March 2nd: Historic National Flag Hoisting Day today

BD Digest Report

On the day of the fiery March of 1971 (March 2), the Pakistani flag was lowered and the Bangladesh flag was raised in the ongoing independence struggle.

That day, the flag of Bangladesh, with a golden map in the middle of a red circle on a green background, was hoisted at Dhaka University and the Secretariat.

The first national flag hoisting ceremony was held at the Battala of the Kala Bhavan premises at Dhaka University by the then VP of DUCSU, ASM Abdur Rab.

The flag at that time was a golden map within a red circle on a green background, designed by Chhatra League leader Shiv Narayan Das.

On this fiery March day of 1971, the Pakistani flag was lowered at noon and night at Dhaka University and the Secretariat respectively, and the flag of Bangladesh, with a golden map in the middle of a red circle on a green field, was raised.

The previous day, on March 1, when the Pakistani parliament session was adjourned indefinitely, the leader of the parliamentary party, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujir Rahman, called for a non-cooperation movement for the release of Bengalis.

After that, the students responded to the initiative of the then DUCSU leaders, and the then VP of DUCSU, ASM Abdur Rab, hoisted the flag in front of everyone. The student rally was led by Noor Alam Siddiqui, Abdul Quddus Makhon, Shahjahan Siraj and other leaders.

Then on March 7, Bangabandhu called for a struggle for independence in the historic Suhrawardy Udyon. Later on March 23, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman hoisted the national flag at his residence in Dhanmondi, which further accelerated the independence movement.

In protest against the firing on unarmed Bengalis on March 25, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman called for Bengali independence in the early hours of March 26.

Then, for the first time on foreign soil, the national flag of Bangladesh was hoisted at the Bangladesh Mission in Kolkata, India, on April 18, 1971. Deputy High Commission Chief M. Hossain Ali hoisted the national flag to express loyalty to the Bangladesh government.

After the country’s independence, the current form was officially adopted on January 17, 1972. The map was removed and a red circle was added in the middle of the green rectangle. This design was prepared by Kamrul Hasan.

The Dhaka University administration has taken various programs today to mark Flag Hoisting Day.