17 March in Hindu history
17 March 1887
D. V. Gundappa born at Mulbagal
DVG, journalist and poet, is born in Kolar district. His Mankuthimmana Kagga, verses on life drawn from the Gita and Upanishads, is quoted across Karnataka.
17 March 1988
IRS-1A, first Indian remote-sensing satellite
Launched on a Soviet rocket from Baikonur, IRS-1A begins mapping Bharat’s crops, forests and water from orbit.