'Shivaji first Indian ruler to have realised the need for protecting the coast'

New Delhi, Sep 3 Chhatrapati Shivaji, "the father of the Navy" to whom Prime Minister Narendra Modi dedicated the new Indian Navy Ensign on Friday, "was unquestionably the first ruler in India to have realised the need for protecting the coast", Manohar Malgonkar writes in a book published in 1984 that has just been reissued by HarperCollins.

While commissioning INS Vikrant, India's first indigenously-built aircraft carrier and unveiling the new Ensign, Modi said: "From the Vedic period to the Gupta period and the Maurya period, India's maritime power was well known all over the world. Chhatrapati Veer Shivaji Maharaj had built such a navy with this sea power that it would scare the enemies.

"When the British came to India, they were in awe of the power of Indian ships and the resultant trade. So they decided to crush India's maritime power. History is witness to the fact that strict restrictions were imposed on Indian ships and merchants by enacting a law in the British Parliament at that time...

"Today, on the historic date of September 2, 2022, we have changed another chapter in history. Today India has taken off another burden of colonial rule. The Indian Navy has got its new flag from today. Till now the reflection of the colonial times remained on the flag of the Indian Navy. But from today, inspired by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, the new Navy flag will flutter in the sea and the sky...

"Today, with this flag veneration, I dedicate this new flag to the father of the Navy, Chhatrapati Veer Shivaji Maharaj. I am sure, this new flag, imbued with the spirit of Indianness, will instil a new self-confidence and self-respect in the Indian Navy," Modi said.

The new Ensign features the Tricolour on the left and a golden-bordered octagon in the centre, symbolising the ‘Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Rajmudra'

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