René Laennec Birth Anniversary

 

René Laennec, born on 17 February 1781, was a French physician and musician. His skill of carving his own wooden flutes led him to invent the stethoscope in 1816, while working at the Hôpital Necker. He pioneered its usage in diagnosing various chest conditions. He became a lecturer at the Collège de France in 1822 and professor of medicine in 1823. His final appointments were that of head of the medical clinic at the Hôpital de la Charité and professor at the Collège de France. He died of tuberculosis in 1826 at the age of 45.

Christopher Latham Sholes Death Anniversary

 

Christopher Latham Sholes, who passed away on 17 February 1890, was an American inventor who invented the QWERTY keyboard, and along with Samuel W. Soule, Carlos Glidden and John Pratt, has been contended as one of the inventors of the first typewriter in the United States. He was also a newspaper publisher and Wisconsin politician.

Edward Stanley Gibbons Death Anniversary

 

Edward Stanley Gibbons, who passed away on 17 February 1913, was an English stamp dealer and founder of Stanley Gibbons Ltd, publishers of the famous Stanley Gibbons stamp catalogue and other stamp-related books and magazines.

Jiddu Krishnamurti Death Anniversary

 

Jiddu Krishnamurti, who passed away on 17 February 1986, was an Indian philosopher, speaker and writer. In his early life he was groomed to be the new World Teacher but later rejected this mantle and withdrew from the Theosophy organization behind it. His interests included psychological revolution, the nature of mind, meditation, inquiry, human relationships, and bringing about radical change in society. He stressed the need for a revolution in the psyche of every human being and emphasised that such revolution cannot be brought about by any external entity, be it religious, political, or social.

Kailash Nath Katju Death Anniversary

 

Kailash Nath Katju, who passed away on 17 February 1968, was a prominent politician of India. He was the Governor of Orissa and West Bengal, the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, the Union Home Minister and the Union Defence Minister. He was also one of India's most prominent lawyers. He was part of some of the most riveting cases of his times, including the famous INA trials. Dr Katju joined the freedom struggle against the British rule in India early on and spent several years incarcerated with fellow freedom fighters.

Rani Gaidinliu Death Anniversary

 

Rani Gaidinliu, who passed away on 17 February 1993, was a Naga spiritual and political leader who led a revolt against British rule in India. At the age of 13, she joined the Heraka religious movement of her cousin Haipou Jadonang. The movement later turned into a political movement seeking to drive out the British from Manipur and the surrounding Naga areas. Within the Heraka faith, she came to be considered an incarnation of the Goddess Cherachamdinliu. Gaidinliu was arrested in 1932 at the age of 16, and was sentenced to life imprisonment by the British rulers. Jawaharlal Nehru met her at Shillong Jail in 1937, and promised to pursue her release. Nehru gave her the title of "Rani" ("Queen"), and she gained local popularity as Rani Gaidinliu

Karpoori Thakur Death Anniversary

 

Karpoori Thakur, who passed away on 17 February 1988, was an Indian politician from the Bihar state. He was popularly known as Jan Nayak. He served as the Chief Minister of Bihar from December 1970 to June 1971 (Socialist Party/Bharatiya Kranti Dal), and from December 1977 to April 1979 (Janata Party).

Vasudev Balwant Phadke Death Anniversary

 

Vasudev Balwant Phadke, who passed away on 17 February 1883, was an Indian independence activist and revolutionary who sought India's independence from the British Raj. Phadke was moved by the plight of the farming community and believed that Swaraj was the only remedy for their ills. With the help of the Koli, Bhil and Dhangar communities in the region, he formed a revolutionary group of the Ramoshi people. The group started an armed struggle to overthrow the British Raj, launching raids on rich English businessmen to obtain funds for the purpose. Phadke came to prominence when he got control of the city of Pune for a few days after catching British soldiers off-guard during one a surprise attack.

World Pangolin Day

World Pangolin Day is observed on the third Saturday in February and takes place on February 17 this year. The day aims to celebrate pangolins, raise awareness and recommit international N.G.O.s to fight against the global capturing of pangolins in Africa and Asia.

An estimated one million of these animals have been, and continue to be, harvested from the wild in African and Asian countries to meet the high demands for their scale, skin, blood and even fetuses that are believed to have several different uses both in fashion, traditional medicine, and cooking.

Four species live in Africa: Black-belled pangolin (Phataginus tetradactyla), White-bellied pangolin (Phataginus tricuspis), Giant Ground pangolin (Smutsia gigantea) and Temminck's Ground pangolin (Smutsia temminckii).

The four species found in Asia: Indian pangolin (Manis crassicaudata), Philippine pangolin (Manis culionensis), Sunda pangolin (Manis javanica) and the Chinese pangolin (Manis pentadactyla).

All eight pangolin species are protected under national and international laws, and two are listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.