December
23
Kisan
Divas
23 December
is celebrated as Kisan Divas or Farmers’ Day to commemorate
the memory of Chaudhary Charan Singh, whose life reflected his
peasantry background and he understood problems of the farmer
and did his best to help them.
The plight
of farmers in India has been very miserable in present-day India
and they have always been at the receiving end since Independence.
Their hard toil fetches them nothing except fake assurances
from the dispensations at the helm. It’s sad and unfortunate
that people who are indispensable for the growth of nation have
been left to their fate. This is quite evident from the suicide
cases in Maharashtra, Andhra and other parts of the country
including West Bengal. In state like UP middlemen and Mandi
officials ensure that the farmers turn into object of grief.
The need of the hour is implementation of schemes introduced
by the government. This can take place effectively if the village
panchayts are provided more power to execute them in smooth
manner.
There is
a need to equip farmers with latest technological accessories
that augment the prospects of better output and thus make their
contribution more prominent in the global economy. Better results
could be attained if information centers having state-of-the
-art facilities are set-up inside each village that shed light
on issues related with farmers. Let’s not forget that they form
the backbone of the nation and so it becomes imperative for
us to be conscious of their needs. Both the Central and state
governments should come out with plans, which prevent the farmers
from being swayed by negative market forces.
Events
484 – Huneric
dies and is succeeded by his nephew Gunthamund, who becomes
king of the Vandals. During his reign the Catholics are free
from persecutions.
962 – Byzantine-Arab Wars: Under the future Emperor Nicephorus
Phocas, Byzantine troops stormed the city of Aleppo.
1572 – Theologian Johann Sylvan executed in Heidelberg for his
heretical Antitrinitarian beliefs.
1688 – As part of the Glorious Revolution, King James II of
England flees England to Paris after being deposed in favour
of his nephew, William of Orange and his daughter Mary.
1783 – George Washington resigns as commander-in-chief of the
Continental Army at the Maryland State House in Annapolis, Maryland.
1793 – The Battle of Savenay, decisive defeat of the royalist
counter-revolutionaries in Revolt in the Vendée during the French
Revolution.
1823 – A Visit from St. Nicholas, also known as The Night Before
Christmas, is published anonymously.
1893 – The opera Hänsel und Gretel by Engelbert Humperdinck
is first performed.
1913 – The Federal Reserve Act is signed into law by President
Woodrow Wilson, creating the Federal Reserve.
1914 – World War I: Australian and New Zealand troops arrive
in Cairo, Egypt.
1916 – World War I: Battle of Magdhaba – Allied forces defeat
Turkish forces in Egypt's Sinai peninsula.
1919 – Sex Disqualification (Removal) Act 1919 becomes law in
the UK.
1921 – Visva-Bharati University is inaugurated.
1936 – Colombia becomes a signatory to the Buenos Aires copyright
treaty.
1936 – First flight of the Vickers Wellington bomber.
1938 – Discovery of the first modern coelacanth in South Africa.
1940 – World War II: Greek submarine Papanikolis (Υ-2) sinks
the Italian motor ship Antonietta.
1941 – World War II: After 15 days of fighting, the Japanese
Imperial Army occupies Wake Island.
1947 – The transistor is first demonstrated at Bell Laboratories.
1948 – Seven Japanese convicted of war crimes by the International
Military Tribunal for the Far East are executed at Sugamo Prison
in Tokyo.
1958 – Dedication of Tokyo Tower, the world's highest self-supporting
iron tower.
1968 – The 82 sailors from the USS Pueblo are released after
eleven months of internment in North Korea.
1970 – The North Tower of the World Trade Center in Manhattan,
New York City is topped out at 1,368 feet (417 m), making it
the tallest building in the world.
1972 – A 6.5 magnitude earthquake strikes the Nicaraguan capital
of Managua killing more than 10,000.
1972 – The 16 survivors of the Andes flight disaster are rescued
after 73 days, having survived by cannibalism.
1979 – Soviet war in Afghanistan: Soviet forces occupy Kabul,
the Afghan capital.
1982 – The United States Environmental Protection Agency announces
it has identified dangerous levels of dioxin in the soil of
Times Beach, Missouri.
1986 – Voyager, piloted by Dick Rutan and Jeana Yeager, lands
at Edwards Air Force Base in California becoming the first aircraft
to fly non-stop around the world without aerial or ground refueling.
1990 – History of Slovenia: In a referendum, 88.5% of Slovenia's
overall electorate vote for independence from Yugoslavia.
2002 – A MQ-1 Predator is shot down by an Iraqi MiG-25, making
it the first time in history that an aircraft and an unmanned
drone had engaged in combat.
2003 – PetroChina Chuandongbei natural gas field explosion,
Guoqiao, Kai County, Chongqing, China, killing at least 234.
2007 – An agreement is made for the monarchy of Nepal to be
abolished and the country to become a federal republic with
the Prime Minister becoming head of state.
Holidays
and observances
Birthday
of the Queen Silvia, an official flag day (Sweden)
Christian Feast Day:
Abassad (Coptic Church)
John Cantius
O Emmanuel
Psote (Coptic Church)
Thorlac Thorhallsson, patron saint of Iceland; The last day
of preparations before Christmas.
Festivus, a holiday made popular by the sitcom Seinfeld
HumanLight (Secular humanism in United States)
Larentalia, in honor of Larenta. (Roman empire)
Night of the Radishes (Oaxaca, Mexico)
The Emperor's Birthday, birthday of Akihito, the current Emperor
of Japan. (Japan)
For details, contact Datacentre
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