03 April - The first cell phone call ever in 1973

 

On April 3, 1973, an engineer named Martin Cooper stood nervously along a busy midtown Manhattan street, about to make a phone call. It was a call that would change life as we know it: The first cell phone call ever. 

The phone Cooper used that day — a prototype — was a bulky, 2-pound monster that looked a bit like a shoe with an antenna sticking out of the top. In the half-a-century since, this technology has changed more about the way we communicate and connect than Cooper could’ve ever imagined.

03 April - The Central Bureau of Investigation Postage stamp issued 2023

 

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is the premier investigating agency of India.It operates under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions. Originally set up to investigate bribery and governmental corruption, in 1965 it received expanded jurisdiction to investigate breaches of central laws enforceable by the Government of India, multi-state organised crime, multi-agency or international cases.The CBI has attracted numerous controversies and criticisms due to various reports of irregular practises, excessive political influence, and a poor conviction rate.CBI is exempted from the provisions of the Right to Information Act.CBI is India's officially designated single point of contact for liaison with the Interpol.

The CBI headquarter is located in CGO Complex, near Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in New Delhi. 

 Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Diamond Jubilee celebrations of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and confered the President’s Police Medal for Distinguished Service and Gold Medal for Best Investigating Officers of the agency.

 

03 April - Marlon Brando Jr. born in 1924

 

Marlon Brando Jr. (April 3, 1924 – July 1, 2004) was an American actor. Considered one of the most influential actors of the 20th century,he received numerous accolades throughout his career, which spanned six decades, including two Academy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, one Cannes Film Festival Award and three British Academy Film Awards. Brando was also an activist for many causes, notably the civil rights movement and various Native American movements. Having studied with Stella Adler in the 1940s, he is credited with being one of the first actors to bring the Stanislavski system of acting, and method acting, to mainstream audiences. 

03 April - John Harrison birth anniversary

 

 

John Harrison (03 April 1693 – 24 March 1776) was a self-educated English carpenter and clockmaker who invented the marine chronometer, a long-sought-after device for solving the problem of calculating longitude while at sea.

Harrison's solution revolutionized navigation and greatly increased the safety of long-distance sea travel. The problem he solved had been considered so important following the Scilly naval disaster of 1707 that the British Parliament was offering financial rewards of up to £20,000 (equivalent to £3.35 million in 2023) under the 1714 Longitude Act,though Harrison was never fully able to receive these rewards due to political rivalries.

Harrison presented his first design in 1730, and worked over many years on improved designs, making several advances in time-keeping technology, finally turning to what were called sea watches. Harrison gained support from the Longitude Board in building and testing his designs. Toward the end of his life, he received recognition and a reward from Parliament.

03 April - Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay birth anniversary

 

 

Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay ( 03 April 1903 – 29 October 1988) was an Indian social reformer and freedom activist. She was most remembered for her contribution to the Indian independence movement; for being the driving force behind the renaissance of Indian handicrafts, handlooms, and theatre in independent India; and for upliftment of the socio-economic standard of Indian women by pioneering the co-operation. She is the first lady in India to stand in elections from Madras Constituency although she lost in the elections but she pioneered the path for the women in India.

Several cultural institutions in India today exist because of her vision, including the National School of Drama, Sangeet Natak Akademi, Central Cottage Industries Emporium, and the Crafts Council of India. She stressed the significant role which handicrafts and cooperative grassroot movements play in the social and economic upliftment of the Indian people. To this end she withstood great opposition both before and after independence from the power centres.

In 1974, she was awarded the Sangeet Natak Academy Fellowship, the highest honour conferred by the Sangeet Natak Academy, India's National Academy of Music, Dance & Drama.She was conferred with Padma Bhushan and Padma Vibhushan by Government of India in 1955 and 1987 respectively. She is known as Hatkargha Maa for her works in handloom sector. 

03 April - Shivaji Maharaj death anniversary

 

Shivaji (19 February 1630 – 3 April 1680), an Indian Warrior and the scion of Bhosle Maratha clam. He is credited with the genesis of the Maratha Empire. Shivaji carved out an enclave from the declining Adilshahi sultanate of Bijapur that formed the genesis of the Maratha Empire. He died on 3 April 1680.

Over the course of his life, Shivaji engaged in both alliances and hostilities with the Mughal Empire, the Sultanate of Golkonda, Sultanate of Bijapur and the European colonial powers. Shivaji's military forces expanded the Maratha sphere of influence, capturing and building forts, and forming a Maratha navy. Shivaji established a competent and progressive civil rule with well-structured administrative organisations. He revived ancient Hindu political traditions, court conventions and promoted the usage of the Marathi and Sanskrit languages, replacing Persian in court and administration.

Shivaji's legacy was to vary by observer and time, but nearly two centuries after his death, he began to take on increased importance with the emergence of the Indian independence movement, as many Indian nationalists elevated him as a proto-nationalist and hero of the Hindus.