8 May in Indian and World History is celebrated, observed, and remembered for various reasons. 8 May is the birth anniversary of Hashim Amir Ali, Jnan Prakash Ghosh, Swami Chinmayananda Saraswati, Ramesh Chandra Jha, Chalapathi Rao, Dhruv Bhatt, Remo Fernandes, Shivajirao Adhalarao Patil, P.R. Sreejesh, and Shivajirao Adhalarao Patil.
8 May is also observed as the death anniversary of J. H. C. Whitehead, Abdool Razack Mohamed, and Kanwar Bahadur Singh.
Birth Anniversary
8 May in Indian history is celebrated as the birth anniversary of the following personalities:
Hashim Amir Ali (8 May 1903 – 1987), an Islamic scholar and author. He was the son of Ahmed Ali Khan and Fatima Begum, a native of Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India. He was born on 8 May 1903.
Jnan Prakash Ghosh (8 May 1909 – 18 February 1997), an Indian harmonium and tabla player from Farukhabad Gharana of Hindustani classical music and musicologist. He was born on 8 May 1909.
Swami Chinmayananda Saraswati (8 May 1916 – 3 August 1993), a Hindu spiritual leader and a teacher who inspired the formation of the Chinmaya Mission to spread the knowledge of Advaita Vedanta, the non-dual system of thought found in the Upanishads, which enhance the philosophical teachings of the Vedas. Chinmayananda authored 95 publications, including commentaries on the major Upanishads and Bhagavad Gita. He was born on 8 May 1916 in Ernakulam, Cochin Princely State, British India.
Ramesh Chandra Jha (8 May 1928 – 7 April 1994), an Indian poet, novelist, journalist, and freedom fighter. He mainly expresses concerns about people’s life struggle, their dreams, and hopes in his poetry. He was born on 8 May 1928 in Motihari, Bihar and Orissa Province, British India.
Chalapathi Rao, an Indian film actor, and producer is known for comedy and villainous roles in Telugu cinema. He has acted in different roles in more than 600 films. He was born on 8 May 1944 in Baliparru, Madras Presidency, British India.
Dhruv Bhatt, a Gujarati language novelist, and poet from Gujarat, India. He was born on 8 May 1947 in Ningala, Bhavnagar, Gujarat.
Remo Fernandes, a Portuguese singer, and musician known as a pioneer of Indian pop music. He was born on 8 May 1953 in Panjim, Goa, Portuguese India.
Shivajirao Adhalarao Patil, a Member of Parliament in the Lok Sabha from Shirur and a member of the Shiv Sena. He was born on 8 May 1956.
P.R. Sreejesh, an Indian professional field hockey player who plays as a goalkeeper and former captain of the Indian national team. He won Arjuna Award in 2015 and Padma Shri in 2017 for his work in the field of sports. He was born on 8 May 1988 in Kochi, Kerala, India.
Shivajirao Adhalarao Patil, a Member of Parliament in the Lok Sabha from Shirur and a member of the Shiv Sena. He was born on 8 May 1956.
Read More: 7 May in Indian and World History
Death Anniversary
8 May in Indian history is observed as the death anniversary of the following personalities:
H. C. Whitehead (11 November 1904 – 8 May 1960), known as Henry, was a British mathematician and was one of the founders of homotopy theory. He was born in Chennai (then known as Madras), in India, and died in Princeton, New Jersey, in 1960. He died on 8 May 1960.
Abdool Razack Mohamed (1 August 1906 – 8 May 1978), an Indian-born former senior Mauritian Minister in the pre and post-independence cabinet of Mauritius. He died on 8 May 1978.
Kanwar Bahadur Singh (5 August 1910 – 8 May 2007), a senior officer in the Indian Army. After retiring from the army, Lt. Gen. K. Bahadur Singh was appointed Lieutenant Governor of the Union Territory of Himachal Pradesh from 16 May 1967 to 24 January 1971. He died on 8 May 2007 at the age of 96.
Read More: 6 May in Indian and World History
Notable events on 8 May in Indian and World history
8 May 1886 – Production of Coca-Cola, the world’s most famous cold drink, started today.
8 May 1901 – According to the British appointed commission 1,250,000 Indians have died after a severe drought, lasting since 1899.
8 May 1901 – Australian labor party is founded.
8 May 1920 – Saul Bass – an American graphic designer and Oscar-winning filmmaker, best known for his design of motion-picture title sequences, film posters, and corporate logos – was born.
8 May 1933 – Mahatma Gandhi begins a 21-day fast of self-purification and launched a one-year campaign to help the Harijan movement.
8 May 1943 – Pat Barker, a British writer, and Nobel Prize Laureate, was born.
8 May 1958 – Roddy Doyle, an Irish novelist, and Nobel Prize Laureate, was born.
8 May 1984 – France tested nuclear at Iceland.
8 May 1997 – Chinese southern airlines flight 3456 crashed in which 35 people died.
8 May 2010 – An armored car of CRPF personnel was blown up by bombs in Dantewada, Chhattisgarh, in which 8 soldiers were killed.
8 May 2013 – An overloaded bus falls into a river in Himachal Pradesh, 33 people are killed.
World Red Cross Day is observed every year on 8 May to memorize the birth anniversary of the founder of the Red Cross. The founder of the Red Cross was Henry Dunant as well as the founder of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). He was born in Geneva in 1828. He became the first recipient of the 1st Nobel Peace prize.