- Important Days
20 March: World Sparrow Day
To raise awareness about the threats to the populations of the House Sparrow in particular and other common birds of the urban environment, World Sparrow Day is celebrated every year on March 20.
This day was instigated by the Nature Forever Society of India along with the Eco-Sys Action Foundation (France) and several other national and international organisations across the world.
The theme of 2021 World Sparrow Day was “I LOVE Sparrows”.
Quick Fact: The first World Sparrow Day was celebrated in 2010.
- International News
Samia Suluhu Hassan sworn in as Tanzania’s first woman President
Samia Suluhu Hassan vowed to become the sixth President of Tanzania, becoming the first female leader of the East African country.
Before taking charge as President she was the Vice-President of Tanzania, also being the first female vice-president of the country, since November 2015.
The 61-year-old Hassan inherited the presidency, following the death of previous President John Magfufuli, due to a heart condition. She will finish Magufuli’s second five-year term, which will run until 2025.
Quick Fact: The capital of Tanzania is Dodoma.
- National News
India’s economy predicted to grow at 12% in calendar year 2021 by Moody’s Analytics
Moody’s Analytics has forecasted the Indian economy to grow by 12 percent in the Calendar Year 2021.
For 2020, the real GDP was projected to come down by 7.1 per cent by Moody’s.
This forecast is correspondent to real GDP, in lay-man terms, growing by 4.4 per cent above pre-COVID-19 levels (as of March 2020) by the end of 2021, or uniformly, by 5.7 per cent above the GDP level in December 2020 by the end of 2021.
Quick Fact: Moody’s is headquartered in NewYork, United States and the President & CEO of Moody’s is Raymond W. McDaniel, Jr.
- Important Days
International Day of Happiness, 2021
March 20 is celebrated as International Day of Happiness. It is designated by the United Nations and is dedicated to the ‘importance of happiness in people’s life’.
The World Happiness Report suggests that the ‘unhappiest cities’ are mostly located in underdeveloped countries and have experienced war (Kabul in Afghanistan, Sanaa in Yemen), armed conflict (Gaza in Palestine), civil war (Juba in South Sudan, Bangui in the Central African Republic), political instability (Cairo in Egypt) or devastating natural catastrophes (Port-au-Prince in Haiti).
Since 2013, the UN has been marking the International Day of Happiness. The United Nations General Assembly, in a resolution, on 12 July 2012, proclaimed 20 March the International Day of Happiness.
Quick Fact: Helsinki, the capital of Finland has been surveyed to be the happiest city in the world, as suggested in a report in 2020.
- International News
Nomination as NASA administrator: Bill Nelson
A former astronaut who served as a US Senator from Florida from 2001 to 2019, Bill Nelson has spent almost four decades serving the public office.
Joe Biden, President of the UN, announced on March 19, 2021 that he proposes to put forward Bill Nelson’s name to serve as the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
Bill Nelson began his political career by serving in the Florida House of Representatives from 1972 to 1978. He later served in the US House of Representatives from 1979 to 1991.
Quick Fact: Bill Nelson had served in the US Army Reserve during the Vietnam War before entering politics.
