Children's Day is celebrated every year on November 14. The day is a tribute to India's first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, who was born on November 14. Fondly called "Chacha Nehru", he believed children were a nation's real strength and foundation of society.
Several educational and motivational programmes, including sports events and quiz competitions, are organised at schools and other institutions across the country on this day.
In some schools, students take the lead and organise events themselves, which helps in inculcating leadership qualities from an early age.
History and significance
Children's Day was initially celebrated on November 20 as part of the Universal Children's Day, declared by the United Nations. After Jawaharlal Nehru's death in 1964, India began celebrating his birth anniversary as Children's Day.
The day is also known as Bal Diwas in the country. However, it is not a gazetted holiday and, instead, children are encouraged to go to school and participate in extracurricular activities.
“The children of today will make the India of tomorrow. The way we bring them up will determine the future of the country,” Jawaharlal Nehru had once said.
Jawaharlal Nehru is credited with the establishment of several educational institutions, such as the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), and the Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs).
It is said that since Jawaharlal Nehru had shown extreme love for children, he was affectionately called “Chacha” or “Chacha Ji”.
