22 Aug 22

Lesser known facts about the Independence Day

This year’s August 15th is truly special. It is the 75th Independence Day #DeTaali!

But before you skelter away to plan your much-deserved mini-vacation, let’s take a moment to understand the importance of this day by educating ourselves with facts known only to a few people.

Here are a few of them:

Five other countries celebrate their Independence Days on the 15th of August along with India. Yes, that’s right! North Korea, South Korea, the Republic of Congo, Bahrain, and Liechtenstein also share the same national day as us Indians.

Goa was not-so-independent on this day! Although India was declared independent in 1947, Goa was still a Portuguese colony until 1961, when a swift Indian military action that lasted for two days reclaimed the state.

The Indian National Flag comes from the only BIS-certified unit in India! The Karnataka Khadi Gramodyoga Samyukta Sangha (KKGSS), located in Dharwad, Karnataka, has the sole authority to manufacture and supply the Indian national flag, which has to be made only with hand-spun and hand-woven cotton khadi wafting.

15th August is also the day marking Japan’s surrender to the Allied Forces during World War II after the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. On this day, Emperor Hirohito gave a radio broadcast across Japan announcing its surrender on this day.

In the last 100,000 years, India has never invaded another country, but she has been invaded over 200 times!

So, pack your bags, visit some places of historic importance, donate to the needy and make a difference. But don’t forget to pack some Taali!