India celebrates Teachers' Day on 5 September each year in honour of the birth anniversary of Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan. Born on 5 September 1888 at Tiruttani in Tamil Nadu, he was a noted philosopher, scholar and educationist. He was India's Ambassador to the Soviet Union from 1949 to 1952, then served as the first Vice President (1952-1962) and the second President (1962-1967). He was conferred the Bharat Ratna in 1954 and the United Kingdom's Order of Merit in 1963.