Do you know why do we celebrate Teachers' Day on September 5?
India celebrates Teachers' Day on September 5 every year to mark the birth anniversary of Dr. Sarvopalli Radhakrisnan, the first Vice-President and second President of independent India (from 1962-67). Dr. Radhakrishna was a scholar, philosopher, and teacher. The Bharat Ratna award recipient was born on September 5, 1888, in Andhra Pradesh.
The tradition of celebrating his birthday as the Indian Teachers' Day started when one day in 1962, some of his students went to Dr. Radhakrishna wanting to celebrate his birthday. He asked them to observe this day (September 5) as a mark to pay homage to all the great teachers of India and Bangladesh and remember their contribution.
Dr. Radhakrishnan then, went on to become a Professor of Philosophy at Chennai’s Presidency College and Calcutta University. He was very popular among his students and was seen as a brilliant teacher.
Later on, he became the Vice-Chancellor of both Andhra University and Banaras Hindu University (BHU). In 1939, he was elected a fellow of the British Academy. He also served as a Lecturer at Manchester College, Oxford in 1926, 1929, and 1930. In 1930 he was appointed Haskell lecturer in Comparative Religion at the University of Chicago.
The Philosopher President authored various books --The Philosophy of Rabindranath Tagore, and The Reign of Religion in Contemporary Philosophy are among the most popular of his works. Dr. Radhakrisnan has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize 11 times and was awarded the British Order of Merit in 1963.
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