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.
✊ Must Know
1. What the Honour Is, and Who Presents It
- Definition The President’s Colours, also called Nishaan, is the highest honour India can give a military unit, training establishment, or police force.
- Presenter 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.
- Eligibility 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.
- Design 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.
- Battle Loss 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
2. Design, Ceremony, and a Decentralising Tradition
- Variants The design varies slightly by force. Infantry units receive a Colour, heavy cavalry a Standard, and light cavalry a swallow-tailed Guidon.
- Police Design Police Colours are typically simpler than military ones. They usually carry no battle honours, since police forces are not raised for combat campaigns.
- Ceremony 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 is the Sarvadharma Samaroh, where military chaplains from India’s major faiths jointly consecrate the new Colour. An officer called the Nishan Adhikari formally receives it on the unit’s behalf.
- Recipients 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.
- Precedent 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
Question 1 of 1
💎 Great to Know
3. A 5,000-Year-Old Tradition, in Modern India
- Origin 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. On 25 January 1950, all 33 King’s Colours held by Indian forces were formally laid up at the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun, a day before India became a Republic.
- Ancient Roots 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.
- Data 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.
- Link See GK0017 — Awards of India and GK0013 — Gallantry Awards for how this honour fits alongside India’s other major recognitions.
📰 Current Affairs
4. Current Affairs: Puducherry Police’s 2026 Honour
- Data 9 August 2026: Union Home Minister Amit Shah presented the President’s Colour to the Puducherry Police, at the Puducherry Armed Police Ground, Gorimedu.
- Approval President Droupadi Murmu had approved the honour on 8 May 2026, recognising the force’s service, discipline, and distinguished achievements.
- Attendees 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.
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