Important Battles And Wars In India

Battle of Hydaspes 326 B.C.Alexander the Great, defeated Porus, the Paurava king. Impressed by the valour of Porus, ultimately Alexander returned his kingdom to him. Battle of Kalinga 261 B.C.Ashoka defeated the king of Kalinga. Ashoka embraced Buddhism and preached it during the rest of his life after this war. First Battle of Tarain or Thaneswar A.D. 1191 Prithvi Raj Chauhan defeated Mohammed Ghori. Second Battle of Tarain A.D. 1192Mohammed Ghori defeated Prithvi Raj Chauhan. Ghoris victory paved the way for the establishment of Muslim rule in India. First Battle of Panipat 1526 Babur defeated Ibrahim Lodhi. This laid the foundation of the Mughal rule in India. Battle of Khanwah 1527 Babar defeated Rana Sanga of Mewar. This battle resulted in the defeat of the powerful Rajput confederacy. Second Battle of Panipat 1556Bairam Khan (Akbars General) defeated Hemu (the Hindu General and right-hand man of Mohd. Adil Shah). It also ended the Afghan Rule and Mughal Rule began instead. Battle of Talikota 1564- 65United alliance between Bijapur, Bidar, Ahmednagar and Golkonda under Hussain Nizam Shah defeated Ram Raja of Vijayanagar. It destroyed the Hindu Kingdom of Vijayanagar. Battle of Haldighati 1576Akbars forces headed by Raja Man Singh defeated Rana Pratap, the brave Rajput king. Though defeated, Rana Pratap refused to accept Mughal authority and carried on warfare till his death. Battle of Plassey 1757 The English under Lord Clive defeated Siraj-ud-Daulah.It brought Muslim Rule in Bengal to an end and laid foundations of the British Rule in India. Battle of Wandiwash 1760 The English defeated the French. The battle sealed the fate of the French in India and paved the way for English rule in India. Third Battle of Panipat 1761Ahmed Shah Abdali defeated Marathas. It gave a terrible blow to the Maratha power. It made the field clear for the English. Battle of Buxar 1764 Fought in 1764 between the forces of the English and the combined forces of Mir Qasim, Shuja-ud-Daulah (Nawab of Oudh) and the Mughal Emperor Shah Alam. The English victory at Buxar finally riveted the shackles of the Companys rule upon Bengal. First Mysore War (1767- 68) In 1768, Haider Ali was defeated by the English relinquishing all his rights over Mysore in favour of the English. Second Mysore War 1780 A grand alliance between Haider Ali, the Nizam and the Marathas was formed and Haider Ali. He defeated the English and took possession of Arcot and became the undisputed master of the Carnatic. Third Mysore War 1790- 92Fought between the English and Tipu Sultan. Tipu Sultan had to submit and was compelled to sign the Treaty of Seringapattam stripped him of half his territory. Fourth Mysore War 1799 The British forces under Arthur Wellesley defeated Tipu Sultan, which brought the end of the Tipu Sultan. Maratha War 1803-05It weakened the Maratha power. The English annexed Tanjore, Surat and Carnatic. Fourth Maratha War 1817- 18The British forces defeated Marathas and this campaign finally extinguished the Maratha Empire. Battle of Cheelianwala 1849 Forces of the East India Company under Lord Hugh Gough defeated the Sikhs under Sher Singh. Burmese War 1885As a result of this War, the whole of Burma was occupied by the English and made a part of India. Afghan War III 1919As a result of this War, Treaty of Rawalpindi was signed by which Afghanistan was recognised as an independent State. lndo-Pak War 1965 This was Pakistans second attack on India. While India had the upper hand, the fighting was brought to a stop by a call for ceasefire issued by the Security Council. Later on, Tashkent accord was signed between the two nations. lndoPak War Dec 1971 Pakistan started the war attacking India on Dec 3. India defeated Pakistan on all fronts. Pakistani occupation forces, numbering about one lakh, in East Bengal (Bangladesh) surrendered. Bangladesh emerged as an independent nation.

Contemporary India
General Knowledge Category: History

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1991 AD: Former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi is assassinated in a bomb blast in Sriperumbudur, near Madras (May 21); P.V. Narasimha Rao is sworn-in as the ninth Prime Minister of India(June 21); At least 1500 people are feared dead as a devastating earthquake rocks Uttarkashi district of Uttar Pradesh(Oct20); Pondicherry becomes the first Union Territory of India to be declared fully literate. 1992 AD: Rupee is made partially convertible (March 1); Eighth Five Year plans starts; Dr. Shankar Dayal Sharma is elected as the ninth President of India(July 16); Indian Air Force celebrates its Diamond Jubilee; The disputed Babri Masjid in Ayodhya (U.P.) is demolished (Dec 6). 1993 AD: More than 400 people are killed in violence in Bombay (Jan 11). Nearly 300 people are killed in a series of bomb blasts in Bombay (March 12); Over 20,000 people are killed as earthquake rocks Latur district of Maharashtra (Sept 30). 1994 AD: PSLV-D2 is successfully launched, putting India in a select group of countries that can launch 1000-kg class satellites into Polar Orbit (Oct 15). 1995 AD: India is linked to Internet (Aug l4); Beant Singh, Chief Minister of Punjab, is killed in a bomb blast. 1996 AD: BJP leader Atal Behari Vajpayee is sworn-in as Indias 11th Prime Minister (May 16); H.D. Deve Gowda is sworn-in as Indias 12th Prime Minister (June 1); India celebrates hundred years of cinema. 1997 AD: Inder Kumar Gujral is sworn as the 13th Prime Minister of India (April 21); K.R. Narayanan takes over as 10th President of India (July 25). Golden Jubilee celebrations of Indias independence begin with Parliament enacting freedom at midnight (August 14); Mother Teresa dies (September 5); Kalpana Chawla becomes first Indian woman to go into space (November 20); President dissolves Lok Sabha. Mid-term polls announced (December 4). 1998 AD: Atal Behari Vajpayee is sworn-in as Prime Minister of India (March 19). India conducts three underground nuclear tests in Pokhran (May 11). The first private basic phone service is launched in India in Bhopal, (June 4). 1999 AD: Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee makes a historic bus journey to Pakistan (Feb 20); Prime Minister Atal Beharis 13-month old government bows out of office(April 17). Indian Air Force launches Operation Vijay in the Kargil sector of Jammu and Kashmir. Combat jets strike against the Pakistani backed intruders (May 26); Goa becomes the first State in the history to use Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) in elections (June 4); Pakistani forces pull out completely from Batalik, Kaksar and Drass sectors in Kargil (July 18); Atal Behari Vajpayee is swornin as Prime Minister for a third term (Oct 13); The entire Coastal Orissa is devastated by a super cyclone. More than 10,000 people die (Oct 29); Parliament approves Insurance Bill thus paving way to end the nearly 50-year-old monopoly of the LIC and GIC in the insurance sector (Dec 7); Indian Airlines Flight IC 814 from Kathmandu is hijacked (Dec 24). 155 hostages are set free after the government releases three terrorists. 2000 AD: The first-ever Internet Trade on an Indian exchange is inaugurated (Feb 1); Karnam Malleswari becomes the first Indian woman to win a medal in Olympic Games (Sept 19); Indias largest telecom company, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) is launched (Oct 1); Chhattisgarh is born as Indias 26th State (Nov 1); Uttaranchal is born as Indias 27th State (Nov 8); Jharkhand becomes 28th State of India (Nov 15). 2001 AD: More than 25,000 people are killed as a devastating earthquake rocks Kutch district of Gujarat (January 26); Census of India: 2001begins (February 9); India successfully launches its first Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) (April 18); Agra summit between India and Pakistan is held (July 14- 16); Terrorists attack Parliament complex in New Delhi (Dec 13). As a mark of protest India recalls its High Commissioner in Islamabad (Dec 21). 2002 AD: Union Cabinet approves price decontrol of petrol and diesel from April 1, 2002 (Feb 14); In a ghastly incident, more than 55 persons are burnt alive as the Ahmedabadbound Sabarmati Express is set on fire by a mob at Godhra Junction (Feb 27). More than 600 people are killed as riots break out in entire Gujarat (March); India expels Pakistans High Commissioner to India (May 18); A.P.J. Abdul Kalam takes over as the 11th President of India (July 25); India successfully launches its first Meteorological satellite on board the PSLV (Sept 12); Elections in J&K conclude with more than 42 per cent voting (Oct 9); The Parliament passes the Landmark Freedom of Information Bill (Dec 16); India establishes its first strategic forces command (January 4); India and China sign a landmark border trade pact that will open the ancient trade pass at Nathu La in Sikkim (June 23); Anju B. George becomes the first Indian athlete ever to win a medal bronzein an international meet (at the world Athletic Championship held in France) (August 30); Guns fall silent along LoC with Pakistan as the ceasefire comes in force (November 26). 2003 AD: India matches Pakistans declaration of a Kashmir ceasefire(November). India, Pakistan agree to resume direct air links and to allow overflights(December). 2004 AD: May - Congress Party wins in general elections. Manmohan Singh is sworn in as prime minister; India, along with Brazil, Germany and Japan, launches an application for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council; India begins to withdraw some of its troops from Kashmir; Thousands are killed when tidal waves, caused by a powerful undersea earthquake off the Indonesian coast, devastate coastal communities in the south and in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. 2005 AD: 7 April - Bus services, the first in 60 years, operate between Srinagar in Indianadministered Kashmir and Muzaffarabad in Pakistaniadministered Kashmir; An earthquake, with its epicentre in P a k i s t a n i - a d m i n i s t e r e d Kashmir, kills more than 1,000 people in Indian administered Kashmir(8 october); Human trials of AIDS vaccine begins in India; The Right to Information Act comes into force. 2006 AD: February - Indias largest-ever rural jobs scheme is launched, aimed at lifting around 60 million families out of poverty; The Thar Express, linking Munabao in Rajasthan and khokrapar in Pakistan is flagged off; US and India sign a nuclear agreement during a visit by US President George W Bush. The US gives India access to civilian nuclear technology while India agrees to greater scrutiny for its nuclear programme. Later on US Senate approved the deal; Nathu La Pass on Sikkim-Tibet border is opened for trade after 44 years;More than 180 people are killed in bomb attacks on rushhour trains in Mumbai; Tehri Dam Project is inaugurated and dedicated to the nation.

Modern India
General Knowledge Category: History

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1765 AD: Grant of Diwani of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa to the British. 1770 AD: Famine in Bengal. 1774 AD: Regulating Act passed by British Parliament. 1774- 85 AD: Warren Hastingsthe first Governor- General of India. 1784 AD: Pitts India Bill passed by British Parliament. 1793 AD: Permanent settlement of land(land revenue system) in Bengal. 1799 AD: Fourth Mysore War; Death of Tipu Sultan; Partition of Mysore; Ranjit Singh occupied Lahore and made it his capital. 1809 AD: Treaty of Amritsar between Sikhs and British. 1818 AD: The Fourth and the last Anglo-Maratha War. 1829 AD: Prohibition of sati by Lord William Bentinck. 1833 AD: Death of Raja Ram Mohan Royfounder of Brahmo Samaj. 1835 AD: Introduction of English as medium of instruction as recommended by Lord Macaulay. 1849 AD: Annexation of the Punjab to the British territories (March 29). 1853 AD: The first Indian railway line opened from Bombay to Thane; the first telegraph communication. 1857 AD: First war of Indian Independence; so-called Indian Mutiny of 1857 (May 10). After so many tough expeditions English finally managed to retain India. 1858 AD: India comes under direct rule of the British crown after failed Indian mutiny. Queen Victorias Proclamation. 1861 AD: Birth of Dr Rabindranath Tagore. 1863 AD: Birth of Swami Vivekananda. 1869 AD: Birth of Mahatma Gandhi at Porbandar (Kathiawar) (Oct 2). 1875 AD: Arya Samaj founded by Dayanand Saraswati. 1885 AD: Indian National Congress founded by A.O. Hume. The first session of the Indian National Congress was held at Bombay, under the Presidentship of W.C. Bannerji (Dec 28). 1886 AD: Burma annexed by the British and made a part of India. 1889 AD: Birth of Jawaharlal Nehru (Nov 14). 1900 AD: Introduction of Agrarian Reforms and passing of the Punjab Alienation Act during the Viceroyalty of Lord Curzon. 1905 AD: First Partition of Bengal (during the Viceroyalty of Lord Curzon). Swadeshi and Boycott Movements were associated with the first partition of Bengal in 1905. 1906 AD: Formation of the All India Muslim League at Dacca. 1909 AD: Indian Council Act or Morley-Minto Reforms Bill passed. 1911 AD: The capital of India transferred from Calcutta to Delhi. Partition of Bengal revoked. 1912 AD: Bihar separated from Bengal on April 1. 1914 AD: World War I declared (July 28) 1915 AD: Defence of India Act. 1916 AD: Lucknow Pact between the Indian National Congress and the All India Muslim League; formation of the Home-Rule League. 1917 AD: E.S. Montagus declaration about the political future of India. 1918 AD: End of World War I (Nov 11). 1919 AD: Government of India Act (or the Montagu- Chelmsford Reforms); division of Provinces into two halves, unofficially known as dyarchy. Rowlatt Act or the Black Bills passed; Tragedy of Jallianwala Bagh at Amritsar (April 13). 1920 AD: Indian National Congress comes under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi; Bal Gangadhar Tilak passed away; first Civil Disobedience Movement in India (March 19). 1921 AD: Moplah Rebellion in Malabar. 1922 AD: Chaura Chauri incident and suspension of civil disobedience movement by Mahatma Gandhi. Death of C.R. Dass. 1928 AD: Visit of Simon Commission and its boycott; Death of Lala Lajpat Rai; The Nehru Report. 1929 AD: Congress Resolution for complete independence (Purna Swaraj) in Lahore Session under the Presidentship of Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru. 1930 AD: Historical Dandi March by Mahatma Gandhi (April 6); First Round Table Conference in London.

1931 AD: Gandhi-Irwin Pact; Second Round Table Conference. Announcement of Communal Award by British Premier Ramsay Mcdonald which was opposed by Mahatma Gandhi on the ground that it divides Hindus. Later on matter was resolved through Poona pact with Dr. Ambedker. 1935 AD: Government of India Act 1935 passed. 1937 AD: Formation of provincial govts.; Congress ministries in 7 provinces. 1939 AD: Beginning of Second World War; resignation of congress ministries. 1942 AD: Cripps proposal for Dominion status; Quit India Resolution by Indian National Congress (August 8); Massive revolt against British rule. Movement brutally supressed by govt. 1943 AD: Bengal famine. Formation of Indian National Army at Singapore by Subhash Chandra Bose. 1944 AD: Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose first to address Mahatma Gandhi as Father of the Nation at Rangoon. 1945 AD: INA trial at Red fort, Delhi; Shimla conference and failure of Wavell plan. 1946 AD: Formation of Interim government; Visit of Cabinet Mission; Mutiny in the Royal Indian Navy; First meeting of the Indian constituent assembly. 1947 AD: Partition of India; India achieves independence; and creation of Pakistan. 1948 AD: Kashmir acceded to India. Assassination of Mahatma Gandhi (Jan 30). 1948- 50 AD: Integration of the Princely States into the Indian Union by Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. 1948 AD: C. Rajagopalachari appointed the first Indian Governor-General of free India in succession to Earl Mountbatten. 1949 AD: Enactment of the Indian Constitution (Nov 26). 1950 AD: India becomes a sovereign democratic republic (Jan 26). Death of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel (Dec 15). 1951 AD: The First Five- Year Plan launched. 1952 AD: First General Elections held in India. Congress wins massive majority. 1953 AD: Andhra State created. 1956 AD: France relinquishes her sovereignty over her possessions in India and transfers establishments of Pondicherry, Karaikal, Mahe and Yanam (May 28). States Reorganisation Act comes into force (Nov 1). 1961 AD: Liberation of Goa. 1962 AD: All-out Chinese attack on India (Oct 20) in NEFA and Ladakh areas. China unilaterally declares ceasefire along the entire Sino-Indian border (Nov 21). 1963 AD: Death of President Dr. Rajendra Prasad (Feb 28); Nagaland inaugurated as the 16th Indian State (Dec 1). 1964 AD: Death of Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru (May 27), Lal Bahadur Shastri takes over as Prime Minister of India. 1965 AD: Indo-Pak War; Indian army marches towards Lahore on Sept 6 and crosses Jammu-West Pakistan border in drive towards Sialkot on Sept 8. India and Pakistan agree to a ceasefire from Sept 23. 1966 AD: Indo-Pak summit at Tashkent; Tashkent Pact (Jan 11). Death of Lal Bahadur Shastri at Tashkent (Jan 11); Indira Gandhi installed as Prime Minister of India (Jan 24); Punjab dividedStates of Punjab and Haryana come into being (Nov. 1). Chandigarh made Union Territory. 1967 AD: Dr. Zakir Hussain installed as the third President of India (May 13). 1969 AD: Death of President Zakir Hussain (May 3); V.V. Giri elected President of India (Aug. 20). Madras State named as Tamil Nadu. 1970 AD: Meghalaya inaugurated (April 2); Princes derecognised by Presidential Order (Sept 7). 1971 AD: Himachal Pradesh gets full Statehood (Jan 25); Indo-Pak War (Dec 3-17); defeat of Pakistan; Bangladesh freed (Dec 16); India declares unilateral ceasefire. 1972 AD: Assam State reorganised Meghalaya, Manipur and Tripura become fullfledged States and new Union Territories of Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram inaugurated (Jan 20-21); Simla Agreement between India and Pakistan (July 3). 1974 AD: India becomes the sixth nuclear power in the world (May 18); Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed assumes office as the fifth President of India (Aug 25). 1975 AD: India enters space age by launching Aryabhata (April 19); Sikkim becomes 22nd State of the Indian Union (May 16); State of Emergency declared for the first time since independence. Censorship imposed on Press (June 26). 1976 AD: India and China agree to establish diplomatic relations at Ambassadors level (April 16-17). 1977 AD: Emergency rules relaxed. Death of President Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed (Feb 11); Janata Party gains absolute majority in the Lok Sabha (March 23), Morarji Desai sworn in as Prime Minister of India (March 24); Neelam Sanjiva Reddy elected President of India (July 21). 1978 AD: Congress (I) formed with Indira Gandhi as President (Jan 2). 1979 AD: Indias first coalition Government between Janata (S) and the Congress sworn in with Charan Singh as Prime Minister (July 26); Death of Lok Nayak Jayaprakash Narayan (Oct 8). 1980 AD: Indira Gandhi sworn in as Prime Minister (Jan 14); India successfully launches SLV-3 into space carrying Rohini satellite into earth orbit (July 18). 1981 AD: APPLE, Indias first three-axis body-stabilised geostationary experimental communication satellite, launched into space from Kourou, French Guyana (June 19); Bhaskara II launched. 1982 AD: Zail Singh elected the seventh President of India on July 15. 1983 AD: INSAT-IB, Indias unique three-axis, geostationary, communication satellite launched from American Space Shuttle Challenger (Aug 30).

1984 AD: Sqn Ldr Rakesh Sharma becomes Indias first spaceman (April 3); 34-year-old Sikkim mountaineering instructor Phu Dorjee becomes the first Indian to climb Mount Everest without Oxygen (May 9). Bachendri Pal becomes the first Indian woman to conquer Mount Everest (May 23); Army launches operation Bluestar to flush out terrorists from Golden Temple in Amritsar (June 3); Indira Gandhi assassinated (Oct 31). Massive riots in northern Indian cities. Rajiv Gandhi becomes new Prime Minister. 1985 AD: Air Indias jet Kanishka crashes into Atlantic ocean off the coast of Ireland killing 329 people (June 23); The Punjab accord is signed (July 24); Assam accord is signed (August 20). 1986 AD: Mizoram accord is signed thus paving way for the peace in this state long torn by the extremist violence. 1987 AD: Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh attain Statehood (Feb 20). Goa attains Statehood (May 11). 1989 AD: Indias first Super-Computer, Cray X-MP- 14, is dedicated to the nation (March 25); First intermediate range missile of India, Agni, is successfully launched(May 22); V.P. Singh becomes the 7th Prime Minister of India (Dec 2). 1990 AD: Implementation of Mandal Commission report; Chandra Shekhar is sworn-in as the 8th Prime Minister of India (Nov 9).