, from different states. About 10- 12 thousand flags are produced here per year and about 17-18 lakh flags have been supplied already," said Brijmohan Parihar, President, Central India Khadi Sangh.
"In the year 2020, due to Corona infection, the Central India Food Association of Gwalior had seen a lot of problems while manufacturing flags. Production was reduced by 40%, causing a loss of around Rs 30 lakh. Overdue to Corona infection, there has been a significant decline, but it is expected that the situation is becoming normal in the coming times," he added.
Notably, the centre had been established in 1925 as the ‘Charkha Association’ and that in 1956 it was renamed as the Central India Food Corporation. He finally stated that for any Khadi association it is very tough to prepare flags as all buyers have their own specifications of quality and quantity which have to be taken care of.
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