20 January in Indian and World History is celebrated, observed, and remembered for various reasons. 20 January is the birth anniversary of Ajit Kumar Doval and Ratan Thiyam.
20 January is so observed as the death anniversary of Sir Tej Bahadur Sapru, Thakkar Bappa, Harvilas Sharda, Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, and Karam Singh.
Birth Anniversary
20 January in Indian history is celebrated as the birth anniversary of the following personalities:
Ajit Kumar Doval, retired IPS and is the current National Security Advisor of India. He has been in this post since May 30, 2014. Doval is the fifth National Security Advisor of India. He is the only citizen of India who has been awarded the Kirti Chakra, the second-highest peacetime award. He was born on 20 January 1945.
Ratan Thiyam, a renowned playwright, theater director, and former director of the National School of Drama. He directed several plays with the National School of Drama. Ratan Thiyam is known for presenting traditional Sanskrit plays with their modern interpretations. His color work is unique because of the amazing color combination and unique rhythm. He not only expresses his being a painter and a poet in his paintings and poems, but his colorwork is also his infallible proof. He has been particularly active in the development of theatrical science and the art medium associated with it. He has staged several Indian and foreign plays as well as two plays of Bhasa, Karnabharam, and Urubhangam. Ratan Thiyam was born on 20 January 1948.
Read More: 19 January in Indian and World History
Death Anniversary
20 January in Indian history is observed as the death anniversary of the following personalities:
Sir Tej Bahadur Sapru (8 December 1875 – 20 January 1949), an Indian freedom fighter, lawyer, and politician. He was a key figure in India’s struggle for independence, helping draft the Indian Constitution. He was the leader of the Liberal party in British-ruled India. Sapru died on 20 January 1949.
Thakkar Bappa (29 November 1869 – 20 January 1951), famous for his service work. Remembering his service-spirit, Dr. Rajendra Prasad had said – “Whenever the selfless servants are remembered, the idol of Thakkar Bappa will stand in front of my eyes.” After the independence of the country, Thakkar Bappa was also a member of Parliament for some time. He died on 20 January 1951.
Harvilas Sharda (3 June 1867 – 20 January 1955), an Indian educationist, politician, social reformer, jurist and writer. He was the proponent of the well-known ‘Sharda Act’, aimed at curbing the practice of child marriage. Harvilas ji was a pioneer in the field of social service from the very beginning. He had worked as the secretary of the ‘Peropkarini Sabha’ founded by Swami Dayanand Saraswati. His most famous book is ‘Hindu Superiority’. In this book, he has proved that the Hindu civilization was far ahead of other countries in all the fields during the period of history. He died on 20 January 1955.
Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan (6 February 1890 – 20 January 1988), a great statesman, who participated in India’s freedom struggle and was known as “Sarhadi Gandhi” for his work and devotion. He was the foremost and charismatic leader of the Pakhtuns (or Pathans; Muslim ethnic group of Pakistan and Afghanistan) in the 20th century, who became a follower of Mahatma Gandhi and came to be known as the ‘Simant Gandhi’. The humble Ghaffar always called himself only a ‘Soldier of Freedom Struggle’, but his admirers called him ‘Badshah Khan’. Gandhiji used to address him in the same way. By participating in the national movements, he has faced severe torture in jails many times. Yet they did not deviate from their native culture. For this reason, he had great affection for India. Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan was awarded India’s highest civilian award ‘Bharat Ratna’ by the Government of India in the year 1987. He died on 20 January 1988.
Karam Singh (15 September 1915 – 20 January 1993), an Indian soldier and India’s second Param Vir Chakra awardee. He received this honor in 1948. He died on 20 January 1993 at the age of 77 in Sehna, Barnala, Punjab, India.
Read More: 18 January in Indian and World History
Notable events on 20 January in Indian and World history
20 January 1817 – Establishment of Hindu College in Calcutta.
20 January 1839 – The combined forces of Bolivia and Peru were defeated by Chile.
20 January 1840 – The Dutch King William II was crowned.
20 January 1841 – In the First Opium War, China ceded Hong Kong to Britain.
20 January 1860 – The Dutch army conquered Watampon on the Indonesian island of Celebes.
20 January 1873 – Johannes V. Jensen a Danish author, and Nobel Laureate.
20 January 1873 – Johannes Vilhelm Jensen was a Danish author. In 1944, Johannes Vilhelm Jensen was awarded the Nobel Prize in a Danish author, was Born.
20 January 1887 – Pearl Harbor was allowed by the US Senate to become a naval base.
20 January 1892 – The first basketball game in the world was played on this day.
20 January 1912 – Hulusi Kentmen a notable Turkish actor known for his remarkable contributions to the Turkish film industry was born.
20 January 1920 – The Civil Liberties Association in America was established.
20 January 1920 – Federico Fellini, an Italian filmmaker, was born.
20 January 1925 – A cooperation agreement was signed between Japan and the Soviet Union.
20 January 1931 – David Morris Lee an American physicist, and Nobel Laureate.
20 January 1934 – Louay Kayali, a Syrian modern artist, was born.
20 January 1949 – US President Harry Truman announced his four-point program.
20 January 1950 – The South American country of Suriname became independent from the Netherlands.
20 January 1952 – The Egyptian cities of Suez and Ismailia were captured by the British army.
20 January 1957 – India’s first nuclear reactor ‘Apsara’ was inaugurated in Trombay on this day.
20 January 1957 – After the economic embargo by India, South Africa announced not to provide facilities to Indian ships.
20 January 1961 – John F Kennedy was sworn in as the 35th President of the United States.
20 January 1961 – Ji Hyeonok, the first Korean woman to climb Mount Everest, was born.
20 January 1964 – ‘Meet the Beatless’ was released in the US.
20 January 1971 – Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh emerged as ‘Union Territories’.
20 January 1972 – The Indian state of Meghalaya was established on this day.
20 January 1982 – In Honduras, which is a Central American country, the constitution came into effect.
20 January 1988– Abdul Ghaffar Khan– a political and spiritual leader known for his nonviolent opposition and lifelong pacifism – died.
20 January 1989 – George Herbert Walker Bush was sworn in as the 41st President of the United States on this day.
20 January 1993 – Karam Singh, an Indian soldier, and Nobel Prize Laureate, died.
20 January 1993 – Intensified by Bill Clinton as the 42nd President of the United States.
20 January 2001 – George W Bush became the 43rd President of the United States and Gloria Arroya became the President of the Philippines.
20 January 2006 – For more information about Pluto, NASA launched the New Horizon spacecraft.
20 January 2006 – Nepal and India extended the period of the transit treaty by 3 months.
20 January 2007 – A museum named after Frontier Gandhi was established in Afghanistan.
20 January 2008 – Bollywood actor Dev Anand was presented with the ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’ for his contribution to Indian cinema.
20 January 2009 – Barack Obama took office as the 44th President of the United States.
20 January 2009 – National Conference President Omar Abdullah took oath as the Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir.
20 January 2010 – Cinematographer V.K. Murthy was selected for the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award. This award was given to a cinematographer for the first time.
20 January 2010 – Asia’s largest airline ‘Japan Airlines’ declared itself bankrupt.
20 January 2010 – Mobile portability services were introduced in India.