17 March in Indian and World History

OV Digital Desk
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17 March in Indian and World History

17 March in Indian and World History is celebrated, observed, and remembered for various reasons. 17 March is the birth anniversary of Joseph Baptista, Saina Nehwal, and Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

17 March is also observed as the death anniversary of Dattu Phadkar.

 Birth Anniversary

17 March in Indian history is celebrated as the birth anniversary of the following personalities:

Joseph Baptista (17 March 1864 – 18 September 1930), a politician and activist. He worked with Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak and the Home Rule Movement. He was the first president of the Indian home rule league. He was elected as the Mayor of Bombay in 1925. He was given the title Kaka which means “uncle”. He was born on 17 March 1864 in Bombay, India.

Saina Nehwal, an Indian professional badminton singles player. She is credited with enhancing the popularity of badminton in India. In 2016, she was honored with Padma Bhushan– India’s third-highest civilian award. She was also honored with Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna and the Arjuna Award.

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (17 March 1920 – 15 August 1975), a Bangladeshi politician. He is called the “Father of Nation” in Bangladesh. He served as the first President of Bangladesh and later as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh from 17 April 1971 until his assassination on 15 August 1975. Amid rising political agitation, Mujib initiated a one-party socialist rule in January 1975. Six months later, he and most of his family were assassinated by renegade army officers during a coup. A martial law government was subsequently established. In a 2004 BBC poll, Mujib was voted the Greatest Bengali of all time.

Ramchandra Narayan Dandekar (17 March 1909 – 11 December 2001), an Indologist and Vedic scholar. He was honored with  Padmabhushan, India’s third-highest civilian award in 1962. He was also awarded Sahitya Akademi Fellowship in 2000. He was born on 17 March 1909.

Read More: 15 March in Indian and World History

Death Anniversary

17 March in Indian history is observed as the death anniversary of the following personalities:

Dattu Phadkar (12 December 1925 – 17 March 1985), an all-rounder who represented India in Test cricket. He died due to a brain illness on 17 March 1985 at an age of 59.

Read More: 14 March in Indian and World History

Notable events on 17 March in Indian and World History

17 March 1527 – The battle of Khandwa war was fought. This was the second most important war in the attempt by invading the Mughals to establish the Mughal Dynasty in India. The war happened between Rana Sanga of Mewar and the armies of Babar. In the world, Babar ended up defeating Rana Sanga and consolidated the Mughal empire in India.

17 March 1713  Juraj Jánošík, a Slovak highwayman and known as the Slovak Robin Hood, died.

17 March 1881 – Walter Rudolf Hess a Swiss physiologist, and Nobel Prize Laureate, was born.

17 March 1892 – Sayed Darwish, an Egyptian composer, singer, songwriter, was born.

17 March 1920 – Olga Orozco, Argentine poet and writer, was born.

17 March 1956 – Irene Joliot Curie a French chemist, physicist, politician, and Nobel Prize Laureate, died

17 March 1959 – Tibetan spiritual leader Tenzin Gyatso, better known as His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, escaped from Tibet to India.

17 March 1983 – Haldan Keffer Hartline an American physiologist, and Nobel Prize Laureate, died

17 March 2020 – Elizabeth Williams, a peace activist from Northern Ireland, and Nobel Prize Laureate, died.

On 17 March St. Patrick’s Day, a cultural and religious holiday, is celebrated. It is named after St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland. The day is observed in honor of his death anniversary and to commemorate his contributions to Irish culture.

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