Today’s Motto: ‘Pining about the past is akin to chasing the wind’

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

On this day, 02 Jul….Pining about the past is akin to chasing the wind.

1843 – An alligator falls from sky during a thunderstorm in Charleston, South Carolina. (A newspaper report from the Times-Picayune of the day said, “….We have not been lucky enough to find any one who saw him come down – but the important fact that he was there is incontestible – and as he couldn’t have got there any other way, it was decided unanimously that he rained down. Besides, the beast had a look of wonder and bewilderment about him, that showed plainly enough he must have gone through a remarkable experience….”

1850 – The first U.S. patent for a gas mask with a self-contained breathing apparatus was issued for a “respiring apparatus.

1900 – The first directed flight of a Zeppelin was made in Germany, using a large internal metal frame containing multiple cells of hydrogen gas balloons.

1922 – A day before his 19th birthday, Ralph W. Samuelson of US became the first person to ride on water skis,  he had made as they are used today. He used two boards, eight feet long and nine inches wide, with curved tips. Ben, his older brother towed him behind his work launch (pic credit-alchetron.com).

1940 – The first pontoon bridge of reinforced concrete in the U.S. was dedicated.

1957 – 1st submarine designed to fire guided missiles launched.

1972 – Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and President of Pakistan Zulfikar Ali Bhutto signed the Simla Agreement.

1976 – The Socialist Republic of Vietnam was officially formed with the unification of North and South Vietnam, marking the end of the Vietnam War.

1993 – ONGC converted into corporation by ordinance.

1999 – Sahara India, sponsor of the Sahara Cup annual cricket series between India and Pakistan in Canada, withdrew sponsorship in view of the Kargil conflict (pic credit-theweek.in). 

2001 – First self-contained, mechanical heart was implanted as a replacement. The device, called the AbioCor, was battery powered and the size of a softball.

2019 – Newly rediscovered Lewis chess piece sells at auction for £735,000 in London.                                                                                                                                                                                         2024 – At least 121 people, mostly women and children, killed in a stampede at an Indian religious gathering in Hathras district, Uttar Pradesh.

Born:  1877- Hermann Hesse. German poet, writer, novelist. He was awarded Nobel Prize  in 1946.

1922 – Pierre Cardin, Italian fashion designer,  also designed Flair Pen  famous brand, Shoes and Spectacles. His net worth was $ 800 million in 2020.

1958 – Pawan Malhotra. Born in Panipat (Haryana), theatre and TV Serial actor. Known for roles Bagh Bahadur, Salim Langde Pe Mat Ro, Aisa Desh Hai Mera, Alag Alag, Black Friday (Tiger Mommon’s role).

RIP…. 1757 – Nawab Siraj-ud-Daula, the last independent Nawab of Bengal. He was known as the first rebel against the British in Bengal. He won the Sim Bazar factory located in Kolkata city of West Bengal from the British. Siraj-ud-daula also got help from Mir Kashim to defeat the British in the treacherous battle of Plassey in 1757 AD.  He was captured and assassinated in Murshidabad. He was stabbed with a knife by Muhammad Beg at the instance of Miran, son of Mir Zafar.

1961 – Ernest Hemingway, American author and Nobel laureate, dies by suicide at 62. He was a bold, blunt jounalist and  had adventurous lifestyle.  His popular writings are: The Old Msn and the Sea, For Whom the Bell  Tolls, Under My Skin, To Have and Have Not, The Fifth Column and the First Forty-nine Stories, The Killers etc.  (pic credit-edgemontlibrary.org)                                                                                                     You may have known….                                                                                                                                            The longest railway platform in the world  (until 2013),  is at Kharagpur (West Bengal) and is  1,072. metres  in length. Now it’s the 4th  largest, the other  three are also run by  Indian Railways .  Kharagpur Junction was raised in 1899 and   at present  about 275 trains  pass thru’  this station  everyday.                                                                                                                                   {Compiled by Lt. Gen. (R)  Raj Kadyan}