Every year in India, National Technology Day is celebrated on May 11. On this day in 1998, India successfully conducted the famous Pokhran nuclear tests in Rajasthan. To commemorate this major technical breakthrough, then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee declared 11 May to be celebrated as National Technology Day in India. Since then, the day is observed to honour the hard work and achievements of Indian scientists.
Indian Journalists Adnan Abidi, Sana Irshad Mattoo, Amit Dave and the late Danish Siddiqui won the Pulitzer Prize 2022 in the feature photography category. They won this prestigious award for their images of the Covid toll in India. Unfortunately, Siddiqui was killed last year during the conflict between the Afghan and Taliban army. The winners were announced on 9th May, 2022.
Veteran santoor virtuoso and composer Pandit Shivkumar Sharma died due to cardiac arrest at the age of 84, in Mumbai, on May 10, 2022. Born in 1938, Sharma was known for popularising santoor, a folk instrument from Jammu and Kashmir, and giving it global recognition. He was awarded the Padma Shri in 1995 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2001 for his contribution to Indian music.
On his birth anniversary on May 9, 2022, India paid tribute to Maharana Pratap. Pratap Singh I, popularly known as Maharana Pratap, was the 54th ruler of Mewar from the Sisodia dynasty. Maharana Pratap is remembered for his role in the Battle of Haldighati against Mughal emperor Akbar, and the bravery of his loyal horse, Chetak. In 2007, a statue of Maharana Pratap was unveiled in the Parliament of India, by former President Pratibha Patil.
33-year-old Sujitha from Chennai, Tamil Nadu, has helped over 300 students, mostly girls, from economically backward families to find sponsors to continue their studies. The sponsors cover the college and hostel fees along with the transportation costs for the students. Sujitha acts as an intermediary, who helps the donor and recipient to connect with each other. Before initiating the process, she runs a background check of both the beneficiary and the donor to ensure a safe and sound environment for this noble cause.
Every day, 70 autorickshaw drivers from the Neyyattinkara bus station junction, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, provide food and water free of cost to those in need. In addition to this, they cultivate spinach, chillies, bananas, jackfruit and guava, in a space close to the autorickshaw stand. The drivers are even reluctant to let themselves be photographed as they see the deed as a normal part of their lives, not as anything to be talked about in public.
The relationship that a mother and her child share is a special one. Mother’s day is celebrated to cherish this unique bond, in several nations including India, on the second Sunday in May. This year, the day is being celebrated on 8 May, 2022. The day is observed to acknowledge and thank every mother across the globe for her selfless contribution in her child’s life and success.
Every year, International No Diet Day (INDD), is celebrated on May 6. The day is marked to encourage people to follow a healthy lifestyle irrespective of their body shape and size. The day aims to educate people about the side effects of unhealthy dieting and teach them how to diet responsibly. It also urges people to take a ‘cheat day’ once a week and acknowledge body diversity.
Indian paddler Hansini Mathan Rajan has returned home with two medals, a gold and a bronze, in the Under-13 and Under-15 categories of the World Table Tennis Youth Contender tournament held in Linz, Austria. Hansini won the U-13 championship defeating Andreea Baisu from Romania in the final. She also secured a bronze in the U-15 category after defeating Choi Hosea of South Korea in the quarterfinal.
International Firefighters Day is celebrated every year globally on May 4. The day is observed to honour and recognize the sacrifices of firefighters, who risk their lives to save ours. The day is also marked to thank the current and past firefighters, across the globe, for their selfless contributions. Firefighters also handle non-fire emergencies, such as car accidents and medical emergencies.
