MPs Go On Morning Bike Ride In Delhi To Launch Har Ghar Tiranga 2.0

The "Har Ghar Tiranga" campaign, launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi last year to commemorate the 75th anniversary of Indian Independence, kicked off again this year with a bike rally in Delhi by Members of Parliament. MPs and ministers gathered at Pragati Maidan with tricolour flags on their bikes to encourage public participation. Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar flagged it off this morning around 8 am.

The bike rally reached the India Gate circle. It then moved in a circle around the India Gate complex, crossing the Kartavya Path and culminated at the Major Dhyan Chand Stadium.

The campaign, in which people will be encouraged to hoist the national flag at their homes, will be celebrated across the country from August 13 to August 15, as part of the "Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav" -- the government's initiative to mark 75 years of India's Independence.

The campaign was a resounding success last year, with crores of families hoisting the tricolour at their homes, and six crore people uploading selfies on the Har Ghar Tiranga website.

This initiative by the government aims to bring in focus on the freedom struggle, and the milestones this nation has achieved, the culture ministry has said.

"The idea behind the campaign is to instil the feeling of patriotism in the hearts of people and reminisce the journey of India and those who have contributed towards creating this great nation. Last year, this campaign witnessed immense success wherein crores of households hoisted the 'Tiranga' at their homes physically and six crore people uploaded selfies on 'Har Ghar Tiranga' website," it said.

This year, India Post is selling and facilitating the national flag through its 1.6 lakh post offices to celebrate 'Har Ghar Tiranga' campaign, the government said earlier.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had also urged citizens last year to use 'Tiranga' as their profile picture on social media accounts between August 2 and August 15.

Earlier, Indian citizens were not allowed to hoist the National Flag except on selected occasions. This changed after a decade-long legal battle by industrialist Naveen Jindal culminated in the landmark Supreme Court judgement of January 23, 2004, that declared that the right to fly the National Flag freely with respect and dignity is a fundamental right of an Indian citizen within the meaning of Article 19(1) (a) of the Constitution of India.