Why Indian flag at Wagah Border keeps tearing, while Pakistan's doesn't

Patriotic fervour is always at full mast at the Wagah Border where countless Indians go every year to witness the daily flag lowering ceremony But a group of Indian tourists from Mumbai and New York returned shocked and disappointed from its recent trip after seeing that the pole for the nations tallest Tricolour was without the flag while the Pakistan flag fluttered proudly on the other sideThe 400ft Pakistani flag and the 360ft Indian Tricolour at Wagah on August 14 The next day was the last time the Tricolour was hoisted officials said PicGetty ImagesOn Saturday October 7 South Mumbais wellknown anticell radiation tower activist Prakash Munshi along with friends from New York Asmita Bhatia Divya Shah and Kalpana Shah joined thousands of excited Indians and some foreigners for the daily flaglowering ceremony which takes place two hours prior to sunset at the AttariWagah borderAlso read Noida Protests after Chinese employee allegedly disrespects tricolourWe entered the India ceremony pavilion and at a distance saw the Pakistan flag fluttering high in full glory As we looked for the Tricolour our hearts sank The pole for the Indian flag stood empty We asked a Border Security Force BSF personnel and he said the Indian flag had been torn twice and for over two months there had been no replacement said MunshiThis October 7 photo shows the 360ft pole on the Indian side sans the flagCant have such excusesWe were told by the personnel that the flag is torn You simply cannot have such an excuse There was a chalta hai kind of an attitude We need to demand higher standards of efficiency said Divya For Kalpana Sadness turned to embarrassment as a uniformed officer told us that the flag has been missing since at least two monthsWe could sense the frustration amongst the officers there as people kept asking them about the Indian flag they did not know how to respond We can send people to the moon but cannot replace torn flags asked a bewildered BhatiaAlso read Indias tallest tricolour hoisted at Attari borderMunshi spoke for all of them when he said As we departed with our heads down a sense of deep sadness turned into anger The anger was directed at us who have learnt to accept tolerate and surrender to such shameful inefficiency and disregardAsmita Bhatia Divya Shah and Prakash Munshi at the borderSuresh Mahajan former chairman of the Amritsar Improvement Trust AIT the organisation entrusted with the maintenance of the flag stated The Tricolour has torn repeatedly I think the last time it was hoisted there was on August 15 after which it was taken off It is at a height of 340 feet or more but the wind velocity causes the flag to tear Because of this I think there has been a decision to use the flag only on special occasions though I cannot say for sure I resigned sometime agoA senior AIT official confirmed The flag was hoisted on August 15 and taken down after The flags do tear because of the wind velocityAlso read Amazon removes Indian flag doormat from website following Sushma Swarajs tweetWe follow what is called a Flag Code which specifies amongst other things what material to be used for the flags I hope the Centre takes this up It has become a matter of pride now No amount of money should be a deterrent the official addedMHA lobs ball back at AITA Ministry of Home Affairs MHA official lobbed the ball back into the AITs courtThe official said There is one flag on our border that is raised and manned by the BSF The second flag you are referring to is maintained by the AIT The Trust needs to decide when to fly this flag when it is practical and operational to do soThe official refused to be drawn into comparisons with the Pakistan flag and simply said What another country does and the costs of that the ifs and buts are not for us to say I believe that the Trust must take a decision in all its wisdom about the technology and material to be used while preparing the TricolourMore altitude more problemsThe flag in question was at the centre of a show of patriotism that Pakistan took to new heights on August 14 their Independence Day The Indian flag touted as the countrys tallest is hoisted at a height of 360 feet while the one in Pakistan is now at 400 feet Shahnawaz Khan CEO of the Flag Foundation of India told midday over the phone from New Delhi We have supplied at least 68 Tricolours all across India Amongst these at least 12 flags fly at a height of 207 feet At that height because of the wind velocity and weather conditions the flags do tend to tearIn fact the last flag which was installed at Connaught Place at 207 feet tears as well and it is so expensive to keep replacing it Do not get into a race of altitude Even a flag at a 100 feet can look as beautiful and impressive and leave you with a wonderful feeling An empty flagpole will be a huge disappointment you must have a flag that will sustain said KhanAlso view Pallavi Vikamseys tragic death What we know so far