Two senior officials of the Horticulture Department in Nilgiris district were today placed under suspension for the lapse and negligence in noticing the print of national flag upside down on the trophies given to the winners of recently concluded summer festival.
After a preliminary inquiry, Sibila Mary, Assistant Director, Coonoor and Ram Sundar, Assistant Director, Udhgamandalam, were suspended pending inquiry, official sources said.
The national tricolour was printed upside down in 300 trophies.
The "blunder" was noticed by recipients of the trophy including those in Madras Regiment Centre, who had received nearly 60 trophies in the festival, department sources said.
The trophies were distributed to the winners of three major events-- flower show, vegetable show and fruit show-- by District Collector Archana Patnaik in the presence of another IAS officer in Horticulture department and an IPS officer.
When the lapse was brought to the notice of officials of Horticulture Department here, they said it was a mistake done by the printers and they were not responsible for it.
Some human rights organisations were planning to take the issue to the Court, as the matter was serious and an insult to the national flag.
