Today’s Motto: ‘A crisis has both, the danger and the opportunity’

This is Your Day-TODAY: Take a Determined Step Forward and Make History ! 

On this day, 09 Mar….

1562 – Kissing in public was banned in Naples and made punishable by death.

1822 – Charles M. Graham of N.Y. was issued the first U.S. patent for artificial teeth.

1897 – Fans start calling the team ‘Indians’ (in 1915 it became official).

1959 – Barbie, the popular girls’ doll debuted, a fashion  franchise created by American businesswoman Ruth Handler, manufactured by American toy and entertainment company Mattel and introduced on March 9, 1959. The toy was based on the German Bild Lilli doll which Handler had purchased while in Europe. The figurehead of an eponymous brand that includes a range of fashion dolls and accessories, Barbie has been an important part of the toy fashion doll market for over six decades. Mattel has sold over a billion Barbie dolls, making it the company’s largest and most profitable line expanded into  video games, animated films,  TV and web-series. The brand has an annual revenue of $ 1.8 billion in 2024.

1908 – Leaders like V.O. Chidambaram Pillai and Subramania Siva celebrated All India Swaraj Day to invoke nationalism. Despite government bans and the arrest of leaders, a massive procession took place in Tirunelveli, marking a key moment in the Swadeshi movement.

1976 – 1st female cadets accepted to West Point Military Academy, US.

1986 – India’s first satellite-based telephone network was formally commissioned.

2015 – A small treasure of 2,300-year-old coins and jewelry is found in a cave in the Galilee region of Israel; the items date from the time of Alexander the Great.

2022 – Stolen notebooks belonging to naturalist Charles Darwin, including his famous ‘tree of life’ sketch, mysteriously returned after 22 years to Cambridge University Library.

2026 – Upcoming event. Educational Workshop at Bharat Kala Bhavan Museum, BHU Varanasi. It is an elementary workshop to learn about ancient scripts and inscriptions. 2026 – Upcoming event. Historic Gurudwara Tour of Patna at Takhat Shri Harimandir Ji Patna Sahib, Patna. Ewill involve visiting key Sikh sites including the birthplace of Guru Gobind Singh and Gurudwara Gai Ghaat.

Born…. 1931 – Dr. Karan Singh, noted politician, scholar, and the son of Maharaja Hari Singh of Jammu and Kashmir and  erstwhile prince and  Sadar-e-Riyasat (Guv.) of Jammu & Kashmir.  Learned Sanskrit, Hindi scholar, philosopher  turned politician. Was Union Minister in   Indira Gandhi cabinet. He has written about 20 books like An Examined Life, Badlate Kashmir Ki Kahani, Bridge to Immortality, Essays on Hinduism, Population etc. (pic credit-wikipedia)

1951 – Ustad Zakir Hussain, famous Tabla player, composer, producer and  brand model. Became ambassador of Indian classical  music and Tabla. Awarded United States of America National Endowment of Arts, National Heritage fellowship.. He also won Sangeet Natak Akademy award and Fellowshiop, and Padma Shri, Padma Bhushan  and later Padma Bhushan in 2023  and  4 Grammy Awards.

1956 – Shashi Tharoor. Former Indian diplomat, writer and politician. Served in Uniteds Nations Hig Commission for Refugees, peacekeeping and other welfare operations. He’s now Lok Sabha member for 3rd term and heads Parliament’s Committee on External Affairs. Has written several books of economics, politics, foreign affairs etc. Was honourede by French govt. with ‘Chevalier de la Legion d’honneur’.

1996 – Darsheel Safary, the Indian child actor who played the lead role in the National award winning movie ‘Taare Zameen Par’ and became the youngest to win a filmfare award. He also  acted in Midnight’s Children, Bumm Bumm Bole,  Zokkomom and some Gujrati TV serials.

RIP….  1650 – Saint Tukaram Maharaj, famous Hindu saint, Vedanta preacher of Maharashtra  and follower of  saints Namdev, Dnaneshwar, Kabir, Eknath  and  worshipped  Vithoba (Vitthal)  of Pandharpur, an incarnation of Vishnu Bhagwan in the 17th century. He also wrote One Hundred Poems of Tukaram  and more. (pic credit- sparklelight.blogspot.com)

1947 – Jhaverchand Kalidas Meghani, renowned poet, author, and freedom fighter, famously called ‘Rashtriya Shayar’ by Mahatma Gandhi.

1994 – Devika Rani Roerich, celebrated as the “First Lady of Indian Cinema,” she was a leading actress of the 1930s and 40s.  She acted in  Achhut Kanya, Jeevan Nayya, Jeevan Prabhat, Jawani ki Hawa , Anjan, Nirmala, Savitri, Izzat  etc. She was awarded Padma Shri and  became the first awardee of Dadasaheb Phalke honour.   She had married filom director/producer Himanshu Rai (1929-40) and famous Russian painter Svetoslav  Roerich.  Also founded Bombay Talkies, film studio.

2023 – Satish Kaushik, renowned comedy  actor,  director, producer, editor and screenwriter. He found fame in Bollywood with Mr. India starring Anil Kapoor, Sridevi, and Amrish Puri, where he played the iconic character of a cook named Calendar. He also acted in Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro, Kaagaz, Road, Pardesi Babu, Tere Naam etc. Deewana Mastana, Ram Lakhan, Saajan Chale Sasural etc.  He won Filmfare Best Comedian Awards  in 1990 and 1997.

You may have known…. In September 2009, India’s ISRO Chandrayaan-1 mission, utilising the NASA-supplied Moon Mineralogy Mapper confirmed the presence of water molecules and hydroxyl across the lunar surface. The findings revealed that the water is mixed within lunar soil, with stronger signals detected in the polar regions. Data collected showed that the hydration of the moon is an active, ongoing process rather than a static one, with stronger absorption in the poles and variation with temperature.

                                                      {Compiled by Lt. Gen. (R)  Raj Kadyan}