Interesting Facts About Maulana Azad:  National Education Day is celebrated every year on November 11 to honor the birth anniversary of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, the first Education Minister of independent India. This day commemorates his significant contributions to promoting primary and secondary education in the country, as well as advancing scientific knowledge. It also serves as a reminder that education is a powerful tool in shaping the nation's future, fostering innovation, and ensuring that quality education is accessible to all. Here, you can check unknown facts about 1st Indian Education Minister.

Interesting Facts About Maulana Azad

- Abul Kalam Azad was a key figure in the Dharasana Satyagraha of 1930, a protest against the British salt tax.

- In 1920, Azad co-founded Jamia Millia Islamia University with two others, initially located in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh. Fourteen years later, he played a pivotal role in relocating the university to its current campus in New Delhi.

- A prominent member of the Indian National Congress, Azad became its youngest president in 1923 at the age of 35.

- Apart from his political career, he was a journalist who contributed to various Urdu publications. He launched the monthly journal Lissan-us-Sidq, which ran until 1905, and in 1904, served as the editor of the Vakil, an Amritsar-based newspaper. Azad also founded the Urdu weekly Al-Hilal in 1912, using his platform to criticise British colonial rule and draw attention to the struggles of ordinary people.

- Azad was recognised as a leading political figure, advocating for Hindu-Muslim unity, secularism, and socialism.

- A self-taught scholar, he was fluent in several languages, including Arabic, Bengali, and Persian.

- As the first Minister of Education post-independence, Azad played a crucial role in the establishment of the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) in 1951 and the University Grants Commission (UGC) in 1953. Moreover, he led the Khilafat movement from 1919 to 1924, during which he met Mahatma Gandhi.

- In 1989, the Ministry of Minority Affairs founded the Maulana Azad Education Foundation to promote education among marginalised communities.