India
Links on India
World history
and India
Quotes on India
TIMELINE |
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India -
The Eternal Civilization Ours is one of the ancient civilizations of the world.
More than three thousand years ago, the Indus Valley Civilization flourished in
the north-western India.
The music clip that you are hearing
is the national anthem of India:
"Jana-Gana-Mana" authored by poet Rabindra Nath Tagore, winner of the
Nobel Prize in Literature.
Today, India with a population of 1 billion, is poised to leapfrog whole stages of
industrial development. The country boasts of the second largest English
speaking pool of scientific manpower in the world. The biggest engine of growth
is the booming InfoTech industry.
31 states, 1618 languages, 6400 castes, 6
religions, 29 major festivals but one
GREAT NATION.
▲Links on India
▲World
History Facts About India
1. India never invaded any country in
her last 1000 years of history.
2. India invented the Number system. Aryabhatta invented 'zero.'
3. The world's first University was established in Takshila in 700BC.
More than 10,500 students from all over the world studied more than 60
subjects. The University of Nalanda built in the 4th century BC was
one of the greatest achievements of ancient India in the field of education.
4. Sanskrit- the thousand year old Indian language, is the most
suitable language for computer software, according to the Forbes magazine
5. Ayurveda is the earliest school of medicine known to humans.
6. India was once the richest empire on earth. The western media portray modern
images of India as poverty-stricken and underdeveloped through political
corruption.
7. The art of navigation was born in the river Sindh 5000 years ago. The very
word "Navigation" is derived from the Sanskrit word NAVGATIH.
8. The value of pi was first calculated by Budhayana, and he explained the
concept of what is now known as the Pythagorean Theorem. British scholars have
in 1999 officially published that Budhayan's works dates to the 6th Century,
which is long before the
European mathematicians.
9. Algebra, trigonometry and calculus came from India. Quadratic equations were
by Sridharacharya in the 11th Century; the largest numbers the Greeks and the
Romans used were 106 whereas Indians used numbers as big as 1053.
10. According to the Gemological Institute of America, up until 1896, India was
the only source of diamonds to the world.
11. USA based IEEE has proved what has been a century-old suspicion amongst
academics that the pioneer of wireless communication was Professor Jagadish
Chandra Bose and not Marconi.
12. The earliest reservoir and dam for irrigation was built in Saurashtra.
13. Chess was invented in India.
14. Sushruta was the father of surgery. 2600 years ago he and health scientists
of his time conducted surgeries like rhinoplasty, cesarean sections, cataract,
fractures and urinary stones. Usage of anesthesia was well known in ancient
India.
15. When many cultures in the world were only nomadic forest dwellers
Indians over 5000 years ago, established the Harappan culture in the Sindhu
Valley (Indus Valley Civilisation).
16. The place value system, the decimal system was developed in India in 100 BC.
▲Quotes
about India
Albert Einstein:
We owe a lot to the Indians, who taught us how to count, without which no
worthwhile scientific discovery could have been made.
Mark Twain:
India is the cradle of the human race, the birthplace of human speech, the
mother of history, the grandmother of legend and the great grand mother of
tradition.
Romain Rolland- the famrd French scholar:
If there is one place on the face of earth where all dreams of living men have
found a home from the very earliest days when man began the dream of existence,
it is India.
Hu Shih - (Former Chinese ambassador to the
USA):
India conquered and dominated China culturally for 20 centuries without ever
having to send a single soldier across her border.
▲KNOW
YOUR INDIA:
Population: 1,080,264,388 (July 2005 estimate)
Sex ratio: 1.05 male/female at birth
Population growth rate: 1.4 % (2005 estimate)
Religions: Hindu 80.5 %, Muslim 13.4 %, Christian 2.3 %, Sikh 1.9 %, other
1.8 %, unspecified 0.1 % (2001 census)
Ethnic groups: Indo-Aryan 72 %; Dravidian 25 %; Mongoloid and other 3 %
(2000 estimate)
Infant mortality rate: Estimates vary from 56 to 65 deaths per 1,000 live
births
Total fertility rate: 2.78 children born per female (2005 est.)
Life expectancy: Estimates place overall figure at about 64 years; male
63.57; female 65.16 (2005 estimate)
People living with HIV/AIDS: 5.1 million (2001 estimate)
Major Infectious Diseases:
Floodwater diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A and E, typhoid fever
Vector borne diseases: dengue fever, malaria, and Japanese encephalitis are
high risks in some locations
Animal contact disease: rabies (2004)
Languages: English is used for national, political and commercial
communication; Hindi is the national language and primary tongue of 30% of
the people; there are 14 other languages
Literacy: Defined as age 15+ and can read and write - total population: 59.5
%; male: 70.2 %, female: 48.3 % (2003 est.)
The Land:
Border countries: Bangladesh, Bhutan, Myanmar, China, Nepal and Pakistan
Coastline: 7,000 kilometers (4,349.8 miles)
Climate: Tropical monsoon in south, temperate in north
Lowest point: Indian Ocean, sea level
Highest point: Kanchenjunga, 8,598 meters (26,246 feet)
Natural resources: Coal (Fourth-largest reserve in world), iron ore,
manganese, mica, bauxite, titanium ore, chromites, natural gas, diamonds,
petroleum, limestone, arable lands
Land use: Arable lands 54.4 percent; permanent crops 2.74 percent; other
42.86 percent
Natural hazards: Droughts; flash floods, as well as widespread and
destructive flooding from monsoon rains; severe thunderstorms; earthquakes
The Economy:
GDP real growth rate: 6.2 % (2004 estimate)
GDP per capita: Purchasing power parity - $3,100 (2004 est.)
Public debt: 59.7 % of GDP (federal debt only; state debt not included)
(2004 est.)
Labor force: 482 million (2004 estimate)
Labor force by occupation: Agriculture 60 %; industry 17 %; services 23
%(1999 estimate)
Unemployment rate: 9.2 % (2004 estimate)
Population below poverty line: Estimates range between 25 % and 29 %
Oil production: 780,000 bbl/day (2004 estimate)
Oil consumption: 2.13 million bbl/day (2001 estimate)
Export partners: U.S. 18.4 %; China 7.8 %; UAE 6.7 %; UK 4.8 %; Hong Kong
4.3 %; Germany 4 % (2004 estimate)
Import partners: U.S. 7 %; Belgium 6.1 %; China 5.9 %; Singapore 4.8 %;
Australia 4.6 %; UK 4.6 %; Germany 4.5 % (2004 estimate)
The networks:
Phone lines in use: 48.9 million (2003)
Mobile/cellular phones: 26,154,400 (2003)
Radio broadcast stations: 153 AM; 91 FM; 68 shortwave (1998)
TV broadcast stations: 562 (of which 82 stations have 1 kW or greater power
and 480 stations have less than 1 kW of power) (1997)
Internet country code: .in
Internet hosts: 86,871 (2003)
Internet users: 18.5 million (2003)
The government:
Country name: Conventional long form: Republic of India, short form: India
Government type: Federal republic
Capital City: New Delhi
Administrative divisions: 28 states and 7 union territories
Independence: 15 August 1947 (from UK)
National holiday: Republic Day, 26 January (1950)
Constitution: 26 January 1950; amended many times
Legal system: Based on English common law; limited judicial review of
legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations;
separate personal law codes apply to Muslims, Christians, and Hindus
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Military manpower: Fit for military service: males age 16-49: 219,471,999
(2005 est.)
Military expenditures: $17 billion (2004)
▲INDIA
TIMELINE
Indian timeline takes us on a journey of the history of the subcontinent.
Right from the ancient India, which included Bangladesh and Pakistan, to the
free and divided India, this time line covers each and every aspect related
to the past as well as present of the country. Read on further to explore
the timeline of India:
9000 BC to
7000 BC |
Rock Shelters of Bhimbetka
The earliest records of the Indian history exist in the form of the Rock
Shelters of Bhimbetka. These shelters are situated on the southern edge
of the central Indian plateau, in the foothills of the Vindhyan
Mountains. There are five groups of rock shelters, each of them adorned
with paintings that are believed to date from the Mesolithic Period
right through to the historical period.
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7000 BC to
3300 BC |
Mehrgarh Culture
Mehrgarh is one of the most significant sites belonging to the Neolithic
Age. At the same time, it is one of the oldest sites that indicate the
introduction of the concept of farming and herding. Situated on the
Kachi plain of Baluchistan (Pakistan), it lies to the west of the Indus
River valley. The site of Mehrgarh, spread over an area of 495-acre, was
discovered in the year 1974
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3300 BC to
1700 BC |
Indus Valley Civilization
The Indus Valley Civilization was discovered in the 1920s. The major
events in the timeline of the Indus Valley are given below:
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3300 BC to
2600 BC |
Early Harappan Phase
The early Harappan Phase lasted for approximately 700 years, starting
with the Ravi Phase. It is one of the three earliest urban civilizations
and made use of an early form of the Indus script, known as Harappan
script, for writing purposes. Around 2800 BC, the Kot Diji phase of the
Indus Valley Civilization started.
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2600 BC to
1700 BC |
Mature Harappan Phase
The Mature Harappan Phase started around 2600 BC. Large cities and urban
areas started emerging and the civilization expanded to over 2,500
cities and settlements. Urban planning, excellent sewage and drainage
system, system of uniform weights and measures, knowledge of
proto-dentistry, etc are some of the other elements that characterize
the mature phase.
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1700 BC to
1300 BC |
Late Harappan Phase
The Late Harappan Phase began around 1700 BC and came to an end around
1300 BC. However, one can find many elements of the Indus Valley
Civilization in later cultures.
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1700 BC to
500 BC |
Vedic Period/Age
The Vedic Period or the Vedic Age refers to the time of the compilation
of the sacred Vedic Sanskrit texts in India. Situated on the Indo-Gangetic
Plain, the Vedic Civilization formed the basis of Hinduism and the
sIndian culture. The Vedic Period can be divided into the following two
phases:
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1700 BC to
1000 BC |
Early Vedic/Rig Vedic Period
Early Vedic Period represents the time period when the Rig Veda was
compiled. During this period, the king was believed to be the protector
of the people, who took an active part in the government. The caste
system started becoming rigid and the families started becoming
patriarchal. The major events of this time are:
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1700 BC - |
Late Harappan and Early Vedic period
coincide
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1300 BC - |
The end of Cemetery H culture
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1000 BC - |
Iron Age of India
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1000 BC to 500 BC |
Later Vedic Age
The emergence of the later Vedic period was marked with agriculture
becoming the dominant economic activity and a decline in the
significance of cattle rearing. The political organization changed
completely, with the reduction in the involvement of people in the
administration. The major events are:
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600 BC - |
The formation
of Sixteen Maha Janapadas (Great Kingdoms) |
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599 BC - |
the birth of
Mahavira, founder of Jainism |
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563 BC - |
The birth of
Siddhartha Gautama (Buddha),
founder of Buddhism |
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551 BC |
Confucius
the Chinese teacher and philosopher was born. Opened school at age 22. |
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538 BC - |
Cyrus the
Great conquered parts of Pakistan |
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500 BC - |
Earliest
written records in Brahmi |
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500 BC - |
Panini
standardized grammar and morphology of Sanskrit, converting it into
Classical Sanskrit. With this, the Vedic Civilization came to an end.
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500 BC TO
550 AD |
Ancient India
Rise of Jainism and Buddhism
Jainism or Jain Dharma is the religious philosophy that originated in
the Ancient India. The religion is based on the teachings of the
Tirthankaras. The 24th Tirthankara, Lord Mahavira, is credited with
propagating the religion in the various parts of the world. Buddhism is
based on the teachings of Lord Buddha, who was born as Prince Siddhartha
Gautama. After attaining Enlightenment, Lord Buddha set on a task of
teaching others how to achieve nirvana. His teachings were later
propagated throughout the world by Emperor Asoka. The other major events
of the Ancient Indian period are: |
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333 BC - |
Darius III
was defeated by Alexander the Great. The Macedonian Empire was
established |
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326 BC - |
Ambhi, King
of Taxila surrendered to Alexander, Battle of the Hydaspes Rive |
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321 BC - |
Chandra Gupta
Maurya established the Maurya Empire |
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273 BC - |
Emperor
Ashoka took over the Maurya Empire |
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266 BC - |
Ashoka
conquered most of South Asia, Afghanistan and Iran |
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265 BC - |
The battle of
Kalinga, after which Emperor Ashoka embraced Buddhism |
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232 BC: |
Ashoka died
and was succeeded by Dasaratha |
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230 BC - |
Satavahana
Empire was established |
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200-100 BC |
Tholkappiyam
standardized grammar and morphology of Tamil |
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184 BC - |
Collapse of
Maurya Empire with the assassination of Emperor Brihadrata,
Establishment of the Sunga dynasty |
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180 BC - |
Establishment
of the Indo-Greek kingdom |
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80 BC - |
Establishment
of the Indo-Scythian kingdom |
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10 BC - |
Establishment
of the Indo-Parthian kingdom |
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68 AD - |
Establishment
of the Kushan Empire by Kujula Kadphises |
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78 AD - |
Gautamiputra
Satkarni took over Satavahana Empire and defeated Scythian king
Vikramaditya |
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240 AD - |
Establishment
of the Gupta Empire by Sri-Gupta |
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320 AD - |
Chandragupta
I took over the Gupta Empire |
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335 AD - |
Samudragupta
took over the Gupta Empire and started expanding it |
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350 AD - |
Establishment
of the Pallava Empire |
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380 AD - |
Chandragupta
II took over the Gupta Empire |
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399-414 AD |
Chinese
scholar Fa-Hien traveled to India |
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550-1526 AD |
Medieval
Period
The medieval period can be divided into the following two phases:
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Up to 1300 AD |
Early
Medieval Period
606 AD - Harshavardhana became the King
630 AD - Hiuen Tsiang traveled to India
761 AD - First Muslim invasion by Mohammed Bin Qasim
800 AD - The birth of Shankaracharya
814 AD - Nripatunga Amoghavarsha I became Rashtrakuta king
1000 AD - Invasion by Mahmud of Ghazni
1017AD - Alberuni traveled to India
1100s AD - Rule of the Chandelas, Cholas, Kadambas, and Rashrakutas
1120 AD - Kalyani Chalukya Empire attained peak, Vikramaditya VI
introduced Vikrama Chalukya Era
1191 AD - First battle of Tarain between Mohammed Ghori & Prithivi Raj
Chauhan III
1192 AD - Second battle of Tarain between Ghauri and Prithivi Raj
Chauhan III
1194 AD - Battle of Chandawar between Ghauri and Jayachandra
1288 AD - Marco Polo came to India |
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1300-1500 AD |
Late Medieval
Period
1300 AD - Establishment of the Khilji Dynasty
1336 to 1565 AD - Vijayanagar Empire
1498 AD - First voyage of Vasco-da-Gama to Goa
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1526 AD to 1818 AD) |
Post-Medieval
Era
The major events in the post medieval era are:
1526 AD - Babur, the Mughal ruler of Kabul, invaded Delhi and Agra and
killed Sultan Ibrahim Lodi
1527 AD - Battle of Khanwa, in which Babur annexed Mewar
1530 AD - Babur died and was succeeded Humayun
1556 AD - Humayun died and was succeeded by his son Akbar
1600 AD - East India company was formed in England
1605 AD - Akbar died and was succeeded by Jehangir
1628 AD - Jehangir died and was succeeded by Shah Jahan
1630 AD - Shivaji was born
1658 AD - Shah Jahan built Taj Mahal, Jamia Masjid and Red Fort.
1659 AD - Shivaji defeated Adilshahi troops at the Battle of Pratapgarh
1674 AD - Maratha Empire was established
1680 AD - Shivaji died
1707 AD - Aurangzeb died and was succeeded by Bahadur Shah I
1707 AD - Maratha Empire broke into two divisions
1734 AD - Pamheiba invaded Tripura
1737 AD - Bajirao I conquered Delhi
1740 AD - Bajirao I died and was succeeded by Balaji Bajirao
1757 AD - Battle of Plassey was fought
1761 AD - Third battle of Panipat ended the expansion of Maratha Empire
1766 AD - First Anglo-Mysore War
1777 AD - First Anglo-Maratha War
1779 AD - Battle of Wadgaon
1780 AD - Second Anglo-Mysore War
1789 AD - Third Anglo-Mysore War
1798 AD - Fourth Anglo-Mysore War
1799 AD - Tipu Sultan died, Wodeyar dynasty was restored
1803 AD - Second Anglo-Maratha War
1817 AD - Third Anglo-Maratha War begins
1818 AD - End of the Maratha Empire and British control over most of
India |
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Colonial Era (1818 AD to 1947 AD)
The Colonial Era started with the British taking control over almost all
the parts of India and ended with the freedom of India in 1947. The
major events that took place during the Colonial Era are:
1829 AD - Prohibition of Sati
1857 AD - First Indian war of Independence, known as Indian Mutiny
1885 AD - Indian National Congress was formed
1930 AD - Dandi Salt March, Simon Commission, First Round Table
Conference
1915 AD - Home Rule League was founded by Annie Besant
1919 AD - Massacre at Jallianwalabagh
1931 AD - Bhagat Singh was hanged by the British, Second Round Table
Conference, Gandhi-Irvin Pact
1919 AD - Khilafat Movement, Jalianwala Bagh Massacre, Rowlat Act
1937 AD - Congress won power in many states, World War II broke out
1921 AD - Civil Disobedience Movement
1928 AD - Murder of Lala Lajpat Rai
1942 AD - Quit India Movement, Rise of Subhash Chandra Bose
1922 AD - Quit India Movement suspended after the Chauri-Chura violence
1946 AD - Muslim League adamant about the formation of Pakistan
1947 AD - India gained independence and witnessed partition |
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1947 - |
Free and Modern India
In 1947 August 15, India became independent and from that year onwards, started
India's struggle to become one of the leading nations of the world.
Today, the country is regarded as one of the fastest growing economies
of the world. |
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1975 |
Indira Gandhi
declares Emergency in India. |
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