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This Day in History on 8 July
The historical events hold a lot of value for aspirants who are sitting for UPSC competitive exams including the IAS Exam.
On this page, we will list all historical events that occurred on 8 July. The students can refer to them while preparing for all competitive exams and banking exams.
Important Days
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World Oceans Day
World Oceans Day is held every year on 8th June
to raise awareness of the vital importance of our oceans and the role they play in sustaining a healthy planet.
The purpose of the day is to develop a worldwide movement of citizens and mobilize and unite the world’s population on a project for the sustainable management of the world’s oceans
Important Events
1497: Vasco da Gama embarked on his first voyage from Europe to India.
1856: Charles Byrne received a US patent for a machine gun.
1889: American newspaper ‘The Wall Street Journal’ began publication.
1918: Montagu-Chelmsford Report was published seeking reforms in the Indian legislature.
1958: An Indian film ‘Do Ankhein Barah Hath’ won Best Picture at the World Film Festival in Berlin.
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1970: Richard Nixon delivers a special congressional message enunciating Native American self-determination as official US Indian policy, leading to the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act of 1975.
Birth/Birth Anniversary
1903: Umaid Singh, Maharaja of Jodhpur.
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1908 – V. K. R. Varadaraja Rao, Indian economist, politician, professor, and educator (d. 1991): Vijayendra Kasturi Ranga Varadaraja Rao was born on July 8, 1908, at Kancheepuram in Tamil Nadu to Kasturirangachar and Bharati Bai. Notable among his works are: Taxation of Income in India (1931), An essay on India’s National Income -1925-29 – (1936); The National Income of British India (1940); India and International Currency Plans (1945); Post-War Rupee (1948); Gandhian Alternative to Western Socialism (1970); Values and Economic Development – The Indian Challenge (1971); the Nehru Legacy (1971); Swami Vivekananda – Prophet of Vedantic Socialism (1978); Many Languages and One Nation – the Problem of Integration (1979); India’s National Income 1950-80 (1983) Food, Nutrition and Poverty (1982); Indian socialism: Retrospect and Prospect (1982),
1914: Jyoti Basu, Indian politician, 6th Chief Minister of West Bengal (d. 2010): Jyoti Basu was an Indian politician who served as the Chief Minister of West Bengal state from 1977 to 2000. He was one of the co-founders of the Communist Party of India and a member of the Polit Bureau of the party since its inception in 1964 till 2008.
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1949: Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy, Indian politician, 14th Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh (d. 2009): Yeduguri Sandinti Rajasekhara Reddy, popularly known as YSR, was the 14th chief minister of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, serving from 2004 to 2009.
1958: Neetu Singh, an Indian actress.
1966: Revathi, an Indian film actress, and director.
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1972: Sourav Ganguly, Indian cricketer: Sourav Chandidas Ganguly, affectionately known as Dada, is an Indian cricket administrator, commentator, and former national cricket team captain. He is also the chairman of BCCI.
1978: Vijay Shekhar Sharma, an Indian billionaire businessman. He is the founder of financial technology company Paytm.
Death/ Death Anniversary
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2003: Subhash Mukhopadhyay, an Indian Bengali poet.
2006: Raja Rao, an Indian English-language short stories and novels writer.
2007: Chandra Shekhar Singh, the eighth Prime Minister of India.
2013: Sundri Uttamchandani, Indian author (b. 1924)
2020: Jagdeep, an Indian film actor and comedian.