United Nations Day

United Nations Day is celebrated on October 24, every year. The day commemorates the creation of the international organisation on October 24, 1945. The UN Assembly has devoted the day to strengthen peace by observing 24 hours of cease fire and non-violence. In this article you will read about the history and significance of this day.

As UPSC surprises aspirants with questions linked with what usually is assumed to be trivia; it is advisable that one must scroll through the facts about United Nations Day to get the basic information. Given the unpredictability of the UPSC CSE you might get a question in UPSC Prelims as part of current affairs.

Facts about United Nations Day for UPSC Exam

Read the below-mentioned facts and aid your IAS Exam preparation along with other competitive exams’ preparation.

The topic can be asked as a Current Affairs Question in IAS Prelims. Visit the attached link to attempt practice quizzes on current affairs.

To read more about the other Important International and National days click on the link. Such days and events become very important for UPSC Prelims.

About United Nations Day

• UN Day marks the anniversary of the entry into force of the UN Charter in 1945. The UN Charter is the founding document of this great non-partisan institution that has been working towards global peace and equality. 
• In 2020 the UN celebrated 75 years of its creation under the theme- “The Future We Want, the UN We Need: Reaffirming our Collective Commitment to Multilateralism”.
• The theme for UN Day 2021 was: “Building back together for peace and prosperity“.
• As the world begins to recover gradually from the Covid-19 pandemic, the celebration of 2021 was a call to strengthen international cooperation in the interest of both nations and peoples, for a more peaceful and prosperous future for all.

Read about the United Nations and its Principal Organs in the linked article.

History of the United Nations

• The UN was born out of the ashes of the League of Nations, which was created in June 1919, after World War I with the intention of keeping the war away.
• After the Second World War broke out in 1939, the League was closed down and it was proposed to establish a body for international peace efforts that can also deal with a range of issues related to the war.
• This led to the establishment of the United Nations, which  finally came into existence on October 24, 1945 after being ratified by 51 nations, which included five permanent members of the security council (France, the Republic of China, Russia, UK and USA) and 46 other signatories. 
• The first meeting of the United Nations General Assembly was held on 10 January, 1946.
• Thus the United National General Assembly established the Charter of the United Nations on 24 October, 1947. 
• In 1971, the UN passed a resolution to make it an international observance.

Read in details about the United Nations and its History in the linked article.

Significance of United Nations Day

• The day is significant as on this day meetings and discussions are held about the goals and discussions of the organisation. Several international schools celebrate the diversity in their student body on UN Day.
• The day gives an opportunity for all to amplify their common agenda and reaffirm the purposes and principles of the UN Charter.

76 Years of United Nations

• The United Nations was formed with the objective of maintaining world peace and saving future generations from the evils of war. 
• Over the years it has expanded its scope to resolve a large number of global issues such as health, environment, women empowerment among others.
• A resolution to eliminate nuclear weapons was passed in 1946, World Health Organisation (WHO) to deal with communicable diseases like smallpox, malaria, HIV, was created in 1948, High commission for taking care of Refugees was formed in 1950 and in 2002 UN criminal court was formed to try those who committed war crimes, genocide, and other atrocities.
• The Organisation was criticised too, for a number of reasons, e.g., sexual misconduct by its Peacekeeping Missions in 2005, its failure to stop the Rawandan Genocide in 1994 or the Civil war of South Sudan that broke out in 2013.
• The role of the organisation becomes even more important as we build back better from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Note: As UPSC 2022 approaches, use BYJU’S free Daily Video Analysis of The Hindu Newspaper to augment your preparation.