VerifiedEach and every day of a year holds some significance or the other in the lives of the countrymen and, in some cases, has international importance too. Some of these days are commemorated by celebrating amidst fanfare; on other days, we have a holiday. These days and events, for a particular country, can be divided into three categories: National, Religious and Seasonal. Every few years the Gregorian calendar gets a day or two added to it due to their environmental significance. The advancement of globalization has made all of us a part of the “global village” and thus a good many international days are celebrated or observed throughout.
This essay aims at identifying the days of national and international importance on a month-wise basis.
January
1st January
It is the first day of every New Year and thus, a holiday across the globe. People make merry and welcome the New Year with oodles of fun, celebration and of course, positivity.
14th January
A few harvest festivals like Makar Sankranti, Pongal, Lohri are observed throughout the country as the farmers bring new harvest home. Sometimes, these festivals fall on the same day and sometimes they are just a day or two behind each other.
15th January
This day is dedicated to the Indian Army. To commemorate the dedication and sacrifice of the soldiers for our beloved motherland, this day is designated as the Indian Army Day.
23rd January
This day is of national significance for India as the great leader Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose was born on this day. It is observed with importance keeping in mind the heroic contribution of him towards India’s freedom movement.
26th January
This is yet again an utterly important day for India. Widely known as the Republic Day, the Constitution of India came into force on this day and India claimed “Purna Swaraj”
February
4th February
It is marked as World Cancer Day as the pledge to fight against the deadly disease is strengthened every year on this day.
21st February
Nothing can substitute the mother tongue when it comes to expressing one’s thoughts into words. Keeping that in mind and the sacrifice of young blood from Bangladesh for identifying Bengali as the official language, this day is declared and observed as the International Mother Language Day.
March
8th March
The world would be a complete massacre if the women are absent or not give their due respect. To eliminate discrimination against women and give more importance to women’s rights, this day is observed by the UN as the International Women’s Day.
April
2nd April
To bless the souls with autism and increase awareness and remove the stigma from common people’s minds, the UN declared this day as World Autism Awareness Day.
7th April
The World Health Organization became functional on this day. To mark this, 7th April is observed with seminars, pledges, project plans, social works etc as the World Health Day.
14th April
Assam, Punjab, Bengal and a few other states of India observe New Year on this day according to the Hindu calendar.
17th April
On the birthday of Frank Schnabel, the founder of the World Federation of Hemophilia, the World Hemophilia Day is observed to increase awareness about haemophilia and other bleeding disorders.
30th April
To mark the start of Ayushman Bharat Yojana, this day is designated as Ayushman Bharat Diwas.
May
1st May
International Labour Day is observed to recognize the people of the working class and their contribution to the world economy.
8th May
This day is both World Red Cross Day and World Thalassemia Day.
June
5th June
It is the World Environment Day, a day to remind ourselves of our duties towards Mother Nature.
21st June
The benefit of music and yoga on the mind and health is undeniable. This day marks the importance of both and is observed as World Music Day and International Yoga Day.
July
26th July
On this day, the Indian Army defeated the army of Pakistan and reclaimed Kargil. It is marked as Kargil Vijay Diwas.
August
15th August
It is the most important day for India as freedom was inferred after 200 years of bondage under British rule. It is the Independence Day for India.
September
14th September
The state of Kerala observes Onam on this day. Keralites across the world celebrate the day in their own cultural way.
October
2nd October
The Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi was born on this day and it is a declared national holiday in India.
5th October
It is celebrated as the International Teachers’ Day and also the birthday of Dr Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan who said, “Teachers should be the best minds in the country.”
November
12th November
It is the birth anniversary of the great religious guru, Guru Nanak Dev.
14th November
The first Prime Minister of independent India Jawaharlal Nehru had immense love for children and so, his birthday is celebrated as Children’s Day.
Fourth Thursday of November
It is the Thanksgiving Day observed in the US as a way of thanking the blessings of harvest and recognizing the sacrifice behind it too.
December
1st December
To increase awareness about the deadly disease of AIDS, this day is marked as World AIDS Day.
10th December
Every human being is entitled to some basic rights and this day is marked as Human Rights Day.
25th December
It is the birthday of Jesus Christ. Countries across the globe observe this day as Christmas.
31st December
The year comes to an end on this day. People make merry, bid farewell to the year gone by, and look forward to the New Year with a lot of hope and optimism.
The rest of the 365 days also have some or other significance but those mentioned above are the most commonly known ones.
