President’s Colours: Military and Police Honour

Lose this flag in battle, and a regiment carries the disgrace for generations. Capture an enemy’s version, and it becomes legend. That old rule of war still quietly governs a modern Indian honour: the President’s Colours, the highest recognition a military unit or police force can receive.

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President’s Colours: The Nishaan

India’s highest honour for a military unit or police force.

25 Jan 1950

King’s Colours laid up

All 33 laid to rest at IMA Dehradun, a day before the Republic.

27 May 1951

Navy honoured first

Indian Navy becomes the first Armed Forces branch honoured.

23 Nov 1952

UP Police honoured

First state police force honoured; still marked as UP Police’s Flag Day.

9 Aug 2026

Puducherry Police honoured

Presented by Home Minister Amit Shah at Gorimedu.

An honour that keeps spreading: Once a rare, President-only ceremony, the Colours are now presented far more often — five state police forces received theirs from the Home Minister in 2026 alone.

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Timeline

• 25 January 1950: All 33 King’s Colours held by Indian forces are formally laid up at the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun, a day before India becomes a Republic.
• 19 March 1950: The Central Reserve Police Force becomes the first Central Armed Police Force honoured, presented by Home Minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.
• 27 May 1951: The Indian Navy becomes the first Armed Forces branch to receive the President’s Colours, following naval tradition as the senior service.
• 23 November 1952: Uttar Pradesh Police becomes the first state police force honoured, presented by PM Jawaharlal Nehru at Lucknow. UP Police still marks this date as its annual Flag Day.
• 9 August 2026: Puducherry Police receives the honour, presented by Home Minister Amit Shah.

Must Know

• The President’s Colours, also called Nishaan, is the highest honour India can give a military unit, training establishment, or police force.
• It is presented by the President of India, as Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces.
• When the President cannot attend, a delegate presides instead: service chiefs for the military, or the Home Minister, Vice-President, or a state Governor for police forces.
• For a military unit, eligibility generally requires at least 25 years of distinguished service, in both war and peace.
• Police forces are judged on different criteria: discipline, bravery, professionalism, and a notable record of public-safety contribution.
• Physically, the honour takes the form of a ceremonial flag. It carries the unit’s insignia, motto, and, for military units, its recognised battle honours.
• Losing this flag in battle traditionally brought a unit lasting disgrace. Capturing an enemy’s version was considered a great honour in return.

Good to Know

• The design varies slightly by force. Infantry units receive a Colour, heavy cavalry a Standard, and light cavalry a swallow-tailed Guidon.
• Police Colours are typically simpler than military ones. They usually carry no battle honours, since police forces are not raised for combat campaigns.
• The presentation ceremony follows a fixed pattern: a full-dress parade, the national anthem, and a 21-gun salute as the President or delegate arrives.
• A centrepiece of the ceremony is the Sarvadharma Samaroh. Military chaplains from India’s major faiths, Hinduism, Sikhism, Christianity, and Islam, jointly consecrate the new Colour.
• An officer called the Nishan Adhikari formally receives the Colour on the unit’s behalf during the parade.
• The honour extends well beyond combat units. Institutions like the Indian Military Academy, the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel National Police Academy, and support corps like the Railway Protection Force have all received it.
• In 2021, Himachal Pradesh Police became the first force to receive its Colours from a state Governor, acting on the President’s behalf, rather than from the President, a minister, or a service chief directly.

Test Yourself

Please wait…

1. The President’s Colours, India’s highest honour for a military unit or police force, is also known by which name?

Nishaan

Rajmudra

Ashoka Stambh

Vijay Patra

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Great to Know

• The tradition did not begin with independent India. Regiments under the East India Company carried colours of the British Crown, later formalised as King’s Colours under the Raj.
• The underlying idea is far older than colonial India, too. Vedic and Puranic texts describe royal armies carrying dhwajs, or standards, with the same symbolic weight attached to losing or capturing one.
• Historians trace the broader practice of carrying military standards back roughly 5,000 years, to ancient Egypt.
• The honour has steadily decentralised over time. Where early presentations were near-exclusively made by the President in person, many recent state police forces, including Sikkim, Meghalaya, Odisha, Uttarakhand, and Bihar, received theirs from the Home Minister in 2026 alone.
• See GK0017 — Awards of India and GK0013 — Gallantry Awards for how this honour fits alongside India’s other major recognitions.

Current Affairs

• 9 August 2026: Union Home Minister Amit Shah presented the President’s Colour to the Puducherry Police, at the Puducherry Armed Police Ground, Gorimedu.
  • President Droupadi Murmu had approved the honour on 8 May 2026, recognising the force’s service, discipline, and distinguished achievements.
  • Director General of Police Shalini Singh, Lieutenant Governor K. Kailashnathan, and Chief Minister N. Rangasamy attended the ceremony.
  • Shah praised the force’s hard work, valour, service, and dedication in his address.
  (Source: IANS)