03 February - Battle of Umberkhind

 

 

 

 

Battle of Umberkhind took place on 3 February 1661 in the mountain range of Sahyadri near the city of Khopoli, Maharashtra, India. The battle was fought between the Maratha army under Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and General Kartalab Khan of the Mughal Empire. The Marathas defeated the Mughal forces. This battle was a great example of guerrilla warfare. On the orders of Aurangzeb, Shahista Khan sent Kartalab Khan and Rai Bagan to attack Rajgad Fort. Shivaji's men encountered them in a forest in the mountain hills, which was called the Umberkhind.

02 February - Press Trust of India established in 1949

 

The Press Trust of India Ltd., commonly known as PTI, is the largest news agency in India.It is headquartered in New Delhi and is a nonprofit cooperative among more than 500 Indian newspapers and has about 500 full-time employees as of 1 Jan 2020 including about 400 journalists and 500 part time correspondents in most of the district headquarters in the country.A few correspondents are based in major capitals and important business centers around the world. It took over the operations of the Associated Press of India from Reuters in 1948–49.It provides news coverage and information of the region in both English and Hindi.

PTI exchanges information with several other news agencies including 100 news agencies based outside India, such as Associated Press, Agence France-Presse, The New York Times and Bloomberg L.P.. Major Indian subscribers of PTI include The Hindu, The Times of India, The Indian Express, Hindustan Times, The Statesman, The Tribune, News 18, NDTV, India Today, the All India Radio, Doordarshan, and The Wire. PTI has offices in Bangkok, Beijing, Colombo, Dubai, Islamabad, Kuala Lumpur, Moscow, New York City, and Washington D.C.

02 February - World Wetlands Day

 

 

World Wetlands Day is observed every year on the 2nd of February to spread awareness on the need to conserve wetlands all over the world. The WWD was first celebrated in 1997 and every year various government organizations, students etc take part in programmes to educate people on the importance of wetlands and the necessity to raise public awareness on this issue.

What are wetlands? Wetlands are land flooded with water either permanently or seasonally inhabiting various organisms contributing to the ecosystem. Wetlands act as a natural storage reservoir, and also helps in water purification. They are also rich in biodiversity and contribute majorly to the environment. Some of the wetlands are mangroves, marshes and peat lands, floodplains and flooded forests, swamps etc....

01 February - United Nations Conference on Trade and Development

 

A commemorative postage stamp issued on (01.Feb.1968) 2nd United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) New Delhi : UNCTAD is an intergovernmental organization within the United Nations Secretariat that promotes the interests of developing countries in world trade. It was established in 1964 by the United Nations General Assembly  and reports to that body and the United Nations Economic and Social Council   is composed of 195 member states and works with nongovernmental organizations worldwide its permanent secretariat is in Geneva, Switzerland.

01 February - The Indian Coast Guard established in 1977

 

Indian Coast Guard Day is celebrated on February 1st each year to commemorate the founding of the Indian Coast Guard in 1977.

The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) is an Armed Force of the Union of India for ensuring the security of the maritime zones of India with a view to the protection of maritime and other national interests in such zones and for matters connected therewith. The Indian Coast Guard was formally established on 01 February 1977 by the Coast Guard Act, 1978 of the Parliament of India. It operates under the Ministry of Defence.

The Coast Guard works in close cooperation with the Indian Navy, the Department of Fisheries, the Department of Revenue (Customs), and the Central Armed Police Forces, and the State Police Services.

Postage stamps and postal history of Newfoundland

Newfoundland is a large Canadian island off the east coast of North America, and the most populous part of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. The first postage stamps of Newfoundland were issued in 1857.When Newfoundland entered into confederation with Canada in 1949, the new province stopped issuing its own stamps, and adopted the stamps already in use in the rest of Canada. Newfoundland was the centre for attempts at making the first trans-Atlantic flights and several generated both stamps and covers

From 1913, when Lord Northcliffe offered a £10,000 prize for the first nonstop crossing of the Atlantic on a heavier-than-air machine, Newfoundland became the centre for most attempts, notably the successful flight by Alcock and Brown in 1919. Many of these attempts carried mail, franked with Newfoundland stamps overprinted for the occasion.The first flight by a Canadian from North America to England was 9–10 October 1930, in the Wright-Bellanca WB-2 Maple Leaf (aka, Columbia), navigated from Harbor Grace (NL) by the American, Lieut. Harry Connor. This flight was notable for transporting mail bearing a surcharged stamp as a commemorative overprint.In 1933 the Post Office issued a permanent set of four airmail stamps, of which the 75-cent denomination was overprinted for General Balbo's flight two months after their issue.

The colony and later the dominion of Newfoundland had a 90-year history of issuing postage stamps. The first issues were in 1857. The last issue was in 1947, 2 years prior to Newfoundland joining the confederation. Newfoundland stamps remain valid for postal mail delivered anywhere in Canada.

30 January - Amrita Sher Gil birth anniversary

 

Amrita Sher-Gil (30 January 1913 – 05 December 1941) was a Hungarian-Indian painter. She has been called "one of the greatest avant-garde women artists of the early 20th century" and a pioneer in modern Indian art. Drawn to painting from an early age, Sher-Gil started formal lessons at the age of eight. She first gained recognition at the age of 19, for her oil painting Young Girls (1932) (shown below). Sher-Gil depicted everyday life of the people in her paintings.

Sher-Gil traveled throughout her life to various countries including Turkey, France, and India, deriving heavily from precolonial Indian art styles as well as contemporary culture. Sher-Gil is considered an important painter of 20th-century India, whose legacy stands on a level with that of the pioneers from the Bengal Renaissance. She was also an avid reader and a pianist. Sher-Gil's paintings are among the most expensive by Indian women painters today, although few acknowledged her work when she was alive.

30 January - Martyrs' Day or Shaheed Diwas

 

 

On January 30, India will observe Martyrs' Day or Shaheed Diwas to pay tribute to all the freedom fighters who sacrificed their lives for the country. The day is also marked as the death anniversary of the nation's 'Bapu', Mahatma Gandhi.

Every year, on January 30, India celebrates Martyrs' Day by paying tribute to Mahatma Gandhi's Samadhi at Raj Ghat in Delhi. The President, Vice President, Prime Minister, Defense Minister, and the three Service Chiefs (Army, Air Force, And Navy) pay their respects to the father of the nation.

In conclusion, Shaheed Diwas is a day to remember the sacrifices of all the freedom fighters who gave their lives for the country, and to pay homage to the great leader, Mahatma Gandhi, who inspired millions of people with his principles of non-violence and truth.

The day is marked by various events and programs organized by the government to commemorate the bravery and selflessness of these heroes.

 

29 Jan 1892 - The Coca-Cola Company incorporated

 

The Coca-Cola Company is an American multinational beverage corporation founded in 1892 on 29 Jan, best known as the producer of Coca-Cola. The Coca-Cola Company also manufactures, sells, and markets other non-alcoholic beverage concentrates and syrups, and alcoholic beverages. 

The soft drink was developed in 1886 by pharmacist John Stith Pemberton. At the time it was introduced, the product contained cocaine from coca leaves and caffeine from kola nuts which together acted as a stimulant. The coca and the kola are the source of the product name, and led to Coca-Cola's promotion as a "healthy tonic". Pemberton had been severely wounded in the American Civil War, and had become addicted to the pain medication morphine. He developed the beverage as a patent medicine in an effort to control his addiction.

In 1889, the formula and brand were sold for $2,300 (roughly $71,000 in 2022) to Asa Griggs Candler, who incorporated the Coca-Cola Company in Atlanta in 1892. The company has operated a franchised distribution system since 1889.The company largely produces syrup concentrate, which is then sold to various bottlers throughout the world who hold exclusive territories. The company owns its anchor bottler in North America, Coca-Cola Refreshments.

 

Sheet of Singapore that has 2 stamps and Coca-Cola sponsor label or Cinderella.

 

 

 

29 Jan - USA National Carnation Day

 

National Carnation Day is observed annually on January 29. The flowers are amazingly significant for almost any season or occasion. National Carnation Day was established in honor of William McKinley, the 25th U.S. President, who was assassinated in 1901 and always wore a red carnation on his lapel. The carnation was said to be his favorite flower, and he always wore one for good luck.