Here's all you need to know about 'Armed Forces Flag Day' and how to contribute

Since 1949, December 7 is observed as Armed Forces Flag Day throughout India to honour the martyrs as well as men and women in uniform, who valiantly fight on our borders to safeguard the country's honour. 

There are more than 30 lakh ex-servicemen and around 60,000 ex-servicemen are added every year due to early superannuation. 

The 'Armed Forces Flag Day Fund' (AFFDF) has been constituted by the Centre for the welfare and rehabilitation of the ex-servicemen (ESM) community.

The money raised by charities, voluntary contributions is utilised for the rehabilitation of families of soldiers martyred in wars, serving soldiers and ex-servicemen and welfare of their dependents.

The University Grants Commission (UGC) has directed varsities across the country to observe December 7 as the Armed Forces Flag Day to commemorate the "supreme sacrifices" made by the country's soldiers during conflicts.

In a letter sent to the heads of such institutions, the commission asked them to acknowledge the "supreme sacrifices made by our valiant Armed Forces personnel for protecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of our country and securing our lives against the threats of insurgency and terrorism" and against natural calamities.

"Today is Armed Forces Flag Day. My best wishes to all those who are serving in the Indian Armed Forces. The nation is indebted to them for their service. We must continue to work for the welfare of Indian Armed Forces personnel," Mamata Banerjee tweeted. 

"It is an important occasion to express our gratitude to the martyrs and show solidarity with the armed forces," he said in a message.

"We cannot pay back the kind of sacrifices and services rendered by our soldiers, but by giving them respect and providing them with better facilities, we can do our duty."

 "This is an occasion to remind ourselves of the selfless services of our Armed Forces personnel in protecting our country's territory from the enemies and intruders," he said.

The funds are collected by the means of selling this flag and via voluntary donations.

Several cashless payment methods have been setup and made available. You can send your contributions via PayTM number '8800462175' and UPI code: armedforcesflagdayfund@sbi

To contribute using Credit/Debit Card or Net Banking log on to ksb.gov.in/armed-forces-flag-day-fund.html, ksb.gov.in/armed-forces-flag-day-fund.html

The contribution to the AFFDF is income tax exempted under section 80(G).