The National Emblem of India

India's national emblem has been taken from Ashoka’s lion pillar of Sarnath. It has four lions with open mouth. But we can see only three of them at a time. There is a wheel under the lions. On the left of the wheel there is a horse and to its right is a bull. The words “Satyameva Jayate” are written below the wheel. These words mean ‘Truth Alone Triumphs’. The national emblem can be seen on all government letters, stamps and currency notes.

The Great Indian Thar Desert - थार मरुस्थल

The Great Indian Desert lies to the west of the Northern Plains. It is also known as the Thar Desert (थार मरुस्थल).

The Great Indian Desert stretches from the Aravalli hills in the east to the border of Pakistan in the west and from Rann of Kachchh in the south-west to the border of Haryana. The Great Indian Desert is partly rocky and partly sandy. It has many low sand hills called sand dunes. These sand dunes keep on moving as a result of strong dust storms.

The Great Indian Desert receives little rainfall. Some areas do not get rain at all for many years. There are no permanent rivers. The only river that flows through this desert it the Luni. It is a seasonal river and dries up soon in the summer. So there is always a shortage of water.

During summer, the days are very hot but nights are cold because the sand cools down quickly after sunset. During winter, the days are generally warm but the nights are very cold.

During summer, dust storms are very common. Due to shortage of water, people have to walk many kilometres to bring water from wells. So, life in the desert is very difficult.

However, in some places, the underground water comes to the surface and forms big pools. Such a place is called an oasis. The water from oases is used to grow crops. Trees like date palm, kikar, babool and cactus also grow near the oases.

Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma - The first Indian to travel in space

Rakesh Sharma was the first Indian to go into the space. He was born on January 14, 1949 in Patiala, Punjab. When he grew up, he joined Indian Air Force. 

He went into space with two Soviet cosmonauts ia a spacecraft named Soyuz T-II. When our Prime Minister Mrs. Indira Gandhi asked him about our country, his reply was, “Saare Jahan Se Achcha ”. He was awarded "Ashoka Chakra" for the successful completion of the space mission.

He was conferred with the honour of Hero of Soviet Union upon his return from space. The Government of India conferred its highest gallantry award (during peace time), the Ashoka Chakra on him and the other two Soviet members of his mission.