Today in Indian History 7

Today in Indian History On March 20th in Indian history: 1751: Maharaja Surajmal, the Jat king of Bharatpur, passed away in Delhi. He is remembered for his military prowess and for expanding his kingdom's boundaries. 1835: The Hindu Widows' Remarriage Act was passed by the British Governor-General of India, Lord William Bentinck. This act allowed widows to remarry and was an important step toward ending the social stigma and discrimination against widows in India. 1901: Bengali writer and Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore's play "Muktadhara" premiered in Calcutta (now Kolkata). The play was based on Tagore's own experiences of establishing a school in rural Bengal. 1956: The Indian National Congress party, led by Jawaharlal Nehru, won the general elections in India. This was the first election held after India's independence and the Congress party won a landslide victory. 1987: The Supreme Court of India ruled that the practice of instant triple talaq (divorce) among Muslims was unconstitutional and violated the rights of Muslim women. The ruling was seen as a major step towards gender equality in India. 1991: Rajiv Gandhi, the former Prime Minister of India, announced his return to active politics. He resigned from the Congress party and politics in 1989 after his government was defeated in the general elections. 1995: The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) launched the Indian Remote Sensing satellite IRS-1C from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Andhra Pradesh. The satellite was designed to collect data on natural resources, land use, and environmental monitoring. 2003: The President of India, APJ Abdul Kalam, inaugurated the Indian Museum of the Moving Image (IMOMI) in Mumbai. The museum is dedicated to the history and evolution of Indian cinema. 2012: Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar became the first player to score 100 international centuries. He achieved this feat in a match against Bangladesh in the Asia Cup. 2016: The Indian government launched the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana, a scheme aimed at providing free LPG connections to women from below the poverty line-households. The scheme was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Uttar Pradesh. 2020: The Indian government imposed a nationwide lockdown to contain the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. The lockdown was initially planned for 21 days but was later extended several times. 2021: India celebrates Holi, the festival of colors, which is a Hindu festival that marks the arrival of spring. It is celebrated by people smearing each other with colored powder and water, singing, dancing, and feasting. 2019: India successfully test-fired an anti-satellite missile, making it the fourth country in the world to have the capability to shoot down satellites in space. The test was conducted as part of the country's space program. 2006: The Indian government announced that it had completed a project to map the entire human genome of an Indian citizen. This was the first time that a complete genome had been mapped in India. 1999: The Indian Army launched Operation Vijay to evict Pakistani forces from the Kargil sector in Jammu and Kashmir. The operation lasted for two months and resulted in the withdrawal of Pakistani forces. 1980: The World Health Organization (WHO) declared India free of smallpox, making it the first country in the world to achieve this milestone. This was the result of a massive vaccination drive that started in 1977. 1947: The Radcliffe Line, which demarcated the border between India and Pakistan, was published. This line was drawn by Sir Cyril Radcliffe, a British lawyer, and resulted in the partition of India and the creation of Pakistan. 1937: The first India-England Test match was played at the Gymkhana Ground in Bombay (now Mumbai). India won the toss and elected to bat first but was bowled out for 147. England won the match by nine wickets. 1927: The Indian National Congress, under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi, launched the Salt Satyagraha, a non-violent civil disobedience campaign against the British salt tax. The campaign lasted for 24 days and resulted in the arrest of thousands of Indians. 1916: The Hindu Mahasabha, a right-wing Hindu nationalist political party, was founded in Allahabad. The party was formed to promote the interests of Hindus and to oppose the Indian National Congress and the Muslim League. 1870: The first telegraph line was established between Bombay (now Mumbai) and London. The line was laid by the Eastern Telegraph Company and made it possible for India to communicate with the rest of the world in real time. 1828: The first English-language newspaper in India, the Bengal Gazette (later renamed the Calcutta Gazette), was published. The newspaper was started by James Augustus Hickey, an Irishman who had settled in Calcutta. These are just some of the many significant events that have taken place on March 20th in Indian history. 1757: The Battle of Plassey was fought between the British East India Company and the Nawab of Bengal, Siraj ud-Daulah. The battle resulted in a decisive victory for the British and marked the beginning of British colonial rule in India. 1853: The first passenger train service in India was inaugurated between Bombay (now Mumbai) and Thane. The train called the "Fairy Queen," was powered by a steam engine and carried 400 passengers. 1918: The Montagu Declaration was made by Edwin Montagu, the Secretary of State for India, in which he announced the British government's intention to grant greater self-governance to India. This declaration paved the way for the Government of India Act of 1919. 1965: The first episode of the popular Indian television series "Hum Log" was aired on Doordarshan, the national television network of India. The series, which was based on a middle-class family, ran for 156 episodes and was a huge success. 1999: The Indian cricket team won the Coca-Cola Cup in Sharjah, UAE, after defeating Pakistan in the final. Sachin Tendulkar was named the player of the tournament. 2015: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the "Make in India" initiative to promote domestic manufacturing and attract foreign investment. The initiative aims to make India a global manufacturing hub and create jobs.