<P> On 14 July 1947, the committee recommended that the flag of the Indian National Congress be adopted as the National Flag of India with suitable modifications, so as to make it acceptable to all parties and communities . It was also resolved that the flag should not have any communal undertones . The spinning wheel of the Congress flag was replaced by the Chakra (wheel) from the Lion Capital of Ashoka . According to Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, the chakra was chosen as it was representative of dharma and law . However, Jawaharlal Nehru explained that the change was more practical in nature, as unlike the flag with the spinning wheel, this design would appear symmetrical . Gandhi was not very pleased by the change, but eventually came around to accepting it . </P> <P> The flag was proposed by Nehru at the Constituent Assembly on 22 July 1947 as a horizontal tricolour of deep saffron, white and dark green in equal proportions, with the Ashoka wheel in blue in the centre of the white band . Nehru also presented two flags, one in Khadi - silk and the other in Khadi - cotton, to the assembly . The resolution was approved unanimously . It served as the national flag of the Dominion of India between 15 August 1947 and 26 January 1950, and has served as the flag of the Republic of India since then . </P> <P> The design and manufacturing process for the national flag is regulated by three documents issued by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS). All of the flags are made out of khadi cloth of silk or cotton . The standards were created in 1968 and were updated in 2008 . Nine standard sizes of the flag are specified by law . </P> <P> In 1951, after India became a republic, the Indian Standards Institute (now the BIS) brought out the first official specifications for the flag . These were revised in 1964 to conform to the metric system which was adopted in India . The specifications were further amended on 17 August 1968 . The specifications cover all the essential requirements of the manufacture of the Indian flag including sizes, dye colour, chromatic values, brightness, thread count and hemp cordage . The guidelines are covered under civil and criminal laws and defects in the manufacturing process can result in punishments that include fines or jail terms . </P>

1. what does the blue wheel that appears in the indian national flag stand for