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Indian Navy Flags

War Ensign
Second Series Rank Flags (2001 series, in use until 2004)

See also:

Currently Used Rank Flags (2004 series)
First series Rank Flags (first series, circa 1950-2001)
India
Military Flags
Index of Indian pages

War Ensign 2001-2004

by Jan Oskar Engene, 6 August 2001

According to the Indian Navy, President Narayanan has approved a new war ensign as well as set of new flags for flag officer in the Indian Navy. The change will come into effect on 15 August 2001.

The changes are set out in a document called Naval ensign, distinguishing flags and pendants. Design & proportion published by the Indian Navy and distributed through its web site. As before, the war ensign consists of a white field with the Indian national flag in the canton, but it now bears the Indian Naval Crest without scroll instead of the old red cross throughout. The Indian Naval Crest consists of the Ashoka emblem, a foul anchor and a shield, and is in navy blue colour. In proportion, the new war ensign of India is 2:3. By replacing the red cross, known as the St. Georges Cross, India breaks with a British naval tradition with respect to war ensigns. Though the Indian war ensign is still a white ensign, it now features the national emblem, the Ashoka emblem with the three lions standing on a platform containing a chakra, a horse and a bull.
Jan Oskar Engene, 6 August 2001

2001-2004 Naval Rank Flags

The navy blue Indian Naval Crest is also found in the flags of flag officer's. These are generally speaking 2:3 in the ratio and made up of a white field bordered in navy blue, with the Indian Naval Crest set towards the hoist and a varying number of stars according to rank in the free end: