Republic of India 1950

Complete Set of 4 nos of commemorative postage stamps on Inauguration of Indian Republic on 26 January, 1950 :

Issued by India

Issued on Jan 26, 1950

Issued for : A new series of Postage stamps commemorating the inauguration of the Republic of India will be issued by the Indian Posts and Telegraphs Department on January 26, 1950. This comprises of a set of four stamps in denominations of 2 annas, 3.5 annas, 4 annas and 12 annas.

About : 

• The designs are simple and symbolic. The first in the series viz. 2 annas depicts a boy and a girl watching a procession of cavaliers carrying flags and blowing trumpets which herald India‘s attainment of full nationhood. The second in the series viz. 3.5 annas depicts a quill dipped into an inkpot with a number of leaflets in the background inscribed in Hindi with Mahatma Gandhi‘s favourite hymn ‘Raghupati Raghav Raja Ram‘ and in illustrative of India‘s nation building programme in the realm of Education. The third in the series viz. 4 annas, shows an ear of grain set vertically in the centre with an indigenous ploughshare placed diagonally behind a star-spangled background and is symbolic of India as an essentially agricultural country. The fourth and the last in the series is the 12 annas denomination. This depicts an indigenous handloom (Charkha), symbolic of India‘s Cottage Industry and of her progressive evolution with each round of the wheel. In the background is a piece of cloth which is hand spun and hand woven and which in its turn symbolises the importance of the ‘Charkha’ in India‘s rural economy.
• The words ‘Republic of India‘ and ‘Inauguration January 26, 1950‘ are inscribed along the sides of the stamps. On one of the sides appear the word ‘POSTAGE’ and the denominational value in English. In the top right hand corner of the inset is inscribed the word ‘BHARAT‘ and the value of the stamp in Hindi (Devnagri) script.
• The colours are Red, Blue, Violet and Maroon respectively.
• There are 13 perforations in each stamp.
• The stamps have been printed on watermark paper bearing a multiple of five pointed star all over.
• Except the 3.5 annas value, which is vertical in design, the remaining three values are horizontal, each measuring 1.14″ X 1.54″.
• The number of stamps in a full sheet of each denomination is 128.
• The 2 annas denomination is intended for inland postage, the 3.5 annas for foreign letter mail, the 4 annas for registration and 12 annas for foreign air mail.
• The stamps have been printed in limited quantities and will remain on sale concurrently with the corresponding denominations in the existing series until stocks are exhausted.
• The stamps are designed by Messrs. D. J. Keymer & Co. Ltd., Calcutta, and have been printed by the India Security Press, Nasik Road.
• Simultaneously with these commemoratives, a First Day Cover and a Folder will also be brought out. The designs for these have been obtained through the courtesy of the Commercial Arts Section of Sir J. J. School of Arts, Bombay.
• The price of the First Day Cover is 1 anna while that of the Folder is Rs. 1/9/6 inclusive of the values of stamps. The stamps in the folder are affixed by means of hinges. For persons buying First day Covers in bulk, the price has been fixed at Rs. 1/4/- for a packet of 25 envelopes or Rs. 5/- for a hundred.
• A special cancellation postmark has also been designed for use on the day of issue of these stamps, viz., January 26, 1950, but the use of this cachet has been restricted to the Philatelic Bureaux at Bombay, Calcutta, Madras, Simla, New Delhi, Lucknow, Patna, Cuttack, Shillong and Nagpur. The new cachet bears the name of the Post Office in Hindi script and the date viz., ’26-1-1950′ in international numerals.
• Orders for the purchase of these stamps, Folders and First day Covers may be placed with the Officer-in-Charge of any of the afore-mentioned Philatelic Bureaux at Bombay, Calcutta and Madras.
• Remittances to cover the cost of the stamps and stationary required must accompany the order and may be sent in cash under insured cover, by money order, crossed postal order, crossed cheque encashable in India or by means of Bank Draft payable in Indian currency. In all cases, orders should include full particulars of remittances made.