International Day of Light|May 16

 

International Day of Light-May 16

        The International Day of Light is celebrated on 16th May each year, on the anniversary of the first successful operation of the laser in 1960 by physicist and engineer, Theodore Maiman. This day is a call to strengthen scientific cooperation and harness its potential to foster peace and sustainable development.

    UNESCO explains that, light plays a central role in our lives. On the most fundamental level, through photosynthesis, light is at the origin of life itself. The study of light has led to promising alternative energy sources, lifesaving medical advances in diagnostics technology and treatments, light-speed internet and many other discoveries that have revolutionized society and shaped our understanding of the universe. These technologies were developed through centuries of fundamental research on the properties of light – starting with Ibn Al-Haytham’s seminal work, Kitab al-Manazir (Book of Optics), published in 1015 and including Einstein’s work at the beginning of the 20th century, which changed the way we think about time and light.

    The International Day of Light celebrates the role light plays in science, culture and art, education, and sustainable development, and in fields as diverse as medicine, communications, and energy. The celebration will allow many different sectors of society worldwide to participate in activities that demonstrates how science, technology, art and culture can help achieve the goals of UNESCO – building the foundation for peaceful societies.

International day of Living Together in Peace|May 16

International day of Living Together in Peace-May 16

    UN General Assembly declared May 16 as International day of Living Together in Peace. According to UN, Living together in peace is all about accepting differences and having the ability to listen, recognize, respect and appreciate others by living in a peaceful and united way. This day encourages all the countries to ensure peace and sustainable development by working along with international communities.

    After the second world war, the United Nations was established to save the future generations from the pain of war. One of its purposes is to achieve international cooperation in solving international problems by promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as race, sex, language or religion.

Important declarations

    In 1997, the UN's General Assembly unanimously declared the year 2000 as the "International Year of Culture of Peace".

    In 1998, it proclaimed the period 2001-2010 as the "International Decade for a Culture of Peace and Non-Violence for the Children of the World."

Happy International Day of Families| 15 May

 International Day of Families| 15 May

    After 1980's United Nations started to focus its attention on family issues. Economic and Social Council, requested the UN's Secretary-General to enhance awareness among decision makers and the public about the problems and needs of the family, as well as the effective ways of meeting those needs.

    In 1993, the General Assembly decided in a resolution that 15th May of every year should be observed as The International Day of Families. This day provides an opportunity to promote awareness of issues relating to families and to increase the knowledge of the social, economic and demographic processes affecting families.

Theme

"Families and new technology" is the theme for the year 2021.

Happy International Nurses day|May 12

 International Nurses day|May 12

    The International Council for Nurses started to celebrate international nurse day since 1965. In the year 1974, May 12 was chosen to celebrate international nurse day to commemorate the birth anniversary of Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing.

    This day is celebrated to spread the awareness and the importance of nurses in the field of medicine and to show our gratitude for their service.

    On this day various events take place around the word to encourage, support and respect the regional nurses by giving various rewards and awards for their remarkable service.

    The theme for the 2021's International Nurse Day is "A Voice to Lead - A vision for future healthcare".

Who is Florence Nightingale?

    Florence Nightingale was a English social reformer and the founder of modern nursing. Her prominent role in the Crimean war made her as an icon of Victorian culture. "The lady with the lamp" quoted her valuable services during the Crimean war.

World Migratory Birds Day|May 8 International Day

 

World Migratory Birds Day,May 8

     According to Wikipedia"In 2006, the United Nations established World Migratory Bird Day to be held on the second weekend of May every year". The event was found by the UN, in  agreement with the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds, to raise awareness of the migratory linkages between regions of the globe. World Migratory Bird Day events have been held in 118 nations. 
         

     Each year, the United Nations announces a uniting theme for the events. Theme of 2021 World Migrant Bird Day is "Sing, Fly, Soar – Like a Bird!" It focuses on bird songs and bird fights to inspire the people around the world in protecting migrant birds.

Threats Faced by Migrant Birds

• Habitat loss
• Illegal hunting
• Collision with the man made objects
• Power lines
• Climate changes
• Pollution

What Migrant Birds Do?

     Migrant birds are world travelers. They travel from their home environment to some similar environment to survive the seasonal changes and to breed. They travel over oceans and continents for months.

Importance of Migrant Birds

• Migrant birds act as pest control.

• It helps in dispersal of seeds to maintain biodiversity.

• Some ducks transport fish eggs to new water bodies.

• Their wastes and egg shell act as organic fertilizer.

• They play the role of both prey and predator in the food chain.

World Portuguese Language day|May 5

 

World Portuguese Language day-May 5

    According to the UN, World Portuguese language day was declared in the 40th session of UNESCO's general conference, 2019.

    Initially, May 5th was remembered as Portuguese day, as it was established by the Community of Portuguese-speaking Countries (CPLP), an inter governmental organization. This helped to unite the Portuguese language people all around the world to celebrate this day as part of their identity.In 2000, CPLP partnered with UNESCO. UNESCO brought the cultural identity of Portuguese into light by declaring May 5 as World Portuguese language Day.

Significant of Portuguese language:

    Portuguese language is one of the most widespread languages in the world. It has more than 250 million speakers all over the world.

How may States and Union Territories in India?

Do you know, how may states and union Territories are there in India? Do you know, in which terms and conditions India has divided its states and union territories? Do you know, who has the major power of control over the states and union territories?

    At present India consists of 28 states and 8 union territories. This number was not same when India got its freedom. For the adminstration purpose, the Indian government has power to split/merge the state(s) or Union Territory(ies) and can change the status of a state or Union territory. Example, Jammu and Kashmir was a State before 2020, but after 2020 it was divided into two union territories as Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh.

    Before freedom, India had multiple provinces which was mostly ruled by kings and governors appointed by the British and other foreign rulers like Portugal,French etc.,. 

    After freedom, India's landscape was rearranged on the basis of linguistics (languages). The status of being a state or union territory depends on the population, culture significance or historical importance of that territory.

    In states, the major power is held by the elected state government; but in union territories some are under the direct control of center government, for example Andaman and Nicobar islands, and some are under the control of elected government, for example Puducherry. 

    Here we are going to see the list of states and union territories in India.

States in India:

States	Capitals
Tamil Nadu	Chennai
Kerala	Thiruvananthapuram
Karnataka	Bangalore
Andhra Pradesh	Amaravati
Telangana	Hyderabad
Maharashtra	Mumbai
Goa	Panaji
Chhattisgarh	Raipur
Odisha	Bhubaneshwar
Gujarat	Gandhinagar
Madhya Pradesh	Bhopal
Rajasthan	Jaipur
Punjab	Chandigarh
Haryana	Chandigarh
Himachal Pradesh	Shimla
Uttarakhand	Dehradun
Uttar Pradesh	Lucknow
Bihar	Patna
Jharkhand	Ranchi
West Bengal	Kolkata
Sikkim	Gangtok
Assam	Dispur
Meghalaya	Shillong
Arunachal Pradesh	Itanagar
Nagaland	Kohima
Manipur	Imphal
Mizoram	Aizawl
Tripura	Agartala

Union Territories in India:

Union Territories	Capitals
Andaman and Nicobar Islands	Port Blair
Lakshadweep	Kavaratti
Puducherry	Puducherry
Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu	Daman
Chandigarh	Chandigarh
The Government of NCT of Delhi	Delhi
Jammu & Kashmir	Srinagar-S*, Jammu-W*
Ladakh	Leh