Days! obligatory or Insignificant?

Every passing moment is very significant as life can change within a split second. I was surprised when came to know through newspaper that March 20 is World Sparrow Day. It increased my curiosity to know about other days and what are the significant of it. So, peeping through some of it but not all.

January

          Day of Silence- January 3

          World Braille Day - January 4

          Laughing day – January 10

          Street Children's Day – January 31

February

          National Girl Day – February 2 (India)

          World Cancer Day – February 4

          Valentine's Day – February 14 – This must be celebrated as all fools day, because love is something that cannot be restricted by a day or a week. The named by which each days are known in The VALENTINE WEEK also sounds very idiotic.

          International Mother Language Day – February 21

          Thinking Day - February 22

          National Science Day – February 28

          Days of The VALENTINE WEEK

                   Valentine week is from February 7–14 every year

                             Rose Day - February 7

                             Propose Day - February 8

                             Chocolate Day - February 9

                             Bagels and Lox Day - February 9

                             Pizza Pie Day - February 9

                             Teddy Day - February 10

                             Promise Day - February 11

                             Kiss Day - February 12

                             Hug Day - February 13

                             Valentine's Day – February 14

March

          International Women's Day – March 8

          Pi Day – March 14

          World Consumer Rights Day – March 15

          World Happiness Day - March 21

          International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination – March 21

          World Poetry Day – March 21

          World Tuberculosis Day - March 24

April

          April Fools' - April 1

          World Health Day - April 7

          World Parkinson's Disease Day - April 11

          Day of Silence; Day of Dialogue - April 15

          World Heritage Day - April 18

          Earth Day - April 22

          International Jazz Day - April 30

May

          May Day - May 1

          World Press Freedom Day - May 3

          International Midwives' Day - May 5

          International No Diet Day - May 6

          World Red Cross Red Crescent Day (Henri Dunant's birthday) - May 8

          International Nurses Day - May 12

          International Day of Families - May  15

          International Missing Children's Day - May 25

          Mother's Day – Second Sunday of May in many nations

June

          National Cancer Survivors Day - June 1

          World Environment Day - June 5

          World Refugee Day - June 20

          International Day against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking - June 26

          Fathers’ Day – 3^rd Sunday of June

July

          World Population Day - July 11

August

          International Friendship Day - August 5

          Indian Independence Day – August 15

          World Mosquito Day – August 20

          World Fashion Day – August 21

September

Teachers Day Celebration - September 5

          Engineer's Day – September 15

          World Contraception Day - September 26.

October

          Mahatma Gandhi Birthday/International nonviolence Day - October 2

          World Animal Day – October 4

November

          All Saints' Day – November 1

          All Souls' Day – November 2

          International Exchange Students Day - November 8

          Veterans Day – November 11

          International Men's Day - November 19

          World Fisheries Day – November 21

          Children's Day (India) – November 14

          Day of Road Traffic Victims- November 22

          International children's Day- November 22

December

          World AIDS Day – December 1

          Wildlife Conservation Day - December 4

          International Volunteer Day December 5

          Reflection Day (think about how life's a gift) - December 29

It is not a great idea to dedicate a day for a special purpose and I believe that anyone hardly remember these days by the event it meant for. Everyday is a unique one and should be treated by its merit only once we pass through.

!!!A day to remember when, the new dawn should be stand on the preceding one and give a solid foundation for the following.!!!

Yes President!

Even I am an apolitical person but always like to keep a tab on the current political scenario of the globe. At present the scenario in India is very messy. The UPA’s coalition Government is very shaky, often by the peoples like Mamata Banerjee and often by the unlimited scams. While, following drama and proceeding in the parliament keenly, hardly bothered about our Presidents. The President of India is with his limited power still is our country’s head of state. It is not for the greatest interest but for shear knowledge I decided to sneak peek into the list of presidents. Here is all thirteen Presidents we had till now.

Dr. Rajendra Prasad (1884–1963)       

 In office : 26 January 1950 to 13 May 1962

Dr. Prasad was the first President of independent India from Bihar. He was also an independence activist of the Indian Independence Movement. Dr.  Prasad was the only president to serve for two terms in office.

Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (1888–1975)    

In Office : 13 May 1962 to 13 May 1967  

Dr. Radhakrishnan was a prominent philosopher, writer, a Knight of the Realm and also held the position of vice chancellor of the Andhra University and Banaras Hindu University. He was also made a Knight of the Golden Army of Angels by Pope Paul VI.

Dr. Zakir Hussain (1897–1969)  

In Office : 13 May 1967 to 3 May 1969   

Zakir Hussain was vice chancellor of the Aligarh Muslim University and a recipient of Padma Vibhushan and Bharat Ratna. He died before his term of office was ended.

Varahagiri Venkata Giri (1894–1980)                

In Office : 24 August 1969 to 24 August 1974

V. V. Giri is the only person to have served as both an acting president and president of India. He was a recipient of the Bharat Ratna, and has functioned as Indian Minister of Labour and High Commissioner to Sri Lanka.

Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed (1905–1977)    

In Office : 24 August 1974 to 11 February 1977

Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed served as a Minister before being elected as president. He died in 1977 before his term of office ended, and was the second Indian president to have died during a term of office.

Neelam Sanjiva Reddy (1913–1996)     

In Office : 25 July 1977 to 25 July 1982 

N. S. Reddy was the first Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh State. Reddy was the only Member of Parliament from the Janata Party to get elected from Andhra Pradesh. He was unanimously elected Speaker of the Lok Sabha on 26 March 1977 and relinquished this office on 13 July 1977 to become the 6th President of India.

Giani Zail Singh (1916–1994)

         

In Office : 25 July 1982 to 25 July 1987 

In March 1972, Singh assumed the position of chief Minister of Punjab, and in 1980, he became Union Home Minister.

Ramaswamy Venkataraman (1910–2009)      

In Office :  25 July 1987 to 25 July 1992

In 1942, R. Venkataraman was jailed by the British for his involvement in the India's independence movement. After his release, he was elected to independent India’s Provisional Parliament as a member of the Congress Party in 1950 and eventually joined the central government, where he first served as Minister of Finance and Industry and later as Minister of Defence.

Shankar Dayal Sharma (1918–1999)    

In Office : 25 July 1992 to 25 July 1997

Shakar Dayal Sharma was Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, and the Indian Minister for Communications. He has also served as the governor of Andhra Pradesh, Punjab and Maharashtra.

Kocheril Raman Narayanan (1920–2005)      

In Office : 25 July 1997 to 25 July 2002 

K. R. Narayanan served as India's ambassador to Thailand, Turkey, China and United States of America. He received doctorates in Science and Law and was also a chancellor in several universities. He was also the vice-chancellor of Jawaharlal Nehru University.

A. P. J. Abdul Kalam (1931)     

In Office : 25 July 2002 to 25 July 2007

A. P. J. Kalam, is a scientist who played a leading role in the development of India's ballistic missile and nuclear weapons programs. He also received the Bharat Ratna. Kalam was affectionately known as the People's President.

Pratibha Patil (1934)       

In Office : 25 July 2007 to 25 July 2012 

Patil is the first woman to become the President of India. She was also the first female Governor of Rajasthan.

Pranab Mukherjee (1935)  

In Office : 25 July 2012    

Pranab Mukherjee held various posts in the cabinet ministry for the Government of India such as Finance Minister, Foreign Minister, Defence Minister and Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission.

!!!He who controls others may be powerful, but he who has mastered himself is mightier still. - Lao Tzu !!!

!!!Who is wise? He that learns from everyone. Who is powerful? He that governs his passions. Who is rich? He that is content. Who is that? Nobody. - Benjamin Franklin !!!

Not a mere Better Half – II!

I wrote a few names in my previous blog and writing about another few but there is no dearth of women who made it big on there own. So, this is the concluding and extended part of the last blog and is my tribute to the extra-ordinary ladies on international Woman’s Day.

Politics

Indira Gandhi (-1984

Possibly one of the most controversial figures of the twentieth century, few could deny that she was one of its most powerful political figures, doing much to make India the mighty nation that it is today. A paradoxically well-loved and greatly hated Prime Minister at the same time, Gandhi ruled India on and off for almost twenty years until her death at the hands of Sikh extremists in 1984.

Margaret Thatcher (1925)

Margaret Thatcher, the first woman to hold the office of prime minister of the United Kingdom. The winner of three consecutive general elections, Thatcher served as prime minister from 1979 to 1990. She was the longest-serving British prime minister of the 20th century.

Sirimavo Bandaranaike (1916-2000)

Sirimavo Bandaranaike becomes the first woman prime minister when she is elected in Sri Lanka. Her husband, Solomon Bandaranaike, is elected prime minister in 1956. When he is assassinated, Sirimavo takes the lead of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party and wins the election in her own right.

Aung San Suu Kyi (1945)

Aung San Suu Kyi, leader of the nonviolent movement for human rights and the restoration of democracy in Myanmar  and Nobel laureate. Aung San Suu Kyi was born in Yangon and educated in India and England, where she attended the University of Oxford. In 1988 she founded the National League for Democracy (NLD) with other leaders in the democracy movement. Her nonviolent strategy of peaceful rallies and pacifism in the face of threats from the military effectively defused the military’s sustained attempts to obstruct free elections. In July 1989 Suu Kyi was placed under house arrest by the military government for staging and speaking at mass gatherings, which were illegal in Myanmar.

Astronaut

Valentina Tereshkova (1937)

Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman to fly in space. Tereshkova flew aboard Vostok 6  from June 16 to June 19, 1963. When she was 18 years old she joined a club of amateur parachutists. In 1961, the Soviet space program began to consider sending women into space, she applied to become a cosmonaut. The selection process began in mid-1961 and was overseen by the first person in space, Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin. Tereshkova, three other women parachutists, and a female pilot were selected to train as cosmonauts in 1962.

Mae Jemison (1956)

She was chosen by NASA to become an astronaut. As part of the Endeavor crew, she became the first African-American woman to enter space. She holds nine honorary doctorates in science, engineering, the humanities and letters. After resigning from NASA, she formed a company that researches how technologies can be applied to every day life.

Kalpana Chawla (1961 - 2003)

Kalpana Chawla was born in Karnal, India. She was the first Indian American astronaut  and first Indian woman in space.  Kalpana Chawla joined the NASA 'Astronaut Corps' in March 1995 and was selected for her first flight in 1996. She spoke the following words while traveling in the weightlessness of space, " She first flew on Space Shuttle Columbia in 1997 as a mission specialist and primary robotic arm operator.  In 2003, Chawla was one of seven crew members killed in the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster.

Sunita Williams (1965)

Sunita Williams is an Indian American astronaut and a United States Navy officer who holds the record for longest space flight by a woman. She was assigned to the International Space Station as a member of Expedition 14 and Expedition 15.  Williams first broke the two spacewalk records for women space travellers - most number of spacewalks, and most spacewalk time during Expedition 14/15 in 2007, but both records were surpassed by Peggy Whitson during Expedition 16. Williams regained both records during her sixth spacewalk, on September 5, 2012, and currently has 50 hours and 40 minutes of spacewalk time.

!!!You educate a man; you educate a man. You educate a woman; you educate a generation. -  Brigham Young!!!

Not a mere Better Half – I!

On record they are called as better half, however, never treated as one but at the end the achievement what count. These women showed that, time, age, disability and finance nothing came in their way while they pursued their dream and achieved whatever they dreamt. On international Woman’s Day, my tribute to some extra-ordinary lots.

Author

Anne Frank (1929 - 1945)

Anne may not have any real accomplishments of her out but she’s certainly one of the most famous women in history, even if she was just barely a woman when she died. Her diary, Diary of a Young Girl, has been adapted into numerous films and plays and has been read by millions of people world wide.

Helen Keller (1880-1968)

First deaf blind person to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree and an Alabama Woman’s Hall of Fame inductee. Throughout her life, Keller was a supporter of women’s suffrage, labour rights and various other causes.

Margaret Fuller

She was the first woman allowed to use the Harvard library. Her work and support of prison reform, emancipation of slaves and a woman’s right to education and employment inspired others, including Susan B. Anthony, to work for the same things.

Gwendolyn Brooks (1917-2000)

Won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1950, appointed Poet Laureate of Illinois in 1986 and Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress in 1985. She was the first African American to receive a Pulitzer Prize

Jhumpa Lahiri (1967)

Jhumpa Lahiri is an Indian American author. Lahiri's debut short story collection, Interpreter of Maladies, won the 2000 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, and her first novel, The Namesake, was adapted into the popular film of the same name.

Arundhati Roy (1961)

Arundhati Roy is an Indian author and political activist who was best known for the 1998 Man Booker Prize for Fiction winning novel The God of Small Things and for her involvement in environmental and human rights causes.

Kiran Desai (1971)

Kiran Desai is an Indian author. She is a citizen of India and a permanent resident of the United States. Her novel The Inheritance of Loss won the 2006 Man Booker Prize and the National Book Critics Circle Fiction Award.

Healer

Mother Theresa (1910-1997)

Perhaps the most famous woman of the twentieth century is a small, frail-looking nun by the name of Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu, who became much better known to the world simply as Mother Theresa. Establishing the Missionaries of Charity in 1950 with just 13 members, eventually it would grow to a staff of 4,000 nuns who would run dozens of orphanages, AIDS hospices, and charity centers worldwide.

Florence Nightingale ( 1820 - 1910)

Considered to be the founder of modern nursing. Nightingale established her school of nursing at St. Thomas’ Hospital in London in 1860, an event thought to have laid the foundation for modern nursing. Today, nurses take the “Nightingale Pledge”, named in her honor and International Nurses Day is celebrated each year on her birthday.

Scientist

Marie Curie (1867 - 1934)

Born Maria Skladowska in Warsaw, Poland,  Marie Curie was to seriously test the old adage that a woman’s place was in the home. A largely penniless student who worked as a governess and tutor while pursuing her dream of becoming a physicist  What makes Madame Currie so remarkable - besides being the first woman to win two Nobel Prize in science.

 Barbara McClintock (1902 - 1992)

One of the world’s most distinguished cryogenticists. American geneticist and Nobel laureate, most noted for her discovery that genes can transfer their positions on chromosomes, which is important for the understanding of hereditary processes.

!!!A woman has to live her life, or live to repent not having lived it. - D. H. Lawrence!!!