Important Dates in Indian History

Important Dates in Indian History

BC

3000 – 1500

Indus Valley Civilization

(563 or 576 in some sources)

Birth of Gautama Buddha

527

Birth of Mahavira

327 – 326

Alexander’s invasion of India, It opened a land route between India and Europe

313

Accession of Chandragupta Maurya according to Jain traditions

305

Defeat of Seleucus at the hands of Chandragupta Maurya

273 – 231

Ashoka’s reign

261

Conquest of Kalinga

145 – 101

Region of Elara, the Chola King of Sri Lanka

58

Beginning of Vikram era

AD

78

Beginning of Saka era

120

Accesson of Kanishka

320

Commencement of Gupta era, the golden age   of Hindu India

380

Accession of Vikramaditya

405 – 411

Visit of Chinese traveler Fa-hien

415

Accession of Kumara Gupta I

455

Accession of Skanda Gupta

606 – 647

Harshvardhan’s reign

712

First invasion in Sind by Arabs

836

Accession of King Bhoja of Kannauj

985

Accession of Rajaraja, the Chola ruler

998

Accession of Sultan Mahmood

1001

First invasion of India by Mahmud Ghazni who defeated Jaipal, ruler of Punjab

1025

Destruction of Somnath temple by Mahmud Ghazni

1191

First Battle of Tarain

1192

Second Battle of Tarain

1206

Accession of Qutu-ud-din Aibak to the throne of Delhi

1210

Death of Qutub-ud-din Aibak

1221

Changez Khan Razia Sultan to the throne of Delhi

1240

Razia Sultan dies

1296

Accession of Ala-ud-din Khilji

1316

Ala-ud-din Khilji Dies

1325

Accession of Muhammad-bin Tughlaq

1327

Shifting of Capital from Delhi to Daulatabad in Deccan by the Tughlaqs

1336

Founding of Vijaynagar empire in the South

1351

Accession of Feroze Shah

1398

Invasion of India by Timur Lang

1469

Birth of Guru Nanak

1494

Accession of Babar in Farghana

1497 – 98

First voyage of Vasco da Gama to India (discovery of a sea route to India via the Cape of Good Hope)

1526

First Battle of Panipat; Babar defeated Ibrahim Lodhi; foundation of Mughal rule by Babar

1527

Battle of Khanya; Babar defeated Rana Sanga

1530

Death of Babar and accession of Humayun and became India’s emperor

1540

Battle of kannauj

1555

Humayun recaptured the throne of Delhi

1556

Second Battle of Panipat

1565

Battle of Talikota

1576

Battle of Haldighati; Rana Pratap defeated by Akbar

1582

Din-e-Illahi founded by Akbar

1597

Death of Rana Pratap

1600

East India Company established

1605

Death of Akbar and accession of jehangir

1606

Execution of Guru Arjun Dev

1611

Jehangir marries Nur jahan

1616

Sir Thomas Roe visits Jehangir

1628

Shahjahan becomes emperor of India

1631

Death of Mumtaz Mahal

1634

The British permitted to trade in India (In Bengal)

1659

Accession of Aurangzeb, Shahjahan imprisoned

1665

Shivaji imprisoned by Aurangzeb

1666

Death of Shahjahan

1675

Execution of Teg Bahadur, the ninth Guru of Sikhs

1680

Death of Shivaji

1707

Death of Aurangzeb

1708

Death of Guru Gobind Singh

1739

Nadir Shah invades India

1757

Battle of Plassey, establishment of British political rule in India at the hands of Lord Clive

1761

Third Battle of Panipat; Shah Alam II becomes India;s emperor

1764

Battle of Buxer

1765

Clive appointed Company’s Governor in India

1767 – 69

First Mysore War

1770

The Great Bengal Famine

1780

Birth of Maharaja Ranjit Singh

1780 – 84

Second Mysore War

1784

Pitt’s India Act

1790 – 92

Third mysore War

1793

The permanent Settlement of Bengal

1799

Fourth Mysore War – Death of Tipu Sultan

1802

Treaty of Bassein

1809

Treaty of Amritsar

1829

Practice of Sati Prohibited

1830

Raja Ram Mohun Roy, founder of Brahmo Samaj, visits England

1833

Death of Raja Ram Mohun Roy

1839

Death of Maharaja Ranjit Singh

1839 -42

First Afghan War

1845 – 46

First Anglo – Sikh War

1852

Second Anglo – Burmese War

1853

Frist Railway line opened between Bombay and Thane, and a Telegraph line in Calcutta

1857

The Sepoy Mutiny or First War of Independence

1861

Birth of Rabindranath Tagore

1869

Birth of Mahatma Gandhi

1885

Foundation of Indian National Congress

1889

Birth of Jawaharlal Nehru

1897

Birth of Subhas Chandra Bose

1904

Tibet Expedition

1905

First partition of Bengal under Lord Curzon

1906

Foundation of Muslim League

1911

Delhi Darbar; King and Queen visit India; Delhi becomes the capital India

1916

World War I Begins

1916

Lucknow Pact signed by Muslim League and Congress

1918

World War I ends

1919

Montague – Chelmsford Reforms introduced, Jallianwala Bagh maggages

1920

Khillfat Movement Launched

1927

Boycott of Simon Commission, Broadcasting strated in India

1928

Death of Lala Lajpat Rai (Sher-e-Punjab)

1929

Lord Irwin’s Pact, resolution of complete independence passed at Lahore Congress

1930

Civil Disobedience Movement Launched; Dandi March by Mahatma Gandhi (April 6, 1930)

1931

Gandhi – Irwin Pact

1935

Government of India Act enacted

1937

Provincial Autonomy, Congress forms ministery

1939

World War II begins (September 1)

1941

Death of Rabindranath Tagore, escape of Subhas Chandra Bose from India

1942

Arrival of Cripps Mission in India, ’Quit India’ movement launched (Aug. 8)

1942 – 44

Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose forms provincial Azad Hindu Hukumat and Indian National Army; Bengal famine

1945

Trial of Indian National Army at Red Fort; Shimla Conference; World War II ends

1946

British Cabinet Mission visits India; interim Government formed at the Centre

1947

Divison of India; India and Pakistan form separate independent dominions

1948

Mahatma Gandhi assassinated (Jan. 30); integration of princely states

1949

Cease-fire in Kashmir, Indian Constitution signed and adopted (Nov. 26)

1950

India becomes a Sovereign democratic Republic (Jan. 26) and Constitution of India comes into force

1951

First Five-Year Plan; First Asian Games held in Delhi

1952

First General Elections of the Lok Sabha

1953

Conquest of Mt Everest by Tenzing Norgay and Sir Edmund Hillary

1956

Second Five – Year Plan launched

1957

Second General Elections; decimal coinage introduced, Liberation of Goa

1962

Third General elections in India; Chinese attack on India (Dec. 20)

1963

Nagaland becomes the 16 th IndianState

1964

Death of Pt Jawaharlal Nehru

1965

Pakistan attacks

1966

Tashkent Pact; Death of Lal bahadur Shastri; Mrs Indira Gandhi elected Prime Minister of India

1967

Fourth General Elections; Dr Zakir Hussain elected the third president of India

1969

V.V. Giri elected President of India; nationalization of the leading banks by Presidential ordinance

1970

Meghalaya designated as autonomous state.

1971

Himachal Pradesh becomes a State; Indo – Pak War; Bangladesh is born

1972

Shimla agreement; Death of C. Rajagopalchari

1973

MysoreState renamed Karnataka

1974

India explodes a nuclear device; Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed elected as fifth President, Sikkim becomes an ’associate State’ of India

1975

India launches ’Aryabhata’; Sikkim becomes 22 nd State of the Indian Union; State of Emergency in declared

1976

India and China establish diplomatic relations

1977

Sixth General elections; janata Party gets majority in Lok Sabha; Neelam Sanjiva Reddy elected sixth President of India

1979

Morarji Desai resigns as Prime Minister; Charan singh becomes Prime Minister; Charan Singh resigns (Aug. 20): Sixth Lok Sabha dissolved

1980

Seventh General Elections; Congress I comes to power; Mrs Indira Gandhi sworn in as Prime Minister; Sanjay Gandhi dies in an air crash, India launches SLV-3 into space carrying Rohini satellite

1982

Longest bridge in Asia opened (March 2); Acharya J. B. Kripalani dies (March 19); INSAT1A launched; Giani Zail Singh elected President of India (July 15); Over 500 persons killed in Gujrat cyclone (Nov. 5); Aharya Vinoba Bhave dies (Nov. 15); IX Asian Games inaugurated (Nov. 19)

1983

CHOGM held in New Delhi

1984

Operation Blue Star in Punjab; Rakesh Sharma goes into space; Mrs Indira Gandhi assassinated; Rajiv Gandhi becomes PM of India

1985

Raji – Longowal accord signed; Sant H. S. Longowal Killed; elections in Punjab; Assam accord; VII Five – Year Plan launched

1986

Mizoram accord

1987

R. Vankataraman elected President; Shankar Dayal Sharma elected Vice – President of India, Bofors gun and Fairfax controversies

1988

Operation Black Thunder in Punjab; Accord to quell insurgency in Tripura

1989

Ram Shilanyas Puja at Ayodhya; India’s First IRBM ’Agni’ successfully launched from Orissa (May 22); Trishul Missile test fired (June 5); Secong successful laungh of Prithvi (Sept. 27); Rajiv Government loses poll and resign (Nov. 29); Jawahar Rozgar Yojna launched (Nov. 29); National Front Leader V. P. Sworn in as seventh PM, New cabinet sworn in (Dec. 2), Ninth Lok Sabha constituted

1990

Last of IPKF return home (March 25); Indian Airlines A-320 Airbus Crash (Feb. 14), janata Dal splits, BJP withdraws support to the Government, Advani takes out Rath Yatra and is arrested, Mandal Report implementation announced by V. P. Singh, Violence in Ayodhya due to Ram Janam Bhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute

1991

Gulf War breaks out (Jan. 17), Rajiv Gandhi assassinated (May 21), X Lok Sabha constituted (June 20), P.V. Narsimha Rao becomes Prime Minister

1992

India establishes full diplomatic ties with Israel (Jan. 29), Bharat Ratna and Oscar winner Satyajit Ray Dies (April 23), S. D. Sharma elected President (July 25), INS Shakti – first indigeneously built submarine was launched on Feb. 7

1993

Ordinance to acquire 67.33 acres in Ayodhya (Jan. 7), Massive security fails in BJP rally, Wave of bombing leaves 300 dead in Bombay, Insat-2B becomes fully, operational, Earthquake in Maharashtra

1994

Government monopoly over civil aviation ends; Storm over GATT treaty; Plague outbreak; Sushmita Sen – Miss Universe; Aiswarya Rai – Miss World

1995

Mayawati First Dalit Chief Minister; BJP comes to power in Maharashtra and Gujarat, Janata Dal in Karnatala and Congress in Orissa; Indian National Congress (T) formed; President’s Rule in UP after fall of mayawati; INSAT 2C and IRSI-C launched

1996

Hawala takes toll of several Union Ministers and opposition leaders; PSLV D3 launched on March 21 with IRSP-3 ushering new era in Indian space programme; Eleventh Lok Sabha Elections held on April 127 – BJP emerges as the single largest party

1997

On August 15, India celeberated its 50 th year of Independence

1998

Death of Mother Teressa; Atal Behari Vajpayee becomes Indian Prime Minister; India explodes its second nuclear device (Pokhran II)

1999

Indian Airlines plane IC-814 hijacked by terrorists and taken to Kandahar, Afghanistan, on Dec . 24.Three militants released by Indian govt. for the freedom of hostage kept as passengers.

In June 1999, Flt Lt k. nachiketa,the captured Indian Pilot, released by Pakistan after eight days of captivity.

’Operation Vijay’ launched by Indian Army to flush out Pakistani infiltrators inside LoC in the Kargil sector of J&K, India wins battle.

2000

US President Bill Clinton visits India during March 2000

Three new states Chhatisgarh, Uttaranchal, and Jharkhand created, India’s population crossed one billion mark.

2001

’Agra Summit’ between India and Pakistan   in July 2001; Worst Natural calamity of India; Gujarat Earthquake in Jan. 2001; ’Tehelka.com’ screened video tapes which opened the murky world of arms deal and its kickbacks to Indian Army officials, ministers and politicians in March 2001; vith census of India (since Independence) concluded in March 2001.

Enron bids farewell to Indian Energy sector in August 2001; GSLY launched successfully in April 2001 and PSLV-C3 launch conducted in October 2001.

2002

71- year old Missile scientist, Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam is elected President of India; One of the most horrific communal roits in recent history, the Godhra   Incident, happens on Feb. 27, 2002 in Gujarat; National Water Policy announced in April, which aims at integrating water resources development and management for optimal and sustainable utilization.

2003

Formation of Strategic Forces Command (SFC) an the Nuclear Command Authority (NCA) by India; Air Marshal Teja Mohan Asthana named first commander-in-chief of the SFC; Advanced multi-purpose satellite, INSAT – 3A is successfully launched into space from Kourou of French Guyana; CBI forms an Economic Intelligence Wing to Tackle white-collar crime in June; India’s advanced communication satellite INSAT – 3E is launched by an European rocket from the spaceport of Kourou in French Guyana in December.

2004

NDA government ousted by the Congress and its allies in the General Election; Congress President Mrs Sonia Gandhi opts against becoming prime minister of India despite being in a strong position; Congress and its allies forms government at the centre under the Prime Minister ship of Dr. Manmohan Singh. On Dec. 26, 2004, Tsunani in the Indian Ocean hit South India along with many Southeast-Asian nations killing about 3,000 people. More than 11,000 deaths reported in India alone.

2005

Monsoon rains in late July and early August 2005 caused devastating landslides and floods that killed about 900 people in and around Bombay.

An earthquake with a Magnitude of 7,6 Struck Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (POK) on October 8, 2005. More than 81,000 people were killed and 2.5 million left homeless. India suffered about 13,000 causalities.

Indo-US reached an agreement in July 2005 that would allow India to seek outside help in developing its civilian nuclear power program while maintaining its nuclear weapons. In addition, India would submit the civilian program, administration, which bans country with nuclear weapons from buying nuclear fuel and equipment from foreign countries. The US allowed American companies to provide India with several types of modern combat weapons, including F–15 and F–18 fighter jets. The announcement was seen as an attempt to balance the US offer to sell Pakistan about two dozen F–16s.

2006

In March 2006, President Bush and Prime Minister Singh agreed to a controversial nuclear deal that permitted the sale of US nuclear technology to India despite the fact that India has never signed the International Nuclear Nonproliferation agreement. Since 1998, the US has imposed sanctions on India for undertaking nuclear tests. Critics of the deal, which must be approved by Congress, contend that allowing India to circumvent the international treaty will make it more difficult to negotiate and rein in North Korea and Iran’s nuclear ambitions.

2007

Tata emerges as the world’s fifth largest steel maker after the acquisition of British steel maker corus.

Sensex regains the 14 K peak by gaining more than 72 points on sustained buying by foreign and domestic funds in banking, auto and technology sector stocks.

Two coaches of the Delhi-Atari Express (4001 Up) were engulfed in a devastating fire caused by improvised explosive devices (IED).

Nine persons are killed and 50 injured in a bomb blast inside the historic Mecca Masjid during the Friday prayers in Hyderabad.

India’s leading private airline Jet Airways finally announced a takeover of the much smaller Air Sahara at a cost of Rs 1450 crore ($ 34 million) in April 2007.