Bug: `start_date` or `end_date` is `null` in the database, causing 500 error on project page

[gheorghelupu17]

Description

We've encountered a case where the start_date or end_date field in the Project model is null in the database. This causes a 500 Internal Server Error on the project detail page in the frontend when attempting to render the project.

---

✅ Proposed Actions

1. Add a fallback in the frontend/backend to handle cases where start_date or end_date is null, to avoid runtime errors.
2. Investigate the root cause of these fields being saved as null.
   • null values should only be allowed for projects in draft status.
   • For projects that are published or active, both start_date and end_date should be required and properly validated.

---

✅ Expected Behavior

• Projects in draft status: may have missing (null) date fields.
• Projects in published/active status: must have valid start_date and end_date.
• Application must not crash due to missing date fields.

---

💥 Impact

This issue causes the frontend to break with a 500 error, impacting user access to project pages and overall app stability.

---

📝 Additional Notes

• Consider checking validation at both the model and serializer/form level.
• Review any migrations or data input sources that may allow saving projects without these fields.