Today’s Motto: ‘Knowledge is today’s ultimate portable weapon’

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

On this day, 25 Aug ….

1886 – 1st International Polo meet, U.S. vs England.

1912 – 1st time an aircraft recovers from a spin.

1917 – The first significant step towards the Indianisation of the Army was initiated when seven selected Indians, serving in the Army, were granted King’s Commission in the Infantry and the Cavalry. Before the World War ended, two more Indians, who previously held temporary commissions, were granted King’s Commission.

1919 – 1st scheduled passenger service by airplane, Paris-London.

1920 – 1st U.S. woman (Ethelda Bleibtrey) to win in Olympics. (She was a competition swimmer, three-time Olympic gold medalist, and former world record-holder in multiple events).

1940 – 1st (British) night bombing of Germany (Berlin).

1943 – Lord Mountbatten appointed Supreme Allied Commander in SE Asia.

1948 – Jana Gana Mana to be the provisional National Anthem till Constituent Assembly made a final decision.

1958 – Momofuku Ando markets the first package of precooked instant noodles.

1959 – Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, declares in New Delhi that India will defend Bhutan and Sikkim if attacked by China (picccredit-Britannica).

1965 – Indian troops cross the Kashmir ceasefire line pursuing Pakistani infiltrators.

1973 – The first scan was made using CAT (Computer Assisted Tomography).

1990 – GOI announces formation of National Security Council headed by the Prime Minister.

1997 – Indian Cabinet approved the draft of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) which was to replace the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act (FERA).

2009 – A new steam-powered car land speed was broken, for the first time in over a century. In two trials, Charles Burnett III reached 136 mph and 151 mph. The previous record was over a century old, set by Fred Marriott on 26 Jan 1906, in a Stanley Steamer racing car. Burnett drove a British-built car named Inspiration (pic creedit-Getty Images).

2012 – Voyager 1 spacecraft, becomes the 1st spacecraft to enter interstellar space (launched in 1977).

2019 – NASA investigates possibly the 1st crime in space over astronaut Anne McClain illegally accessing bank a/c from space.

Born….

1919 – Bindeshwari Prasad Mandal, former non-Congress Chief Minister of Bihar for 50 days and Chaired  the controversial  Mandal Commission in 1979-80 and presented the Report on Caste based reservation leading to various social engineering  theories  and concepts  in Indian pilitics (pic credit-National Herald).

1930 – Sean Connery, Asottish actor, who did 7 James Bond films in Secret Agent roles like Mr. No, Goldfinger, The Rock, Never Say Never Again, Highlander, Thunderbell, Entrapement etc. Won several awards viz., Golden Globe, Golden Lion,  Academy, Bafta and German Film Awards etc. (pic credit-BBC)

1958 – Tim Burton. Faous US director, producer, creative animator, writer. Known for films like Alice in Wonderland, The Nightmare, Corpse Bride, Batman, Big Fish etc. Was nominated 5 times to Academy  awards, 2 times Bafta and other honors.

1958- Elvis Costello. British musician. English singer, producer, writer. Won Grammy, MTV and other awards.

RIP….

1996 – 194 pilgrims die of cold at the cave temples of Amarnath .

2012 – Astronaut Neil Armstrong, the first person on the Moon, dies at age 82 from heart surgery complications.

You may have known….

Wedding without a Bridegroom – Puberty ceremonies: Marriage is a big deal in India, especially if you happen to be a girl. And that’s how a girl attaining puberty becomes a social occasion celebrated with great pride and enthusiasm across many Indian states. In a bid to announce the sexual maturity and readiness for marriage, the girl’s family dresses her up like a bride and conducts a ‘marriage’ ceremony sans the groom and vidaai. Friends and relatives are invited to bless the ‘bride’ and shower her with gifts. This ceremony also includes other rituals that last for several days, during which she is kept in a separate room, and not allowed to meet any men, including her father or brothers.

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