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30.10.2014
Timeline: Indian History
7500 BC : Civilization at Gulf of Khambar 320-335 : Reign of Chandragupta-I.
2500-1500 BC: Indus Valley Civilisation. 335-380 : Reign of Samudragupta known as Indian
2000-1500: Aryans arrive from central Asia. Napoleon.
380-414 : Reign of Chandragupta II (Vikramaditya).
1500-1000: The Early Vedic Age Rigveda.
405-411 : The visit of the Chinese pilgrim Fa-hien
1000-500: Later Vedic Period - Samaveda,
to India.
Yajurveda and Atharvaveda,
500-527 : Rule of Huns over North India.
Brahmanas, Aranyakas, Samhitas, early
606-647 : Harsha Vardhana of Kanauj. Hiuen-Tsang
in
Upanishads and Sutras.
visited India (AD 630-644).
563-483 : Gautama Buddha born at Lumbini
500-757 : First Chalukya dynasty of Vatapi
it.
(Nepal); attainment of knowledge
630 : Harsha's clash with PulakesinII
Bodh Gaya (Bihar); first sermon
973-1190 : Chalukya dynasty of Kalyani
nd
Sarnath, near Varanasi (UP); Nirvana
Kusinagar (Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh). 760-1142 : Palas of Eastern India.
985-1014 : Reign of Rajaraja, the Great. Starts a
540-468 : Mahavira born at Kundagrama near
great land survey (AD 1000).
pu
of Hydaspes.
916-1203 : Construction of Khajuraho Temples.
322-298 : Reign of Chandragupta Maurya, the 1000-1027: Invasion of Mahmud of Ghazni.
founder of the Mauryan dynasty. 1191 : Prithviraj III, defeated Muhammad Ghori
273-232 : Reign of Ashoka , son of Bindusara in the first battle of Tarain .
261 : Kalinga war. 1192 : Mohammad Ghori defeated Prithviraj in
257 : Asoka's conversion to Budhism by theSecond Battle of Tarain in 1192.
Upagupta. 1206 : Foundation of the Sultanate of Delhi by
250 : Third Buddhist council at Pataliputra Qutub-ud-din Aibak.
90 : Sakas invade India. 1210 : Death of Qutub-ud-din Aibak.
58 : The Vikrama Samvat (vikram era) intro- 1210-1236: Reign of Iltutmish.
duced by King Vikramaditya of Ujjain. 1221 : Mongol invasion under Chenghis Khan.
20-46 AD : Gondophernes, the king of Indo- 1231 : Iltumish completed the construction of
Parthians. Qutub Minar at Delhi.
78 : Accession of Kanishka, The Saka era begins. 1236-1240: Reign of Empress Raziya, daughter of
Iltutmish, the first and last woman ruler
100-300 : The Sangam Age in south India.
of Medieval India.
50 BC-250 AD : Satavahana dynasty in the Deccan.
1266-1287: Reign of Sultan Balban.
Page 1 of 191
1288-1293: Visit of Marco Polo in India. 1540 :Humayuns defeat near Kanauj.
1290-1296 : Sultan Jalal-ud-din Firuz Khalji, founder 1542 :Birth of Akbar.
of the Khalji dynasty. 1545 :Battle of Kalinjar.
1296 : Alauddin Khalji invades Devagiri. 1545 :Death of Sher Shah.
1296-1316: Reign of Sultan Alauddin Khalji. 1555 :Battle of Sirhind. Sikandur Suri was de-
1309-1311: Malik Kafur's expedition into South India. feated by Humayun, Humayun recov-
1320-1325: Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq (Ghazi Malik), ers the throne of Delhi.
founder of the Tughlaq dynasty. 1556 : Death of Humayun and accession of
1325-1351: Muhammad-bin-Tughlaq. Transferred Akbar. Second Battle of Panipat.
the capital from Delhi to Daulatabad- 1556-1605: Akbar's reign.
1327. Issue of token currency 1329. 1564 : Abolition of Jezyah.
1333 : Ibn Batuta arrives in India. 1565 : Battle of Talikota Vijayanagar destroyed.
1351-1388: Sultan Firuz Tughlaq. 1571 : Foundation of Fatehpur Sikri.
1398 : Invasion of Timur during the reign of 1576 : Battle of Haldighati and defeat of
Sultan Nasiruddin Mahmud Maharana Pratap.
1414-1451: Reign of Sayyid dynasty. 1579 : Infalliability decree issued by Akbar.
in
1420 : Visit of Nicolo Conti. 1581 : Din-i-Ilahi promulgated by Akbar.
1451-1526: Bahlul Lodhi (1451-89), Sikandar Lodhi 1600 : Deccan expedition and siege of
it.
(1489-1517), and Ibrahim Lodhi (1517-26) Ahmadnagar
1526 : The first Battle of Panipat (1526) Babur : Charter to British East India company.
nd
defeats Ibrahim Lodhi. 1605 : Death of Akbar and accession of
1336 : Foundation of the empire of Vijayanagar Jahangir.
by Harihara and Bukka 1605-1627: Reign of Jahangir.
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1438-1468: Reign of Rana kumbha in Mewar. 1609 : William Hawking visited Jahangir.
1509-1530: Reign of Krishnadeva Raya, the great- 1615 : Sir Thomas Roe in the court of Jahangir.
est king of Vijayanagar.
am
Page 2 of 191
1686 : Conquest of Bijapur by Aurangzeb. : Pitts Act passed, Setting up Board of Con-
1687 : Golconda annexed to the Mughal empire. trol for East India Company.
1707 : Death of Aurangzeb at Ahmadnagar. : Asiatic Society of Bengal founded by Sir
1739 : Invasion of Nadirshah. William Jones.
1740-1761: Peshwaship of Balaji Baji Rao (Nana 1786-93 : Lord Cornwalis, Governor-General.
Saheb). 1790-92 : Third Mysore War.
1746-48 : First Carnatic war. 1792 : Treaty of Srirangapatnam signed be-
1748-54 : Second Carnatic war. tween Tipu and English.
1756-63 : Third Carnatic war. 1793-98 : Sir John Shore, Governor-General.
1757 : Battle of Plassey. 1793 : The Permanent Zamindari Settlement of
1760 : Battle of Wandiwash. Bengal.
1761 : Third Battle of Panipat: The Marathas 1798 : Lord Wellesley as Governor-General and
defeated by the combined troops of brought subsidiary alliance.
Ahmad Shah Abdali; the Mughals, and 1799 : Fourth Mysore War. Fall of Srirangapat-
other Muslim chiefs of India. nam. Death of Tipu.
1764 : Battle of Buxar. The English defeat Shah 1800 : Establishment of the College of Fort Will-
iam.
in
Alam, Shuja-ud-daulah and Mir Qasim.
1765 : Grant of the Diwani of Bengal, Bihar, 1802 : The Treaty of Bassein between Peshwa
and English.
it.
and Orissa to the East India Company
by Shah Alam II under Treaty of 1803 : Occupation of Delhi by Lord Lake.
nd
Allahabad. 1803-05 : Second Anglo-Maratha War.
: Clive, Companys Governor in Bengal. 1807-13 : Lord Minto as Governor-General.
1765-72 : Dual Government of Bengal. 1809 : Treaty of Amritsar-Ranjit Singh and Brit-
pu
1767-69 : The First Anglo Mysore War. ish sign treaty of perpetual amity.
1770 : The Great Bengal Famine. 1813-23 : Lord Hastings as Governor-General.
1771 : Marathas occupy Delhi and restore Shah 1814-16 : Anglo-Gurkha War.
am
Alam who was till then under English 1817-18 : Pindari War Peshwa defeated at
protection at Allahabad. Kirkee.
1772-73 : Warren Hastings as Governor of Bengal. 1818-19 : Last Anglo-Maratha War.
ex
Page 3 of 191
1844-48 : Lord Hardinge as Governor-General. 1883-84 : Ilbert Bill controversy.
1845-46 : First Anglo-Sikh War. Treaty of Lahore. 1884-88 : Lord Dufferin Viceroy.
1848-49 : Second Anglo-Sikh War. Defeat of Sikhs 1885 : First session of the Indian National Con-
and annexation of the Punjab. gress held at Bombay.
: Opening of a Hindu Girls School in Cal- 1887 : Queen Victoria's Jubilee.
cutta by Bethune. 1888-93 : Lord Landsdowne Viceroy.
1848-56 : Lord Dalhousie as Governor-General. 1892 : Indian Councils Act.
1852 : Second Anglo-Burmese War. 1894-99 : Lord Elgin II Viceroy.
1853 : Railway opened from Bombay to Thana. 1896 : Ramakrishna Mission founded.
Telegraph line from Calcutta to Agra. 1899-1905: Lord Curzon Viceroy.
1854 : Charles Woods despatch on Education. 1905 : Partition of Bengal.
1855 : Santhal insurrection in Bihar. 1905-10 : Lord Minto II Viceroy.
1856 : Annexation of Awadh. Indian Univer- 1906 : Muslim League formed at Dacca.
sity Act. Hindu Widows Remarriage 1907 : Surat Congress, moderates-extremists
Act. clash.
1856-58 : Lord Canning Governor-General. 1908 : Newspapers Act. Tilak convicted of sedi-
in
1857-58 : Revolt of 1857. Revolt at Meerut begins tion.
on May 10, 1857. 1909 : Morley-Minto Reforms.
it.
1858 : British India placed under the direct gov- : Indian Councils Act passed.
ernment of the Crown. Queen Victorias
1910-16 : Lord Hardinge II Viceroy.
nd
Proclamation.
1911 : Delhi Durbar.
1858-62 : Lord Canning as Viceroy.
: Partition of Bengal annulled. Census of In-
1861 : Indian Councils Act.
dia.
pu
Page 4 of 191
1927 : Appointment of Simon Commission. 1947 : Announcement of Lord Mountbattens
1928 : Simon Commission comes to India. plan for Partition of India (June 3).
: Death of Lala Lajpat Rai following po- : Indian Independence Act passed (July).
lice assault. Nehru Report. : Creation of free India and Pakistan on
1929 : Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt drops midnight of August 14/15, 1947 as do-
bombs in the Legislative Assembly. minions.
1947-64 : Jawaharlal Nehru Prime Minister of In-
: Congress on December 31 at Lahore de-
dia.
claring its objective of Poora Swaraj for
1948 : Assassination of Mahatma Gandhi
India.
(January 30).
1930 : Gandhijis Dandi March. Civil Disobedi- : Raja-gopalachari appointed first Indian
ence Movement. Governor-General (June 21).
1930-31 : First Round Table Conference. 1949 : New Constitution of India adopted and
1931 : Gandhi-Irwin Pact signed. signed (November 26).
: Second Round Table Conference. 1950 : India become a Republic. New Consti-
1931-36 : Lord Wellingdon Viceroy. tution comes into force (January 26).
1932 : Third Round Table Conference. : Dr. Rajendra Prasad, first President of
Indian Republic.
in
: Communal Award announced.
: Poona Pact signed. : Planning Commission was set up
1951 : Inauguration of First Five Year Plan.
it.
1934 : Civil Disobedience Movement called off.
1952 : First General Election in India
1935 : Government of India Act, 1935 passed : National Development Council (NDC)
nd
by British Parliament. set up.
1936-44 : Lord Linlithgow Viceroy. : Family Planning is launched.
1937 : Inauguration of Provincial Autonomy. 1953 : Conquest of Mount Everest.
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Page 5 of 191
guese possession. to scale Mount Everest.
: Arjuna Award introduced : Indira Gandhi assassinated
1962 : Indo-China War. : Rajiv Gandhi sworn in as new Prime
1964 : Death of Jawaharlal Nehru Minister.
: Lal Bahadur Shastri becomes Prime Minis- : Bhopal Gas tragedy
ter. 1985 : Centenary celebrations of Indian Na-
1965 : Indo-Pak War. tional Congress held.
1966 : Tashkent Declaration : Dhronachary Award instituted
: Death of Lal Bahadur Shastri 1986 : Centre and Laldenga sign Mizo Accord.
: Indira Gandhi becomes Prime Minister. 1987 : Frontier Gandhi, Khan Abdul Gaffar
1969 : First Nationalisation of 14 Banks. Khan given Bharat Ratna. First foreigner
: First Dada Sahib Phalke Award was to get Bharatratna.
given to Davika Rani 1988 : Bharat Ratna conferred on M.G.
1971 : Indo-Pak War Ramachandran.
: Birth of Bangladesh. : Contingent of Indian Army flown to
1972 : Shimla Agreement between India and Maldives to help President Abdul
in
Pakistan. Gayoom.
1973 : Project Tiger : Lok Sabha passes Constitutional
it.
1974 : Underground nuclear explosion carried Amendment Bill reducing voting age
out at Pokhran (May 18). from 21 to 18 years.
nd
1975 : Emergency declared in the country. 1989 : V.P. Singh sworn in as seventh Prime
: Aryabhatta goes to orbit. Minister with Devi Lal as his Deputy.
1977 : Janata Party comes to power. 1990 : Nelson Mandela honoured with Bharat
pu
Page 6 of 191
Minister on May 16 and resigns on May : Former Indian Air Force Chief, Arjan
28. Singh, is made the first ever marshal of
: H.D. Deve Gowda becomes Prime Min- the IAF.
ister on June 1. Madras becomes : A.P.J. Abdul Kalam 11th President
Chennai. : Bhairon Singh Shekhawat is sworn in
1997 : Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C1) is the 12th Vice-President.
launched from Sriharikota (Andhra : The first exclusive 1,060 kg. meteoro-
Pradesh). logical satellite (METSAT) is success-
: Arundhati Roy bagged the 29th Booker fully launched from the Sriharikotta by
Prize, PSLV.
: Kalpana Chawla became the first Indian- : Justice V.N. Khare is sworn in Chief Jus-
born US woman to go into space. tice of India.
1998 : Indias second (May 11) and third (May 2003 : L.K. Advani is appointed Deputy Prime
13) nuclear explosion at Pokhran. Minister.
: M.S. Subhalekshmi and Jaya Prakash : INSAT 3E, was launched (September 28)
Narayan win Bharat Ratna. : Air Marshal T.M. Asthana is named the
in
: Vajpayee becomes 12 Prime Minister first Commander-in-Chief of the Strate-
it.
of India. gic Forces Command.
: Param 10000 Indias new super computer : The Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee Chris-
nd
unveailed. tens METSAT, Kalpana I after Kalpana
: Konkan Railway (760 km) inaugurated. Chawla.
1999 : INSAT 2E was launched on April 3 : Mehbooba Mufti takes over as president
pu
: PSLV-C2 launched IRS P4. of the Peoples Democratic Party thus be-
: India becomes leading producer of milk coming the first woman to head a politi-
cal party in J and K.
am
in the world.
: Amarthya Sen wins Bharat Ratna. : INS Talwar the Navys first stealth war-
ship is inducted into western fleet.
: India launched Operation Vijay to repel
: G. Madhavan Nair assumes office as
ex
Page 7 of 191
Games. : The Government comes out with the first
: EDUSAT - Indias first exclusive satel- ever Outcome Budget.
lite for educational services, placed in : The trial-run, of the first Amritsar- Lahore
orbit. service begins linking the two cities for
: Tata Motors becomes the first company the first time nearly six decades.
in the Indian engineering sector to list 2006 : Indias first rubber dam is installed across
its securities on the New York Stock Ex- the Janjhavati river in Andhra Pradeshs
change. Vizianagaram district.
: Keralas Palakkad district collectorate is : Booker Prize winner Arundhati Roy is
the first in India to be totally computer- awarded the 2005 Sahitya Akademi
ised.
Award for English for her book of es-
: The Mahatma Gandhi International
says The Algebra of Infinite Justice.
Peace Award to the former Botswana
: The first-ever-Lahore- Amritsar bus ser-
President Sir Ketimile Masire.
: Over 80,000 people are killed following vice begins.
an undersea earthquake off Sumatra in : The worlds longest rail is flagged off
Indonesia, over 19,000 people are killed from Bhilai steel plant.
in India. : The President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, re-
in
: Lakshya pilotless target aircraft, test turns the Office of Profit Bill for recon-
flown. sideration
2005 : Cabinet decided to offer dual citizenship
for all overseas Indians who migrated af-
it.
: A.P.J. Abdul Kalam becomes the first
President to make a sortie in a combat
nd
ter January 26, 1950. aircraft after flying in a Sukhoi-30 MKT
: Presidents rule was imposed on Goa and after take off from Lahegaon airbase,
the Assembly kept under suspended Pune.
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animation, even after the Pratapsingh : N. Gopalaswami takes over as the new
Rane Government wins the trust vote. Chief Election Commissioner.
: Tamil writer D. Jayakanthan is selected : The GSLV - FO2 launch from Sriharikota,
am
for the 38th Jnanapith Award for 2002. Andhra Pradesh ends in failure after the
He is the second Tamil author after P.V. vehicle crashes into the Bay of Bengal.
Akhilandan to receive the honour. : Social activist Arvind Kajriwal is elected
ex
: Dandi March route (384 km) is declared for the 2006 Ramon Magsaysay Award
a heritage path and the Prime Minister, in the Emergent Leadership category.
Manmohan Singh, announces a Rs 10 : The President A.P.J Abdul Kalam, con-
crore package for Sabarmati Gandhi fers the 39th Jnanapith Award on
Ashram renovation, on the 75th anniver-
Marathi writer Vinda Karandikar.
sary day of the breaking of the salt act
: Actor Shabana Azmi is chosen for the
by Mahatma Gandhi.
Gandhi International Peace Prize 2006.
: Indias Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle
PSLVC-6 is launched from the spaceport : The protection of women from Domestic
in Sriharikota, and it injects two satel- Violence Act 2006 comes into effect.
lites CARTOSAT - 1 and HAMSAT into : The Prime Minister Manmohan Singh,
their orbits. presents the 21st Indira Gandhi Prize for
: The Lok Sabha passes the Right to in- National Integration to lyricist Javed
formation Bill. Akhtar.
: The Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, : Sri Lankan President, Mahinda
launches the National Knowledge Com- Rajapaksa inaugurates the three - day
mission. first Asian Mayors meet in Dehra Dun.
Page 8 of 191
INDIAN HISTORY
Pre-Historic Period Banarjee. It is situated in the Larkhana district in
Sind on the right bank of river Indus (Now in
The earliest traces of human existence in India so Pakistan)
far discovered is between 4,00,000 and 2,00,000
The Great Granery, the Great Bath a piece of
BC from Sohan valley (now in Pakistan)
woven cotton, a beared man in steatite and a
Neolithic settlements in Indian subcontinent are bronze dancing girl are found from Mohanjedaro.
not older than 4000 BC.
An assembly hall was also discovered from
Wheat and barley were the first cereals grown by Mohanjodaro.
in
Indians.
The most important feature of Harappan
The name India was derived from the rivername
it.
civilisation was town planning and urbanism.
Sindhu which is also known as Indus.
The word Mohanjedaro in Sindi language means
nd
India was originally considered as a part of a larger the mount of the dead.
area called Jambu-dvipa (The continent of Jambu
Mohanjodaro was believed to have destructed
tree)
by flood.
pu
river Indus.
dates back to 7500 BC.
Kalibangan, another famous Indus city discov-
This was found out by the National Institute of
ered in 1953 by A Ghosh, is situated in Rajasthan
Open Technology (NIOT).
on the banks of River Ghaggar. Kalibangan stands
Indus Valley Civilisation for black bangles.
Lothal, first man made port in the world and dock-
The Harappan culture spread over the whole of yard made of burnt bricks, was discovered in 1953
Sind, Baluchistan, almost the whole of Punjab, by S.R. Rao is situated in Gujarat on Bhogava
northern Rajasthan, Kathiawar and Gujarat. river near Gulf of Cambay.
Harappa the first Indus site, was discovered by Ropar is the site situated in Punjab on the banks
Dayaram Sahni in 1921. It is situated in the prov- of river Sutlej. It was discovered in 1953 by
ince of West Punjab, Montgeomery district in Pa- Y.D.Sharma.
kistan.
Harappan people were the earliest people in the
Harappa is located on the bank of river Ravi. world to grow cotton and rice.
Mohanjedaro was excavated in 1922 by R.D. People cultivated rice at Lothal and Rangpur and
Page 9 of 191
barley at Benawali. river Indus, aridity of the area, or drying up of
Harappan people domesticated oxen, buffaloes, river Ghaggar, the invasion of Aryans are the sup-
goats, camel, sheeps, domestic fowls and pigs. posed reasons for the decline of the civilisation
Humped bulls were given special importance. towards 1500 BC.
Horses were unknown to the Harappan people.
Vedic Age
Indus people had trade contacts with Persian Gulf
and Mesopotamia. Vedic Age is the period of Aryans in India from
The ancient name given to Indus region was 1500 - 500 BC.
Meluha. Most Probable Home of the Aryans is Central
Indus people used a gold - silver mixture called Asia. This theory is of Max Muller.
Electrum. The word Aryan literally means high born, but it
They used bronze and copper but iron was un- generally refers to language.
known to them. The word Veda is derived from the word vid
Indus people were the first to use copper in India. which means knowledge.
Harappans used a system of weights and mea- Vedas are the oldest literary works of mankind.
in
sures based on 16 and its multiples. Vedas are four in number, they are Rig Veda,
Yajurveda, Samaveda and Atharva Veda. Rig veda
it.
The chief male deity of the Indus people was
is the oldest veda.
Pasupati Mahadeva (Porto Siva).
Vedas are collectively known as Sruti
nd
Their Chief female deity was the Mother Goddess.
Vedangas are collectively known as Smriti
They also worshipped fire, pipal trees and Uni-
corn. Vedangas are six in number. They are,
pu
Page 10 of 191
Yajurvedic hymns are meant to be sung by priests Visah was a cluster of gramas.
called Adhavaryu. Important tribal assemblies of the Rig Vedic pe-
Yajurveda is derived into two: SuklaYajurveda riod were Sabha, Samiti, Vidhata and Gana.
(White Yajurveda) and Krishna Yajur Veda (Black The Aghanya mentioned in many passages of
Yajurveda) Rigveda applies to cows.
Sama Veda deals with Music. The Rigvedic religion was primitive animism.
Sama Vedic hymns are meant to be sung by priests Indra was the greatest God of Aryans and Agni
called Udgatri. occupied second position.
Atharva veda is a collection of spells and incan- Varuna was God of water and Yama was the Lord
tations. Ayurveda is a part of Atharva Veda, which of dead.
deals with medicine.
Savitri was a solar diety to whom the famous
The saying, War begins in the minds of men is Gayatri Mantra is attributed to.
from Atharva Veda.
Prithvi was Earth Godess.
The 10th Mandala of Rigveda contain the
The battle of ten kings mentioned in the Rig Veda
Purusha Sukta hymn which tells about the ori-
was fought on the division of water of river Ravi.
in
gin of caste system.
It was fought on the banks of River Ravi
Upanishads are 108 in number. Upanishads are
it.
(Purushni).
philosophical works
Indra was known as Purandara.
nd
Upanishads are known as the Jnanakantas of
The people called Panis, during the Vedic period
Vedas.
were cattle breeders.
The words Sathyameva Jayate have been taken
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Visvamitra.
Bhagvata purana is divided into 18 skandas The
10th skanda mentions about the childhood of Sri Later Vedic Period
Krishna.
The period assigned to Later Vedic Phase is 1000
Skanda purana is considered as the largest BC to 600 BC.
purana.
Later Vedic people used particular type of pot-
Brahmapurana is also known as Adipurana. tery called Painted Grey Ware (PGW)
Adhyatma Ramayana is included in the The Later Vedic Aryans were familiar with two
Brahmantapurana. seas, the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean.
Cattle was the chief measure of wealth of the vedic Rice became the staple diet of Indian people dur-
period. ing the Later Vedic Period.
Rigvedic tribe was referred to as Jana . The term Rashtra which indicates territory first
appeared in the later vedic period.
Many clans (vis) formed a tribe.
Mention of the word Sudras - Rigveda (10th
The basic unit of society was kula or the family Mandala)
and Kulapa was the head of the family.
Page 11 of 191
Mention of the Gotra is found in the Each Tribal republic was headed by Ganapati or
Atharvaveda. Jyeshtha.
Origin of Kingship is found in Aitareya The Vedic Education system revealed through
Brahmana. Frog Hymn in the Rigveda and Wedding Hymn
Soma was an intoxicating drink mentioned in describe the oldest marriage rituals.
the 9th Mandala of the Rig Veda. Max Mullar was the first person to speak of Ary-
Mention of the word Varna is found in Rigveda. ans as a race.
The fourfold division of the society is found in Epics
the 10th Mandala of the Rigveda.
Mention about the Varnashranadhrama is found Hinduism has two epics Ramayana and
in the Jabla Upanishad. Mahabharata.
in
Purohita Senani and Vrajapati were the impor- Mahabharata is divided into 18 Purvas, an ap-
pendix Harivamsa is considered as 19th Purva.
it.
tant functionaries who assisted the king in day-
to-day administration. 12th Purva is the largest and 7th is the smallest.
nd
The officer who enjoyed authority over the pas- It describes the 18 days battle of Kurukshetra.
ture land was called Vrajapati. Stories of Sakuntalam, Pralayam, Ramcharitam,
The kings power increased during the Later Vedic Rishysringan, Satyavan Savitri,Nala and
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Shyma Shastri translated Arthasastra into En- Mahabharata. It is divided into 18 chapters and
glish has about 700 hymns.
Bali was a tax, which the king used to collect from
the people of the Vedic period.
Jainism
Aryans used iron for the first time India. Vardhamana Mahavira was believed to have born
Horse, Iron, Sugarcane, Pulses etc reached India in 540 BC in Kundala Grama in Vaishali the capital
by the coming of Aryans. Six systems of Indian Philosophy
The God who occupied supreme position in the Samkya ................................ Sage Kapila
Later Vedic Period was Prajapati.
Yoga ......................................... Patanjali
Rudra was regarded as preserver and protector
of the people. Vaisheshika .............................. Kannada
The most important functionary who assisted the Nyaya ................... Akshapada (Gautama)
Vedic king was Purohita. Vedanta Gaudapada and Shankaracharya.
Manarchy was the normal form of Government in Mimamsa .................................... Jaimini
the vedic period.
Page 12 of 191
of Vajji. Now it is in Mussafar district in Bihar. Ahimsa Paramo Dharma is the sacred hymn of
He belonged to Jnatrika Kshatriya clan. Jainism.
Mahaviras family was connected with the royal Ahimsa, Satya, Asateya, Aparigriha and
Brahmacharya are the five major principles of
family of Magadha.
Jainism.
The word Jaina was originated from the word
Brahmacharya is the principle added by Mahavira.
Jina which means conqueror.
Mahavira taught the three Jewels of Jainism
Jainism speaks about 24 thinthankaras. Mahavira (Triratna) - Right Faith, Right Knowledge and
was the 24th Thirthankara, who is considered as Right Conduct.
the founder of Jainism. The Jains repudiated the authority or infallibility
Rishabha was the first Thirthankara. Neminath of the vedas. The Jains rejected the concept of
and Parswanatha were the 22nd and 23rd Universal soul or a supreme power as the creator
Thirthankaras respectively. and sustainer of the Universe.
Bhagavatapurana, Vishnupurana, Vayupurana, Jainism does not condemn the Varna system.
etc mentions about Rishabhadeva. Mahavira believed that all individuals irrespec-
tive of caste can strive for liberation through good
Sidhartha, ruler of Nandadynasty which ruled
in
deeds and living.
Kundalapuri, was the father of Vardhmana
First Jain council was held at Pataliputra in the
Mahavira.
it.
fourth century BC under the leadership of
Mahaviras mother was Trissala and Yasodha was Stulabahu.
nd
his wife. Second Jain council was held at Vallabhipur in
Jameli was the daughter of Mahavira. third Century BC under the leadership of
Mahavira is also known as Vaishalia as he was Aryaskandil Nagarjuna Suri.
pu
cetic group called Nirgrandhas , which earlier led swetambaras are clad in white.
by Parswanath.
Gomateshwara statue is
Makhali Gosala was a companion of Mahavira. situated in Sravana
Who later founded the Ajivika sect. belgola.
Mahavira attained Nirvana at the age of 72 at Syad Vada is a Jain phi-
Pavapuri near Rajagriha in 468 BC. losophy of Knowledge.
Jains observe the day of his nirvana as Dipavali. Kharavela of Kalinga
gave patronage to
Gautama Indrabhuti is considered as his first
Jainism.
desciple.
Mahavir Jayanti and
Jain sacred texts are called Angas. Rakshabandan are the
Jain texts were written under Bhadrabahu in BC festive occassions of Gomateshwara
296. Jainism.
Jain texts were written in the Prakrit language of Temple on the Mount Abu in Rajasthan is a fa-
Ardhamagadhi. mous centre of Jain worship.
Page 13 of 191
Jain Temple at Sravanabelgola in Hassan district Buddha made his first sermon after enlightenment
in Mysore is known as Kasi of the Jains. at a deer park at Saranath in Uttar Pradesh. This
Names of Rishabhadeva and Arishtanemi are also incident is known as Dharmachakra
mentioned in the Rigveda. pravarthana.
Chandragupta Maurya the founder of the Buddhas first teacher was Alara Kalama and sec-
Mauryan Empire, abdicated the throne towards ond teacher Udraka Ramaputra.
the end of his life, accepted Jainism reached During his first sermon at Sarnath, Buddha de-
Sravanabelgola and died there. scribed the four noble truths and the eight fold
path.
Buddhism Buddha made his sermons in Pali language and
Buddhism originated in the 6th century BC. the early Buddhist texts were also written in Pali
Gautama Buddha the founder of Buddhism was language.
born in Lumbini in Kapilavasthu on the border of Buddha died at the age of 80 in 483 BC at
Nepal in 563 BC. Kushinagara in UP. This was known as
Buddhas mother Parinirvana. Buddha died by consuming poi-
soned meat or poisoned mushroom.
in
Mahamaya died seven
days after his birth. He Last meals of Buddha was served by a blacksmith
it.
was brought up by his Chunda.
aunt Mahaprajpati His last words were All composite things decay,
nd
Gautami, hence he got strive diligently.
the name Gautama. Four noble truths of Buddhism are:
life is full of misery, desire is the cause of mis-
pu
Kshatriyas.
His father was Subhodhana. 1. Rishabhdev 13. Vimalnath
Buddhas wife was Yasodhara and his son was 2. Ajitnath 14. Anandanath
Rahulan. 3. Sambhavnath 15. Dharmanath
Four sights changed his mind and initiated him to 4. Abhinandan 16. Shantinath
spiritual life they were death, old age, sadness 5. Sumitnath 17. Kunthunath
and sufferings. 6. Padmaprabhu 18. Arnath
He left home at the age of 29 along with his chari- 7. Suparsavanath 19. Mallinath
oteer Channa and favourite horse Kandaka. This
8. Suridhi 20. Munisuvrata nath
incident is known as Mahanishkramana.
9. Chandraprabh 21. Neminath
Buddha got enlightenment at Bodha Gaya, on the banks
of Niranjana river in Bihar at the Age of 35. 10. Sheetal Nath 22. Arishtanemi
After enlightenment Buddha came to be known 11. Shreyanshanath 23. Parshvanath
as thadhagatha. He is also known as 12. Vasupujya 24. Mahavira
Sakhyamuni.
Page 14 of 191
Right Action, Right Living, Right Effort, Righ Buddhist worshipping centre is known as Pagoda.
Recollection, Right Meditation Viharas are the Buddhist monastries.
Buddhism does not recognise the existence of
Vajrayana was a sect of Buddhism which believed
God and Soul (Atman)
in achieving salvation through Mantras and
Buddha accepted the traditional belief in transmi- spells.
gration of the soul and law of Karma.
Jataka stories describe the stories related to
The three jewelsof Buddhism are Buddha,
the birth of Buddha. They are 500 in number.
Dhamma and Sangha.
The first Buddhist council was held in 483 BC at Holy book of Buddhism is Tripitika- Vinayapitika,
Sattaparni (Rajagriha) under the presidentship Suddhapitika and Abhidhamapitika are collec-
of Mahakashyapa and under the patronage of king tively known as Tripitika.
Ajatasatru of Magadha.. Bimbisara of Magadha was a contemporary of
Vinayapitaka and Suddhapitaka were codified at Buddha.
the first council. Kanishka who worked to spread Buddhism like
Second Buddhist council was held in 383 BC at Ashoka is known a Second Ashoka.
Vaishali under the presidentship of Sabhakami Ashoka sent his son and daughter, Mahendra
in
and under the patronage of king Kalashoka. and Sanghamitra to SriLanka to spread Bud-
dhism.
it.
At the second Buddhist council Buddhism was
divided into two Staviravadins and Sri Buddha is known as the Light of Asia He
nd
Mahasankikas which later came to be known a was named as such by Edvin Arnold.
Hinayana and Mahayana respectively. Edvin Arnolds Light of Asia was translated into
Third council of Buddhism was held in 250 BC at Malayalam by Nalappad Narayanamenon.
pu
a Bengal ruler.
Abhidhamma Pitika was codified at the third council.
The chief Buddhist monastery was at Nalanda,
At the third council decision was also taken to which was under the patronage of Pala kings.
send missionaries to spread Buddhism.
ex
Ashoka accepted Buddhism after the battle of First Sermon ......................... Dharma Chakra
Kalinga in BC 261. Nirvana (Death) ............................ Foot prints
Page 15 of 191
Sangham was an Assembly of literature held at II and XIII rock edicts of Ashoka mention about
Madhurai. the South Indian kingdoms.
References to the Sangham Age can be found in Karikala most prominent among early Cholas is
the inscriptions of Ashoka, and Kharavela of known as the master of seven notes of music.
Kalinga and in the Indica of Megastenese. Bharatam was a Tamil version of Mahabharata
The literature of the Sangham Age was written sung by Perundevanar.
mostly in the form of Poetry. Manimekhalai is looked upon as the Tamil Od-
In the Sangham Age, the most common form of yssey.
government was hereditary monarchy. The vil- Thirukkural is known as Tamil Bible compiled
lage was the fundamental unit of administration. by Thiruvalluvar. His statue is seen near
Small village Assemblies during the Sangham Age Vivekanandappara in Kanyakumari.
were known as Arai. The greatest of the Chera rulers was
Tradition refers to three sangham lasting for 9,900 Senguttuvanchera also known as Red Chera.He
years. built a temple for Kannaki.
Language of the Sangham literature was Tamil The famous Chera port Muziris was a great cen-
People of the Sangham Age mainly worshiped tre of Indo-Roman Trade.
in
Murugan.
The largest single tax collected during the Sangha
it.
The greatest work of the Tamil literature of the period was the land tax called Karai.
Sangham Age is Tholkappium written by
Tholkappiyar. The founder of later Cholas was Rajaraja I The
nd
most important ruler of this dynasty was Rajendra
Tholkappium is considered as the earliest sur-
Chola.
viving Tamil literary work. It is a book on Tamil
pu
Jeevakachintamani are the three epics of The Utharameroor inscription tells about the lo-
Sangham literature. cal self government under the cholas.
Korkai was the main seaport of the Pandyas. Thirukkural of Thiruvalluvar is the Tamil work
Megastanese described Pandya Kingdom as which is known also as the fifth Veda.
Pearl as it was ruled by women.
Jivaka Chintamani the third epic of the Tamil was
Kaveripumpatnam was the main sea port of the written by Tirukkadevar.
Cholas.
Silappatigaram as written by Ilango Adikal. It FAMOUS ERAS
describes the love story of Kovalan and Kannaki Vikram Era ........................................ 58 BC
Nedujezhian is the Pandyan king mentioned in Saka Era .......................................... 78 AD
Silapadigaram. Gupta Era ...................................... 320 AD
Satanar wrote Manimekhalai which is also an Hijra Era ........................................ 622 AD
epic and tells about the story of the daughter of
Kannaki and Kovalan. Kollam Era ..................................... 825 AD
Manimekhalai gives reference about Buddhism. Illahi Era ....................................... 1583 AD
Page 16 of 191
Roman king built a temple of Augustus at Vasavadatta ...................................... Subandu
Muziris. Brihat Kathamanjari ................. Kshemendra
Kathasaritsagara ........................... Somadeva
Literary Activities in Ancient India
Panchathantra ......................... Vishnusharma
Ashtadhyayi by Panini (5th C.BC) the earliest
grammar book also called Bhagavati Sutra. Hitopadesha ........................... Narayan Pandit
Mahabhashya was written by Patanjali. Kamasutra and Arya Manjushree ..... Vatsyayana
Manusmriti was a law book composed between Pavandhoot .......................................... Dhoyi
200 BC and 200AD. Swapna Vasavadatta ............................. Bhasa
Arthashastra by Kautilya deals with statecrafts
Matavilasa Prahasana ....... Mahendravarman I
is a major source of Mauryan administration.
Indica by Megastenes is a source of Mauryan Si-yu-ki ..................................... Hiuen Tsang
society and administration. Fo-kuoki ........................................... Fa-hien
Chandsutra was written by Pingala. Panchasidhantika ........................ Varahamihir
Buddhacharita by Aswaghosha is the earliest
Suryasidhantika and Aryabhatiyam .... Aryabhatta
biography of Buddha. It was written in Pali lan-
in
guage. Nitisara ....................................... Kamandaka
Raghuvamsa by Kalidasa is an epic based on Charak Samhita ............................... Charaka
it.
Mahabharata. Hastayurveda ................................... Palkapya
Naishad Charita by Sri Harsha contains story of
Mitakshara ................................. Vigneswara
nd
Nala and Damayanti.
Dayabhaga ................................ Jimutavahana
Drama Sidhanta Siromani ................ Bhaskaracharya
pu
Page 17 of 191
Bimbisara was a contemporary of Buddha. Alexander died of Malaria at the age of 33 in 323
Magadha became a supreme power in North In- BC while he was in Babylon.
dia under Ajatasatru. So Ajatasatru is consid- Alexander was cremated at Alexandria.
ered as the founder of Magadhan Supremacy.
Alexander was known as Shehansha in Persia and
Pataliputra and Rajagriha were the capitals of Sikhandar-I-Asam in Indo-Pak region.
Magadhan kingdom.
The Last general of Alexander in India was
Magadha falls in the Patna region of Bihar.
Eudamas.
Haryankas were overthrown by Sisunaga and he
founded the Sisunaga dynasty there. Alexanders first General in India was Selucus
Nikator.
Kalasoka the son and successor of Sisunaga was
succeeded by Mahapadma Nanda and he Alexander IV succeeded Alexander as the
founded the Nanda dynasty. Masedonian King.
Ajatasatrus successor Udayin was the founder Alexanders teacher Aristotle is considered as the
of the city of Pataliputra. father of Politics, Biology, Taxonomy and the Sci-
ence of Logic.
Persian Invasion
in
Mauryan Empire (321-185 BC)
The Achaemenian king of Persia, Darius (522 -
it.
486 BC) captured some territories the east of Major sources for the study of Mauryan Empire
Sindhu in 518 BC. are the Arthasastra of Kautilya and Indika of
nd
The Persian domination over Indian territory Megasthenes.
lasted upto 330 BC. Chandragupta Maurya was the founder of
Xerxes was the persian ruler who enlisted Indi- Mauryan Empire.
pu
ans in his army. Details about his early life are not available
The Kharoshti script was brought to India by He is believed to have belonged to Moriya Clan,
am
Alexander was born in 356 BC as the son of King In some texts he is referred to as Vrishala and
Philip II of Mascedonia. Kulahina.
Epirus or Olympias was Alexanders mother. He conspired with Chanakya (Kautilya or
Aristotle was Alexanders teacher. Vishnugupta) the minister of Nanda to overthrew
the last Nanda ruler DhanaNanda.
He became the king in 336 BC
Chandragupta Maurya ascended the throne in
He defeated the Persian ruler Darius III. BC 321.
Alexander founded the city of Alexandria in He fought against Selucus in 305 BC. Selucus
Egypt surrendered before him and sent an ambassador,
In 326 BC Alexander defeated Porus Megasthenese to the court of Chandragupta
(Purushothama) the ruler of Punjab and Captured Maurya.
Taxila through the battle of Hydaspes on the Chandraguptas Governor Pushygupta con-
banks of river Jhelum. structed the famous Sudarshana lake.
Ambhi the ruler of Taxila invited Alexander to In- ChandraGupta Maurya was converted to Jainism,
dia. abdicated the throne in favour of his son
Bindusara, passed his last days at
Page 18 of 191
Sravanabelagola (Near Mysore) where he died in adopted from the four lion capital of one of
298 BC. Ashokas pillars which is located in Saranath.
Chandragupa Maurya was responsible for the po- Rock-cut architecture in India made a beginning
litical unification of North India for the first time. during Ashokas reign.
Bindusara was a follower of Ajivika sect. Brihadratha the last Mauryan ruler was killed by
Bindusara was known as Amitragatha. Pushyamitra Sunga who founded the Sunga Dy-
nasty in 185 BC.
Ashoka ascended the throne in 273BC and ruled
upto 232 BC. Megasthenese the first foreign traveller to India
mentions about the existence of seven castes in
He was known as Devanampriya priyadarsi the
India during the Mauryan period.
beautiful one who was the beloved of Gods.
Stanika in Mauryan administration refers to tax
Maski and Gujara Edicts of Ashoka gave the
collector.
name Devanampriya Priyadarsi.
Buddhist tradition says Ashoka killed 99 of his Post Mauryan Period
brothers to capture the throne.
Ashoka was the first king in Indian history who Sunga Dynasty (185-71 BC)
had left his records engraved on stones. Sunga Dynasty was founded by Pushyamitra
in
Ashokan inscriptions were written in Kharoshti Sunga the commander-in-chief of last Mauryan
and Brahmi scripts. king, Brihadratha.
it.
Ashoka fought the Kalinga war in 261 BC Kalinga Kalidasas drama Malavikagnimitram is about the
is in modern Orissa. love story of Pushyamitras son Agnimitra and
nd
Ashokan inscriptions were deciphered by James Malavika.
Princep. Last ling of sunga dynasty was Devabhuti.
After the battle of Kalinga Ashoka became a Bud-
pu
dhist, being shocked by the horrors of the war. Kanva Dynasty (72 BC - 27 BC)
Ashoka was initiated to Buddhism by Upagupta
Kanva dynasty was founded by Vasudeva Kanva
or Nigrodha a disciple of Buddha.
am
Page 19 of 191
Kalinga ruler gives details about the Chedis of Alauddin Khilji)
Kalinga. Indo-Greeks were the first to introduce military
Kharavela was a follower of Jainism. governorship in India.
in
dhist culture under the Satavahanas. The first Saka king in India was Maues or Moga
who established Saka power in Gandhara.
it.
The two common structures of Satavahanas were
the temple called Chaitya and the monastery called The most famous of the Saka rulers in Western
nd
Vihara. India was Rudra Daman I. His achievements are
Satavahanas mostly issued lead coins. highlighted in his Junagarh inscription written in
150 AD.
pu
The most famous Indo-Greek ruler was Menander Kushans are also known as Yuch-chis or
with his Capital at Sakala in Punjab (Modern Tocharians.
Sialkot) Kushans came to India from North Central Asia.
The Indo-Greeks were the first to issue gold coins First great Kushana king was Kujala Kadphises
in India. or Kadphises I.
The most famous
The introduction of Hellenistic art features into
Kushana ruler was
India were also the contribution of Indo-Greek rule.
Kanishka.
Menander was converted into a Buddhist by Bud- He became the ruler in 78
dhist monk Nagasena (Nagarjuna) AD and started Saka Era
Indo-Greeks were the first to issue coins bearing in 78 AD.
the figure of kings. The Capital of Kanishka
Demitrius, the king of Bacteria invaded India was Peshawar or Kanishka
about 190BC. He is considered as Second Purushapura.
Alexander (But the Indian ruler who accepted the Kanishka convened the fourth Buddhist council
name second Alexander (Sikandar-i-sani) was in Kashmir.
Page 20 of 191
Scholars like, Parsva, Vasumitra, Ashvaghosha, Sanskrit was the court language of the Guptas.
Charaka and Nagarjuna were the courtiers of India became Greater India under Samudra
Kanishka.
Gupta.
The Gandhara School of Art received royal pa-
Samudra Gupta was an accomplished Veena
tronage under the Kushans.
player.
Kanishka patronised Mahayana form of Bud-
dhism. Chandragupta II the greatest of Gupta rulers was
popularly known as Vikramaditya.
Kanishka is righty called the Second Ashoka
Kanishka was the first king who inscribed the
image of Lord Buddha on his coins. Historically Important Places
Kanishka started the Saka era in 78 AD. The first Ayodhya Birth place of Sri Rama (UP)
month of Saka era is Chaithra and the last month Amber Palace Rajasthan
is Phalguna.
Aghakhan Palace Pune (Maharashtra)
Vasudeva was the last great king of Kushana
(Gandhi and Kasturba were
Dynasty.
kept in prison here)
Kushana school of art is also referred to as the
Kedarnath Holy place of Hindus
in
Mathura school.
(Utharanchal)
it.
Gupta Empire (320 - 540 AD) Amarnath Pilgrim centre (Kashmir)
Elephanta caves Near Mumbai
nd
Gupta Empire was founded by Sri Gupta.
Ellora Caves Maharashtra - 34 cavetemples
Ghatotkacha was the second ruler. (Hindu, Buddha - Jaina)
Chandra Gupta I was the real founder of the Gupta Rajgir Jain Temple in Bihar
pu
Empire. He came to the throne in 320 AD. Golden Temple Amritsar - Harmandir Sahib of
He was the first ruler to adopt the title Sikhs
am
Page 21 of 191
He adopted the title Sakari after his victory over belonged to the Gupta period. Aryabhatta was
Rudradaman II of Gujarat. the first to use Decimal System.
Fa hein, the Chinese traveller, visited India dur- Panchsidhanta, Brihat Jataka, Laghu Jataka and
ing his period. Brihat Samhita are the works of Varahamihira.
The exploits of Chandragupta II are glorified in The best specimen of the Gupta paintings are seen
an iron pillar inscription fixed near Qutub Minar. at Ajanta caves and the Bhaga caves.
Chandragupta II adopted the title Vikramaditya The Gupta period marked the beginning of Indian
as a mark of his victory over the Sakakshatraps. temple architecture.
Nine gems or Navratnas was a famous Scho- Guptas issued large number of gold coins in In-
lastic Assembly in the court of Chandragupta II. dia.
The members in the Ninegems were - Kalidasa, Guptas largely patronised art and architecture.
Kadakarbhara, Kshapanaka, Varahmihira,
Guptas patronised the Gandhara school of art,
Vararuchi, Vethalabhatta, Dhanvantari,
Madhura School of Art and the Andhra School
Ammarasimha, Sanku.
of Art.
Chandragupta II was succeeded by his son
The Fresco paintings in the Ajanta caves are ex-
in
Kumaragupta I.
amples of the art of the Guptas.
Skandagupta Vikramaditya was the last great
it.
The chief source of income was land revenue.
ruler of Gupta Empire.
The position of women declined during the Gupta
Skandagupta Vikramaditya was the only hero in
nd
period.
Asia and Europe who defeated the Hunas in their
glorious period. A renowned physician of
the Gupta period was
pu
called Indian
Period of the Gupta is compared to Periclean Shakespeare and the Kalidasa
Age of Greece, Augustan Age of Rome and Prince of Indian Poets.
Elzabethan Age of England.
Period of the Guptas is considered as the Golden
Age in the history of India.
Books on Sciences
Chandra Vyakaran ............... Chandragomin
Earlier Guptas had their capital at Prayag in
Allahabad, later it was shifted to Ujjain by Amar Kosh .............................. Amar Singh
Chandragupta II. Niti Shastra ............................... Kamandak
The most important officers in the Gupta empire Kamasutra ................................ Vatsya yana
were Kumaramatyas. Panchasiddhantika ................ Varahamihira
The royal seal of the Guptas bore the emblem of Ashtanga Hridaya ...................... Vaghbhatta
Garuda.
Hastyaurveda ............................... Pulkapya
Aryabhatta was the first to treat Mathematics as
Sankhyakarika ...................... Iswarkrishna
a separate subject. He wrote Aryabhattiyam. He
Page 22 of 191
Patanjali founded Yoga Shastra, a school of He made Kanauj his new capital from Taneswar.
Hindu philosophy during this period. Original name of Harsha was Siladitya.
Chinese traveller Hieun Tsang visited India dur-
The Hunas ing his reign.
The Huns were a nomadic and barberic race of Harsha summoned a religious assembly at Prayag.
Central Asia. Hieun Tsang said Indians were Truthful people
They were defeated by Skanda Gupta. although quick tempered
In the last quarter of the 5th century AD, the Harshas biography Harsha Charita was writ-
Hunas established an independent kingdom in ten by his court poet Banabhatta. He also wrote
the Punjab. Kadambari.
Toramana and Mihirakula were important Huna Harsha Vardhana was a poet and dramatist.
leaders. Ratnavali, Priyadarshika and Nagananda are the
In 510 AD Bhanu Gupta defeated Toramana. works of Harshavardhana.
Narasimha Gupta defeated Mihirakula. Harsha Vardhana was defeated by the Chalukyan
The Hunas gave rise to the Kshatriya Rajaputs. king Pulikeshin II in AD 634.
in
Sialkot was Mihirakulas capital. Harshavardhanas empire was the last Buddhist
empire in India.
The Maitrakas of Valabhi
it.
After Harsha, the Karkotas of Kashmir established
nd
They were of Iranian origin, they ruled Gujarat. their power.
Valabhi was their Capital. Mahendravarman I and Pulikeshin II were the
contemporaries of Harshavardhana.
Siladitya I (606 - 612 AD) was the first indepen-
pu
Harsha Vardhana (606 - 647AD) Pulikeshin II was the most famous ruler of the
Chalukya dynasty.
The last Hindu Emperor of North India was The greatest achievement of Pulikeshin II was
Harshavardhana (Last Hindu king of Delhi was the defeat he inflicted on Harshavardhana.
Prithviraj Chauhan)
The Pallava king Narasimhavarman captured
Harshavardhana belonged to the Pushyabhuti Vatapi and adopted the title Vatapikonda.
Dynasty, also known as Vardhana Dynasty.
Pulikeshin II defated the Pallavas and captured
The Pushyabhuti dynasty was founded by Kanchi. He also defeated Cheras, Cholas and
Pushyabhuti. Pandyas.
Harsha came to power in 606 AD (Harsha Era) Kirtivarman, the last ruler of this dynasty was
defeated by the Rashtrakutas and the Chalukyan
Page 23 of 191
Rashtrakutas
Rashtrakuta dynasty was founded by
Dandidurga in 753 AD. With the capital at
Manyakhed or Malkhed.
Rashtrakuta ruler Amoghavarsha I wrote
Kavirajamarga which is the earliest Kannada
work on poetics. He also wrote Prasnottarmalika.
The Kailasanath Temple at Ellora was founded
by the Rashtrakuta ruler Krishna I.
Elephanta caves Krishna III (940 -968) was the last great ruler of
Rashtrakuta dynasty.
rule came to an end in 757 AD. The Rashtrakuta power was overthrown by Thiala
The magnificient temples of Belur and Halebid II.
and the Elephanta caves were constructed during
the Chalukyan period. Pratiharas
in
From the Chronological point of view Chalukyas The Pratiharas are also called Gurjara - Pratiharas
can be divided into four - belonging to the 36 clans of Rajputs.
it.
The Chalukyas of Vatapi (535 - 642 AD) The dynasty was founded by Nagabhatta I (725-
The later Chalukyas of Vatapi (655 - 753 AD) 740)
nd
The Eastern Chalukyas of Vengi (615 - 1076) Nagabhatta II made Kanauj his capital.
The Later Western Chalukyas of Kalyani (973- Pratihara ruler Mihir Bhoja adopted the title
Adivaraha.
pu
1190 AD)
Yashpal was the last ruler of this dynasty.
Pallavas Sulthan Muhammed of Ghazni entred Kanauj dur-
am
Pulikeshin II and adopted the title Vatapikonda. The Pala dynasty was founded by Gopala in 750 AD.
Narasimhavarman I was called Mahamalla which Famous Odandapuri University was founded by
meants a wrestler. Gopala.
The book Mattavilasa Prahasana was written by The Vikramsila and Sompur Universities were
Narashimvarman I. founded by the Pala king Dharmapala.
The Ratha temples at Mahabalipuram (Seven Pa- The Pala power was destroyed by Vijayasena who
godas) were created by Narasimhavarman I. founded the Sena dynasty.
Dandin the author of Dasakumaracharitam, lived
in the court of Narasimhavarman II. Senas
Narasimhavarman II was the most important ruler The Sena dynasty was founded by Vijayasena
of the Pallava dynasty. towards to end of 11th century. (1093)
He founded Kailasanatha Temple and the Shore
Senas had a capital in Vikrampura and another
Temple at Mahabalipuram.
in Vijayapura.
About the middle of 13th century the senas were
overthrown by the Deva dynasty.
Page 24 of 191
Jayadeva, the author of Gitagovinda was patron- Eminent Personalities of Ancient
ized by Sena ruler Lakshmana Sena.
India
Chauhans Alexander : he was the ruler of Macedonia in
The four Agnikula Rajputs were the Pratiharas, Greece. He attacked India in 326 BC and captured
Chau-hans the Solankis and Paramaras. upto river Bias.
Chauhans had their capital at Ajmer and Delhi. Ajatasatru : Son of Bimbisara. He established the
Ajayaraya established the city of Ajayameru or city of Pataliputra.
Ajmer. Arien : Greek historian who wrote about
The most prominent ruler was Prithviraj III (1177- Alexanders Indian invasion.
1192). He defeated Muhammed of Ghore in the Ashwaghosh : Buddhist monk who initiated
First Battle of Tarain (1191). But Ghore defeated Kaniskha to Buddhism wrote Buddha charita,
and killed him in the Second Battle of Tarain (1192). Sutralankar and Sandaranand.
Prithviraj Chauhan III was the last Hindu ruler AmarSimha : Sanskrit scholar in the court of
of Delhi.
Chandragupta who wrote Amarakosha.
Prithvi Raj Rao is the historical Kavya written by
in
Aryabhatta : He analysed the reasons for Solar
Chand Bardai.
and Lunar eclipses and declared that the Earth is
The Chandelas of Bundelkhand
it.
round. Wrote Aryabhattiyam.
Bimbisar : Founded the Magadhan Empire or
nd
The Chandela dynasty was founded by Haryanka dynasty. He was the first influential king
Yasovarman with Mahobas as the Capital of ancient India.
The Khajuraho temples are the best examples of
pu
Page 25 of 191
Dhanananda : He was a powerful king of Mihirkula : Huna conqueror defeated by
Magadha. Alexander did not go forward to in- Yashodharma.
vade Magadha only after hearing his reputation. Skand Gupt : Last mighty Gupta ruler.
Darius I : The ruler of Iran (Persia) who invaded Shushrut : He was a doctor of Ayurvedic medi-
India in 6th century BC. cine. He started the Dhanwantri branch and was
Gautami Putra Shatakarni : He was the most an expert in Plastic Surgery.
famous Satavahana king in 2nd Century. Pulikeshin II. Most powerful king of Chalukyas
Harisena : He was the writer of Pryaga Prashasti of Vatapi who defeated Harshavardhana in North
or Allahabad Pillar Inscription. and Mahendravarman of South.
Kharavel : Ruler of Kalinga in I century AD. The Pushya Mitra sunga : He killed the last Mauryan
Famous Hathigumbha inscription belonged to ruler and laid the foundation of Sunga dynasty in
him. 185 BC.
Kanishka : (I century AD) : Most powerful Pliny : He was a Roman historian who wrote the
Kushan king. Started Shaka Era. Organised fourth Natural History. He wrote about the Mauryas of
Buddhist council at Kundalvan near Kashmir. India.
in
Karikala : Chola ruler who founded the city of Panini : Sanskrit scholar specially of Grammar.
Puhar (Kaveri patanam) in I century BC. He wrote Ashtadyayi.
Kautilya : also known as Vishnugupta or
Chanakya. He wrote Arthasasthra, which is com-
it.
Varahamihira : He was famous astronomer who
wrote Brihat Samhita.
nd
pared to The prince of Machiavelli. Sankaracharya : He was born in Kaladi in Kerala.
Kalidas : Famous Sanskrit poet who wrote, He propagated Advaita Philosophy.
pu
Page 26 of 191
The word godhume used in the vedic period First town in the vedic period to use burned bricks
denote Kausambi
Wheat First reference about lending money for interest
Yava denoted can be found in
Barley Satpatha Brahmana
Term used to denote rice in the vedic text Rigvedic paintings have been discovered from
Vrihi Bhagvanpura. It is in which state
Vedic term sita denoted Hariyana
Ploughed field Upanishad which mentions about police system
Which veda mentions about wheel Brihadaranyaka Upanishads
Rigveda God who was considered as God of Gods
Vedi terms Urvara or kshetra denoted Varuna
Cultivated field Community which was considered as untouch-
ables by the Buddhists.
The famous frog hymn in Rig Veda throws light
in
to Chandalas
The language used by the Jains to spread their
it.
Vedic education
religion
Who was considered as the god of the vedas?
nd
Prakrit
Varuna
Who is considered as the St.John of Buddhism
Rigvedic term Duhitri denoted
Ananda
pu
Milker of cows
Who is considered as Devil by the Buddhists
Method used to calculate the number of cows in
the Vedic period Mara
am
Yajur Veda
Page 27 of 191
Saint who founded the Saivism The Arab conquest of Sindh was led by
Lakulisa Muhammed Bin Kassim.
Tamil kingdom of the Sangham Age which sent Muhammed Bin Khasim was the nephew of Al-
an ambassador to the court of Roman Emperor Hajaj, the governor of the Arab province of Basra.
Augusts Dahir, a Brahmin was the ruler of Punjab at that
Pandyas time. He was killed by Kassim.
First Sangham was founded by The Arabs lost control over Sindh in 779 AD.
Saint Agasthya Arab conquest of Sindh resulted in the spread of
Islam to North India.
Famous poetess of the Sangham period
But Islam was first introduced in India by Malik
Avvaiyar
Ibn Dinar in Kerala in 644 AD.
Greeco-Roman traders who visited South India
during the Sangham period were denoted with Turkish Invasions
the term
Ghazni in Afghanistan was ruled by a Turkish
Yavanas
family called Gamini of Ghaznavid dynasty.
in
Sangham work which describes about Buddhism
Muhammed Ghazni was the first Turkish con-
Manimekhalai
it.
queror of North India.
The word used by Ashoka to denote Buddha Muhammad Ghaznis father was Subu ktigin.
nd
Bhagavati He attacked India only for want of wealth.
Ashokan inscriptions were desciphered by James He attacked India seventeen times between 1000
prince in the year
pu
Page 28 of 191
Muhammed of Ghore attacked India betwen 1175 He was known as Lakh Baksh or giver of lakhs
and 1206 AD. or giver of favours for his magnanimity.
Muhammed Ghori made his first expedition to In- Hasan Nizami was a famous historian in the court
dia and captured multan in 1175 AD. of the Aibak.
In the First Battle Tarain in 1191 (near Taneswar) Qutub-ud-din Aibak started the construction of
Muhammed Ghori was defeated by the Rajput Qutub Minar in 1199 in Delhi in memory of the
forces under Prithviraj Chauhan III. Sufi saint Quaja Qutub - ud-din Bhaktiar Kaki.
In the Second Battle of Tarain (1192 AD) Its construction was completed by Ithumish. It is
Muhammed Ghori assisted by Qutub -ud-din a five storied building.
Aibek a slave, defeated Prithviraj Chauhan III and
Qutub-ud-din Aibak died 1210 by falling from
killed him.
horseback while playing Polo.
In 1193 Muhamed Ghori attacked Jaichand, fa-
ther in law of Prithviraj . III at Kanauj, Jaichand After the death of Qutubuddin, Aram Shah as-
was defeated. cended the throne but he was
deposed by Ilthumish and
Muhammed Ghori returned from India by intrust-
crowned himself the Sulthan.
in
ing his territories in India in the hands of Qutub-
Uddin Aibak. During the period of Ilthumish
it.
After the death of Ghori in 1206 Aibek founded (1210-1236) Chengizkhan, the
the Slave Dynasty. Mongole conqueror attacked
nd
India (1221). Chengizkhan
Muhammed Ghoris Indian invasion resulted in
the foundation of Islamic rule in India.
Important Court Scholars
pu
after the Turkish invasion were collectively known Alberuni ............................ Muhammed Ghazni
as Delhi sulthanate. They are:
Firdausi ............................. Muhammad Ghazni
Slave Dynasty ..................... 1206 - 1290
ex
Page 29 of 191
Ilthumish is considered as the real founder of The Chalisa or forty established by Ilthumish was
Delhi Sulthanate. abolished by Balban.
Ilthumish is considered as the real founder of His policies are considered to be Draconian.
Delhi Sulthanate He started the Iranian system of Sajda and Piabos.
Ilthumish was the first Sulthan of Delhi to get He was a patron of men of letters and showed
recognition of the Khalif of Bagdad. special favour to the poet Amir Khusrau.
Ilthumish was also the first Sulthan to make Delhi After Balbans death in 1286, Kayqubad (1287 -90)
his capital. became the Sulthan.
He issued a purely Arabic coinage of Silver and Madhavacharya of the Dwaita Philosophy got help
was the first to do so. from Balban.
Coins introdued by Ilthumish, Silver Thanka Balbans Tomb is situated in Delhi. It was con-
and Copper Jital were the two basic coins of structed by Balban himself.
the Sulthanate period. Kayqubad was the last Slave Sulthan. (Kayumars
He organised the Chalisa or the famous Turk- who ruled for a term of three months was actually
ish forty to help him in the administration. the last Slave Sulthan. He was killed by Jalaluddin
Iltumish completed the construction of Qutub Khilji) and founded the Khilji Dynasty.
in
Minar.
The revenue system of the Sulthanate Iqta sys- Khilji Dynasty (1290 -1320)
tem, was introduced by Ilthumish.
Ilthumish was succeeded by his son Ruknuddin
it.
Khilji dynasty was founded by Malik Firoz in
nd
1290 and assumed the title Jalaluddin Khilji (1290-
Firoz Shah. But he was later executed and Razia 96)
became the sulthan (daughter of Ilthumish)
In 1292 the Mongols under Abdulla accepted de-
pu
Sulthana Raziya, the only women ruler of, the feat from Jalaluddin Khilji.
Sultanate came to power in 1236 and reigned till
Alauddin Khilji, the nephew
1240.
of Jalaluddin Khilji, killed him
am
Sulthana Raizya rejected the Pardah, she adorned after his victory on Devagiri
the male dress and held open courts. in 1296.
In October 14, 1240 both Razia and Altunia who Alauddin Khiljis early name
ex
earlier raised arms against Razia but later joined was Ali Gurushap.
with her were, beheaded at Kaithal.
He became the Sulthan in
After Raizya Behran Shah (1240 - 42) Allaud-din- 1296 AD and ruled till 1316
Masudshah (1242 - 46) and Naziruddin AD. Alauddin Khilji
Muhammad (1246 - 1266) ruled and Balban, the
In 1303 Alauddin Khilji attacked Chittor, the capi-
founder of the second Ilban dynasty, became the
tal of Mewar, to marry Padmini the wife of Chittor
Sulthan.
king Ratna Singh.
Ghiasuddin Balban a slave water carreer, hunts-
But Padmini and other Rajput women committed
man, noble, statesman became the Sulthan of Delhi
Juhar (Juhar is a mass suicide by Jumping into
in 1266 and continued in power till 1686 AD.
fire, committed by Rajput women to escape from
Balban is considered as the founder of Second being polluted by others)
Ilbary Dynasty.
Padmavat is a historical kavya about Padmini epi-
Balban described himself as shadow of God or sode written by Malik Muhammed Jayasi.
the viceregent of God on Earth (Zil-i-illahi)
Malik Muhammed Jayasi was the court poet of
Balban because of his autocratic rule is consid- Shersha Suri.
ered as a typical oriental despot.
Alauddin Khilji was the first Muslim ruler to at-
Page 30 of 191
tack South India. Khilji dynasty came to an end when the Mubarak
Malik Kafur was Alauddin Khiljis Commander shah Khilji was killed by Khusrau Khan.
who attacked South India. Some historians consider Khusrau Khan as the
Alauddin Khilji was the most famous ruler of the last Khilji Sulthan.
Khilji Dynasty.
Alauddin was the Sulthan of Delhi who banned Tughlaq Dynasty (1320 - 1412)
the use of liquor. Tughlaq Dynasty was founded by Ghiazuddin
Alauddin had a dream of a World Conquest so he Tughlaq. His real name was Ghazi Malik.
assumed the title Sikhandar-i-sani or Second Ghiasuddin Tughlaq founded the dynasty after
Alexander.
killing Khuzru Khan in 1320.
Demitrius a Bactrian ruler is popularly known as
Second Alexander.
IMPORTANT DYNASTIES
Alauddin abolished the Zamindari System and IN INDIAN HISTOY
imposed tax on cattle.
MAURYANEMPIRE .............. 322 BC - 185 BC
He was the first muslim ruler of Delhi to introduce Chandragupta Maurya ........... BC 322 - 297 BC
measurement of land for tax assessment. Bindusara .............................. 297 BC - 274 BC
in
His market regulations were to get goods at con- Ashoka ................................. 274 BC - 237 BC
trolled price to the people of Delhi. KUSHANAEMPIRE .............. 20 AD - 225 AD
Alauddin Khilji was the first Sulthan of Delhi who
separated religion from politics. it.
Kanishka ............................... 78 AD - 120 AD
nd
Gupta Empire ........................ 320 AD - 606 AD
He was also the first to proclaim I am the Chandragupta I .................... 320 AD - 330 AD
Khalifa. Samudra Gupta ..................... 330 AD - 380 AD
pu
Alauddin constructed Alai Darwaza the gate way Chandra Gupta II .................. 380 AD - 413 AD
of Qutub Minar. VARDHANA DYNASTY ...... 580 AD - 647 AD
He built the city of Siri, the second of the seven Harsha Vardhana .................. 606 AD - 647 AD
am
cities of Delhi, near Qutub Minar. SLAVE DYNASTY ........... 1206 AD - 1290 AD
The first marriage between a muslim ruler and a Qutubuddin Aibak .................. 1206 - 1210 AD
Hindu princess was between Alauddin and Ka- Ilthumish ................................ 1210 - 1236 AD
ex
mala Devi, the widow of the ruler of Gujarat. Raziya Sulthana ...................... 1236 - 1240 AD
Alauddin Khilji was killed by his commander Balban .................................... 1266 - 1286 AD
Malik Kafur by poisoning. KHILJI DYNASTY ................ 1290 - 1320 AD
Amir Khusru was the court poet of Alauddin Alauddin Khilji ....................... 1296 - 1316 AD
Amir Khusru is known as the Parrot of India TUGHLAQ DYNASTY .......... 1320 - 1412 AD
Muhammed Bin Tughlaq ......... 1325 - 1351 AD
He is considered as the father of Urdu language
and the inventor of Sitar. LODHI DYNASTY ................ 1451 - 1526 AD
Ibrahim Lodi ............................ 1517 -1526 AD
Laila Majnu and Tughlaq Nama are the famous
MUGHAL EMPIRE ...... 1526 - 1540, 1555-1857
works of Amir Khusru.
Babar ..................................... 1526 - 1530 AD
Alauddin khilji was the first Sulthan to maintain a
Humayun ................. 1530-1540, 1555-1556 AD
permanent standing army.
Akbar ..................................... 1556 - 1605 AD
Alauddin Khilji was responsible for the introduc- Jahangir ................................. 1605 - 1627 AD
tion of postal system in medieval India.
Shahjahan ................................ 1628-1658 AD
Mubarak shah khilji was the last ruler of the Aurangazeb ............................ 1658 - 1707 AD
khilji Dynasty. Bahadurshah II ....................... 1837 - 1857 AD
Page 31 of 191
Ghiazuddin died by the collapse of a pavilion. the Lame or Tamerlain a Turkish conqueror of
He built the Tughlaqabad Fort in Delhi the third Tartar tribe from Samarkhand attacked India in
city of Delhi to the east of Qutub complex. 1398.
Ghiassudhin Tughlaq was the first Sulthan to start Timur appointed Khizr Khan, the governor of
irrigation works. Multan his authority in India.
GhiassuddinTughlaq was succeeded by his son
Sayyid Dynasty (1414 - 1451)
Jauna Khan, popularly known as Muhammed Bin
Tughlaq. Sayyid Dynasty was founded by Khizr Khan in
Muhammed Bin Tughlaq is considered as the 1414.
single most responsible person for the decline of Last Sayyid Sulthan was Alauddin Alamshah or
Delhi Sulthanate. Shah Alam I. He was killed by Bahalol Lodhi in
Muhammed Bin Tughlaq was known as a mix- 1451.
ture of opposites, wisest fool, Pagal padushah,
unfortunate idealogue and the predecessor of
Lodhi Dynasty (1451-1526)
Akbar in intellectual and religious matters. Lodhi dynasty was founded by Bahlol Lodhi in
in
Ibn Batuta called him an illstared idealist. 1451. The dynasty lasted upto 1526.
He shifted his capital from Delhi to Devagiri Lodhi dynasty was the first Afghan dynasty or
(Daulatabad) in 1327.
it.
first Pathan dynasty in India.
Sikhandar Lodhi, who ruled from 1489 to 1517
nd
In 1330 he introduced token currency of bronze
shifted the capital from Delhi to Agra.
and copper.
Sikhandar Lodhi is considered as the Maker of
Moroccan Traveller Ibn Batuta visited India dur-
pu
Agra City.
ing his period. Last Lodhi Sulthan or last Delhi Sulthan was
Edward Thanas described him as prince of Ibrahim Lodhi. Rana Sangram Singh of Mewar
am
Firoz Shah Tughlaq was the first Sulthan of Delhi of Panipat in 1526 April 21.
to impose Jaziya. It was a religious tax for the The title Sulthan was started by the Turkish rul-
freedom of worship. He imposed it only upon Brah- ers. Muhammed Ghazni was the first to assume
mins. the title Sulthan.
He built the city of Firozbad in Delhi. The Firoz The official language of the Delhi Sulthanate was
shah Kotla was also built by him. The gate way of Persian.
Firozshah Kottla is Khooni Darwaza, or blood
stained gate. It was constructed by Shersha Suri. Bahmani and Vijayanagara Kingdoms
He transplanted two Ashokan Pillars to Firozabad. The decline of the Sulthanate of Delhi gave birth
to two mighty states in South India the Bahmani
He is the author of Fatuhat -i- Firozshahi
Kingdom of Gulbaraga and the Vijayanagara Em-
After Firozshah Tughlaq Muhammed Shah pire.
Tughlaq or Naziruddin Muhammed came to the The Bahmanis were Muslim rulers, while the rul-
throne. ers of the Vijayanagar were Hindus.
It was during the period of his reign that Timur The Bahmani kingdom was founded by Zafar
Khan (Hassan) who took the title of Alauddin
Page 32 of 191
Bahman Shah. He selected Gulbaraga as its capi- He wrote Ushaparinayam and Amuktamalyada
tal and renamed it Ahsanabad. Allasani Peddanna, a Telugu poet was a courtier
There were total eighteen Sulthans and they ruled of Krishna Deva Raya. He is considered as the
from 1347 to 1527.
Andra Kavita Pitamaha the Grand Father of
Muhammed Gawan was the famous minister of Telugu poetry.
Bahmini kingdom.
The last prince of the Bahmani Kingdom was Ashtadiggajas was the famous Scholastic As-
Kalimullah. sembly in the court of Krishna Deva Raya.
By 1527, the Bahmani kingdom was split up into Vijayanagar Empire was visited by many foreign
five independent principalities. travellers.
The Adil Shahis of Bijapur -founder - Yusuf Nicolo Conti - Venitian traveller, visited during
Adilshah (1489 - 90) the reign of Devaraya I.
The Nizam Shahis of Ahamadnagar - founder -
Abdur Razzak : Ambassador of Sulthan
Malik Ahmad (1499)
ShahRukh to the court of Devaraya II.
The Imadshahis of Berar - founder -Fateh Ulla
Imadshanti (1490) Damingos Paes : He visited Krishna Devarayas
The Qutubshahi kingdom of Golconda - founder court.
in
- Qutabshah (1512) Ferona Nuniz : A Portuguese who visited during
The Baridshahis of Bidar - founder - Amir Ali Achyuta Rayas reign.
Barid (1527).
it.
Durate Barbosa : A portuguese who visited
nd
Krishnadeva Rayas court.
Vijaya Nagara Empire Athenasius Nikitin (1415) : He was a Russian,
The founders of Vijaya Nagar Empire were who visited during Deva Raya Is period He wrote,
pu
They founded the dynasty in 1336 with the capi- The Mughals were originally Turks.
tal as Vijaya Nagara on the banks of Tungbhadra They belonged to the Chaghtai branch of the
river witht the help of Saint Vidyaranya.
ex
Turkish race.
Vijayanagara kingdom lasted for 230 years and Period of the Mughal empire is known as Second
produced four dynasties. Classical Age. First Classical Age is the period
Sangama (1336 - 1485) Guptas.
Saluva - (1485 - 1505) Mughal Empire is also known as Timurid Empire
Tuluva (1505 - 1565) and because of its relation to Amir Timur.
Aravidu (1565 - 1672) Mughal Emperors are 20 in number. They ruled
Krishna Deva Raya (1509 - India from 1526 to 1857. Only six are considered
1529) belonged to the great They are:
Tuluva dynasty. The Ital- Zahiruddin Muhammed Babur (1526 - 1530)
ian traveller Nicolocont Naziruddin Mirza Muhammed Humayun (1530 -
visited his court. 40 & 1555 - 1556)
Krishnadeva Rayar is Jalaluddin Muhammed Akbar - (1556 - 1605)
known as Andhra Bhoja Nuruddin Muhammed Jahangir (1605 - 1627)
Krishnadeva Rayar
Page 33 of 191
Shahabuddin Muhammed Shah Jahan (1628 - Babur said I dont like India and Indians.
1658) Babur was the first Mughal ruler to keep in hand
Muhiyuddin Muhammed Aurangazeb Alamgir the Kohinur Diamond.
(1658 - 1707) Babur was a contemporary of Krishnadeva Raya
of Vijaya Nagara Empire.
Babur
Babur, the founder of the Mughal Empire, was Humayun
the fifth descendant of Timur Humayun was born in 1507 in Kabul as the son of
on Fathers side and the four- Babur and Mahim Sulthana.
teenth descendant of
He became the Mughal Em-
Chengizkhan on mothers side.
peror on 29 December 1530 at
Babur was born in Farghana in the age of 23.
Turkey on 14 Feb. 1483 as the
He divided the empire among
som of Umer Sheik Mirza ad Babur
Qulik Nigarkhanum. his brothers - Askari, Hindal
and Kamran.
Baburs father Umershiek Mirza was the grand
in
son of Amir Timur and the ruler of Farghana. The word Humayun means Humayun
fortunate But Human is con-
it.
Babur became the ruler of Samarkhand at the Age
of 11. sidered as the most unfortunate Mughal ruler.
nd
He captured Kabul in 1504. Human was an accomplished mathematician and
Then Babur attacked India 5 times for want of astronomer.
wealth. In 1539 by the Battle of Chausa, Humayun was
pu
Baburs first Attack of India was in 1519 Bhera defeated for the first time by Shershah Suri.
was the first place captured by Babur. In the next year (1540) Shershah completely de-
am
In 1524 Daulatkhan, Ibrahim Lodhis brother in- feated Humayun in the battle of Kanauj and
vited Babur to India. founded the Sur dynasty.
On 21 April 1526 Babur defeated Ibrahim Lodhi, After the lapse of 15 years Humayun re-captured
the last Lodhi Sulthan in the First Battle of the Empire by defeating the last Sur ruler
ex
Page 34 of 191
In 1533 Humayun built the city of Dinpana (world In 1575 Akbar constructed a prayer house in
refuge) in Delhi. Fathepur Sikri known as Ibadatkhana.
Humayuns tomb is situated in Delhi (first build- In 1579 he issued the Infallibility Decree by which
ing in India having double domes) he made himself the supreme head in religious
matters.
Humayun tomb is known as predecessor of
Tajmahal, because Taj was modelled after this, In 1580 the first Jesuit missionaries arrived at the
also known as a dormitory of the house of Timur. court of Akbar.
Mirak Mirza Ghias is its architect. In 1585 Ralph Fitch the first English man to reach
India, reached Akbars court.
Akbar the Great Ralph Fitch is known as pioneer English man or
torch bearer Englishman.
Father - Humayun
In 1582 Akbar founded a new religion for univer-
Mother - Hamida Bhanu Begum sal peace and monotheism known as Din Ilahi
Step mother - Magam Anaga means Divine Faith.
Guardian - Bairam Khan In 1583 he started a new Calendar called Ilahi
First Guardian - Munim Khan Calendar.
in
Akbar was born at Amarkot in In 1576 Akbar defeated Maharana Pratap of
Akbar
Mewar in the battle of Haldighat. Haldighat is a
it.
Sindh in 23 Nov. 1542.
mountain pass in the Aravally hills in Rajasthan.
He came to the throne on February 14, 1556 at the
nd
age of 14 at Kalanur. The Portuguese introduced tobacco for the first
time in India in the court of Akbar in 1604.
Hemu the Hindu Prime Minister of Muhammed
Adilshah of Bihar occupied Agra and accepted Akbar was the Mughal Emperor when the En-
pu
the title Maharaja Vikramaditya. glish East India Company was being founded in
Akbar killed Hemu in the Second Battle of Paniput 1600 December 31.
am
Later he married Bairam Khans widow Salima tron of men of eminence. He maintained a Scho-
Begum. lastic Assembly in his court. They included the
In 1561 he defeated the musician Sulthan of following personalities.
Malwa - Baz Bahadur. Abul Fazal : Akbars court historian who wrote
In 1562 Akbar married Joda Bhai, the daughter of Akbars biographical works Ain-i-Akbari and
Raja Bharmal of Amber Akbar Namah..
In 1564, he abolished the religious tax Jaziya. Abul Faizi : Persian poet and brother of Abul
Jaziya was impossed for the first time by Firozshah Fazal. He translated Mahabharata into Persian in
Tughlaq. name Razam Namah and Bhaskaracharyas
In 1572 he captured Gujarat and in memory of that mathematical work Leelavati into Persian.
he built a new capital city Fathepur sikri (city of Mian Tansen : His original name was Ram Thanu
Victory) near Agra. Pande. He was the court Musician of Akbar. He
The early name of Fathepur Sikri was city of Sikri. composed a Raga, Rajdarbari in honour of Akbar.
Buland Darwaza is the gate way of Fathepur Sikri, Birbal : His real name was Mahesh Das. He is the
built by Akbar. court jester of Akbar.
Page 35 of 191
Raja Todarmal : RajaTodarmal was Akbars fi- In 1609, Jahangir received William Hawkins, an
nance or revenue minister. He formulated Akbars envoy of King James I of England, who reached
revenue system Zabti and Dashala systems. Raja India to obtain trade concession.
Todermal also translated Bhagavatapurana into
In 1615 Sir Thomas Roe reached the court of
Persian.
Jahangir as the first ambassador of James I of
Maharaja Mansing : Akbars military commander. England in the court of Jahangir. As a result of
Badauni : a historian who translated Ramayana his efforts first English factory was established
into Persian - Tarjuma -1-Ramayan. at Surat in Gujarat.
Tulasidas : Hindi poet who Period of Jahangir is considered as the Golden
wrote Ramacharitamanas.
Age of Mughal Painting. Jahangir himself was a
Akbars military system was painter. Ustad Mansur and Abul Hassan were fa-
known as Mansabdari system, mous painters in the court of Jahangir.
which included Ranks from 10
- 7000 Jahangir built Shalimar and Nishant Gardens in
Srinagar.
Akbar was also responsible
for the introduction Persian as Jahangir suspended a chain of Justice known as
Tulasidas
in
the official language of Zndiri Adal infront of his court.
Mughals. Anarkali was Jahangairs lover. Mughal-i-Asam
He divided the Mughal Empire into 12 Subahs
(provinces) for the administrative conveniences.
it.
directed by K. Asif is a famous film which tells
the love story of Jahangir and Anarkali.
nd
Akbar was also the first ruler to organise Hajj. Jahangir wrote his autobiography Tuzukh -i-
Pilgrimage at the government expense. The Port Jahangiri in Persian language.
Cambay in Gujarat is known as the Gate way to
pu
Mecca from Mughal India. Jahangir died in 1627 and was cremated at
Shahdhara in Lahore.
Akbar was an accomplished Sitar player.
am
Page 36 of 191
situated on the banks of Yamuna river in Uttar The famous Peacock Throne was built by Shah
Pradesh. Utad Iza a Turkish/ Persian was its ar- Jahan. It was abducted from here by Nadirsha in
chitect. British administrator Furgurson called it 1739 during his Indian invasion (Persian con-
a love in marble. Now Sulphur Dioxide, emitted queror). Now it is kept at the London Tower Mu-
by oil refinaries in Madhura after mixing with mois- seum, Britain.
ture in the atmosphere forms Sulphuric Acid and French travellers Bernier and Tavernier and Ital-
damages the marble of Tajmahal. ian traveller Manucci visited India during
In 1638 Shah Jahan built his new capital Shah ShahJahans period.
Jahanabad in Delhi and shifted the capital from
Agra to there. Aurangazeb
In 1639 he started the construction of Red fort in Aurangazeb imprisoned his father and made him-
Delhi on the model of Agrafort built by Akbar. Its self the Padushah in 1658. But his actual corona-
construction was completed in 1648. The Diwan- tion was conducted in 1659.
i-Am, Diwan-i-Khas and the Moti Masjid are situ- Alamgir was the name
ated inside the Red fort. The Mothi Masjid in adopted by Aurangazeb when
Agra was constructed by ShahJahan.
in
he became the Padusha.
The INA Trial in 1945 was conducted at the Red Aurangazeb is known as
Fort.
The Gateway of Redfort is the Lahore Gate. It is
it.
Zinda Pir or living saint be-
cause of his simple life.
nd
here at the Lahore Gate that the Prime Minister of
He banned music and dance. Aurangazeb
India hoists the National Flag and addresses the
He ousted all the artists from
nation on the independence day.
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Page 37 of 191
The Mughal Rajput relation became worse dur- His father was Hassan Khan
ing the period of Aurangazeb. His family came to India from Afghanistan.
Aurangazeb was the only Mughal Emperor who
He entered the service of Baharkhan Lohani of
was not a drunkard.
Behar from whom received the title of Sherkhan,
Aurangazeb is considered as religiously fanatic. for killing a lion single handed.
He was also a temple breaker. He persecuted the
Hindus and imposed prohibition against the free Later he became a member of the Mughal court of
exercise of Holi and Divali. Babur.
Aurangazeb died in 1707 February 20,at In 1539 by the battle of Chausa, Sherkhan de-
Ahmednagar. Aurangazebs tomb is situated at feated Humayun for the first time and assumed
Daulatabad in Maharashtra. the name Shershah.
Later in 1540 he completely defeated Humayun in
Later Mughals in the battle of Kanauj and founded the Sur dy-
Bahadurshah I came to the throne after the death nasty.
of Aurangazeb. His real name was Muassam. While directing the operations of his artillery at
In 1739 Nadirshah Quli the Persian conqueror Kalanjar against the ruler of Bundelkhand Raja
in
attacked India during the period of the Mughal Kirat Singh, Shershah was seriously wounded by
Emperor Muhammed Shah or Rustan Khan a sudden fire from his own artillery and died on
(1719-1748) and took away ShahJahans famous
Peacock Throne and Kohinoor Diamond. it.
May 22, 1545.
Shershah constructed the Grand Trunk Road from
nd
Ahmedshahs (1748 -1754) period saw the mighty Sohargaon to Attock (Calcutta to Amritsar)
invasion of Ahmed Shah Abdali of Afghanistan. He introduced the National Highway concept for
pu
Akbar Shah II (1806 - 1837) conferred the title the first time in India.
Raja upon Ram Mohan Roy. Now the Grand Trunk Road is known as Shershah
Suri Marg. Its part from Delhi to Amritsar is
am
Emperor of India by the Muti- (one rupiya was equal to 64 dams) and gold coin
neers. He was surrendered to Ashrafi.
LtW.S.R. Hodson at Humayuns
Bahadurshah II He built the Purana Qila in Delhi (its Construc-
Tomb in Delhi. In 1859 he was
tion was started by Humayun) and his own
deported to Rangoon in December where he ex-
Mousoleum (Tomb) at Sasaram in Bihar.
pired on Nov. 7, 1862. The Tomb of Bahadurshah
II is in Pwin Manah, the capital of Myanmar. He also constructed the Khooni Darwaza (blood
stained gate) the gate way of Firozshah Kotla in
Bahadurshah II was also a famous Urdu Poet.
Delhi.
Bahadurshah II was also known as Bahadurshah
Hindi poet Malik Muhammed Jayasi completed
Zafar Zafar means gifted poet.
his Padmavat, during his reign.
Shershah Suri His Revenue system was excellent and hence
Akbars administrative reforms were modelled af-
Shershahs original name was Farid. ter him. He is regarded as the forerunner of Akbar.
He was born in Hissar Firosa. Shershah was succeeded by his son Islam Shah.
Page 38 of 191
The last Sur ruler was Sikkandar Shah Sur. Who Balaji Vishwanath (1712 - 1720) Baji Rao (1720 -
was defeated by Humayun in 1555 by the battle 40) Balaji BajiRao I (1740 - 61) and Madhav Rao I
of Sirhindh. (1761 - 1772) were the Peshwas who ruled
Maharashtra.
The Marathas Baji Rao popularised the idea of Hindu
Padpadshahi or Hindu Empire.
The first great leader of the Marathas was Balaji Baji Raos period witnessed the Third Battle
Chatrapathi Shivaji. of Panipat in 1761. In this battle Ahmed Shah
The Marathas became prominent in the later half Abdali of Afghanistan defeated the Marathas.
of the 17th century. Madhava Rao was the last great Peshwa.
Shivaji belonged to the Bhonsle clan of the Last Peshwa was Baji Rao II.
Marathas. Madhava Raos period witnessed the disintegra-
Shaji Bhonsle and Jiga Bai were the Parents of tion of the Maratha power and the formation of in-
dependent kingdoms - Holkarofindor, Bhonsle of
Shivaji.
Nagpur, Sindhya of Gwalior and Gaekwad of Baroda.
He was born in 1627 February Shivajis Council of Ministers was known as
19 at the fort of Shivner near Ashtapradhan. They were Peshwa, Pandit Rao,
in
Junnar. Sumant, Sachiva, Senapathi, Amatya, Mantri and
His father was a military com- Nyayadhyaksha.
mander under the Nizam Shahi
rulers of Ahmedanagar and
it.
Peshwa was the Maratha Chief Minister.
Chaudh and Sardesh Mukhi were two special laxes
nd
Shivaji
later of Bijapur. collected by the Marathas.
Shivajis tutor was Dadaji Kondadev. The first Maratha war (1775 -82) Swai Madhav
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Page 39 of 191
GuruNanak was born in 1469 and died in 1538. Kartarpur Dabir is the root form of Guru Grandh
He was the first Guru of the Sikhs. Sahib.
Nanak preached only in Punjabi. Govind Singh proclaimed the Grandh Sahib as
Nanak nominated Guru Angad as his successor. the eternal Guru.
Guru Angad introduced Gurumukhi Script. He Renjith Singh (1780 - 1836)
also compiled Guru Nanaks biography Janam
Sakis. Renjith Singh became the ruler of Punjab in 1799.
Langar or free community dining was also intro- He assumed the title Maharaja
duced by Guru Angad. in 1801.
Third Sikh Guru was Amar Das. He started the The 1809 the British and Renjith
Manji system ie, branches for the propagation of Singh made the Treaty of
Sikhs. He made Guruship hereditory. Amritsar during the period of
Guru Ramdas was the fourth Sikh Guru. He Lord Minto
founded the city of Amritsar. The place for the In 1809 Shah Shuja the grand- Renjith Singh
city was donated by Akbar. son of Ahmedshah Abdali pre-
Under the fifth Sikh Guru, Guru Arjun Dev, sented the Kohinoor diamond to Ranjith Singh.
in
Sikhism became an organised religion. He com-
Later Punjab was annexed to the British territo-
piled the Adi Grandh the sacred book of the
it.
ries by Lord Dalhousie in 1849. Sir John Lawrence
Sikhs. He built a temple at Amritsar , (later the
became the first Chief Commissioner of Punjab.
Golden Temple) Har Mandir Sahib. He helped
nd
Jahangirs son Prince Khusru to rebel against the The Sikhs fought two wars against the English
Emperor So he was executed by Jahangir at Lahore First Anglo-Sikh War (1845- 1846) and the Sec-
in 1606 AD. ond Anglo-Sikh war (1848 - 1849)
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Page 40 of 191
The leader of Bhakti movement or Hindu revival- Sufism declined in the 17th Century.
ism was Sankaracharya. His philosophy was
Advaita or pure monism. He wrote Commentary Famous Personalities in Medieval
on Brahmasutra and Upanishad. He founded four
matts- Sringeri, Dwaraka, Puri and Badrinath.
India
Vallabhacharya promoted the philosophy of Al Masudi - An Arabian traveller who came to
Pushtimarga. He was the founder of Sudhadvaita. India in 10th century AD.
The North India the Bakti movement was pro- Al Beruni - He came to India with Muhammed
moted by two sects of thought - the Saguna and Ghazni, his book, Tahrik-ul-Hindh.
Nirguna schools.
Abbas Khan Shervani : He was a historian of
Ramanand, born at Prayag preached
Vaishnavaism. He was a followers of Ramanuja. Shershahs time. He wrote Tarikh-1-Shershahi.
Kabir (1398 -1458) a nirguna was born near Abul Fazal : He was a a great scholar poet Histo-
Benaras. His followers started the Kabirpanthis. rian in the court of Akbar. He wrote Akbarnamah
Tulasi Dasa (1532 - 1623) a worshipper of Rama and Ain-i- Akbari.
compossed Ramcharithamanasa in Hindi. His Bhaktiyar Khilji : Commander of Muhammed
in
other works are Kavitavali and Gitavali. Ghori who conquered Bengal and crushed the
Mirabai (1498 - 1509) a Rajaput princess hailed Sena dynasty.
it.
from the Sisodiya dynasty of Chittoor was a devo-
tee of Lord Krishna. Her lyrics were written in Bhar Mal : He was the Rajput ruler of Amber. His
daughter Jodabai was married to Akbar. Akbars
nd
Brijbhasha and in Rajasthani.
Jnanadeva, Namadeva, Eknatha Tukaram and commanders Bhangavandas and Mansingh were
Samarth Ram Das were the leading Maratha his son and grandson respectively.
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poems.
Tukaram a contemporary of Shivaji was the pro- Bairam Khan : He helped Akbar to defeat Hemu.
moter of Maratha nationalism. Firadusi : famous poet in the court of Muhammed
Samarth Ramdas, the spiritual guide of Shivaji, Ghazni He wrote Shah Namah (The book of kings).
wrote Dasabhodha. He is known as Indian Homer or Persian Homer.
Ibn Batuta : He was an African (Morocco) who
Sufism
visited the court of Muhammed bin Tughlaq and
Mythical movement of the Muslims was known wrote the book Rihala.
as Suficism.
Hasan Gangu - founder of Bahmani dynasty un-
Sufi movement first came to India in the wake of der the name Alauddin Bahamanshah.
Muhammed Ghaznis invasion in the 11th cen-
Jai Chandra - He was the ruler of Kanauj, be-
tury.
longed to the Gahawala dynasty. He was defeated
Sufi orders are called Silsilahs.
in 1194 by Muhammed Ghori in the battle of
Chishti Silsilah was founded by Khawaja Chandwar.
Moinuddin Chishti of Ajmir.
Page 41 of 191
Khawaja Moinuddin Chisti : He was a sufi saint Albuquerque.
of 12th century who started the Chishtia sect at Vasco-da-Gama arrived for the second time in 1502
Ajmir. and for the third chance in 1524. He died at Fort
Cochin and was cremated at the St. Frnacis
Islam Shah : Second Sur ruler, son of Shersha He Church there. Later his remains were brought back
codified the law and introduced an impartial sys- to Portugal.
tem of Justice. Don Francisco deAlmedia was the first Portu-
Lalitaditya of Karkota dynasty : He ruled over guese governor in the East. His policy was called
Kashmir from 724 to 760. The famous Martand the bluewater policy which aimed at the
establishement of strong navy.
Mandir temple was built by him.
In 1507 the Portuguese arrived at Madras. The
Malik Kafur : He was an army commander of city finally got its name from their leader Madra.
Alauddin Khilji - who conquered south India for The greatest Portuguese governor to the East was
him. He was converted to Islam from Hinduism. Albuquerque. He was the real founder of the Por-
Muhamed Gawan : He was a minister to the tuguese authority in India.
Bahmani rulers. Albuquerque tried to abolish Sati.
His policy mixed colony system was to encour-
in
Malik Amber : He was a Syrian slave who could age intermarriage between the Portuguese and
became the Prime Minister of Ahmed Nagar. He Indians.
it.
administered the State very well fought against They Portuguese religious policy was
the Mughals and Marathas. Lantinisation of Kerala.
nd
Mirza Ghias Beg : He was the father of Nur Jahan The conflict for the establishment of Latin rite
and received the title Etmatuddaula. His tomb is and syrian rite led to the Coonan Cross Oath in-
cident in 1653.
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in Agra.
The Portuguese introduced agricultural products
Murshid Quli Khan : He was an independent such a cashew, coconut, custardapple, pineapple
ruler of Bengal, who founded the city of etc in India.
am
1595.
The Portuguese started the first press in India at
MODERN INDIA
Goa in 1556.
The first Portuguese fort in India was constructed
at Cochin.
Advent of the Europeans Portuguese captured Goa from the Bijapur Sulthan
A new Sea route to India via Cape of Good Hope in 1510.
(Southern tip of South Africa) by Vasco da Gama
in 1498 AD marked the beginning of European The Dutch
period in Indian History.
In 20 March 1602 the United East India Company
He first arrived at Kapad near Kozhikode in Kerala.
of the Netherlands was formed. The Name of the
Saint Gabriel was the name of the ship in which
Dutch Company was Vereenidge Oostindische
Vasco-da-Gama landed at Kappad, the port of
Companie (VOC)
Zamorine of Calicut.
The most famous Portuguese men from the point The Dutch set up their first factory at
of view of India Vasco da Gama, Almeida and Masulipattanam in 1605.
Page 42 of 191
In 1663 the Dutch captured Cochin. The second Carnatic war was from 1748 to 1754.
In 1741 Marthandavarma, the Travancore ruler Robert Clive was the Governor of the English
defeated the Dutch in the Battle of Kolachal. during the Carnatic wars.
The final Collapse of the Dutch came with their The Gregorian Calendar came to be used through-
out the British dominion in 1752.
defeat by the English in the Battle of Bedara in
1759. The Second Carnatic war ended with the treaty of
Pondicherry in 1754.
The English and the French The Third Carnatic war was from 1758 to 1763.
At the Battle of Wandiwash Eyre Coot defeated
The English East India Company was formed by
French general Lally in 1760.
a group of Merchants known as The Merchant
Adventurers in 1599. With the treaty of Paris in 1763 peace was settled
between the French and English.
Early Name of the company was John Company.
The battle of Plassey was fought in the year 1757
English East India Company was formally estab-
lished on 31st December 1600 by a Charter issued June 13.
by Queen Elizabeth of the Tudor dynasty. In 1756 Siraj-ud-daula, the Nawab of Bengal, at-
in
Hector, the first ship of the English East India tacked Calcutta and captured it. 146 British pris-
company reached Surat on 24 August 1606. oners including their com-
it.
In 1612 the Company became a joint stock com- mander John Zepheria Holwell
pany. and four women were locked
nd
Sir Thomas Roe, first ambassador of James I of in a small room. 123 of them
England landed at Surat and met Jahangir in 1613 died inside due to suffication.
and the first English factor, was established at This incident is known a
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municipal corporation with Mayors court 1687. Mir Zafar was made the Nawab of Bengal after
the battle of Plassey.
Job Charnock founded the city of Calcutta.
After the battle of Plassey Robert Clive became
Colbert the minister of Louis XIV created the
compangnile des Indes Orientales in 1664. the first Governor of Bengal.
Francis Carton set up the first French factory at The Construction of fort William of Calcutta was
Surat in 1668. started by Lord Clive.
The First French Governor of Ponicherry was In 1764 the European Bengal Regiment mutinied
Francois Martin. which was followed by the First Indian Sepoy
The arrival of Dupleix as French Governor in In- Mutiny against the British.
dia in 1742 saw the beginning of Anglo- French The combined forces of Mirkassim, Emperor of
Conflict. Delhi and Nawab Shuja-ud-Daula of Oudh were
The first Carnatic war between the French and defeated in the Battle of Buxar on October 23
the English for supremacy in South India occured 1764.
in 1742. It ended in 1748 by the treaty of Aix-la-
Chapple. Robert Clive introduced official postal system in
India in 1766.
Page 43 of 191
Robert Clive introduced Dual government in The third Anglo Maratha war was from 1817-
Bengal. 1818. Thus by the end of third Maratha war the
Maratha power disappeared and the English cre-
Conquest of Mysore ated the State of Sathara.
Haider Ali was the son of Fatheh Muhammed.He
was born in 1722.
Subsidiary Alliance system and other
In 1766 he became the ruler of Mysore after the Policies
death of Mysore Raja Krishna Wodeyar. Subsidiary Alliance System was used by
First Mysore war between Haider Ali and the En- Wellesley to bring Indian States within the orbit
glish started in 1767 and ended in 1769. of British political power.
First Anglo-Mysore war ended with the defeat of First Indian ruler to join the Subsidiary Alliance
English and the treaty of Madras. System was the Nizam of Hyderabad.
Second Mysore war was from 1780 to 1784.
Lord Wellesley is consdiered as the Akbar of
Haider Ali died in 1782 and Tipu Sulthan became English East India Company by Marshman.
the Mysore ruler.
Permanent Revenue Settlement was introduced
in
The second Mysore war ended by the treaty of
in Bengal, Bihar, Orissa and districts of Benaras
Mangalore in 1784.
and northern districts of Madras by Lord
Second Mysore war was fought during the pe-
riod of Warren Hastings.
it.
Cornwallis in 1793. It was planned by Johnshore.
Ryotwari System was introduced in Bombay,
nd
Third Mysore war started in 1790 and ended in
Madras and Assam. This system was similar to
1792.
Akbars revenue policy Zabti system.
The third war ended by the treaty of
pu
Fourth Mysore war was fought during the period Executors of British Policies
of Governor general wellesley.
In this battle Tipu was killed in 1799 at Warren Hastings : (1772-85) He introduced quin-
Srerangapatanam by Col. Arthur Wellesley. quennial settlement of land revenue in 1772.
ex
Tipus Capital was Srerangapatanam. He codified the Hindu and Muslim laws.
Tipu is known as Mysore Tiger. He founded the Asiatic Society of Bengal with
Fathul Mujahiddin is the book written by Tippu the help of William Jones in 1784.
which describes about Rockets. The trial of Maharaja Nandakumar (1775) and his
Judicial Murder was during the period of Warren
Maratha Wars Hastings.
First Anglo Maratha war (1775-82) It ended by He abolished the Dual Government in Bengal in
the treaty of Salbai. 1772.
Second Anglo-Maratha War was from 1803 to After his return to England he was impeached
1805. there in 1785.
The treaty of Bassein was signed between the By the Regulating Act 1775 of appointed him
last Peshwa Baji RaoII and the English in 1802. the first Governor General.
The second Maratha War was ended by the treaty First Anglo - Maratha war took place during his
of Rajghat, 1806. period.
Page 44 of 191
In 1780 James Augustus Hickey started a weekly Mahalwari System of land revenue was intro-
paper called Bengal Gazette or Calcutta General duced in North West Province by James Thomson.
Advertiser during the period of Warren Hastings.
Warren Hastings established a Muhammedan Lord William Bentinck (1828- 35)
Madrasa in Calcutta. First Governor General of India by the govern-
ment of India Act of 1833.
Lord Cornwallis (1786 - 93) Known as benevolent Governor General.
He introduced Permanent settlement in 1793. Banned the practice of Sati in 1829. Suppressed
The Police system was introduced in India. Tughi in 1830.
Cornwallis Code was introduced. It was based Banned female infanticide.
on the separation of powers. Created the province of Agra in 1834.
Made English to be the court language in higher
Lord Wellesley (1793 - 1798)
court but Persian continued in Lower courts.
Described himself as Bengali Tiger. Appointed Macaulay as president of the commit-
He created the Madras presidency. tee of public instruction, Mecaulays Minutes was
in
Introduced the system of Subsidiary Alliance. submitted in 1835.
The first state to sign the Subsidiary Alliance sys-
tem was Hyderabad in 1798. Then Mysore,
it.
Sir Charles Metcalfe (1835 - 36)
nd
Tanjore, Awadh, Peshwar, Bhonsle, Sindhia, Jodh- Abolished restriction on press
pur, Jaipur, Mecheri, Bundi, Bharatpur and Berar He is called the Liberator of Press
signed the subsidiary treaty.
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Page 45 of 191
Hindu Marriage Act was passed in 1856. The Mughal Emperor Akbarshah II gave Ram
In 1853 started recruitment of the Covenanted Civil Mohan the title Raja.
Service by competitive examination. After the death of Raja Ram Mohan Roy
A Post Office Act was passed in 1854. Postage Brahmasamaj was divided into several sects.
stamps were issued for the first time. Adi Brahmasamaj lead by Devendra Nath Tagore
In 1855 the Santhal Uprising took place and Bharatiya Brahmasamaj led by Keshav
Abolished the title of the Nawab of Carnatic. Chandra Sen were started in 1866.
Sadharana Brahma Samaj was started by
Socio - Religious Reform Movements Anandmohan Bose in 1878.
Rammohan Roy (1772 - 1883) and Brahmo Samaj Devendra Nath Tagore was the founder of
Raja Ram Mohan Roy is Tatvabodhinisabha in Calcutta in 1839.
known as the father of Mod- Keshav Chandrasen started a paper called Indian
ern India, Herald of New Mirror in 1861.
Age, Bridge between Past Brahmasamaj reached outside Bengal under
and Future. First Modern Keshav Chandra Sen.
in
Man in India Father of In-
dian Renaissance, Pathfinder Keshav Chandra Sen was the first Indian who
Raja Ram Mohan Roy attempted to reform the society on an all India
it.
of his Century etc.
Believed in monotheism and opposed idol wor- basis.
nd
ship. Surendra Nath Banerjee was the first Indian to
Established the Atmiya Sabha in Calcutta in 1815 took up his political activity on an all India basis.
inorder to propagate monotheism and to fight Precepts to Jesus is a book written by Rajaram
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Page 46 of 191
He was the first to teach an aggressive, reformed He started two papers - the monthly Prabudha
and militant Hinduism. Barat in English and Udbodhana a Bengali fort-
Dayanand, was known in his early life as Mul nightly.
Shankar. He is called thepatriot saint of India.
He founded the Arya Samaj at Bombay in 1575. He was also described as a Cyclonic Hindu.
He is known as Luther of Hinduism. In 1898 Sister Nivedita, (Margaret Elizebth Noble)
He was the first to use the terms - Swarajya an Irish lady was initiated to brahmacharya by
Swabhasha and Swadharma. Vivekananda.
He was the first to consider Hindi as a National
Theosophical Society
Language.
He started the Suddhi Movement to re-convert to The Theosophical Society was founded by Ma-
Hinduism those who were converted to other re- dame Blavatsky and Col. H.S.Olcott in Newyork
ligions. in 1875.
His book Satyartha Prakash is a commentary on In 1882 it shifted its head quarters to Adayar near
Vedas. Madras.
in
He started Dayanand Anglo Vedic College in 1866. Its philosophy was inspired by the Hindu
Upanishads.
it.
Aryaprakash was the news paper started by
Dayanand Saraswati. Dr.Annie Basant came to India in 1893, was its
nd
notable President.
Ramakrishna Mission In 1898 she started the Central Hindu School at
Benaras, it later became Benaras Hindu Univer-
pu
of INC in 1917.
His early name was Shuddirama Gadhadhar
Chatterjee. She started the Home Rule League with the Co-
operation of Bal Gangadhar Tilak in 1916 with
He was a priest in the Dakshineswar Kali temple.
Dadabhai Naoroji as its President.
ex
Page 47 of 191
Jyotiba Phule He founded the Rajmundri Social Reform Asso-
ciation in 1878 with the principal objective of pro-
Belonging to the low caste of Mali from moting widow remarriage.
Maharashtra, struggled against upper caste domi-
nation and Brahamincal supremacy through his Muslim Reform Movements
Sathyashodhak Samaj founded in 1873.
Aligarh Movement
He wrote Ghulam-giri in 1872 exposing the con-
ditions of the backward castes. This movement was started by Sir Syed Ahmad
Khan (1817 - 98)
He pioneered the Widow Remarriage Movement
in Maharashtra and worked for the education of Sir Syeds journal Tahzib-ul-Akhlaq advocated a
women. rational approach towards religion.
He founded the Muhammadan Literarary Soci-
Deva Samaj ety at Calcutta in 1863.
It was started in 1887 by Shiv Narayan Agnihotri In 1875 he founded the Aligarh Muhammadan
at Lahore. Anglo-Oriental College, (later Aligarh Muslim
University)
The religious text of this Samaj was Deva Shastra
in
and the teaching Devadharma. Altaf Hussain Hali, Dr. Nazir Ahmad, Nawab
Mutin Ul Mulk, Chirag Ali etc were the prominent
leader of Aligarh Movement.
NM Joshi
Initially a member of Ghoklales Servants of India
it.
In 1866 Syed Ahmed Khan founded the Muslim
nd
Educational Conference.
Society.
He founded the Social Service League at Bombay Ahmadia Movement
pu
in 1911.
Founded by Mirza Ahmad at Quadiani in Punjab.
He also founded the All India Trade Union Con-
gress in 1920 at Bombay.
Sikh Reform Movements
am
Page 48 of 191
B.M. Malabari started a Crusade against child The revolt of 1857 ended in failure but it promoted
marriage and his efforts were crowned by the en- the spirit of Nationalism and Patriotism.
actment of the Age consent Act. 1891. The 19th Native Infantry
Ahrar Movement was founded in 1910 under the at Berhampur which re-
leadership of Maulana Mohamed Ali. fused to use the greased
Cartridge and the enfield
The Revolt of 1857 rifle, started mutiny in Feb-
The Great Mutiny of 1857 took place during the ruary 26, 1857.
period of Lord Canning. The first shot was fired on
The Centres and Leaders of the Revolt March 29 by Mangal
Lucknow - Begum Hazrat Mahal Pandey (of Ballia, UP) of Mangal Pandey
Kanpur - Nana Saheb the 14th Bengal Infantry at
Delhi - General Bhaktkhan Barrakpore of Bengal.
Bihar - Kunwar Singh Mangal Pandey was hanged to death on 29 March
Jhansi - Rani Lekshmi Bai 1857.
in
Faridabad - Maulavi Ahmmadulla May 10, 1857 witnessed the real mutiny at Meerut
then in Delhi on 11th May.
Bareili - Khan Bahadur
Page 49 of 191
The best and the bravest mili- The name Congress was suggested to the
tary leader of the rebels sir organisation by DadaBai Naoroji.
Hugh Ross said this about Rani Dadabai Naoroji founded the East Indian Asso-
of Jhansi. ciation in 1866.
The original name of Rani of A.O. Hume was the General Secretary of INC till
Jhansi was Mani Karnika. 1892.
The administration by Indian Jhansi Rani The Second Session of the INC met at Calcutta in
civil service officers started as December 1886, under the presidentship of
a result of the Queens proclamation. Dadabhai Naoroji. Here the National Conference
The revolt was completely crusted in 1858. merged itself with the INC.
Benjamin Disraeli described the revolt as a Na- The second session was attended by 436 del-
tional Rising. egates and there were 2000 delegates in 1889.
V.D. Savarkar in his book First war of Inde- The period from 1885 to 1905 is known as the
pendence called it The First War of Indepen- Moderate Phase of Indian National Congress.
dence. Prominent leaders of this phase were Dadabhai
in
Eighteen Fifty Seven is a book written by Naoroji, Badruddin Tyabji, Pheroz Shah Mehta,
Surendra Nath Sen. Surendranath Banerjee, Gopalakrishna Gokhale
it.
etc.
The Great Indian National Movement We do not ask favours, we only want justice,
nd
these were the words Dadabhai Naroji.
The most important events during Lord Duferins
Period (1884-1888) were the third Anglo Burmese Dadabhai Noaroji is the author of the book Pov-
pu
War (1885-86) and the establishment of the first erty and UnBritish Rule in India which con-
All India organisation, the Indian National Con- tains the famous drain theory.
gress. The British committee of INC was founded in 1889.
am
The INC was founded in December 28, 1885 at the Aurobindo Ghosh called INC a begging insti-
Gokuldas Tejpal Sanskrit College, Bombay. tute
72 delegates participated in the first session of
Bibin Chandra Pal viewed INC playing with
ex
the INC.
bubble.
It was founded by A.O. Hume a retired Civil Ser-
vant. Tilak, the father of Indian unrest said INC should
distinguish between begging and claiming
W.C. Banerjee was the first president of INC.
right Tilak said Rights are not begged they
The Indian Association of S.N. Banerjee and are claimed.
Anand Mohan Bose, organised an All Indian Na-
tional Conference in 1883 The congress sessions lasts only for three days
December. They had a year.
given a call for another Dadabhai Naoroji is known as The Grand Old
conference in 1885. Man of India. He was the first Indian to become
The term congress was a member of the House of Commons on the Lib-
desired from the history eral Partys ticket. He became the president of INC
of The United States of thrice, in 1886, 1893 and 1906. He founded Gyan
America. Prakash Mandali and Bombay Association in
Congress means as- 1852. He is also known as father of Indian Eco-
sembly of the people. DadaBai Naoroji nomics and Politics.
Page 50 of 191
Badruddin Tyabji was the first Indian barrister at the Socrates of Maharahstra. M.G. Ranade was
Bombay High Court. He was the first Muslim the political guru of Gokhale.
president of INC. He became the third president Gokhale is considered as the political guru of
of INC in Madras session in 1887. Gandhiji.
W.C. Banerjee founded the Bombay chronicle in Sarojini Naidu was the first
1913 and the Moderate school. Indian woman to become the
S.N. Banerjee founded the Indian Association in president of Indian National
1876. He was the first President of Indian National Congress (1925 Kanpur ses-
Liberal Federation (1918). sion)
Gopalakrishna Gokhale founded the Servants Nellin Sengupta became the
of India Society in 1905. third woman President of INC,
K.T. Telang became the first Hardworking sec- 1933 at the Calcutta Session. Sarojini Naidu
retary of INC. in 1906.
Jawaharlal Nehru observed the Early Congress The word Swaraj was first used in the Calcutta
to be an English knowing upper class affair. session in1906.
George Yule was the first foreigner to become
in
First Joint session of Congress and Muslim
the President of INC. (1888, Allahabad)
League was held at Lucknow 1916.
Gopala Krishna Gokhale was populary known as
EARLY ASSOCIATIONS
it.
nd
Year.. Organisation Founder Place
1838 ... Landholders society ............................. Dwaraknath Tagore .................................. Calcutta
pu
1862 ... London India Committee ....................... C.P. Mudaliar ............................................ London
1866 ... East India Association .......................... Dadabhai Naoroji ...................................... London
1867 ... National Indian Association .................. Mary Carpenter ........................................ London
ex
1872 ... Indian Society ...................................... Anand Mohan Bose ................................. London
1876 ... Indian Association ............................... Anand Mohan Bose andS.N. Banerjee ...... Calcutta
1883 ... Indian National Society ......................... Shishir Chandra Bose ............................... Calcutta
1884 ... Indian National Conference ................... S M Banerjee ............................................ Calcutta
1885 ... Bombay Presidency Association ........... Mehta and Telang .................................... Bombay
1888 ... United India Patriotic Association ......... Sir Syed Ahmed Khan ............................... Aligarh
1905 ... Servants of India Society ...................... G.K. Gokhale ............................................ Bombay
1920 ... Indian Trade Union Congress ............... NM Joshi (founder) .................................. Lucknow
Lala Lajpat Rai (President)
1924 ... All India Communist Party..................... Satyabhakta ............................................. Kanpur
1928 ... Khudai Khidmatgar ............................... Abdul Gaffar Khan ................................... Peshwar
1936 ... All India Kisan Sabha ........................... Sahajananda and N.J. Ranga ..................... Lucknow
1940 ... Radical Democratic Party....................... M.N. Roy ................................................. Calcutta
Page 51 of 191
First session held in a village was 1937 session to takepart in election of 1937.
held at Fazipur. 1938 session of Congress was held in a village
Only session presided over by Gandhi - Belgaum Haripura.
(1924) In the Ramagarh session (1904) decision was
Complete independence was demanded for the taken on Individual Satyagraha.
first time (1929) at Lahore. While Britishers tried to use Congress as a safety
For the first time National Song was sung in the valve, Indian leaders tried to use it as a lightning
Calcutta session (1896) of INC ie Vande Mataram. conductor.
During the fourth session of INC (1888, Allahabad) During the Tripura session (1939) Subash Chandra
emphasise was given on the formation of its con- Bose defeated Pattabhi Sitaramayya (Gandhis
stitution. candidate in presidential election) but later re-
signed and Rajendra Prasad became the presi-
During the Nagpur session 1891, the word Na-
dent.
tional was added to congress.
During Calcutta session (1928) first All India
During the Poona session (1895) representives Youth Congress was established.
for the second time discussed on the formation
During the Delhi session (1918) along with S.N.
in
of its Constitution. Banerjee many liberals resigned and Rajendra
In the Lucknow session of the Congress (1916) Prasad became its president.
the two factions of congress (extremists and mod-
erates) reunited.
it.
Aurobindo published New Lamps For Old. It was
nd
the first systematic critic of the Moderates.
During the special session of the congress in The radical wing of the INC that emerged at the
Calcutta (1920) Gandhi proposed to start Non-co end of the 19th century is referred to as the Ex-
pu
During the Guwahati session of INC (1926) wear- Tilak started two newspapers the Mahratha in
ing Khadi was made cumpulsory to its workers. English and the Kesari in Marathi. He started
During the Madras session (1908) its constitu- Sivaji festival to stimulate nationalism.
tion was formed. Lord Curzon Partitioned Bengal on 20th July 1905
In Madras session of the INC (1927) proposals as a part of the Divide and Rule Policy.
for independence and to boycott Simon Com- Rabindra Nath Tagore composed Amer Sonar
mission were passed Bengla as a part of ante
During the Karachi session (1931) Fundamental partition movement,
Rights and Economic Policy proposals were which later became the
passed. National Anthem of
During its 1932 and 1933 Sessions Government Bangladesh.
had declared INC an illegal organisation. Boycott of British prod-
During the Lucknow session (1936) Nehru ex- ucts was first sug-
plained for the first time. gested by Krishna
Kumar Mitra in
During Faizpur session (1937) Congress decided Rabindra Nath Tagore
Sanjivani.
Page 52 of 191
The Swadeshi Movement was started in 1905. Muhammed Iqbal, who presided over the
Charka (spinning wheel) came to typify the Allahabad session of the League in 1930 gave
popular concern for countrys economic self suf- the idea of Separate Muslim State in North West
ficiency. India. Hence Iqbal is known as the father of the
Swadesh Bandhav Samiti of Barisal founded by idea of Pakistan. But the name Pakistan was
Ashwini Dutt was the largest Volunteer body to framed by Rahmat Ali.
support Swadeshi Movement.
Mohammed Ali Jinnah gave his famous Two Na-
First real labour union - The Printers Union was
tion Theory in March 1940, at the Lahore session
formed on October 1905.
of the Muslim League.
Vande Mataram Movement was started by
Chandra Pal in Madras Sarojini Naidu called Jinnah the Prophet of Hindu-
Tilak began the Swadesh Vastra Pracharine Muslim Unity.
Sabha to propagate Swadeshi Movement. Later Jinhah became the first Governor General of
Savarkar founded Mitra mela. Pakistan. He is also known as the father of Paki-
Chakravarthi Vijiaraghavacharya was the first stan.
in
Indian leader to undergo imprisonment in 1882.
He was an extremist leader. He was the first In- Surat Split (1907)
it.
dian to draft a Swaraj constitution for India which
was presented at the Madras session in 1927. The clash between the Moderates and Extrem-
nd
First congress leader to suffer severe terms of ists culminated in a split which occurred at Surat
imprisonment for the sake of the country was Bal in 1907.
Gangadhar Tilak.
pu
India.
der the control of the Moderates.
Bipin Chandrapal founded Bande Mataram in 1906
(an organization) The Moderates did not approve the boycott of
ex
Lala Lajpat Rai is popularly known as Sher-e- foreign goods but the Extenmists favoured it. The
Punjab (Lion of Punjab). He founded and edited Moderates continued to have faith in the good
The Punjabee, The Vante Mataram and the intensions of the British government. They
English weekly The people. wanted self government in gradual stages, while
The Bengali daily Yugandar was started by the Extremists wanted complete autonomy at the
Aurobindo Gosh. He also started weeklies earliest.
Karma Yogin and Dharma.
Minto-Morley Reforms of 1909
The Formation of the Muslim League
The Minto Morley Reforms for the first time tried
(1906)
to introduce communal representation (for
All India Muslim League was founded under the muslims) and a popular element in the govt.
Leadership of Aga Khan to divert the Muslims
The real purpose of the reforms of 1909 was to
from the National Political Movement. On Decem-
confuse the Moderate nationalists and to check
ber 30th Nawab Salimulla Khan of Dhaka became
the growth of unity among Indians.
its first President.
Page 53 of 191
Home Rule Movement (1916) Jalianwala Bagh Massacre - April 13,
Home Rule Movement was started by Annie 1919
Besant and Tilak in 1916. In 1919, Rowlatt Act, which authorised the gov-
Self government for India in British Empire and ernment to detain any person without trial was
work for national education, social and political passed.
reform etc were the aims of Home Rule League. The Act was passed during the period of Lord
Annie Besnat was the first woman president of Chelmsford.
INC (1917, Calcutta Session) The official name of the Rowlatt Act was the An-
Annie Besant set up the newspapers -New India, archical and Revolutionary Crimes Act (1919).
Common Weal and Young India (1916). Sir Sydney Rowlatt was the president of the com-
Home Rule Movement marks the beginning for mittee to make proposals for the Act.
the attainment of Swaraj. C.Sankaran Nair was the only Indian official
The Montague declaration of 1917 was the great- member who supported the bill, while all the 22
est achievement of the Home Rule League. elected Indian members in the Imperial Legisla-
in
The Lucknow session of the Indian National Con- tive Council opposed the bill.
gress in 1916 marked the re union of the Moder- Gandhiji set up Rowlatt Committee to protest
Page 54 of 191
Events/Acts/Reforms.............. Viceroy/Governor Generals Provincial Autonomy (1937) ......... Lord Linlithgow
Cripps Mission (1942) .................... Lord Linthgow
Permanent Settlement (1793).......... Lord Cornwallis
Subsidiary Alliance (1798) .............. Lord Wellesley Quit India Movement ................... Lord Linlithgow
Cabinet Mission (1946) ...................... Lord Wavell
Abolition of Sati (1829) ....... Lord William Bentinck
INA Trial (1945) ................................. Lord Wavell
Introduction of Civil service .......... Lord Cornwallis
Indian Independence Act 1947) ....... Lord Mountbatten
Doctrine of Lapse ......................... Lord Dalhousie
Partition of India (1947) ............ Lord Mountbatten
Railways started in India ............... Lord Dalhousie
Post and Telegraph ....................... Lord Dalhousie Non-Co-operation Movement (1920)
English Education in India .. Lord William Bentinck
Non Co-operation Movement was started with
Vernacular Press Act (1878) ................. Lord Lytton
the aim of the annulment of the Rowlatt Act, and
Arms Act (1878) ................................. Lord Lytton correcting the Punjab wrong changing the
Local Self Government (1882) ............ Lord Rippon Khilafat wrong as well as moving towards the
Ryotwari System ................................ Lord Munro cherished goal of swaraj.
in
Partition of Bengal (1905) ................... Lord Curzon It was the first mass based political movement
it.
Rowlatt Act (1914) ...................... Lord Chelmsford under Gandhiji.
Simon Commission (1928) ... Lord William Bentinck The movement was launched as per the resolu-
nd
Sepoy Mutiny (1857) ....................... Lord Canning tion of Calcutta session and ratified in Nagpur
session in December 1920.
Queens Proclamation (1858) ............. Lord Canning
pu
Transfer Capital to Delhi (1911) ... Lord Hardinge II the angry peasants at ChauriChaura (Chauri
Dyarchy in province (1919) ......... Lord Chelmsford Chaura Incident) in Gorakhpur district of Up on
Jallianwala Bagh Tragedy (1919) .. Lord Chelmsford 5th February 1922.
Non co-operation ....................... Lord Chelmsford The Non Cooperation movement converted the
Poorna Swaraj resolution (Lahore 1929) . Lord Irwin national movement into a mass movement . It
strengthened Hindu-Muslim unity.
Frist Round Table Conference (1930) ..... Lord Irwin
Gandhi Irwin Pact (1931) ....................... Lord Irwin Khilafat Movement (1919)
Communal Award (1932) .............. Lord Wellington
The main object of the Khilafat Movement was to
Poona Pact (1932) ........................ Lord Wellington force the British Government to change its atti-
2nd Round Table Conference(1931) .... Lord Wellington tude towards Turkey and restore the Turkish
3rd Round Table Conference (1932) ..... Lord Wellington Sulthan (Khalifa) to his former position.
Separate Electorates (1932) .......... Lord Wellington A Khilafat committee was formed under the
Government of India Act (1935) .... Lord Wellington leadersip of Ali brothers Maulana Azad, Hakim
Ajmal khan, and Hasrat Mohani.
Page 55 of 191
The Khilafat Movement lost its relevance due to Some Commissions
the reforms of Mustafa Kamal Pasha in Turkey.
Amini Commission on Land Revenue and Famine
Pasha abolished Khilafat and made Turkey a secu-
(1878)
lar state.
Fraser Commission on Agriculture (1902)
On 1 June 1920 the Khilafat Committee at
Hunter Commission on Punjab Disturbance (1919)
Allahabad unanimously accepted Gandhis sug-
gestion of non co-operation and asked him to Books and Authors
lead the Movement. Vande Mataram ..................... Aurobindo Ghosh
New Lamps for Old ............... Aurobindo Ghosh
Indian Working Class Bhavani Mandir .................... Aurobindo Ghosh
Hind Swaraj ........................... Mahatma Gandhi
First organised strike by any section of the work-
Gora ................................ Rabindranath Tagore
ing class was the Signalers Strike in May 1899
Ghare Baiyare .................. Rabindranath Tagore
in the Great Indian Peninsular (GIP) Railway.
Gitanjali ........................... Rabindranath Tagore
AITUC was formed in 1920 with Lala Lajpat Rai as Discovery of India ............................ J.L. Nehru
its first President and Dewan Chaman Lal as its Essays in Indian Economics .......... M.G. Ranade
in
General Secretary. Arctic Home of the Aryans ................ B.G. Tilak
Indian National Congress at its Gaya session of Geeta Rahasya ................................... B.G. Tilak
larly known as Simon Commission, to go it to the The Indian Struggle ...... Subhash Chandra Bose
question of further constitution reform. Indian Musalmans ................................. Hunter
The Congress passed a resolution to boycott the Gana Devta ....... Tarashankar Bandhopadhyaya
ex
Simon Commission at its Madras session 1927. Philosophy of the Bomb..... Bhagavati Charan Vohra
The day Simon landed at Mumbai ; 3 February Why Socialism ................ Jayaprakash Narayan
1928 all the major cities and towns observed a Gandhi Versus Lenin ....................... S.A. Dange
complete hartal. Problem of the East ....................... Lord Curzon
The Madras session 1927 was presided over by Neel Darpam ...................... Deen Bandu Mithra
Dr. Ansari. India Today ........................................ R.P. Dutt
On the arrival of the Commission in Mumbai in India Wins Freedom ............ Abdul Kalam Azad
1928, it met with the slogan Go back Simon. Indian Unrest .......................... Valentine Chirol
There were Seven members in the Simon Com- Prachya Aur Paschchatya .... Swami Vivekanand
mission. but no Indian. Gau Karunanidhi .................... Swami Dyayanda
Lala Lajpat Rai was severely wounded in a po- Letters from Russia ............ Rabindranth Tagore
lice Lathi charge and died while protesting against Wither India ...................................... J.L.Nehru
the Commission. Soviet Asia ...................................... J.L. Nehru
To avenge the death of Lala Lajpat Rai, Bhagat Pather Debi ................... Avanindranath Tagore
Singh shot dead General Saunders. History of Hindu Chemistry .................. P.C. Rai
Peasantry of Bengal ........................... R.C. Dutt
Page 56 of 191
Rowlatt Commission on Sedition (1919) Its early name was Congress Khilafat Swaraj
Butler Commission on Indian States (1927) Party.
Sapru Commission on Unemployment (1935) C.R. Das and Motilal Nehru were the frist presi-
Whitley Commission on Labour (1939) dent and Secretary respectively of the Swaraj
Floud Commission on Tenancy in Bengal (1940) Party.
C.R. Das gave the slogan Enter the Council
Peasant Movements Swaraj Party was formed at Allahabad.
Indigo Revolt - 1860 The 1924 when Gandhi came out of Jail he sup-
The revolt was directed against the British Plant- ported the programme of Swaraj Party.
ers who behaved like Feudal Lords in their estates.
The revolt began after Hemachandrakar deputy Trade Union Movement in India
Magistrate, published on 17 August, 1859 a proc- First Textile Mill : Bombay (1853)
lamation to policmen that they should interefere
with the rights of the peasants to saw whatever First Jute Mill at Rishra in Bengal (1855)
they preferred. First Factory Act was passed in 1881.
in
It began at Govindpur village in Nadia and was The Second Factory Act was passed in 1891.
led by Digambar Bishwas and Bishnu Bishwas. First Industrial Commission was appointed in
it.
Din Bandu Mitras novel Neel Darpan protrayed 1875.
this struggle.
The first real labour union was formed in October
nd
An Indigo Commission was also appointed in 1860.
1901 in Calcutta called the Printers Union.
Pabna Revolt (Bengal) The Madras Labour Union was the first
pu
The peasants in this region were forced to culti- The Trade Union Act of 1926 organised trade
vate indigo at the prices decided by the British.
unions as legal Associations.
This system was known as Tinkathia system.
The Jamshedpur Labour Association was
Gandhijis first Satyagraha in India was the
Champaran in 1917. founded by S.N. Haldar and Byomkesh
Chakravarthy in 1920.
Kheda Satyagraha (1918) In 1929, All India Trade Union Federation was
formed under the leadership of NM Joshi.
Chiefly directed against the government.
It was started by Madan Mohan Malavya later The Congress Socialist Party was founded in
taken up by Gandhiji in 1918. 1934.
Kanpur Labour Enquiry Committee was founded
Swaraj Party (1923) under the chairmanship of Rajendra Prasad.
C.R. Das and Motilal Nehru resigned from con- In 1944 national leaders lead by Sardar Patel
gress on 31 December 1922 and founded the organised the Indian National Trade Union Con-
Swaraj Party on 1st January 1923. gress.
Page 57 of 191
Civil Disobedience movement -1930 Khudai Khidmatgar activated the NWFP leading
to rioting where the Hindu Gahrwal Rifles refused
In 1930, Gandhiji launched the Civil Disobedience to fire on Muslim rioters.
Movement. Darshana Salt Works (21 may) Satyagraha led
In 1929 INC adopted Poorna Swaraj (complete by Sarojini Naidu, Imam Saheb and Manilal
independence) as its goal at the Lahore session Gandhi.
of the congress under the Presidentship of Nehru.
It also decided for launching a Civil Disobedi-
ence Campaign. Governors Generals of India
1772-1785 ............................. Warren Hastings
At midnight on 31 December 1929, Jawaharlal 1786 - 1793 ............................. Lord Cornwallis
Nehru unfurled the newly adopted Tricolour Flag 1793 - 1798 ................................. Sir Joh Shore
of freedom on the bank of river Ravi. 1798 - 1805 .............................. Lord Wellesley
26 January 1930 was fixed as the first indepen- 1807- 1813 .................................... Lord Minto
dent day. 1813 -1823 ................................ Lord Hastings
1823 - 1828 ................................ Lord Amherst
The Civil Disobedience Movement was started 1828 - 1835 .................... Lord William Bentinck
by Gandhiji with his famous Dandi March 1835 - 1842 ....................... Baron Ellenborough
1842 - 1844 .................. William Wilberfore Bird
in
He started his Salt Satyagraha or the Dandi
March on the morning of 12 March 1930 with a 1844 - 1848 ............................... Lord Hardinge
1848 - 1856 .............................. Lord Dalhousie
it.
band of 78 volunteers. It was 385km (240 miles)
1856 - 1858 ................................ Lord Canning
Journey from Sabarmati Ashram at Ahmedabad
nd
to Dandi on the West Coast. On April 5, at 6 in the Viceroys of British India
morning Gandhiji and his volunteers picked up 1858 - 1862 ................................ Lord Canning
Salt lying on the sea-shore. (Sarojini Naidu, at 1862 - 1863 .............................. 8th Earl Elgin I.
pu
this hailed Gandhiji as Law breaker) 1863 .................................... Sir Robert Napier
In Tamil Nadu C. Rajagopalachari led a Salt 1863 - 1864 .................... Sir William T. Dension
March from Trichirapalli to Vedaranyam on the 1864 - 1869 ................................. Earl of Mayo
am
Tanjore Coast. He was arrested on 30 April, 1930. 1872 - .................................. Sir John Strachey
1872 - 1876 ........................ Baron North Brook
In Malabar K. Kelappan, the hero of the Vaikkom 1876 - 1880 ................................... Lord Lytton
Satyagraha, walked from Calicut to Payyannur to 1880-1884 ..................................... Lord Ripon
ex
Page 58 of 191
One notable feature of the Civil Disobedience pressed classes was abolished.
Movement of Gandhiji was wide participation of Harijan upliftment now became Gandhijis main
women. concern. He started an All India Anti-Untouch-
ability League in September 1932 and the weekly
Round Table Conferences Harijan in January 1933. The January 8, 1933 was
The British government organised the First Round observed as Temple Entry Day.
Table Conference at London to discuss the Simon Only Indian to participate all the three Round Table
Commission Report. conference was B.R. Ambedkar.
The first Round Table Conference was from 12
Nov. 1930 to 19 January 1931. Socialists
British Prime Minister Ramsay Mac Donald pre-
It was above all Jawaharlal Nehru who imported a
sided over the First Round Table Conference.
socialist vision to the national movement.
The first Round Table Conference was attended
by Tej Bahadur Supru B.R. Ambedkar, Muhammed At the Lahore session in 1929 Nehru introduced
Shafi, M.A. Jinnah etc. Gandhiji did not partici- this idea.
pate in it. The Congress Socialist Party was founded in
in
As a result of the Gandhi Irwin pact (1931) Con- October 1934 at Bombay under the leadership of
gress decided to stop the Civil Disobedience Jaya Prakash Narayan, Acharya Narendra Dev
Movement.
Gandhi-Irwin Pact was signed on 5th March 1931. it.
and Minoo Masani
The CSP supported the Quit India Movement.
nd
The Second Round Table Conference started in
Socialist ideas led to the emergence of Commu-
London on 7 September 1931. It was attended by
107 Indians including Gandhiji. nist Party of India (CPI) and the Congress So-
pu
Sarojini Naidu participated in the Second Round party of India. In India on 1st September, 1924
Table Conference. Satyabhakta in a press note announced the for-
The Communal Award was announced on Au-
ex
The Communal Award was opposed by Gandhiji Alipore 1908 Aurobindo Ghosh
and he decided to go on fast unto death. Hawrah case 1910 Jatin Mukharjee
The Third and the last Round Table Conference Dacca Case 1910 Pulin Das
was held between Nov. 17 and December 24, 1932. Delhi case 1915 Amirchand, Awad
The Third Round Table Conference agreed upon Bihari and Bal Mukund
certain broad principles for the future constitu- Lahore case 1929 - 30 Bhagat Singh, Rajguru
tional set up: Which were published later as white and Sukhdev
paper (March 1933) Banaras case 1915 - 16 Sachindranath Sanyal
The Poona Pact was signed on 25 September 1932 Kakori case 1925 Rama Prasad Bismil and
at Bombay. By this the separate electorate for de- Ashfaq
Page 59 of 191
mation of the Communist Party of India with him- dia into the Second World War.
self as the Secretary.
In December 1928 the All India Worker and Peas-
August offer (1940)
ants Party came into existence. The famous proclamation made by Lord
The government declared CPI illegal in 1934. Linlithgow on 8 August 1940 is known a August
Offer.
Revolutionary Terrorism This ensured to give dominion status and free-
dom to frame constitution based on representa-
Ram Prasad Bismil, Jogesh Chatterjee and tive nature.
Sachindranath Sanyal founded the Hindustan
Republican Associations (HRA) in 1924, whose Cripps Mission 1942
object was to establish a Federal Republic.
The mission under Stafford Cripps (the Lord Privy
On 9 August 1925 ten revolutionaries robbed the Seal and a member of the British War Cabinet) ar-
8-Downtrain at Kakori, near Lucknow. This is rived in India on March 22, 1942 to find out a politi-
known as Kakori Conspiracy. cal formula for transfer of power to Indians.
HRA became Hindustan Socialist Republican The main proposals of the mission was to grant
in
Association in 1928. Dominion status to India at the end of the Sec-
Bhagat Singh and B.K. Dutt threw bomb on the ond World War and setting up of an interim gov-
Central Legislative Assembly against the passage
of the Public Safety Bill and the Trade Disputes
it.
ernment to administer the country in all matters
except defence.
nd
Bill. The Congress and the League rejected the offer
Chittagong Armoury Raid was planned by Gandhiji called the cripps offer a Post Dated
pu
Page 60 of 191
Lord Wavell, the then Governor General offered Communal riots broke out in Naokhali from No-
the famous Wavellplan in 1945 at Shimla. vember 7, 1946 to March 2, 1947 Gandhiji toured
in these 49 villages.
Royal Indian Navy Mutiny (1946) December 3 - 6, 1946 The British Prime Minister
Clement Atlee summoned Jawaharlal Nehru,
On 18thFebruary 1946 1,100 naval ratings of the
Baldev Singh, MuhammedAli Jinnah and Liaqat
Signal School of HMIS Talwar (ship) in Bombay Ali Khan for an extraordinary conference at 10
went on strike against racial discrimination regard- Dawning Street London.
ing pay and food. Constituent Assembly: The constituent Assem-
BC Dutt was arrested for writing Quit India on bly started its session on December 9, 1946 in the
HMIS Talwar. Library of the Council Chamber without the par-
Both Congress and Muslim league did not help ticipation of the League.
the mutineers. Rajendra Prasad was elected as the President of
the Constituent Assembly.
Cabinet Mission (1946)
Mountbatten Plan (1947)
The British Government headed by Attlee of the
in
Labour Party, appointed a Cabinet Mission con- Mountbatten arrived in India on March 22, 1947.
sisting of Pethic Lawrence, Stafford Cripps and Mountbatten became the last Viceroy of India,
A.V. Alexander.
Cabinet Mission proposed a federal government it.
the last Governor General of India and first gov-
ernor general of free India.
nd
for the whole of India. Mountbatten proposed a plan to divide India.
Elections to the Constituent Assembly were held Clement Atlee announced the plan in the House
of Commons on 2 June 1947, hence it came to be
pu
Page 61 of 191
to join the Indian Union through police action in who was supported by Gandhiji.
1948. He resigned the Presidentship of INC in April 1939
and founded All India Forward Block and the
Indian National Army (INA) Kisan Sabha.
The idea of Indian National Army was first con- But in January 1941, he escaped out of India and
ceived by Mohan Singh at Malaya, an officer in reached Berlin (Germany) from where he arrived
British Indian Army. in Singapore in 1943.
The first division of INA was formed in Septem- Bose was popularly known as the Netaji
ber 1942 with Japanese help. He was reportedly killed in an air cash over Taipei,
Subash Chandra Bose began to associate with Taiwan on August 18, 1945.
INA by July 1943. The command was handed over A.N. Mukherjee Commission enquired about the
by Rash Bihari Bose mysterious disappearance of Subash Chandra
To the Indians Subash Chandra Bose said you Bose.
give me blood I will give you freedom..
The Viceroys of India
Subash Chandra Bose set up two INA headquar-
ters at Rangoon and Singapore. Lord Canning (1856 - 62)
in
The womens regiment called the Rani Jhansi Revolt of 1857.
regiment was under Captain Lekshmi Segal.
Queen Victorias Proclamation and passing of the
it.
He was the first to address Gandhiji as the Fa- Indian Act of 1858.
ther of the nation in his appeal on the Azad
nd
Withdrawal of the Doctrine of Lapse in 1859,
Hind Radio Singapore.
which was passed by Lord Dalhousie.
In may 1944 INA captured Mowdok and hoisted
Foundation of the Universities of Calcutta,
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renamed Shaheed and Swaraj islands respec- White Mutiny by the European troops of East
tively. India Company in 1859.
The INA troops surrendered before the British Bahadurshah II was sent to Rangoon
army in 1945.
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Page 62 of 191
Lord Mayo (1869-72) Lord Curzon (1899-1905)
Wahabi and Kuka movements were active. Creation of a new province called the North West
Frontier Province.
Mayo was murdered
Appointment of Universities Commission in 1902
Lord Lytton (1876-80) under Sir Thoma Releigh and passing of Indian
Universities Act 1904.
Passing of the Royal Titles Act of 1876 and the
Partition of Bengal
assumption of the title empress of India (Qaiser-i-
hind) by Queen Victoria. Lord Hardinge (1910-1916)
Holding of Delhi Durbar in 1877.
Coronation durbar in 1911 at Delhi in honour of
Passing of the Vernacular Press Act of 1878. George V
Passing of the Arms Act of 1878. A separate state of Bihar and Orissa was created
Lowering of maximum age from 21 years to 19 in 1911.
years for the Civil Services Examination, an at- Indias capital was decided to shift to Delhi in
tempt to prevent Indians from entering Civil Ser- 1911 and shifted in 1912.
in
vices. Kamagata Maru incident.
1916, Saddler committee on Univerisities ap-
it.
Appointment of first Famine Commission under
pointed.
Sir Richard Strachy.
Tilak founded Home Rule League.
nd
Started Statutory Civil Service.
Second Anglo Afghan war in 1878. Lord Chelmsford (1916 - 21)
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cre.
welfare of child labour.
Chamber of Princes established in 1921.
Repeal of Vernacular Press Act in 1882.
Home Rule League founded by Annie Besant.
Foundation of the Local Self Government (1882)
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Page 63 of 191
Train Robbery at Kakori. Lord Mountbatten (1947-48)
Lord Irwin (1926-31) His plan to make India free on August 15 1947 is
also known as June 3rd Plan.
Popularly known as Christian Viceroy.
First Governor General of free India
Simon Commission arrives in Bombay.
Meerut conspiracy case. Rajagopalachari (1948-50)
Gandhi started his Dandi March. First Indian Governor General.
Chitagong Armoury Raid.
First Round Table Conference. Father of Our Nation
Gandhi-Irwin pact. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, called Mahatma,
is the father of our nation.
Lord Willington (1931-36) He was born on 2 October 1869 at Porbandar in
Communal Award in 1932 by Ramsay Mac Gujarat as the son of Diwan Karamchand and his
fourth wife Putilibai.
Donald.
in
In 1883, at the age of 14, he married Kasthurba
Third Round Table Conference in 1932.
Later he went to England to study law.
White Paper on Political reforms in India was pub-
it.
In 1893 he went to South Africa to practice law.
lished in 1933.
After his studies in England Gandhiji began his
nd
Burma was separated from British Empire in 1935. practice as a lawyer in Bombay and Rajcot.
He was subjected to racial discrimination and
Lord Linlithgow (1936-43) organised Natal Indian Congress in 1894. There
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August Offer by the Viceroy in which he declared he started a weekly, Indian opinion 1904.
dominion status as the ultimate goal of British Gandhiji experimented the weapon Satyagraha for
the first time in South Africa in September 1906 to
am
policy in India.
protest against the Asiatic Ordinance issued
In 1940 individual Civil Disobedience Movement
was started. against the Indians in Transval
Gandhijis first imprisonment was in 1908 at
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Page 64 of 191
Gandhijis first Satyagraha in India was for the Gandhiji called Subhah Chandra Bose
right of Indigo workers in Champaran in 1917. thePalriots, Patriot
Gandhijis first fast was in 1918 in connection with Winston Churchil called Gandhiji a Half naked
the strike of mill workers in Ahmedabad. Seditious Fakir.
He started the Satyagrahasrama on the banks of The name Gurudev was given to Tagore by
Sabarmati river in Ahmedabad in 1917. Gandhiji
In 1918 he started two weeklies - Young India in Tagore called Gandhiji Mahatma.
English and Navjeevan in Gujarati. Wardha scheme of education was the basic edu-
Gandhiji abandoned his title Kaiser -i-Hind in pro- cation policy formulated by Gandhiji.
test against Jallianwalabagh Massacre (1919)
In 1940 Gandhiji started Individual Satyagraha and
Gandhijis first National Movement was organised selected Vinoba Bhave and Nehru for that.
against the Rowlat Act in 1919.
In 1942 August 9 Gandhiji started the Quit India
Gandhiji launched the Non-Co-operation Move-
Movement and gave the call Do or Die.
ment on August 1, 1920 which caused the violent
incident at Chauri Chaura in UP. This incident Gandhiji called the Cripps Mission (1942) a post-
initiated Gandhiji to suspend the movement in dated cheque on a drowning bank.
in
1922. Gandhiji was assassinated by Nadhuram Vinayak
Gandhiji renounced worldly pleasures and be-
it.
Godse on 30 January 1948 at the Birla house in
came a symbol of halfnaked villager in 1920. Delhi. He died at 5 : 17 pm.
nd
The only Congress session presided over by He Ram, He Ram was his last words.
Gandhiji was the one which held at Belgaum in
1924. Godse used an Italian Beritta Pistol to shoot at
Gandhiji.
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Conference in London in 1931 August. Mem Nadhuram Godse Bolthai is a play written
With the aim of eradicating untouchability by Pradeep Dalvi to humiliate Gandhi.
Gandhiji founded the All India Harijan Samaj in After the assassination, The R.S.S was banned in
ex
Pattabhi Sitaramayya Gandhijis candidate for the Liberty or Death written by Patrick French deals
Presidentship of INC was defeated by Subash with antogonism in Gandhis life.
Chandra Bose. Gandhiji called his hanging clock my little dicta-
tor.
Page 65 of 191
Ente Gurunathan poem written by Vallathol Swaraj for me means freedom for the meanest of
Narayana Menon speaks about Gandhiji. our countrymen - Gandhiji
Thats my mother Gandhiji said these words The light has gone out of our lives and there is
about Bhagavatgita. darkness everywhere Nehru on the death of
Gandhiji.
Gandhijis political guru was Gopalakrishna
Gokhale. Non-violence is the law of our species as vio-
lence is the law of the brute Gandhiji
Gandhis prisoner is a book written by Uma
Indian culture is neither Hindu, Islam, nor any
Dupfeli Mistri , daughter of Gandhis son, Manilal.
other wholly. It is a fusion of all - Gandhiji
Harilal, Manilal, Ramdas and Devdas were
Non Co-operation with evil is as much a duty
Gandhijis four sons. as co-operation with good - Gandhiji
I follow Mahatma is a book written by My only hope lies in prayer and answer to
K.M.Munshi. prayer - Gandhiji
Unto This Last of John Ruskin greately influ-
enced Gandhiji Rabindnranath Tagore
R.K. Narayan wrote Waiting for the Mahatma.
in
Rabindranath Tagore was born at Calcutta in
A week with Gandhi, Gandhi and Stalin and Life West Bengal as the son of Maharshi
it.
of Mahatma Gandhi are the books written by Devendranath Tagore and Sarda Devi. One of
Fischer. Rabindranaths brothers, Satyendranth Tagore
nd
Gandhiji grandson Thushar Gandhi led the sec- was the first Indian to get selcted for the ICS in
ond Dandi March from Marh 12 - April 17, 2005 1864.
on the 75th anniversary of Dandi March. In 1901 Tagore established a school at Shanti
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Gandhijis autobiography My Experiments with Niketan which finally developed into the world
Truth was written in 1922 while he was in Jail. It famous University of ViswaBharati in 1921.
am
describes his life from 1869 to 1921. In 1913,Tagores Gitanjali was selected for the
It was translated into English by Mahadev Desai. Nobel prize for Literature.
Leon Tolstoy is considered as the spiritual guru In 1912 Tagore Published Jana Gana Mana (Now
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Page 66 of 191
In 1915, Tagore was awarded Knighthood by the Nehru started a newspaper called National Her-
British Monarch George V, but he surrendered it ald.
in 1919 as a protest against the Jalianwallabagh Nehru headed the interim ministry formed in 1946
Massacre. September.
Gandhiji called Tagore Gurudev. He became the first Prime Minister of India after
independence in 1947.
For Tagore, the great objective of education was
to know man and to make oneself known to Nehru has the largest term as Indias Prime Min-
man. ister.
Important works of Nehru are Glimpses of World
Jeevan Smriti is the autobiography of Tagore.
History,The Unity of India, The Discovery of
Gora, Raja and Rani Rajarishi, Kabooliwala India Bunch of Old letters.
etc are the famous novels of Tagore. An Autobiography is the autobiography of
Purabhi, The cycle of the spring The evening Nehru.
song The morning song etc are the other fa- .......... At the stroke of the mid night hour, when
mous works of Tagore. the world sleeps, India will awake to life and free-
dom........... these are the words of Nehru.
Jawaharlal Nehru (1889-1964)
in
Nehrus main contribution to the evolution of
Jawaharlal Nehru was the son of Motilal Nehru Indias foreign policy was the acceptance of non-
and Swarupa Rani.
it.
allignment.
Non-alignment meant taking independent deci-
nd
Jawahar means Jewel.
sions on international issues with a sense of neu-
He was born in 1886 November 14. trality.
Vijayalekshmi Pandit and Krishna Harthising Nehru visited China in 1954, both the countries
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Page 67 of 191
Famous Statements Swami Vivekananda For our own motherland a
junction of the two great system Hinduism and
Lord Dufferin : Congres was a microscopic mi- Islam is the only hope.
nority. Swami Vivekananda We are just dont touchists
Lord Curzon : Congress was tottering to its Our religion is our kitchen our god is the cooking
fall and one of his greatest ambition in India was and our religion is dont touch me, I am holy. If
to assist it (congress) a peaceful demise. this goes on for a century, everyone of us will be
Charles Napier: We have no right to seize Sind, in a lunatic asylum.
yet we shall do so and a very advantageous, use- Aurobindo Ghosh : - Political freedom is the
ful humane piece of rascality it will be . life breath of a nation.
Thomas Roe : I know these people are best Tilak : Swaraj is my birth right and I will have it.
treated with the sword in one hand and the Gandhiji on the eve of Dandi March Sedition
caducean in the other. has become my religion.
Nabin Chandra Sen : The battle of Plassey was Ram Krishna Paramahamsa God is of no use
followed by a night of eternal gloom for India. to the hungry belly
John Sullivan : Our system acts very much like a Swami Vivekananda Christianitywins its prosperity
sponge drawing up all the good things from the by cutting the throats of its fellowmen.
in
banks of the Ganges and Squeezing them down
on the banks Thames
Tipu Sultan - Better to die like a Soldier, than
it. INDIA AFTER
nd
to live a miserable dependent on the infidels in
the list of their pensioned Rajas and nobles. INDEPENDENCE
Peter the Great of Russia Bear in mind that the
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Kashmir problem.
William Bentinck : The misery hardly find a par-
On September 1, 1965 Pakistan started attack on
allel in history of commerce, the bones of the cot-
ton weavers were bleaching the plains of India. the border and invaded Chhamb and Dewa re-
gions.
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Page 68 of 191
The agreement signed after the 1971 war was the Liberation of Pondicherry and Goa
Simla Agreement.
Simla Agreement was signed by Indian Prime Goa was in the hands of Portuguese from 1510
Minister Indira Gandhi and Pakistan Prime Minis- AD onwards.
ter Sulfiker Ali Bhuto in 1972. The Liberation Army captured Dadra, Nagarhaveli
The Kargil war in 1999 was against the terrorist on 22 July 1954.
usurpation into Kashmir from Pakistan. Goa, Daman and Diu were liberated from the Por-
Kargil military operation of India was known as tuguese in 1964.
Operation Vijay. Pondicherry was under the French
Former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee con- Since 1946 there were freedom struggle in
ducted the famous Lahore Bus Journey in 1999 Pondicherry.
February. The legal hand over of Pondicherry was in 1962.
The Kargil war officially ended on 26 July 1999. Malayalam speaking Mahi, Telegu speaking
Boundary line between India and Pakistan is yanam and Tamil speaking Karakkal are the parts
Radcliff line. of Pondicherry.
The Lahore declaration was signed between A.B. Pondicherrys new name is Puthussery.
Vajpayee and Nawaz Sherif.
in
Military operation conducted by India on Paki- Nuclear Experiments in India
stan 1948 was known as Operation Sojila.
it.
Nuclear researches in India were lead by Homi J.
The operation in which Indian army captured Bhaba.
Siachin was known as Operation Meghdoot.
nd
Council for Scientific Industrial Research Insti-
India and Pakistan signed the Indus River Water
tute was formed in 1942.
Agreement in 1960.
Indias first Nuclear Experiment was on 18th May
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Page 69 of 191
The operation was done by 15th Cavalry Regi- Demolition of Babri Masjid
ment of Indian Army.
On 6th December 1992, the B.J.P. and VHP
As a sequel to the Operation Blue Star. Indira Gandhi
organised a huge rally of over 20,000 volunteers
was gunned down and killed by her own security
at the site of Babri Masjid. The BJP Chief Minis-
guards, Sub Inspector Beant Singh and Constable
ter of Uttar Pradesh, Kalyan Singh assured to the
Satwant Singh on October 31, morning.
Supreme court that the mosque would be pro-
In the Ante Sikh riots more than 3000 sikhs died. tected. But the mosque was hammered down.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi officially The Central Government banned VHP, RSS,
apologised the Community in 1998. BajrangDal and Jamaat -e-Islami. The Kalyan
Justice Ranganath Mishra Commission ap- Singh government was dismissed.
pointed in 1985 submitted the report in 1986. Babri Masjid was constructed by Babars gover-
Kapur Mithal Committee (1987) Jane Banerjee nor Mir Sakhi at Ayodhya (U.P).
Committee Potti Rosha Committee (1990) Jane Narasimha Rao was the Prime Minister when the
Agarwal Committee (1990) Dhillan Committee Babary Masjid was demolished.
(1985), Narula Committee (1993), Nanavati Com-
Ayodhya 6th December, 1992 is a book written
mission (2004) etc enquired about the incident.
by NarasimhaRao,published Posthumously.
in
it.
nd
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am
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Page 70 of 191
in
it.
nd
Indian
pu
am
Constitution
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Page 71 of 191
14. The first no confidence 27. The function of a Public
Fill in the Blanks motion was moved in the Lok Service Commission in India
Sabha after independence is .........
1. ......... is the highest legal
adviser to the Government of was in the year ......... 28. In ......... of the constitution,
India. 15. A bill for alteration of reference to Hindus shall
boundaries of states shall not include a reference to Sikhs.
2. ......... decides the question of
disqualification of a member be introduced in the 29. Raja Chellayya Committee
of the Lok Sabha. Parliament without the dealt with .........
recommendation of ......... 30. The Constituent Assembly of
3. The time gap between two
16. The Supreme Court passed India took all decision by .........
sessions of the Parliament
the special judgement that the Answers sto Fill in the blanks
should not exceed .........
basic tenets of our
4. The residuary powers under constitution cannot be 1. Attorney General of India
the Indian Constitution rest changed by the Parliament by 2. Speaker
with the ......... any amendment, in the ......... 3. six months
5. The Prime Minister is case. 4. Parliament
responsible to the ......... 17. A member of Parliament will 5. Lok Sabha
6. National Integration Council lose his seat if he remains
6. The Prime Minister
in
is chaired by ......... absent from all meetings
without permission for a 7. The President
7. The credential of all
it.
Ambassadors or High period of ......... days. 8. Governor
Commissioners of foreign 18. Judges of the Supreme Courts 9. President
nd
countries are received by ......... cannot practice, after 10. 10th schedule
8. No money bill can be retirement, in ......... 11. 1/10 of the total membership
introduced in the Legislative 19. If the Finance Minister fails to of the house
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Assembly without the get the annual budget passed 12. 500
recommendation of the ......... in the Lok Sabha, the Prime
Minister should be expected 13. one month
9. Any dispute between the two
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Page 72 of 191
chaired by a prominent Answers
One Word Questions member of the opposition? 1. Socialist, Secular, integrity
1. Name the words which were 16. What is contained in the Tenth 2. Cabinet Mission
added to the Preamble by the Schedule of the Constitution?
3. The Speaker of the Lok Sabha,
42nd Constitutional Amend- 17. How many times can the 4. The Governor
ment. President of India seek re-
election to his post? 5. The Parliament
2. On whose recommendation
was the Constituent Asse- 18. How many committees were 6 . 10 years
mbly formed? set up by the Constituent 7. It can only withhold the bill
3. To whom does the Public Assembly for framing the for 14 days to make recomme-
Accounts Committee submit Constitution of India? ndations
its report? 19. Name the article which 8. 6
4. Who is the executive head of empowers the President to 9. Puducherry and Delhi
a state in the Indian Union? appoint the Prime Minister of 10. Uttar Pradesh
India.
5. If a state is under Presidents 11. State Government
rule, then the state Budget is 20. What is meant by Capital
Punishment? 12. Article 19 (1)
passed by whom? 13. The President
21. In which year was voting age
6. By how many years has the
in
reduced from 21 to 18 in 14. Thrice
62nd Amendment of the
India? 15. Public Accounts Committee,
Constitution in 1990
extended the reservation for
persons belonging to SC and
22.
it.
A party in India in order to be
recognised as official
16. Provisions regarding disqua-
lification on grounds of
nd
ST in Public Services? opposition in the parliament defection
should have at least how 17. Any number of times
7. What is the power of the Rajya many seats?
Sabha in regard to money 18. 13
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Page 73 of 191
4. Anti-Defection Law 29. Discuss about the 2. The President of India is the
5. What are the major constitutional provision of the head of the Union Executive.
commitments of the no-confidence motion. The President is elected by
Constitution of India as 30. 93rd amendment Bill indirect election by an
incorporated in its Preamble? electoral college, in
Answers
accordance with the system of
6. Indian Constitution is 1. An analysis of the various
drawn from different proportional representation
definitions of a constitution of single transferable vote.
sources. Establish the point. shows that the constitution The electoral college shall
7. Identify the nature and has the following distinct consist of elected members of
methods of Parliamentary features: both houses of Parliament, the
control over the Executive in Firstly, it refers to a collection elected members of the
Indian Polity. of those basic laws which are Legislative Assemblies of the
8. Explain the concept of more sacrosanct than the States and the elected
Minorities in the Indian ordinary laws. members of the Legislative
Constitution and mention the Secondly, the constitution is Assemblies of the Union
safeguards provided there in not entirely written. Though Territories of Delhi and
for their protection. a major part of the Pondicherry.
9. Discuss the power privileges constitution is generally Qualification for a presid-
in
and immunities of the Indian available in the form of a ential candidate are :
Parliament. written document, certain Must be a citizen of India.
laws are also based on
it.
10. Explain the relevance of Rajya
customs, usages and Must have completed 35
Sabha in the federal set up of years of age.
the Indian Parliamentary conventions and form part of
nd
System. the constitution. Must be qualified to be a
Thirdly, the constitution may member of the Lok Sabha.
11. Highlight the significance of
the 73rd Amendment to the be created by a special body Must not hold any office
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ministers.
16. Relation between the Union authorities and the relations
Attorney General of India.
and the States between the citizens and
various organs of the Comptroller and Auditor-
17. Fundamental Duties General of India.
government.
18. Powers of the Governor Judges of the Supreme
Fifthly, it contains procedures
19. Sarkaria Commission for its own change which is Court and High Courts
20. Public Service Commission generally quite different from including the Chief
21. Election Commission the procedure for the Justice.
enactment of ordinary laws. Governors of States.
22. Finance Commission
Sixthly, the constitution Lieutenant Governors
23. Contingency Fund
generally contains a and Commissioners of
24. Eighth Schedule of the statement of its objectives. Union Territories.
Constitution
Finally, the constitution not Members of Finance
25. Family Courts only lays down the rights of Commission.
26. CAT the citizens, but also specifies Members of the Union
27. Lok Adalats (LAs) the limitations on the Public Service Commi-
authority of the government. ssion.
28. High Court
Page 74 of 191
Chief Election Commissi- provisions to be amended ment is made to political,
oner and other members requires a majority of not less social and economic justice.
of the Election Commiss- than two third of the members And to ensure social,
ion. present and voting in each economic and political
Special officers for the house. In some other cases justice, the Preamble
scheduled castes and besides two third members of emphasises the need for
other tribal areas. both the house present and securing liberty, equality and
voting, it must be ratified by fraternity for the Indian
The President of India
the legislatives of the one-half people. The liberty, would be
who is the Supreme
of the states. of thought, expression, beliefs
Commander of the armed
forces has the following 4. Anti Defection Law was and faith, signifying political
passed in 1985 as the 52nd freedom and secularism.
powers:
Constitutional Amendment Equality is sought to be
Right to declare war and ensured on political, social
with the aim to political
peace. and economic level thus
defections in India. A member
Legislative powers which of Parliament or state besides adult franchise there
include nomination of 12 legislature belonging to a would be equality of status
members to the Rajya political party shall be and opportunity. Indivi-
Sabha and 2 Anglo- disqualified if he voluntarily duals self expression would
in
Indian members to the Lok gives up the membership of be allowed freedom but
Sabha. his party or vote against the within the limits of the overall
it.
Right to address the party directive or abstain from objective of national unity
Parliament. voting. and progress.
nd
The tenure of the Anti-defection law is added 6. The constitution of India may
President is five years. as the 10th schedule of Indian be said to be a borrowed
The President takes the Constitution. The speaker Constitution as its framers
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oath of office before the considers the question of have gathered the best
Chief Justice of India but disqualification under anti- features liberally from
his letter of resignation defection law. The decision of various sources. The single
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Page 75 of 191
presided elections, nomin- Policy Resolution of the 9. The Parliament can claim a
ation of members of Rajya Parliament are meant as privilege if (i) the
Sabha by the President. From supreme guidelines for the Constitution grants it
the Canadian Constitution functioning of the executive specifically or (ii) it has been
was taken the idea of a Government. Parliament also created by a law of the
federation with a strong specifies the manner in which Parliament (iii) it was enjoyed
Centre, and placing residuary certain specific powers by the lower house on
powers with the Centre. The constitutionally granted to January 26, 1950. More
Weimer Constitution of different authorities is to be specifically the Parliament
Germany was the source of exercised. enjoys freedom of speech,
provisions concerning the 8. According to the immunity from court
suspension of fundamental Constitution of India, the proceeding, freedom from
rights during emergency, concept of Minorities arrest in civil cases within 40
while the idea of a Concurrent incorporates the groups of days before and after the
List was taken from the people differing from the session of the Parliament and
Australian Constitution. other in religion, culture and immunity from liability in
7. Indian Parliament is vested language numerically the respect of Parliamentary
with the power to control over majority. Thus there are papers. The Parliament can
the Executive. The Executive religious, linguistic and punish a person for contempt,
in
is collectively responsible to cultural minorities. Religious, can legislate and control the
the Lok Sabha. Thus it is cultural and educational executive. The basic financial
it.
assumed that the working of safeguards are incorporated function of the parliament
the Union Government is in the Constitution to protect relates to the imposition of
taxes and expenditure from
nd
effectively controlled by the all minority groups (religious,
Parliament. However, in cultural and linguistic.) consolidated funds of India.
practice this control is The Parliament can amend
The safeguards are:
the Constitution but cannot
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Page 76 of 191
It can revise bills, control resources to them. The other of the judges of the Supreme
passing of hasty legislation important part of the Court was initially fixed at
and interpose reasonable Amendment is concerned eight (including the Chief
delay on arbitrary with the constitutionality of Justice). Every judge of the
functioning of the Lok Sabha. the Plan, the Gram Supreme Court is appointed
11. In the year 1994, our Panchayat passes for their by the President. The judges
parliament enacted a very local development. As per hold office until they attain
important constitutional political scientists, the 73rd the age of 65 years. No
amendment. This amendment Constitutional Amendment is minimum age has been
was concerned with the a milestone in the adminis- prescribed for the appoint-
Panchayati Raj Institutions trative development of the ment as a judge of the Supreme
(PRIs). As India opted for the country. Court of India nor any fixed
planned development of the 12. One of the greatest legacies of period of office. In order to be
country, a proper role for the British rule is the Judiciary qualified for appointment as
Panchayati Raj Institutions and the legal set-up in India. a judge of the Supreme Court,
was prepared. This An independent judiciary is a person must be
amendment is concerned the very heart of a republic. (a) a citizen of India and
with the last tier of the three- The foundation of a
tier PRI system. In the long- (b) either a distinguished
democracy, the source of its
in
drawn debate of the jurist, in the opinion of the
perennial vitality, the
democratic decentralisation, a condition for its growth, and President, or
major part had been
concerned with the financial
it.
the hope for its welfare, all lie
in that great institution - an
(c) should have been a High
Court Judge for at least
nd
resources of the Gram independent judiciary. There five years.
Panchayat. The other is a single, integrated judicial An advocate on a State High
important factor was the system for the Union as well Court of ten years standing
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suitable role of the Gram as the States for the also qualifies for the post. The
Panchayat in planning administration of both Union
process of the area. The independence of the Judges of
and State laws. The judiciary the Supreme Court has been
am
present constitutional
is perhaps the most vital limb secured by the Constitution in
amendment went for major
of the Government. The a number of ways. Our
power delegation to the Gram
sanctity of any constitution Supreme Court possesses
Panchayat. The Gram Sabha
rests, to a large extent, on this
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Page 77 of 191
extraordinary power which (b) It devalued the Funda- time to time. The autonomy of
must be used sparingly, but mental Rights vis-a-vis the States having been thus
where the public interest the Directive Principles. eroded, some of them
demands it, the Court will not (c) It effectively obviated the (especially those ruled by
shrink from exercising it and possibility of judicial opposition parties) have been
imposing punishment even review of any Act for fighting hard to alter the
by way of imprisonment in amendment of the picture. They have been
cases where a mere fine may constitution. pressing for greater
not suffice. The Supreme autonomy, while demanding
(d) It virtually unsettled the
Court has been conferred for a radical revision of the
original balance between
powers to direct the transfer lopsided financial relations
the various organs of the
of any civil/criminal case that subsist between the Centre
State.
from one State High Court to and the States. The welfare
another. As the final appellate This amendment had in fact activities of the States
court, the Supreme Court can effected a mini revolution, involving huge expenditure,
revise the decisions of the whereby Parliament sought coupled with recurring
High Courts. Likewise, to overthrow the supremacy natural calamities, do call for
substantial questions of law of the Constitution and made an urgent revision of the
of general importance itself supreme in its stead. financial provisions of the
Some of the far-reaching
in
pending before State High Constitution, in the light of the
courts may be taken over by changes introduced by Mrs. experience of 50 long years of
the Supreme Court and Gandhi through this our sovereign existence as a
disposed of. The Supreme
Court enjoys numerous other it.
amendment were reversed by
the Janata Government, by
modern state.
nd
17. Fundamental Duties is
powers including the power repealing them (through the
incorporated as part IV A of
of judicial review. The apex 43rd Amendment Act of
the constitution by the 42nd
court through its power of 1977). Some provisions of the
Amendment Act, 1976, based
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Page 78 of 191
6. to preserve the rich functioning of the State. It also till the age of retirement. The
heritage of our composite laid down wholesome main functions of the Election
culture; guidelines for the application Commission are:
7. to protect and improve the of Article 356 which was not (1) Prepare electoral rolls for
natural environment; to be exercised for the purpose the election to parliament
of securing good government. and state legislatures.
8. to develop scientific
temper and spirit of 20. For the recruitment to the civil (2) Supervise, direct and
inquiry; services and other posts controls elections of
under the Government, the President, Vice-President,
9. to safeguard public
Constitution provides for an Parliament and State
property ;
independent body known as Legislatures.
10. to strive towards the Public Service
excellence in all spheres (3) Lays down general rules
Commission. The chairman
of individual and for election and issues
and members of .the
collective activity. notification of dates and
Commission are appointed by
schedules of election.
18. The powers of the Governor the President. Article 315
are: provides that there shall be a (4) Accord recognition to
Public Service Commission political parties and allot
He/She appoints the
for the Union as well as symbols etc.
Chief Minister and the
in
council of Ministers, the separate Public Service 22. The President constitutes a
Advocate-General and Commissions for each State. Finance Commission every
the members of the State
Public Service Commi-
it.
Two or more states may agree
among themselves to have a
five years. Article 280 of the
Constitution provides for the
nd
ssion. common Public Service appointment of the Finance
Commission. Further, the Commission. It consists of a
The Governor nominates
Union Public Service chairman and four other
one member of the Anglo-
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Page 79 of 191
to be made by him to meet the 26. CAT is the Central Admin- Court. The salaries are from
unforeseen expenditure. istrative Tribunal. CAT was the charged expenditure of
Similar funds at the disposal set up in November 1985 to the consolidated fund of the
of the State Governors are provide speedy and state. They retire at the age of
created in the State. inexpensive justice to Central 62.
24. List of 22 regional languages Government employees in 29. According to the constitution,
are recognised by the respect to their service the Council of Ministers stays
Constitution in this schedule. matters. The tribunals are in office only as long as it
With the passing of the 100th empowered to resolve enjoys the confidence of the
constitutional Amendment disputes and complaints Lok Sabha; once the
Bill four new languages relating to recruitment and confidence is withdrawn the
(Maithili, Dogri, Bodo and conditions of service of Government is bound to
Santhali) were included in persons appointed to public resign. The rules of
the group of officially services and posts in parliamentary procedure
recognised languages. The connection with affairs of the accordingly provide for
other 18 languages are union Government. It has the moving a motion to ascertain
jurisdiction, powers and this confidence. The motion is
Assamese, Bengali,
authority of a court in generally known as no-
Gujarathi, Hindi, Kannada,
specified matters. confidence motion. A motion
in
Kashmiri, Malayalam,
Marathi, Oriya, Punjabi, 27. Lok Adalats are of this kind must express
supplementary forums for want of confidence in the
it.
Sanskrit, Sindhi, Tamil,
Telugu, Urdu, Konkani, conciliatory settlement of council of ministers, and an
Manipuri & Nepali. Konkani, disputes. All categories of individual minister, as the
nd
Manipuri and Nepali were cases except criminal cases Constitution only provides for
added to the 8th schedule by can be settled through LAs. collective responsibility. A
They have acquired a notice of such a motion must
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the country under the Family the civil court and are raised. If the Speaker is
Court Act passed in 1984. binding on all parties to the convinced that the motion is
They aim to promote dispute. There does not lie in order, the motion is read in
conciliation and secure any appeal to any court the House. Members in favour
ex
Page 80 of 191
the approval of the Lok Sabha Climbing on the Bandwagon: Judicial Review: Judicial
on November 27, 2002. Once Endorsing support to a Review refers to the power of
the bill becomes Act, all the person who is likely to be the judiciary to pronounce
children in the 6 to 14 age elected. judgement with regard to the
group will have the validity of legislation passed
Fundamental Right to free Crossing the Floor: When a by the legislature and the
and compulsory education. legislator changes his party action taken by the
As per the bill the state shall label, he is said to have administrative authorities.
endeavour to provide early crossed the floor. Article 32 confers the power
childhood care and educ- Cross Voting: The voting by of judicial review on the
ation for all children until members breaking the Supreme Court.
they complete the age of six barriers of the party is cross Junta: It is a collective body,
years. The new law voting. consisting usually of military
empowers a child to take a men, which imposes military
state to court of he/she be Dissolution: Disbanding of rule in a country.
devoid of his/her fundamen- the Assembly to hold fresh
Lobbying: The practice of
tal Right. elections.
trying to canvass support for
Extradition: The removal of a a particular measure or
Terminology person by the state where he viewpoint through personal
in
happens to be, to the state or contacts with the members of
Adjournment: When a sitting the territory on which he is legislature. This is usually
it.
assembly is discontinued to alleged to have committed a done in the lobbies to which
be resumed later, it is said that crime. public has access. Hence the
nd
the assembly is adjourned term lobbying.
Gallup Poll: Conduct of test
and if the assembly is Legal Sovereignity: The
poll to ascertain public
discontinued without prescr- Sovereignity of a state which
opinion on topical subjects. It
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Page 81 of 191
Nyaya Panchayat: It is the opposition party to assume day marked for discussion of
judicial panchayat and is portfolios in case the party is budget.
considered an adjunct of the able to wrest the power. Ratification: The formal
Panchayati Raj system. It is Snap Vote: Voting unexpec- adoption by a state of a treaty
meant to provide speedy and tedly recorded without the signed by the representatives.
cheap justice to the villagers. voters being informed in Refrendum: A device of direct
People Sniffer: Indictment of advance by party whip. democracy which is used to
Government through unoffi- Zila Parishads: It is the third- ascertain the view of electorate
cial media. tier of the Panchayati Raj and either in the form of
Plebiscite: A vote by which consists of Presidents of government or as a legislative
the people of an entire Panchayat Samithis, besides proposal on a policy issue.
country or district, express an the MLAs and MPs elected Question Hour: The first hour
opinion for or against a from the district. of every parliamentary sitting
proposal especially on a Amnesty: An act of general is slotted for this. During this
choice of government or ruler. pardon of offenders and time, the members ask
Political Defection: The termination of their penalties questions and the ministers
phenomenon of a legislator Amnesty is generally granted usually give answers. The
elected as a member of a for political offences in the questions are of three kinds
in
political party quitting the name of the Head of the State namely starred, unstarred
party without resigning the to placate the opponents of the and short notice.
seat is called political
defection.
it.
regime through an act of
generosity and trust.
Zero Hour: It is an informal
device available to the
nd
Prorogation: The discontinued Byelection: Special election to members of the parliament to
raise matters without any
sitting of the Assembly is to a seat rendered vacant during
prior notice. The zero hour
be reassembled later. It is done the running term of an elected
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Proportionate Represen- and weaken the other, but the office so long as it enjoys
tation: An electoral system falling short of actual war. confidence of the majority of
which was first advocated by Coupd'etat: A sudden the members of the LokSabha.
J.S. Mill. According to this, the change of government by In otherwords, the Lok Sabha
votes of minorities are not force, brought about by those can remove the ministry from
wasted. Indian President, who already hold some office by passing a non
Vice-President and members governmental or military confidence motion. The
of Rajya Sabha are elected by power. motion needs the supports of
this method. 50 members to be admitted.
Filibuster: Parliamentary
Public Interest Litigation: It device of long speeches, not
means that any member of the necessarily relevant to Abbreviations
public can directly write and obstruct delay or bargain over
draw attention of the court to a measure under consideration AAGSP : All Asian Gana
some injustice being suffered for voting. Sangam Parishad.
by the members of the public. Guillotine: The act of putting ABVP : Akhil Bharatiya
Shadow Cabinet: the persons all the demands to vote Vidhyarthi Parishad.
who have been elected by the without discussion on the last AG : Attorney General.
Page 82 of 191
AIADMK : All India Anna DMK : Dravida Munnetra POTA : Prevention of Terrorism
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam. Activities (Act).
Kazhagam. ESMA : Essential Services PDP : Peoples Democratic
BJP : Bharatiya Janatha Maintenance Act. Party.
Party. EVM : Electronic Voting PMK : Pattali Makkal Katchi.
BKD : Bharatiya Kranthi Dal. Machine. RJD : Rashtriya Janata Dal.
BJD : Biju Janata Dal. FBL : Forward Block. RJP : Rashtriya Janata Party.
BLD : Bharatiya Lok Dal. INL : Indian National RLD : Rashtriya Lok Dal.
BSP : Bahujan Samaj Party. League.
RPI : Republican Party of
CPI : Communist Party of ISP : Indian Socialist Party. India.
India. IUML : Indian Union Muslim RSP : Revolutionary Socialist
CPI (M) : Communist Party of League. Party.
India (Marxist). JD (U) : Janata Dal (United). SJP : Samajwadi Janata Party.
CMP : Common Minimum JP : Janata Party. SAD : Shiromani Akali Dal.
Programme. MDMK : Marumalarchi Dravida TDP : Telugu Desam Party.
CAT : Central Administrative Munnetra Kazhagam.
TULF : Tamil United Libera-
Tribunal. NCP : National Congress Party. tion Front.
in
CAG : Comptroller and NDA : National Democratic UPA : United Progressive
Auditor General. Alliance.
it.
Alliance.
nd
Important Amendments
Amendments deal with statehood to Goa. Provided a 40 member
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in the Indian Constitution. Because of its wide Eighth Schedule, thus raising the number of
sweep and drastic nature, it came to be called a languages from 15 to 18.
Mini Constitution. Its main provisions are 1) the Amend. 73 (1992) Lead to the formation of
words secular and socialist were added to Panchayati Raj.
the Preamble. 2) the primacy of Directive Amend. 74 (1992) Led to the formation of
Principles over Fundamental Rights was Nagar Palikas.
ensured 3) restrictions were placed on the
Amend. 79 (1999) Extended the reservation of
exercise of judicial review by the High Courts. It
Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and
was laid down that the Supreme Court alone
Anglo- Indians in Lok Sabha and State
would be entitled to examine the constitutional
Assemblies for ten more years ie, upto 2010.
validity of union laws.
Amend. 84 (2000) Relates to the creation of new
Amend. 44 (1978) The Right of Property, a
states of Jharkhand, Chattisgarh and
fundamental right was taken away and it is
Uttaranchal.
only a legal right now.
93 Amendment Bill : Education - A
Amend. 56 (1987) Accorded the status of
Fundamental Right.
Page 83 of 191
Source of Indian constitution
in
it.
nd
Govt. of India act 1935: Federal system, office of the Governor, Power of federal judiciary,
emergency power, public Service commission, Administrative details
pu
United Kingdom: Law making procedure, Rule of law, provision of single citizenship,
Parliamentary Govt., Bicameralism, prerogative writs, Office of the CAG
am
USA: Independent judiciary, Judicial review, Fundamental rights, Removal of supreme and high
court judge (Impeachment), preamble, Function of Vice president
ex
Canada: Federation with a strong centre, residuary power with the centre, Appointment of state
Governors by center, Advisory/review of Supreme Court
France: Republic
Page 84 of 191
Indian Geography
The Himalayas is the highest mountain range in the
world and also the youngest mountain range.
Longest Mountain Range is Andes in South
America
Mountains between the Indus and the Brahma-
putra are called 'the Himalayas' meaning 'the abode
of snow.'
The Himalayas consist of three parallel ranges.
(i) The southernmost range, called the Siwalik is
the lowest.
(ii) The ranges lying north of the Siwalik are known
as the middle Himalayas or the Himachal.
in
(iii) The northernmost ranges of the Himalayas,
known as the Himadri, are the highest with an
it.
average height of more than 6,000 metres above
the sea level.
nd
Longitudina or Regional Divisions of Himalayas.
Karakoram Kashmir Himalayas, between river indus and sutlej.
pu
India : Physical
Features Queen Mary 2
am
Page 85 of 191
Kumaon Himalayas, between river Sutlej and River
Kali.
Nepal Himalayas, between river Kali and river
Teesta.
Assam Himalayas, between river Teesta and
Brahmaputra Gorge.
The Himadri contain some of the world's highest
peaks.
Mt. Everest (8848 m) in Nepal is the world's
highest peak.
Kanchenjunga in Sikkim is the highest peak of
the Himalayas in India.
Highest Mountain Peak in India
(a) K2 (b) Kanchenjunga
(c) Nanda Devi (d) Mt. Everest
Ans: (a) K2
It is in Pak Occupied Kashmir.HutZym-Kn-I-ambn
in
CXv Cy-bpsS {]tZ-i-am-Wv. Geographically, Deccan plateau is the
oldest part of India.
it.
Important passes of Himalayas
Kashmir : Burzil and Jojila
nd
Himachal Pradesh : Bara, Lepcha-la, Shipkila The Eastern Ghats are irregular hill ranges that
Uttar Pradesh : Thanga-la, Niti-la, Lipu-Lekhla stretch from northern Orissa to the Nilgiris in
Tamil Nadu across the coastal Andhra.
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Shipki Pass leads from the Punjab to Tibet. Aravallis is the oldest mountain range in India.
The Purvachal Hills in the north-east consist of Sahyadri hills is a part of the Western Ghats.
the Patkai-Bum, the Garo-Khasi-Jaintia and Lushai Nilgiris is also a part of Western Ghats. Nilgiri is
Hills. known as the Blue Mountains.
Vindhya mountains cut off the northern plain from The southernmost tip of Eastern Ghats is called
the south. Cardamom Hills.
The Peninsular mountains include The Western The Western Ghats and Eastern Ghats meet at
Ghats (The Sahyadris), The Eastern Ghats, The Nilgiri Hills.
Satpura Range and The Aravallis.
The Western Ghats runs along the west coast The Peninsular Plateau
from the south of Tapti river valley to Rising from the Alluvial plains of U.P and Bihar,
Kanyakumari. Passes in Western Ghats are the south of the Yamuna - Ganga line, the great Indian
Palghat between Palakkad and Coimbatore, plateau (Peninsular plateau) extends towards the
Shenkotta between Kollam and Madurai, Thalghat
south to encompass the whole of the peninsula.
between Mumbai and Pune and the Bhorghat be-
Its north-west limit is marked by the Aravalli range.
tween Mumbai and Nassik.
The Peninsular plateau can be divided into three-
Page 86 of 191
the Central Plateau, the Eastern Plateau and the
Deccan Plateau.
The Eastern plateau lies to the north - east of
Malwa.
East of Baghelkhand is the Chottanagpur plateau
in Jharkhand which is 700m high and has steep
borders.
The Malwa plateau, particularly its north - east- Anthroth Island
ern part called the Chottanagpur plateau is the
The largest Island in Lakshadweep
richest mineral producing region of India.
Anamudi (Idukki) in Kerala is the highest peak of Islands.
Peninsular India.
The southernmost tip of India, Indira point is in
The Deccan plateau lies to the south of northern Great Nicobar islands which is the biggest island
plain. The plateau is flanked by mountain ranges in Nicobar group.
called Eastern and Western Ghats. The islands of Laccadive, Minicoy and Amindivi
The triangular plateau is Indias largest plateau in the Arabian sea are known as Lakshadweep. It
in
with a height ranging from 900 to 300 m in the comprises of a group of 36 islands, about 300km
west and east. N- Sextenat - 1600 km and E-Wextent to the west of Kerala coast. Only 10 of the islands
- 1400 km.
it.
are inhabited.
Kavarathi is the capital of Lakshadweep.
nd
New Moore Island lies in Bay of Bengal near West
Great Plains Bengal also belong to India.
pu
The Great plains are found between the Himalayas Coco Islands North of Andaman belong to
and Peninsular plateau which extends to about Myanmar.
2400 km. Biggest Island in Andaman Group - Middle
am
The plains are drained by river Sutlej and the Beas Andaman
in the west, the Ganges and its tributaries in the Biggest Island in Nicobar Group - Great Nicobar
east. Smallest Island in Andaman Group - Ross Island
ex
Sambhar, the salt lake lies in the Rajasthan plains. Smallest Island in Nicobar Group - Pilomillow Is-
The most fertile region of India is the northern land
plains formed by the valleys of rivers Ganges and Highest point in Nicobar Group - Mount Thullier.
Brahmaputra.
The Islands
Soils in India
The Indian Council of Agricultural Research
Besides mainlands India has two groups of Islands
(ICAR) divides the soils found in the country into
namely the Andaman and Nicobar Islands in the
8 major groups.
Bay of Bengal and the Lakshadweep Islands in the
Arabian Sea. They are: Alluvial soil, Black soil, Red soil, Later-
ite soil, Forest soil, Arid and Desert soils, Saline
Andamans consists of a northern cluster of 204
and Alkaline soils and Peaty and Organic soils.
small islands and Nicobar islands consists of a
southern cluster of 19 Islands. Alluvial Soil
Ten degree channel separates Andaman from Alluvial soil contributing the largest share, is
Nicobar. formed by the deposition of sediments by rivers
Port Blair is the capital of Andaman & Nicobar in the interior parts of India and by the sea waves
Page 87 of 191
in the coastal areas of the country. hydrated double iron and titaniferous magnetite.
Alluvial soil is the best agricultural soil because Black soil found in Maharashtra, Gujarat, West
(i) They contain a variety of salts derived from Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil
Himalayan rocks. Nadu
(ii) They are light and porous, therefore easily Red Soil
tillable.
(iii) They are good for canal irrigation because of Red soil is formed by the weathering of ancient
high water table and an easily penetrable stratum. metamorphic and crystalline rocks.
Alluvial soils are rich in potash and poor in nitro- They are airy and need irrigation support for cul-
gen and organic matter. tivation. Red soil is suitable for the cultivation of
pulses and coarse grains.
Alluvial soils are suitable for cultivation of almost
all kinds of cereals, pulses, oil seeds, cotton, sug- Red soils are poor in nitrogen, phosphorous, po-
arcane and vegetables. tassium and organic matter.
Ahmedabad, Baroda and Kheda districts of They are more suitable for the cultivation of rice,
in
Kerala are some of
the states in which
it.
alluvial soil is
found.
nd
The coastal allu-
vium is of tidal ori-
gin.
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erosion.
Black Soil
Black soil is found
ex
largely in the
Deccan plateau.
Black soil is suit-
able for the cultiva-
tion of cotton and
therefore it is called
black cotton soil.
The black colour of
the black soil is at-
tributed to the pres-
ence of compounds
of Iron and alu-
m i n i u m ,
accumulated hu-
mus, aluminium sili-
cate, colloidal
Page 88 of 191
ragi, tobacco and vegetable. of organic matter. These soils are highly saline
and rich in organic matter.
Laterite Soil
Laterite soils are formed by the weathering of lat- The River Systems of India
erite rocks. Laterite soils are deficient in nitrogen.
Rivers in India may be classified into the Hima-
They are chiefly found in Karnataka, Kerala,
layan rivers, the Deccan river (Peninsular Rivers).
Madhya Pradesh, Orissa and Malabar areas.
These soils cover the high rainfall areas of West
These soils are agriculturally unimportant because
Bengal, Orissa and Kerala.
of intensive leaching, a low base exchange capac-
ity and their acidic nature. Himalayan rivers
The Himalayan rivers are perennial snow fed riv-
Forest Soil ers. During the monsoon season, the rivers dis-
Forest soils are formed by the deposition of or- charge the maximum amount of water causing fre-
ganic matter derived from forests. They are rich in quent floods.
organic matter and humus. They are found mainly Yamuna, Gomti, Ghagra, Gandak, Ram Ganga, Son,
in Punjab, Karnataka, Manipur and Jammu & Chambal, Betwa and Ken are the the main tribu-
taries of Ganga.
in
Kashmir.
Ganga is known by the name Padma in Bangladesh.
These soils are used for plantations of tea, cof- Ganga flows through Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and West
fee, spices and fruits.
it.
Bengal and finally enters into the Bay of Bengal.
Brahmaputra is the second largest river system
nd
Arid and Desert Soils of Indian sub-continent. The 2,688 km
Arid and Desert soils are formed under arid and Brahmaputra is longer than the Ganges, but only
one third of the river passes through India.
pu
These soils often have a high soluble salt content In Tibet, Brahmaputra is known as Tsang Po.
and low to very low humus content. After making deep gorges in Namcha Barwa, it
These soils are made fertile by adding gypsum. enters India in Arunachal Pradesh as 'Dihang'. It
ex
Page 89 of 191
sW-nepw Ch-bpsS sNdn-sbmcp `mKw am{Xta The Luni orginates from Annasagar in the Aravallis
Cy-bn-eqsS Hgp-Ip-p-p. and ends on the Sahni marshes, North of Rann of
Brahmaputra is the only river in the world which Kutch.
form a river island named 'Majauli Island.' The worlds largest delta, Sunderbans is formed
Indus is the longest river of Indian sub-continent. by the Ganges and Brahmaputra in West Bengal
It is 2900 km long. It flows mainly through Pakistan. and Bangladesh, in the Bay of Bengal.
Sutlej, Beas, Ravi, Chenab and Jhelum are the five The Third river system is also called the Rivers
tributaries of Indus. Mount Kailash in Tibet is the of Inland Drainage Basins which consists of small
source of Indus river. It enters into the Arabian sea. rivers in the sandy areas of Rajasthan.
The Ravi is the smallest river of Punjab and is well- Lakes
known as the 'River of Lahore.' It rises near the The largest fresh water lake in India: Lake Kolleru
Rohtang pass in the Kulu hills of Himachal Pradesh. (Andhra Pradesh). Wular is the second largest
The Chenab is the largest of Indus tributaries. It fresh water lake.
has a total length of 1,800 km in India. The second largest salt water lake is Sambhar in
Peninsular rivers Rajasthan.
Important lakes in India are Chilka (Orissa),
Peninsular rivers (The Deccan System) are gener- Sambhar (Rajasthan),
ally rainfed and comprises the rivers of peninsu- Pulicat (Andhra
in
lar India. They are shorter and seasonal in nature. The largest Pradesh) and
River Godavari is the largest river system (1465 saltwater lake : Vembanad (Kerala),
it.
km long) of peninsular India. It is known as the Lake Chilka Woolar (J &K), Dal
'Vridha Ganga' or 'Dakshin Ganga.' It rises from (Orissa) (J&K), Uday Sagar
nd
Trambak in Nasik district in the Western Ghats. (Rajasthan), Puslikar
River Krishna rises from the north of (Rajasthan), Puslikar
Mahabaleswar in the Western Ghats. It enters into (Rajasthan), Loktak
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the Bay of Bengal. Krishna basin forms the third (Manipur Hills).
largest river basin in India. Dal Lake is fa-
River Cauvery rises from the Brahmagiri hills in mous for house boats.
am
Page 90 of 191
The North East Monsoon (October - November) landmass of north-western India towards the In-
brings rain mainly to Tamil Nadu. dian Ocean.
On the basis of monsoonal variations there are Thunder storm cause upto 25 cm of rainfall along
four seasons in India namely the cold (winter) the Kerala and Karnataka coasts and about 10 cm.
season (December to February), the hot (summer) in the interior of South India. Such rains are called
season (March to May), the south west monsoon 'Cherry Blossoms' in Karnataka where they
(the rainy season) (June to September) and the prove immensely beneficial to coffee plantation.
season of retreating monsoon (October to No- They are called as 'Mango Showers' in South
vember). India, due to their salutary effect on mango crop.
The North - East Monsoons are comparitively mi- The normal date of the onset of the rains is 20th
nor monsoons confined to a smaller area of the May in Andaman & Nicobar Islands and by the
country. They are the winds blowing out from the end of June, it is usually established over most of
the country.
in
it.
nd
pu
am
ex
Page 91 of 191
gions, Drass and Kargil of Ladakh region are the
Mawsynram in coldest regions in the country.
Meghalaya (1141 cm) is the
rainiest place in the world. Chirapunji in Meghalaya is the wettest place in
India.
Jaisalmer in western Rajasthan is the driest place
in India which receives the lowest rainfall.
in
Tropical Evergreen forests are dense forests of
luxuriant growth found in areas where rainfall
National Parks, Sanctuaries and
it.
ranges between 200 to 300 cm. eg; Western Ghats
Biosphere Reserves in India and sub-Himalayan regions.
nd
Tropical Decidous Forests or Monsoon Forests
Namdapha (B.R) .................. Arunachal Pradesh are areas having annual rainfall between 100-200
Kaziranga (N.P) ...................................... Assam cm.
pu
Manas (N.P) ........................................... Assam Tidal or Littoral Forests occur along the deltas of
Hazaribagh (N.P) ............................... Jharkhand West Bengal Orissa and Andhra Pradesh receiv-
Gir (N.P) ................................................. Gujarat ing annual rainfall above 200 cm. Sundari tree is
am
Dachigam (N.P) ..................... Jammu & Kashmir Swamps or Littoral forests are also called tidal
Salim Ali (N.P) ....................... Jammu & Kashmir forests which occur in and around the tidal creeks
Karakoram (S) ........................ Jammu & Kashmir and along the deltas of river Ganges, Mahanadi,
Krishna and Godavari.
Bandipur (N.P) .................................. Karnataka
Alpine forests cover the alpine areas in the
Kudremukh (N.P) ............................... Karnataka
Himalayas, at a height of 2880 m to 3700m.
Ranganathittu (S) .............................. Karnataka Siwaliks are covered with tropical moist deciduous
Eravikulam (N.P) ...................................... Kerala flora such as sal and bamboo.
Silent Valley (N.P) .................................... Kerala Planting of trees is known as afforestation.
Idukki (S) ................................................ Kerala Deforestation is the destruction of trees.
Indravati (N.P) ............................... Chhattisgarh Forests also help to prevent soil erosion and
Kanha (N.P) .................................. Chhattisgarh land slides. It maintains the ecological balance
Sariska (N.P) ...................................... Rajasthan and provides forest products such as timber and
Jim Corbett (N.P) ............................. Uttaranchal industrial raw materials. Forests helps to pro-
tect wild life and rare species of trees and plants.
Dudhwa (N.P) ............................... Uttar Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh has the largest area under for-
Nanda Devi (N.P) ............................ Uttaranchal
est among the Indian states.
Page 92 of 191
Haryana has the least area under forest. fauna, to which India is a signatory.
Arunachal Pradesh has the largest percentage of Some of the endangered species are Asiatic Lion,
area under forest. One Horned Rhinocerous, Hangul, Royal Bengal
India provides about 8% of the worlds hardwood Tiger, Wild Ass etc.
and ranks third after Brazil and Indonesia. The Animal Welfare Board of India was estab-
Mangrove forests are found in the coastal plains. lished in 1962. Research programmes in wildlife
The forests on the Ganges delta in Bengal are called are carried out by the Wild life Institute of India,
Sunderbans after the sundari trees in these forests. Dehradun and the Salim Ali Centre for
Evergreen forests (Tropical) are found in the West- Ornithology and Natural History, Coimbatore.
ern ghats and Sub-Himalayan region. They pro- Project Tiger is the centrally sponsored scheme
vide hardwood like teak, rosewood, ebony etc. launched on April 1, 1973 to save the tigers from
Social forestry aims at not only providing extinction on India.
fuelwood, fodder and other forest products, but At present Madhya Pradesh tops the state with
also to meet the requirement of ecological bal- greater number of Tigers. Madhya Pradesh is
ance through large scale afforestation on known as the tiger state of India. M.P was fol-
community lands and waste lands. lowed by Uttar Pradesh.
Energy plantations are plantation of softwood and Project Elephant was launched to protect the wild
in
grass to meet the energy needs of households. life and elephant population during the eighth
World Environment Day : June 5 plan, ie in 1991.
it.
A wild life week is observed in the first week of
October every year.
nd
Biosphere Reserves: Biosphere preserve are multi
The wild life reserves of India are of two types - purpose protected area to preserve the genetic
the Wild life sanctuaries and National parks. diversity in representative eco system.
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status with the adoption of the Wildlife (Protec- They are: Nilgiri, Nanda Devi, Nokrek, Great
tion) Act, 1972 by all the Indian states except Nicobar, Gulf of Mannar, Manas, Sunderbans,
Jammu and Kashmir.. Similipal, Dibru Daikhowa, Dehong Deband,
Trade in endangered species is subject to strict Panchmarhi, Khangchendzonga. Agastyamalai
ex
rules under the Convention on International Trade and Achanakamar - Amar Kantak.
in Endangered Species (CITES) of wild flora and
Mineral Wealth In India
India is rich in mineral resources and has the po-
tential to become an industrial power.
India is the 5th largest exporter of Iron ore in the
world.
India is the largest producer of mica in the world.
Jharkhand is the leading producer of mica. Bihar,
Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh also produce mica.
The Great plains of Northern India are devoid of
deposits of economic minerals. On the other hand
Jharkhand and Orissa areas on the North-Eastern
parts of Peninsular India possess large concen-
Keibul Lamjo is the only floating National tration of mineral deposits accounting for nearly
Park in the country, is located in Manipur in three-fourths of the countrys coal deposits.
Loktak Lake
Page 93 of 191
Raniganj (West Bengal), Jharia (Bihar), Singarui
(Madhya Pradesh) and Korba (Chhattisgarh) are
the major coal fields in India.
Mineral deposits are also scattered over the pen-
insular India and in parts of Assam and Rajasthan.
Thorium, a likely future substitute for Uranium as
a fission meterial in atomic reactors, occurs in con-
siderable quantities as ThO2, in the beach sands
of Kerala coast.
Thorianite and Monazite are the main ores of tho-
rium. Monazite deposits of commercial value are
found in about 160 kms between Cape Comorin
and Kollam in Kerala.
India possesses the largest reserves of monazite
known in the world. Mineral State of India
Uranium compounds occurs in Singhbhum - cop- Jharkhand
per belt of Jharkhand, Aravalli's and central
Himalaya. The first successful oil well was sunk at Digboi in
in
Monazite which contains small percentage of Ura- 1889. The recently discovered sea-bed oil fields of
nium Oxide occurs in the beach sands of the east Bombay High are also yielding, substantial quan-
it.
and west in India. tities of oil.
Marble is found largely in Rajasthan. Bombay High is the offshore oil field located in
nd
Diamond is found at Panna in Madhya Pradesh. the coast of Maharashtra.
India is rich in iron, mica, manganese and bauxite. The first boring was made at Nahor Pung in No-
India is deficient in copper, lead, mercury, zinc, vember, 1866 in Makum area of Assam.
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tin, nickel, petroleum products, sulphur and Digboi in Assam is the oldest oil well of India.
tungsten and spends considerable amounts in Oil and Natural Gas Commission (ONGC) was set
foreign exchange on their imports. up at Dehradun in 1956.
am
Formerly it was a part of Bihar. of India envisages a mixed economy, i.e., the
Jharkhand is the state with highest mineral out- co-existance of public and private sectors.
put in India. The large scale industries of India covers iron
Chottanagpur plateau is the richest mineral belt and steel, engineering, jute, cotton, textiles and
of India. sugar industries.
Gold is found in the Kolar Gold fields in Karnataka Cotton textiles is the oldest industry in India. It
and in small quantities in Ramigiri gold fields in has the largest number of workers employed in
Andhra Pradesh. an industry.
Lignite is mainly found in the Neyveli fields in Tamil Mumbai has become the 'cottonpolis' of India.
Nadu. Ahmadabad Vadodra region is the second largest
Natural gas fields are Ankleshwar and Cambay in centre of cotton textile.
Gujarat, Bombay high and Assam. Kanpur is famous for textiles and clothing, large
Almost all the copper in India comes from modern tanneries, leather works and shoe
Singhbhum and Hazaribagh in Jharkhand and manufacturing.
Khetri in Rajasthan. Sholapur is famous for important textiles based
India ranks third in the world in the production of on cotton grown in local regular soils.
manganese. Orissa is the leading producer of man- The first modern cotton textile mill was estab-
ganese in the state.
Page 94 of 191
lished in Bombay in 1851. (i) at Vellore (near Kottayam) in Kerala
Karnataka is the largest producer of silk. (ii) at Nepanagar (M.P) - 1955
First modern silk factory - was set up at Howrah in (iii) Shimoga in Karnataka.
1832. (iv) Pugalur in Tirchchirapalli (T.N.)
Dharwar - Belgaum are known for cotton textiles West Bengal is the leading state in paper manu-
railway and general engineering goods. facturing.
In 1870, the first steel industry,Bengal Iron NALCO (National Aluminium Company Ltd.),
Company was set up at Kulti, West Bengal. BALCO (Bharat Aluminium Company),
The first large scale steel plant in the private sec- HINDAL CO (The Hindustan Aluminium Corpo-
tor was Tata Iron and Steel Company, Jamshedpur. ration Ltd.), The Indian Aluminium Co. Ltd.
The public sector steel plants are managed by the (INDAL) are the leading producers of aluminium
Steel Authority of India (SAIL). in the country.
Majority of the jute mills are located in West Ben- India is the largest sugar producing country with
gal. As a foreign exchange earner, it is an impor- over 15% share of the global output. It is also the
tant industry in the country. largest consumer.
Rourkela steel plant in Orissa was set up under Maharashtra produces more than one third of the
the second five year plan in assistance with Ger-
total production of sugar in country.
many.
in
Bokaro, the biggest plant in Asia was set up un-
der the fourth five year plan in association with Agriculture
it.
the Russian Government. It is located in Agriculture is the largest source of livelihood for
Jharkhand. over 2/3rd (about 70%) of the population of India.
nd
Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) is a quasi gov- Agriculture contributes 22% to the GDP.
ernmental institution for drawing up standards
for the products of Indian industry. It was estab- Crops in India can be classified into subsistence
crops, commercial crops, plantation crops and hor-
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lished in 1947.
National Productivity Council (NPC) is an autono- ticulture crops.
mous body formed to inculcate productivity in Crop season in India can be classified into three
such as Kharif, Rabi and Zayad.
am
Page 95 of 191
Cashewnut is mainly found in Kerala. India is the third largest producer of and fourth
Saffron is found mainly in Jammu and Kashmir. largest consumer of Rubber.
Groundnut is found mainly in Gujarat. Black pepper is the most important dollar earning
Karnataka is the chief producer of coffee. crop.
Uttar Pradesh is the largest producer of sugar- India occupies second position after Gautemala
cane. in terms of production, productivity and export of
Tobacco is mainly produced in Maharashtra. cardamom.
The Green Revolution (first) was launched in 1967-68. Andhra Pradesh is the largest producer of chil-
The second Green Revolution was launched in lies.
1983-84. India is the largest (80%) producer of ginger
The father of Green Revolution in India - Dr. M.S.
India stands second in terms of cultivated land
Swaminathan. after USA.
Father of Green Revolution - Norman Borlaug.
Millets (Jowar & Bajra) is a poor man's food.
To increase yield per hectare government of India
Two varieties of tea in India : Black tea and Green tea.
introduced a programme called Green Revolu-
tion. According to this programme the farmers are Indian Coffee is known for its quality and aroma.
taught to use high yielding variety of seed (H.Y.V), There are two types of coffee : Arabica and
correct types of fertilisers and the government Raibusta. Arabica is better than Raibusta.
in
has provided facilities of irrigation. Wheat production is highest in Uttar Pradesh
and Punjab comes next.
Rice in the staple food of India.
Operation flood I was launched in 1970, which
it.
India has the largest area under rice cultivation in
aimed at capturing a commanding share of the
the world liquid milk market.
nd
In terms of production it is next only to China. A centrally sponsored Command Area Develop-
India occupies second position in rice exports, ment Programme was launched in 1974-75 with the
nex only to Thailand. main objective of improving utilization of irrigation
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Banana ranks no 1 in fruit production in India's potential and optimizing agricultural productivity.
followed by Mango and citrus. India is the leading producer of tea.
Potato ranks No. 1 in vegetable production in In-
am
Page 96 of 191
The most
populous state
of India: Uttar The least
Pradesh populous state:
Sikkim The eastern
most state:
Arunachal
The Pradesh
largest
state:
Rajasthan
in
it.
nd
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Largest
populated
city:
am
Mumbai
ex
The
smallest The Mineral
state state:
Goa Jharkhand
The
smallest
Union
Territory
The southern
most tip of
India: Indira
point
Page 97 of 191
INDUS
Indus ( km) is
the largest
river of Indian
sub continent.
J h e l u m ,
Chenab Ravi,
INDIA
Sutlej, Beas are
the important
tributaries
Chenab is the
largest of all
Water Bodies
the Indus
tributaries
in
T apt i
it.
nd
Brahmaputra
pu
Brahmaputra is
the second
largest river
system of Indian
am
sub continent.
After making
Narmada & deep gorges in
Tapti are the two Namcha Barwa,
it enters India in
ex
important west
flowing rivers of Arunachal
India GANGA Pradesh as
Dihang. It
It is the longest enters Sadiya
river in India District of
(2640 km). Assam and
Formed by two known as
head streams, Brahmaputra.
East Flowing
Alakananda and When it enters
Rivers Bhagirathi which Bangladesh, it is
Mahanadi, join at Devprayag. named as
Godavari, Krishna, Meghna.
The Yamuna is the
Kaveri are the
largest and the
important rivers.
most important
Godavari is the
tributary of Ganga.
longest river of the
Peninsula. Ganga is known as
Bhima, Krishna and Padma in
Thungabhadhra are Bangladesh.
the three tributaries
of Krishna.
Page 98 of 191
INDIA Physical Features
Worlds second
highest peak: K2 Mount Everest: Kachenjunga
(Godwin Austin) Highest Peak in Sikkim is
in the World the highest
(Nepal) peak of the
Himalaya in
India
Aravallis is the
Oldest Mountain
Range in India
in
it.
nd
Deccan Plateau
is the oldest part of
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India
am
of Western Ghats
Page 99 of 191
Now India have
Wild life Sanctuaries: 490
National Parks : 88
Keibul Lamjo is the only floating National
Park in India (Manipur)
Sanctuaries/National Parks .... Location & State
Valmiki ............................ Hazaribagh (Jharkhand)
Simlipal ................................. Mayurbhanj (Orissa)
Palamau .......................... Daltonganj (Jharkhand)
Bandipur ................................ Mysore (Karnataka)
Kanha ...................... Mandla and Balaghat (M.P)
Melghat ............................................... Maharashtra
Ranthambore .......... Swai Madhopur (Rajasthan)
Corbett ............................. Garhwal (Uttarakhand)
Sunderbans ........................................ (West bengal)
Manas ......................................... Barpetal (Assam)
Periya r ........................................... Idukki (Kerala)
Sariska ....................................... Alwar (Rajasthan)
Buxar .................................................... West Bengal
Indra vathi ............................................. Chattisgarh
in
Nagarjuna Sagar ............................ Srisailam (A.P)
Namdapha ................ Tirap (Aruanchal Pradesh)
it.
Dudwa ............................. Lakhimpur Kheri (U.P)
Kalkad Mundanthuria Tirunelveli (Tamil Nadu)
Bandhavagarh ............. Shadol (Madhya Pradesh)
nd
Panna ............................................ Madhya Pradesh
Da mpha .................................... Aizwal (Mizoram)
Bhadra ..................................................... Karna taka
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INDIA - Minerals
am
in
it.
nd
pu
in
it.
nd
pu
am
ex
11
2
3
am
10
ex
4
9
6
7
in
it.
nd
pu
am
ex
in
in Giza, Egypt. 4 : Birth of Jesus Christ.
c. 2500 : The Indus Valley civilisation began to AD
flourish in the cities of Mohenjo-Daro and
Harappa in what is now Pakistan.
1
it.
: The Chinese invented paper.
nd
250 : The Mayans developed an advanced civi-
c. 2500 : The Epic of Gilgamesh and the Epic of lization in Central America and Mexico.
Creation, the oldest epic poems in world
313 : Constantine issued the Edict of Milan, which
pu
in
nople (Istanbul) and overthrew the Byz- ence opened. Cedric, the world largest ship
antine Empire. (21,000 tons) built. First Trans-Atlantic tel-
1492 : Columbus discovered America.
it. egraph message sent.
nd
1498 : Vasco da Gama discovered sea route to 1903 : Marie Curie becomes the first woman to
India. win a Nobel Prize (Physics). Wilber and
Orville Wright fly their Flyer at Kitty
1500s : The Reformation led to the birth of
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1519-1521: Ferdinand Magellan commanded the first 1904 : Henry Royce produces first motor car, a
am
in
Chinese Revolution that ended 1000
1923 : Turkey declared a Republic.
years of imperial rule. Sun Yat-sen be-
it.
comes the first president of the Chinese 1924 : Bacillus causing rabies isolated by the Pas-
Republic. Second Nobel Prize awarded to teur Institute, Paris. Edwin Hubble discov-
nd
Marie Curie. Ronald Amundsen reaches ers the unknown boundaries of the Milky
South Pole. Way.
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1912 : Titanic, worlds biggest ship sinks in 1925 : John Logie Baird perfects television.
North Atlantic.
1926 : Abdul Aziz ibn Saud proclaimed King of the
1913 : Grand Central Station, New York, worlds Hejaz who named his country Saudi Arabia.
am
a telephone recorder. Noguchi isolates the and Paris made by Charles Lindbergh.
virus of rabies. 1928 : Germ killing mould discovered by Alex-
1914 : Cancer treated with radium successful. ander Fleming, London. Stalins First Five
Heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, the Year Plan.
Archduke Franz Ferdinand, and his wife
1929 : Wall Street crash, the biggest financial
shot and killed in Sarajevo by a student,
crisis of the century.
Garvilo Princip. It served as a catalyst for
World War I. 1930 : Pluto, the 9th planet, discovered by
1917 : Russian Revolution. Russia became a re- Claude Tombaugh. First modern compu-
public. Bolsheviks came to power in Rus- ter designed by Vannevar Bush and his
sia. team.
1918 : US President Wilson enumerates his 14 1931 : Thomas Alva Edison dies.
points. Moscow is made the new capital
1932 : Chadvick discovers the neutron.
of Russia. Bolsheviks become the Russian
1933 : Adolf Hitler, Nazi leader, becomes Chancel-
in
ler commits suicide. 50 nations sign the USSR. Soviet Unions Yuri Gagarin, be-
World Security Charger to establish UN. comes the first man to fly in space. Alan
UN Charter signed by 50 countries.
Postdam Conference. Little Boy, a Ura- it. Shephard Jr. becomes the first American
in Space. East Germans erect a five foot
nd
nium-235 fission bomb, dropped over wall (Berlin Wall). UN Secretary-General
Japanese city Hiroshima, explodes, 570 Dag Hammarskjld killed in an aircrash.
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mts. above ground, instantly killing over 1962 : John Glenn becomes the first American
70,000. A 22-kiloton plutonium 239 bomb, to orbit Earth in Mercury.
Fat Man, dropped over Nagasaki, ex-
am
founded.
nated.
1946 : Paris Peace Conference.
1965 : Singapore recedes from Malaysia to be-
1947 : IMF begins operations. come an independent state.
1948 : GATT enters into force. New state of Is- 1966 : Luna 9 of USSR makes the first soft lunar
rael proclaimed. landing.
1952 : King George VI of UK dies and Elizabeth 1967 : Apollo I cabin bursts at the Kennedy
II becomes Queen. Artificial heart used Space Centre launch pad killing three.
for the first time in USA. A non-violent
1968 : Martin Luther King assassinated.
campaign against apartheid begins in
South Africa. 1969 : Arafat head of PLO. Anglo-French super-
1953 : Chinas five-year plan begins. Hammarskjld sonic airline Concorde introduced. Neil
sworn in as UN Secretary- General. Mount Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin become the
Everest conquered by Edmund Hillary and first men to set foot on the moon.
Tensing Norway. 1970 : Kingdom of Cambodia becomes the
Khmer Republic.
in
1979 : Z.A. Bhutto executed. Margaret Thatcher Union. Commonwealth of Independent
it.
becomes first woman Prime Minister of Brit- states formed.
ain. SALT II agreement signed by Jimmy 1992 : Earth Summit in Rio.
nd
Carter and the Soviet leaders.
1993 : Bill Clinton new US President. Netherlands
1981 : The reusable Space Shuttle Columbia becomes the first country to sanction
launched. TGV, worlds fastest train, makes
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1984 : Dorjei conquers the Everest without oxy- nated. USAs Strategic Defense Initiative
gen. (SDI) stopped. Maastricht Treaty on Eu-
ropean Union comes into effect.
1985 : The Rainbow Warrior, flagship of ecological
ex
group Greenpeace, sinks after explosion in 1994 : End of Apartheid in South Africa. The
Auckland. comet Shoemaker Levy 9 smashes into Ju-
piter.
1986 : US Space Shuttle Challenger explodes af-
ter takeoff, killing seven astronaut. Soviet 1995 : WTO comes into effect. Austria, Finland
Unions Mir Space Station launched. and Sweden become new members of EU.
Nuclear leak in Chernobyl power station. Kobe earthquake in Japan kills 4,700
Ann Bancroft becomes first woman to people. DNA code of living organisms deci-
reach North Pole. phered.
1988 : Pakistan President General Zia-ul-Haq 1996 : Gary Kasparov wins chess series against
killed in an air crash. India quells inva- IBM computer Deep Blue. Arafat be-
sion of Maldives by sea-borne group. comes President of Palestinian Author-
George Bush elected President of USA. ity.
1989 : Ranasinghe Premadasa becomes Presi- 1997 : British scientists clone a sheep (Polly). Hale
dent of Sri Lanka. Students in Beijing dem- Bopp comet comes closest to earth (200
in
awards. ons, without setting a time table.
: India conducts five nuclear tests (three on : An e-mail virus I Love You created by a
11th May and two on 13th May 1998).
it. Filipino creates wide spread damage to
computer systems across the world.
nd
Pakistan conducts six nuclear test (5 on
28th May and one on 30th May 1998). : Fijis President declares a state of emer-
: France win World Cup Football. gency after a group of gunmen led by
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: French voters approve a referendum on 2001 : The 15-year-old Mir Space Station aban-
shortening the Presidential term to five doned
years. : ANDi the worlds first genetically modi-
: Russia recognises Yugoslav opposition fied monkey, created.
in
leader, Vojislav Kostunicas, historic presi- : The radical Islamic Taliban regime in Af-
it.
dential election victory over Slobodan ghanistan demolishes two huge statues
Milosevic. of the Buddha at Bamiyan.
nd
: Sirimavo Bandaranaike, the worlds first : Dennis Tito of the United States becomes
elected woman Prime Minister, passes the first person to tour the space.
away.
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the Chinese novel and drama. : Gen. Pervez Musharraf takes over as the
: Kim Dae Jung, South Korean President, President of Pakistan.
selected for the 2000 Nobel Peace Prize : United Nations (UN) Secretary General
for his work towards peace and reconcili- and V.S. Naipaul win the Nobel Prize For
ation with North Korea that led to a peace and Literature respectively for 2001.
ground breaking summit with his North
Korean counterpart. 2002 : Euthanasia or mercy killing comes into
force in Netherlands.
: The Guinness Book of World Records,
: Robert Mugabe elected President of
sets a new record of its own selling seven
Zimbabwe.
million copies of its first edition of the
new century. : Xanana Gusmao, the independence leader
of East Timor, elected President of the is-
: Hillary Clinton, wife of US President Bill
land nation.
Clinton, wins the US Senate seat from New
: Mark Shuttleworth of South Africa be-
York. Thus, she becomes the first wife of
a President in American history to be comes the second space tourist.
in
: Miss Asra Akin crowned as Miss World.
: Taiwan and China agree Temporarily lift
: SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Taipes five - decade ban on direct flights
Syndrome) outbreak in China and spreads
all over world killing thousands.
it. :
between the two rivals.
Former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafikal-
nd
2003 : The space shuttle Columbia perished in Hariri is assassinated in a car bombing in
space. Seven astronauts including central Beirut close to the harbour.
Dr. Kalpana Chawla died (February).
pu
in
a SAARC Poverty Alleviation Fund and British writer in a survey, followed by
to declare 2006 - 2015 the SAARC decade Terry Pratchett, Ian Mcewan, Salman
of Poverty Alleviation.
it. Rushdie, Kazuo Ishiguro and Philip Pull-
nd
: The worlds first facial transplantation is man.
done on a French woman Isabella Dinoire : Worlds oldest tortoise Harriet dies at 176
in Amiens. years in Australia.
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2006 : US space probe Stardust returns to : Montenegro becomes the 192th member
earth carrying precious samples of dust of United Nations
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from stars and comets. : Qinghai - Tibet railway the worlds high-
: Chile elects Michaelle Bachelet to be its est and longest highland railway becomes
first woman President. operational.
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: NASA launches the first space mission : First world summit of religious leaders in
to Pluto, as the New Horizons spacecraft Moscow is attended by 200 representa-
is hurled on a 9-year 4.5 b - KM journey. tives from 40 countries.
: 35th summit of World Economic Forum : Italy beats France 5-3 to win World Cup
opens, in Davos, Switzerland. Football.
: French actress Eva Green chosen as the : Kiran Desai wins the Booker Prize.
new James Bond girl. : Bhutans king Jigme Singye Wangchuk
: Jamaica to have Portia Simpson Miller as abdicates the throne after a 34 year reign
Prime Minister, the first woman head of in favour of his son crown prince Jigme
the state. Khesar Namgyel Wangchuk.
: Oscar award announced : Crush is the : The former Iraqi President Saddam
best film, Philip Seymour Hoffman - best Hussein is hanged to death in Baghdad
for the 1982 killing of 148 persons of Dujail
actor, Reese Witherspoon - best actress
town, three years after being captured by
and Ang Lee - Best Director.
the US forces.
in
Neolithic period (New stone Age) 6000 1000 BC They started using polished and sharp stone
it.
Chalcolithic Period (Metal Age) implements.
The earliest known primate (Plesiandapis) ap- Man began to domesticate animals during the
nd
peared on the earth towads 70,000,000 BC. Neolithic Age. Dog was the first animal domesti-
The possible ancestor of hominids (Proconsul) cated by man.
Wheat and Barley were the earliest cereals grown
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in
People living in Japan, China, Indonesia, Formosa
of the modern pattern of writing.
Tibet etc belonged to the Mongloid race.
People lived in Ancient Egypt belonged to the
Hemitic race. it.
SUMERIAN OR MESOPOTAMIAN
CIVILIZATION (3000 -1600 BC)
nd
Ancient Babilonians, Hebrews, Phoenesians, Sumerian civilisation flourished on the banks of
Arabs etc belonged to the Semitic race. rivers Euphrates and Tigris later came to be
pu
Semitic, Hemitic and Indo-Europeans are the sub- known as Mesopotamian civilisation
groups of the Caucasoid race. The word Mesopotamia means land between riv-
ers.
am
ORIGIN OF LANGUAGES AND WRITING The name Mesopotamia was given by the Greeks.
Man began to speak meaningfully during the The area where Mesopotamian civilisation existed
Neolithic Period. belonged to modern Iraq.
ex
English, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Greek, The northern part of Mesopotamia was known as
Russian, Persian, Sanskrit and American lan- Assiria and southern part was known as
Babilonia.
guages belonged to the Indo-European or Aryan
language group The first dynasty in the world was established at
Ur in Sumeria in 3000 BC.
Hebrew, Arabic, Abyssenian early Assirian and
Phoenesian languages belonged to the Semitic
group of languages. CUNIEFORM WRITING
Languages spoken by the people lived around The Sumerians are credited with the invention
Mediterranean sea were of the Hemitic group. of a distinctive system of writing known as
Cunieform. They wrote on clay tablets using
Lapis, Finnish, Magyar,Tartar, Manchu, Mongol
wedge shaped letters. The name Cunieform was
etc, belonged to the Turanean group of lan-
originated from the Latin word cuneus which
guages.
means wedge. The Cunieform script was
Egyptians were the first to use Phonetic writing. desciphered by Henry Rawlinson.
The early writing of the Egyptians were known as
Hieroglyphics.
in
Mesopotamian civilization is considered to be the Hyksus were a semetic group of people who
worlds first urban civilisation. captured Egypt towards BC 1750.
Mesopotamians discovered the system of Geom-
etry. It was later called Pythagorus Theorem.
it.
Egyptian Queen Hatsheput is considered as the
first women ruler of the world.
nd
A Lunar Calendar based on the Moon was one Ramses III is considered as the last of great
of the major achievements of the Sumerians. Pharohs of Egypt.
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Mesopotamians were worshippers of multi Gods. Egyptians were the first to invent a solar calen-
Their major God was the Sky God Anu. dar having 365 days with 12 months of 30 days
Mesopotamians were the first to invent the sys- each.
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in
Persian Civilisation existed in modern Iran
Earliest coins were believed to have used by the
Egyptians. Persians belonged to the Indo-European race.
it.
Cyrus was the strongest of the Persian rulers.
nd
Cyrus is considered as the founder of the Per-
Indus Valley Civilisation was discovered as a re- sian Empire.
sult of the archaeological excavations carried out Greatest of the Persian rulers was Darius I.
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in 1920-22 at Mohenjodaro and Harappa (Both in Darius I was responsible for the foundation of
Pakistan) by R D Banarjee and Dayaram Sahni. the ever largest empires of the world.
John Marshall was the Director General of the
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Anaxagoras, Euclid etc were famous Greek Math-
Greeks was known as Aegean Civilization. ematicians.
it.
Early Greek immigrants were known as Ionians. Hippocrates, who is considered as the father of
Greeks were collectively known as Hellenes. Medical Science was a Greek.
nd
Hence their civilization was known as Hellenis- Leopold Van Ranke, a German historian is con-
tic Civilization. sidered as the father of Modern History.
Homer, a blind poet, composed Greek epics Illiad
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Democracy was originated in Greece. Greek De- Socrates the Greatest of the Greek philosphers
mocracy was direct democracy. was forced to commit suicide by drinking Hem-
lock a poison, in 399 BC.
Greek Civilisation reached the Zenith of its
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progress during the period of Pericles, a ruler of Zantippee was the wife of Socrates.
Athens. His Age is considered as the Golden Plato was the student of Socrates.
Age of Athens. Under Pericles the city of Athens Platos original name was Aristocles.
got the name the School of Hellas. Plato founded a university named Academy in
The civilisation of Greek city states is known as Athens.
Classical Civilisation. Republic was the famous work of Plato.
Athens, Sparta, Corinth, Thebes, Mascedonia etc Aristotle was the famous student of Plato.
were the major city states in Greece. Aristotle was the tutor of Alexander the Great.
Pindar was a famous Greek Lyric Poet. Aristotle founded a school named Lycium in Ath-
Aesceles was the greatest of the Greek drama- ens.
tists, who wrote famous tragedies. Aristotle is considered as the father of Biology,
Greeks were the first to introduce Vowels in the Politics and the Science of Reasoning.
alphabet. Aristotle was considered as a Walking Univer-
Euripides and Aristophenes were the other fa- sity.
mous Greek dramatists.
in
in 337 BC. Constantine was the first Roman king who ac-
Alexander defeated the Persian ruler Darius III. cepted Christianity.
Alexander captured Egypt and founded the city
it.
The city of Constantinople was founded by
nd
of Alexandria there. Constantine.
Alexander invaded India in 326 BC and defeated Ottoman Turks captured Constantinople in 1453.
Porus, the ruler of Taxila. The Greatest contribution of Romans to the world
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poet.
Archemedes the originator of the law of specific Lucricius the author of On the Nature of
gravity lived in the Hellenistic Age. Things was famous Epicurian Philosopher.
Pliny wrote the famous book Historia Naturalis
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Muhammed Nabi was born in AD 570 in the
Christianity
it.
Khuraisi tribe in Mecca. His father was Abdulla
Christianity was originated from Judaism. and mother was Amina.
nd
Jesus Christ was born in 4 BC at Bethlahem in The Word Islam was originated from the root of
the small town of Nasreth in Galeleo. Aslama.
Invisible forces which acts as per the directions
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First American Civilisation developed between The Portuguese were the first Europeans to reach
it.
1000BC and 1000 AD. Africa.
Mayan books written on the bark of trees were City of Moro in Central Africa is known as
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known as Codid. Berminhatam of Central Africa.
Mayan Civilisation declined in the 15th century First country formed in the western part of Africa
due to Spanish invasion. is Ghana. Ghana is also known as the Gold
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can plateau. They constructed pyramids like the Vasco-da-Gama was the first European to reach
Egyptians. the Cape of Good Hope, the southern most tip of
Floating Gardens built by the Aztecs were known Africa.
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slaves were at the bottom.
after the death of John Paul II.
Feudalism came to an end towards AD 1000 by
it.
the influence of christianity. Benedict XVI is the second oldest pesson (78) to
become the Pope.
Feudalism helped to control the autocratic rule of
nd
kings in the Middle Ages Oldest person to become the Pope was Clemant
Guilds were th merchant organisations of Europe XII.
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in the Middle Ages. Benedict XVI was the Second German to become
The University of Italy founded in 825 was the the Pope.
first University in Europe. Latin Language is considered as theVehicle of
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Aleson Richard was the first woman to become Canterbury Tales is the famous work of Chaucer.
the Vice Chancellor of Cambridge University.
Christianity was responsibile for making the Bar- Joan of Arc
barians a civilised people.
The Middle Age was a period of superstitions. It
The Monastry of Monte Casino was founded by
St. Benedict. was common among the orthodox to accuse some-
one, especially young, beautiful and enterprising
The word Catholic means
girls as witch and initiate legal proceding against
Omnipresent.
them.
Pope was the head of Me-
dieval Christian Church. The Court of Inquisition was meant for the trial
of those who are accused of as such.
The silver jubilee celebra-
tions of the Pope John Paul Heresy or the denial of religious principles was one of
IIs Pontification has been the most severe offences of the Middle Ages.
one of the longest in the In the Hundred Years War which started in 1338
history of the Papacy cel- between England and France, France was losing
Pope John Paul II
ebrated in 2003.
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The literal meaning of Renaissance is rebirth. The School of Athens are the famous paintings
of Raphael.
it.
The capture of Constantinople by the Turks in
1453 was the cause of Renaissance in Europe. Michelangelo was another Italian painter who was
nd
The new name of Constantinople is Istambul. the author of famous painting Last Judgement
During the 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries there and Sculpture David and Moses.
was a great revival in Europe in the field of art, St. Peters Basilica in Rome was built under the
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literature and learning. This marked the transition patronage of Pope Julius II and Pope Leo X It
from the Medieval to the Modern period. This is was designed by Michelangelo.
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humanists.
The Renaissance emerged in Italy roughly be-
tween AD 1300 and AD 1550. Utopia was a famous work of Sir Thomas More
Italy is known as the Cradle of Renaissance portraying an ideal community on an imaginary
island indicating the glaring abuses of his time.
Divine Comedy written by Dante was a classical
work of the Renaissance period. The technique of printing was first developed by
Humanism is considered as the heart and soul of the Chinese.
Renaissance. Petrarc, an Itaian poet is consid- John Guttenburg of Germany is considered as
ered as the, father of Humanism. the father of printing. He published Bible in 1456.
Niccolo Machiavelli wrote a book on politics William Caxton established the first printing
named The Prince press in England in 1477.
Machiavelli is known as Italian Kautilya and
Copernicus a Polish astronomer developed the
Kautilya is known as Indian Machiavelli.
theory of universe through his book Six Books
The Renaissance painters painted directly on plas- concerning the Revolutions of the Heavenly
ter walls called frescoes. Spheres.
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Christopher Columbus discovered West Indies
Reformation and Counter Reforma- and thought that it was India in 1492 and called
tion
it.
its people Red Indians.
Later, Amerigo Vespucci reached the South
nd
The name Protestant was first applied by Mar-
American coast in 1499 and America was named
tin Luther.
after him.
Reformation was started in Germany by Martin
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Ulrich Zwingli and John Calvin were the leaders circum navigator (who
of reformation in Switzerland. sailed around the world). His
Reformation in Switzerland was known as Cal- circum navigation exclu-
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The Magna Carta was signed by King John of land joined together and became Great Britain.
England in AD 1215 at Runnymede. The By the Act of Union of 1801 Great Britain and
Magnacarta is described as the Bible of the En-
glish Constitution. It is also known as the Bible
it.
Northern Ireland joined together and it became
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.
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of English Liberty. But Ireland was delinked in 1921 and Northern
Innocent III was the Pope when the Magna Carta Ireland became part of England.
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Monarch.
Second Philadelphia Congress was met in 1776
and it adopted the Declaration of Independence
it.
United States of America on 4 July 1776.
America was discovered by Christopher Colum- The Declaration of American Independence was
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bus in 12th October 1492. drafted by Thomas Jefferson.
In the first quarter of the 17th century some By the Treaty of Paris in 1783, the United States
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Immancipator.
Newyork city is situated on the banks of Hudson
First modern census was held in America in 1790.
river.
49th Parallel separates America and Canada.
William Henry Harrison was the President who it. Important Battles
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ruled the least term. Hundred Years War (1337-1453) : England and
France
James Madison is known as the father of Ameri-
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American President Jimmy Carter as President.
who was entrusted to American Presidents who got Nobel Prize for
prepare American
Constitution - Tho-
it.
Peace - Theodor Roosevelt, Jimmy Carter,
Wudrow Wilson.
nd
mas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson First Bachelor President of America - James
James Madison is Buccanan.
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known as the Father of American Constitution. Tallest American President - Abraham Lincoln
Last military officer of the American revolution to First to be elected for a second term as President
become the President of America - James Munroe - George Washington
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First American President who was the son of a First to get married while he was president -Grover
former president - John Kwinsy Adams Cleavelend
Kitchen Cabinet prevailed during the period of
Which American President is known as Human
Andrew Jackson.
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Kingship. Louis XIV (1643 - 1715) who fully ex- ernment formed by
ploited the theory said I am the state He also Nepolean in France
said flood after me
The French Parliament was known as Estates it.
was known as Con- Rousseau
sulate. The Bank of France was established by
nd
General. Napolean.
The Bastile Prison which was the symbol of French Philosopher Rousseau is the author of
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monarchs cruelty was broken by the Third Es- books such as Emile, Confessions, Social Con-
tate on 14th July 1789. Thus began the French tract etc.
Revolution. The most important work of Montesquieu is The
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Spirit of Laws
July 14th is observed as a national holiday in
French Revolution resulted in the destruction of
France every year in memory of this incident.
feudalism in France.
Liberty, Equality and Fraternity the slogan of the
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Power Loom was invented by Edmund Cartwright
in 1785. Russian Revolution
James Watt invented Steam Engine in 1769.
it.
Russia was united into an empire in the 9th cen-
nd
Safety Lamp or Davis Lamp was invented by tury AD. Russia was unified by the Rurichs.
Humphrey Davy in 1816. Russians belonged to the Salvonic race.
Elias Home invented sewing machine in 1846. Mongols captured Russia in the 13th century.
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The Warrior was the first warship built with The Romanoff Dynasty of Russia was founded
iron plates. by Michael Romanoff in 1613.
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First Steam Locomotive was invented by Peters foreign policy was known as warm water
Trevithick in 1800. policy
In 1814 George Stephenson invented an improved Russian Revolution was started in 1917 and it
steam locomotive called Rocket. It was finally was led by Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov Lenin.
used in opening the first passenger railway from Lenin was the leader of the Russian Social
Liverpool to Manchester. That is why Democractic Labour Party.
Stephenson is called the father of Steam Loco-
motive. Bloody Sunday
Steam Boat was invented by Robert Fulton in On the 22nd of 1905 thousands of unarmed Rus-
1807. sian workers marched to the Winter Palace of Czar
First steam ship sailed from Glasgow to Liverpool in St.Peterburg. Their demand was to have ad-
in 1857. A ship first crossed the Atlantic in 1833. ministrative reforms. But the army fired at the mob
Hundereds of workers died, thousands wounded.
The method of sending message by wire was in-
This incident is known as Bloody Sunday, that is
vented by Morse in 1835.
related to the Revolution of 1905 in Russia.
in
The Crimean War (1854-56)
Bolsheviks, the majority party and Menshiviks,
The Crimean War was fought between Russia on
the minority party were the two division of the
Russian Social Democractic Labour Party.
it.
the one side and Turkey, France and England on
the other.
nd
USSR came into existence in 1922 December
Florence Nightingale established the first nurs-
Czar Nicholas II was the reigning Czar of Russia ing school.
when the Revolution occurred.
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a Permanent Member of the UN Security Council. nection between China and Pakistan.
92% of the Chinese people belonged to the Han Communist Chinas first international religious
race.
it.
gathering was conducted in April 2006.
nd
The Tianen Square in Beijing is described as the In that World Buddhist Forum, Buddhists from
Naval of China. The name means the gate of more than 30 countries participated.
heavenly peace. 2012 Olympics will be held in China.
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The highest Court in China is the Supreme Wenjiabo became the President of China.
Peoples Court.
It is for the first time the posts of President and
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Chinas leading newspaper is Renin Ribao General Secretary of the Communist Party of China
(Peoples Daily) of Beijing, which is the official held by two persons.
newspaper of Chinese Communist Party.
The present General Secretary of Communist
China is the first Asian country to launch a space
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by a peace conference at Paris and the Treaty of ian word fasces which means a bundle of rods
Versailles in 1920. and an axe.
The Treaty of Versailes resulted in the founda-
tion of League of Nations in 1919.
it.
Benitto Mussolini, the worlds first fascist dicta-
tor who came to power in Italy in 1922, is known
nd
as the father of Fascism.
League of Nations was formed on the basis of the
Mussolini organised his followers into the Black
Fourteen Points put forward by Wudrow Wil- shirts
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son in 1918.
In October 1922 he organised a March to Rome
League of Nations was the predescessor of the and took over as Prime Minister.
UNO.
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The First World War was fought as a war to end in 1945 Mussolini was captured and executed at Como.
all wars. Italy was the first Axis Power to surrender in the
One of the most important results of the First First World War.
World War was the Great Depression which After 2000 Medea Tycoon Silvio Berlysconi won
started in USA in 1929. the election and became the PM. In 2006 he was
defeated by the former President of EU
Only one European country which was not af- Romano Prodi.
fected by great depression was Russia.
Italy won the World Cup Football title held in
Three major powers during the interwar period Germany by defeating France.
were USA, USSR and Japan.
Ku Klux Klan was a white terrorist gang working Unification Germany, and Nazism
in America during the period of Great Depres-
Germany was known as Prussia in olden times.
sion.
The process of German Unification began when
Franklin D. Roosevelt became American president
King William I appointed Otto Von Bismark as his
during the great depression in 1932.
Prime Minister in 1862.
in
1889. War.
National Socialist German Workers Party founded The Second World War was between The Axis
in 1920 was known as Nazi Party.
Nazi Party wanted the exclusion of Jews from it.
Powers (Germany, Italy and Japan) and the Al-
lied Powers (Britain, France, Russia, USA etc)
nd
in
exclusive line of communication especially for an
war criminals of the Second World War. It began emergency.
on November 20, 1945.
it.
Warsaw Pact was a military alliance formed un-
der the Soviet Union against NATO in 1955.
nd
Now Russia is in a more or less stable condition
The United States of America, the Soviet Union, under the Presidentship of Vladimir Putin.
Britain, France and China were regarded as the
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big powers since the end of the Second World Middle East Conflict
War (1945). Among them, the United States and
Israel Palestine conflict is popularly called
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in
1994 it was handed over to Palestine National
Francisco De Miranda (1750-1816) was one of
Authority.
the most important leaders of Latin America. He
Sinai Peninsula : This place was also captured
from Egypt in the 1967 war and handed over to
it.
fought for the liberation of Venezuela and came
out victorious in 1910 and it proclaimed its inde-
nd
Palestine in 1982. pendence in 1911.
The official name of Israel is Medinat Israel. Simon Bolivor (1783-1830) worked for the libera-
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Hebrew and Arabic are the official languages of tion of Columbia, Venezuela, Equador, Peru and
Israel. Bolivia. He is considered as the father of their
The conflict reached a turning point with the elec- nation by all these countries. He is known as the
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The official name of Japan is Nippon or Nihon, Kawabata Yasunari is the first Japanese to win
which means the source of the Sun. the Nobel Prize (1968) for literature. Snow Coun-
Japan is known as the Land of Rising Sun or
Britain of the East.
it.
try is the book authored by him.
Yuichiro Miura : 70 year old man who became
nd
Iasu Tokugama who ruled Japan the 16th Cen- the oldest to conquer Mt Everest in May 22, 2003.
tury is known as Napolean of Japan. Junko Tabei First woman to climb mount Everest.
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Tokyo became the capital of Japan during enlight- Manasobu Fukuvoka is the author of the famous
ened rule (Meiji Age) which is known as the book One Straw Revolution. He was a famous
Golden Age of Japan. agricultural scientist.
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First constitution of Japan came to force in 1889 Jimmu Tenno : He was supposedly the first em-
and the Japanese Parliament Diet was formed. peror of Japan. In 660 BC he became the Emperor.
Geographically Japan is situated in the Ring of Hirohito became the first Japanese emperor who
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fire which is in the coast the Pacific ocean with travelled outside Japan in 1971.
lot of volcanoes. Worlds longest suspension bridge, the Akasi
Mount Fujiyama is the highest mount in Japan. Kaikyo Bridge (1990 metres) is in Japan. It con-
In the first World War Japan was in the part of nects the Island of Honshee and the Island of
Allied Powers. Shikoku.
Japan joined the Second World War in 1940 on Japans largest single export is Crude Oil.
the part of Italy and Germany. Yomeeyerie shimbon a News paper in Japan has
On 7 December 1941 Japan attacked Pearl Harbour. the largest circulation in the world. It is also pub-
This resulted in the entry of USA into the Second lished in English with the name Daily Yomiyurie.
World War. The Japans economy ranks second only to USA
America dropped an Atom Bomb named Little in terms of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP)
boy in Hiroshima from an aircraft named Inola Japan has the largest fishing industry in the world.
Gay on 6, August 1945. Later another bomb
New PM of Japan is Shinzo Abe (Liberal Demo-
Fatman was dropped in Nagasaki from an air-
cratic Party)
in
26, 1971.
Robert Islands In 1994 he
On 28 and 30 may 1998 Pakistan carried out five sworn in as the first black
it.
nuclear tests in the desert of Baluchistan at the President of South Africa.
Chagai Hills in response to Indias test. His term ended in 1999.
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On 12 Octber 1999, General Pervez Musharraf in First Democratic President
a military coup deposed the Premier Nawaz Nelson Mandela
of South Africa is Nelson
Sherif and suspended the constitution. Mandela. Thabo Mbeki, the President of ANC
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In 2001 he became the President of Pakistan. (Africa National Congress) succeeded Nelson
Musharrafs presidency was extended by five Mandela as the President of South Africa in 1999.
more years till 2007. Nelson Mandela was the second foreigner to re-
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The Tashkent Agreement was signed on Janu- ceive the Bharat Ratna.
ary 10, 1966. This Agreement was signed by Lal The first foregner to receive Bharat Ratna was
Bahadur Shastri and Ayub Khan just after the Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, the Frontier Gandhi
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1965 Indo - Pak War. On January 11, Shastri died South Africa is the leading producer of gold in
at Tashkent. the World.
Now Tashkent is the capital of Uzbekisthan. African Development Bank (ADB) was formally es-
The Shimla Agreement of 1972 was signed be- tablished in 1964 and began its operation in 1966.
tween India and Pakistan after the 1971 battles. Organization of African Unity (OAU/ OUA) was
The Lahore Declaration was signed between In- formed in 1963, with its headquarters at Addis
dia and Pakistan just before the Operation Vijay Ababa (Ethiopia)
of 1999 in Kargil to expel the ussurpers.
Th Radcliff line separates India from Pakistan, Gulf War I and II
the Durand Line is between Pakistan and
Afghanisthan and the McMohan Line is between The Gulf War (1991) was fought between the
India and China. US led multinational forces and Iraq to expel Iraqi
Siachin Glacier which lies between India and Pa- troops from Kuwait. Its code name was Opera-
kistan is referred as the highest and the coldest tion Desert Storm.
battle field in the world. Operation Desert Fox was the continuation of
The Agra Summit (2002) between Musharaff operation Desert storm.
in
Australias outback before being killed off by fires Father of tragic dramas
it by arriving humans. The giant animals lived in Aeschilus
the arid Nullarbor Desert around 400,000 years
ago, but died out around 50,000 year ago, rela-
it.
Father of Comic dramas
Sophocles
nd
tively shortly after the arrival of human settlers, Most important example of Greek architecture
according to new fossil skeletons found in Caves. Temple of Parthenon
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Marcus Areleus
Father of History Famous Orator of Greece
Herodotus Cesero
ex
Iron was accidently discovered by The Roman Governor who gave the verdict to
Neanderthal man crucify christ
Humans with similarity to the Neanderthal man Pontheos Pelathose
Cromagnans The birth place of Prophet Muhammed
Mesopotamian ruler who gave a famous code of Mecca
laws Who as the wife of Prophet Muhammed
Hammurabi Khadeija
The Cunieform script was discovered by Which place is known as the Bermingham of Cen-
Sumerians tral Africa
Largest Pyramid of Egypt
Sinja - Trophus
Khufu
Large temple in ancient Egypt dedicated to Sun Most famous ruler of Mali in Africa
God Manga Kangan Muza
Temple of Abusimbel Time taken to complete the construction of the
Three states of China existed in the 300 BC Great Pyramid in Egypt
Chin, Chu, Ehi 20 years
in
Famous chinese king Shihuangti belonged to The capture of constantinople by the Suljek
Turks resulted in the decline of
Chin dynasty
Which ancient civilisation was famous for secu-
it.
Byzantine Empire
The prophet of French Revolution
nd
lar architecture
Persian Rasseau
Nationalisation of Suez Canal was done by
The tutelary diety of the city UR in Mesopotamia
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18 months
Battle in which Napolean was defeated in 1815
Buddhism reached China from India during the
Battle of Trafalgar
period of
Unification of Germany was done by
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Han dynasty
Bismark
Golden Age of Rome is the period of Augustus
Caesar Pakistan President who was hanged to death in
1979
Most cultured civilisation of Middle Ages was of
Sulfiker Ali Bhuto
Arabs
English king who was trialed and executed
Which was the language of learning of the Middle publically in 1649
Ages
Charles I
Latin
English king who signed the Magnacarta in 1215
First university in the world was started in Paris John
Which subject was known as Queen of Sciences Treaty which ended the Ruso-Japanese battle of
during the Middle Ages 1905
Theology Treaty of Portsmouth
Who was the immediate successor of prophet Co-operative movement was started in England
Muhammed or first Khalifa in 1821 by
Abubekker Robert Oven
in
1821 Hitler and his wife Iva Brown committed suicide
Who is considered as the father of Scientific So- in
cialism
Karl Marx
it.
30 April 1945
Mussolini and his wife Claretta were killed by the
nd
Work which is considered as the birth cry of mod- Italian Guerillas in
ern socialism 28 April 1945
Communist Manfesto Which city is called by its natives as The Big
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The rebellion led by the peasants of Keniya Who questioned the Sale of Indulgence
against the British Martin Luther
Mau-Mau-Rebellion Founder of Salvation Army
Russian Parliament was known as William Booth
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as ............. 19. Cork
26. ............. are nodules on the sea
7. The narrow contact zone of 20. conserve water
it.
bed containing a variety of
land, water and air which minerals. 21. Echo-sounding
contains all forms of life is 22. western disturbances
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called ............. 27. The Thar Desert believed to be
expanding. The most suitable 23. The Mediterranean region
8. Maps showing different
way to check it would be by 24. cattles
countries and states of the
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other.
Congo is famous for ............. 28. Hail
10. ............. is the largest island in 29. ............. Canal lies on the
worlds largest of trade routes 29. The Suez
the world.
connecting Europe and Far - 30. Sumatra and Malaysia
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Dead Sea? situated? continents where as the sea
14. Which is the deepest lake in 28. Which is the worlds first is an arm of the ocean
the world?
15. In which ocean is the island
National Park?
Answers
it. 22. Captain james Cook
23. Mt. Kosciusko (2226 m)
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Diego Garcia situated? 1. Limnology 24. Santos (Brazil)
16. Worlds largest concrete dam 2. Ozone 25. Wharton Trench (South of
Java)
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14. Distinguish between Tributary 28. What is an equator, latitude, calcium and magnesium and
and distributary. meridian, prime meridian, low in silicon. The intrusive
it.
local or sun time and rocks are solidified beneath
15. Write short notes on El Nino
standard time? the surface while extrusive
& La Nino
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rocks are solidified at the
16. What are Aurora? Answers
surface.
17. Water Harvesting 1. Rocks are the main materials
(ii) Sedimentary Rocks:
composing the earths crust.
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frost, air and rain. surface of the sea, approx-
(ii) Denudation: It means imately twice a day, are called
it.
laying bare of a rock which tides. These are caused by the
was previously covered. The difference of attraction
nd
chief agents of denudation are between water and the earth.
temperature, water in its These are of two types:
various forms, air and wind, (i) Spring Tide: At new moon
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plant life and animal life. and full moon, the sun and the
African Rift Valley. From left to right:
(iii) Springs: A spring is a Lake Upemba, Lake Mweru, Lake moon are in the same line as
place where water issues out Tanganyika (largest), and Lake the earth and both exert their
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narrow river valley with steep of motions which originate in called spring tide.
bank is called a canyon. The a limited region and then (ii) Neap Tide: At the first and
most famous canyon in the spread out from the place of third quarters of moon, as the
world is that of the Grand origin in all directions. It sun and the moon are at right
Canyon, Colorado (U.S.A). continues for a while and angles to each other; the tide
For about 480 kms, the river then gradually dies out - produced by the difference of
flows through a gorge or a Earth quakes are caused their force is consequently
canyon the banks of which either by volcanic eruptions lower than usual. This is
are, at some places, more - or by sudden movement of called Neap Tide.
than one and a half kilometre rock along fault planes.
7. These are the winds which
high. 5. (i) Continental Shelf: It is that blow towards equator. They
(ii) Delta: An alluvial deposit part of a country or continent blow between 5 degrees to 30
shaped like the Greek letter D which is submerged under degrees north and 5 degrees
(delta) formed at mouth of the sea and where the water and 30 degrees south latitude.
river is called delta. Nile delta is not more than 200 metres 8. (i) Roaring Forties: These are
is well known in the world in depth. steady north-west anti-trade
and so is the Sunderbans delta (ii) Coral Reefs: Coral reefs are winds between latitude 45 to
in India and Bangladesh. masses of limestone and 50 degrees south.
in
controversial. On his last expedition, Alfred Wegener and his
Deccan Plateau receives little
companion Rasmus Villumsen went missing in November 1930.
rainfall as the latter is in the
it.
Wegener's body was found on May 12, 1931. His suspected cause
rain shadow region.
of death was heart failure through overexertion.
13. Weather: It is the condition of
nd
(ii) Horse Latitudes: The (ii) Land Breeze: These are the atmosphere at a certain time
tropical Belts of Calms, i.e., winds, which blow during the or period showing pressure,
regions between 30 degrees and night from land to sea, during temperature, humidity and
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35 degrees, are known as Horse which sea is hotter than the rainfall for a shorter duration.
Latitudes. The origin of this term land. Climate: It is the average
is obscure. It is said that the weather condition of a place
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north and 35 degrees north and months of winter from land which confluences a major
the sailors were obliged to to sea. This is due to the fact river and increases its volume
throw all the horses overboard that during summer, when of water. It losses its existence
and then the ships could move. rays of the sun fall vertically after meeting the main river.
This part, therefore, came to be over the Tropic of Cancer, the A distributary is a branch of
called Horse Latitudes. But now land becomes comparatively main river which comes into
both tropics of calm are known hotter than the sea. Therefore, existence due to the blockade
by this name. the winds blows from the sea. of the main channel by the
9. (i) Sea Breeze: These are the Reverse is the case in winter. deposition of silt and mud on
winds blowing during the They blow over S.E. Asia, East its bed. It establishes its
day from sea towards land Asia, Australia, New existence after it originates
which is comparatively hotter Zealand etc. from the main channel.
than sea. This is due to the fact 11. Cyclones: These are the 15. El Nino is a warm current in
that during the day there is winds, which blow in a spiral the Pacific Ocean that flows
high pressure on sea and low form round a centre of southward along the west
pressure on the land and the minimum pressure. They coast of South America. It
wind blows from high move anti-clockwise in the warms the normally cold
pressure to low pressure. northern hemisphere. They waters of the coast of Ecuador
in
charged atomic particles, in which water vapour in the element for the growth of
sprayed off the Suns surface, atmosphere changes into plants.
collide with atoms in the
earths atmosphere and make
it.
minute droplets of water or icy
crystals. Rapid condensation
4. Humus is not a mineral,
it is an organic matter. It
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them release energy in the produces rain, drizzle, snow, is formed by decomposed
form of flashes of light. hail, frost and dew. When plant remains, animal
Auroras are the most visible small droplets donot come manure and dead anim-
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effect of the suns activity on down, they remain suspe- als and is the most
the earths atmosphere. The nded in the air and are known important element in the
auroras in the northern as clouds. fertility of the soil.
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in
meridian 180) was chosen Far East. surface currents, is wind. As
because it passes through the Hurricane: is a tropical storm the wind blows over the sea,
it.
mid-Pacific, where there are in the Caribbean or West part of its energy is transferred
no land masses. It goes zig- Pacific Ocean, with extremely to the water, which is thus
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zag in some places to avoid strong winds. The wind force dragged along as a current.
land and leaves some island reaches 12 on the Beaufort
groups wholly on the same Scale. Unequal heating of the sea by
the Sun is another major
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pressure is known as the Hemisphere and in clockwise the surface and moves
pressure gradient force. The direction in the Southern towards the Equator in very
greater the difference in Hemisphere. slowly moving layers. At the
pressure between two points, same time, warm and less
the steeper is the pressure dense tropical water in the
gradient and the higher is the oceans upper layers moves
wind speed. Since the towards the poles.
direction of the force is from Other factors that influence the
higher to lower pressure area oceans circulation are the
and perpendicular to the shape and relative positions
isobars, the initial tendency of of the continents; the presence
the wind is to blow parallel of barrier-like island chains;
to the gradient and at right A tornado in central Oklahoma. The and local winds. The currents
angles to the isobars. tornado itself is the thin tube reaching
wax and wane with the
from the cloud to the ground. The
Due to rotation of the earth, lower part of this tornado is seasons, mainly because of the
winds do not cross the isobars surrounded by a translucent dust shifting of the winds. Currents
at right angles as the pressure cloud, kicked up by the tornados also meander and shift their
gradient force directs but get strong winds at the surface
courses from year to year.
in
Solstice. In the Southern nce measured North or South the country, is used everywhere
Hemisphere there will be of the Equator from the plane in that country as the Standard
winter season because (a)
the South Pole is inclined
of the Equator.
it.
Meridian means Midday
Time of that country and is taken
to be uniform throughout.
nd
away from the sun. So Standard Time of India is the
line. It is imaginary line
days are shorter than local time of a place near
joining North and South
nights, the South Pole Allahabad situated at 82o E
Poles, which when any place
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(2) 22nd December: At this meridian which passes Russia has 11 such different
time it is winter in the through Greenwich, a place timings.
Northern Hemisphere
and summer in the
Savanna
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Southern Hemisphere
because (a) the North Pole
is inclined away from the A savanna or savannah is a tropical or subtropical woodland
sun while the South Pole ecosystem. Savannas are characterised by the trees being sufficiently
is towards the sun, so small or widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. It is often
days are shorter in the believed that savannas are characterized by widely spaced, scattered
Northern Hemisphere trees, however in many savanna communities tree densities are
and longer in the higher and trees are more regularly spaced than in forest
Southern Hemisphere. (b) communities.
the Suns rays are vertical The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to
in the South at the Tropic support an unbroken herbaceous layer consisting primarily of C4
of Capricorn and oblique grasses. Savannas are also characterised by seasonal water
in the North. This availability, with the majority of rainfall being confined to one season
position of the Earth is of the year. Savannas can be associated with several types of biomes.
called Winter Solstice.
Savannas are frequently seen as a transitional zone, occurring
(3) Equinoxes: On 21st between forest regions and desert regions.
March and 23rd Septem-
ber the season is either
in
hard and erode slowly. cliff. An escarpment is found
where layers of hard rock burning smoke pots or
Atoll: A coral reef in the shape operating mechanical smoke
it.
slope upwards to the surface
of a horse shoe or ring with a over softer rocks below. generators in war to conceal
lagoon in the centre, e.g. their movements from
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Murora Atoll in the Pacific Estuary: A channel formed by enemies.
Ocean. mixing of sea and river water,
e.g., Thames Estuary. Sirocco: A hot, normally dry
Asthenosphere: Soft and dust - laden wind that
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semifluid layer of rock on Foehn: A warm dry wind blows from the deserts of
which the earths continents which blows down the ice- North Africa across the
and ocean floor float. The ward slope of a mountain, best
Mediterranean into South
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kmph.
Attrition: The constant Stratus clouds: Clouds which
wearing down of pieces of Isogonic lines: Contour lines are like a dark grey sheet
rock into even finer particles of magnetic declination. extending from one side of
as they are carried of along by Isohyte: A line drawn on a horizon to the other and have
wind, water or ice. map joining places receiving uniform base.
Bog: An area of water-logged, equal amount of rainfall over Terrain: The physical
spongy ground with rotting a certain period. characteristics and features of
vegetation lying on the Isoneph: A line on a map any stretch of country.
surface. Eventually the layer joining places having equal Troposphere: Troposphere is
turns into a layer of peat. average cloudiness over a the lower most layer of the
Bora: A cold and dry wind certain period. atmosphere. It extends upto 8
which blows along the Isostasy: The state of balance km at the equator and 16 km
eastern coast of the Adriatic or equilibrium that is said to at the poles. The word
Sea and northern Italy in exist between highlands and Tropo means change.
winter. lowlands of the earth due to This layer acts as a warm
Cloud Burst: A phenomenon difference in the density of blanket to moderate the
in which a huge mass of their respective rock material. extremes of outer space. The
in
Ionosphere: It extends from 65 the region. The relative
and 90o S in the case of south
km to nearly 400 km above the humidity is very high. Here,
frigid zone. They are
it.
earths surface. It is an annual rainfall is between
extremely cold regions.
electrically charged layer 160 and 350 cm. It is of the
Hurricane Ivan: The
nd
characterised by the convectional type. Squalls
Hurricane Ivan is a tropical and thunderstorms occur
ionisation of atoms. Due to the
cyclone. The winds are more frequently, followed by
presence of electric charge in
violent and cause severe
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in
Rift Valley is termed as Rift grasslands are of convectional Rainbows: Rainbows are
Valley lake. Lake Baikal in type, but very light.
it.
caused by refraction and
Siberia, the Dead Sea are Savannah is a region which internal reflection of light
examples of this type of lakes. lies on both sides of the from the sun in raindrops.
nd
Lava Dam Lakes: Sometimes, equator roughly between 5 Each raindrop acts like a tiny
a lava stream may flow across degrees and the tropics. Here prism which breaks up the
a valley and form a natural summers are hot and moist white light into the primary
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dam. It is called lava dam and winters are warm and colours. In the main rainbow
lakes. The sea of Galilee in dry. Characteristic vegetation the colours are: violet, indigo,
Palestine was formed by lava is tall grass. blue, green, yellow, orange
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which flowed across the Taiga: This region lies and red (VIBGYOR). We are
Jordan Valley. between 55 o and 70 o C in able to see a rainbow only
Crater Lakes: Crater lakes northern hemisphere only. It when we are facing the falling
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Nerves
8. The deficiency of ............ in the 5. Who is known as the father
Median nerve Subcostal nerve
body leads to diabetis. liohypogastic Lumbar of Genetics?
nerve plexus
it.
9. Botany is the study of ............ Genitofernoral
Sacral
plexus
6. The average length of human
nerve
Obturator Formal nerve pregnancy is:
10. Neurology is the study of nerve Pudendal nerve
nd
............
Ulnar nerve Sciatic nerve 7. Colour vision is made
possible by the cells in the
11. Genes are located in ............ retina called:
Muscular branches
of femoral nerve
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12. The total number of bones in Saphenous nerve 8. The naturally occuring
human body is ............ Common peroneal Tibial nerve
anticoagulant in the human
nerve
13. Deficiency of Vitamin E body is:
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in
9. National Institute of 34. What is neurosis?
Communicable diseases is 11. Describe briefly the functions
35. What is haemoglobin?
located at of liver.
10. Name the inventor of mercury
thermometer.
12. What is Mutation?
it. 36. What is hibernation?
37. What are hormones?
nd
13. What is a greenhouse ?
11. Name the scientist who 38. What is autopsy?
14. What is inoculation ?
prepared smallpox vaccine 39. What is B.C.G.?
15. What are contagious diseases?
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13. Name the disease caused by 17. What is fertilizer? 43. What is disinfectant?
the deficiency of vitamin C.
18. What is field capacity of 44. What are proteins?
14. Name the instrument used to water?
determine altitude. 45. Give the three main
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63. Blood count common infectious diseases consume oxygen in the room,
64. Bonsai in India are measles, chicken so the person sleeping there
65. How is a pearl formed?
it.
pox, cholera, enteric fever, TB,
leprosy etc. Treatment and 6.
get suffocated.
One sperm fertilises with the
nd
66. First-aid remedial measures are ovum and then the zygote
67. Plastic surgery available for most of the divides into two separate
68. Hydrophobia infectious diseases. cells developing independ-
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71. What is GM Crop? occurs naturally in asexually scale emission of acidic gases
72. What is National Rural reproducing lower organism into the atmosphere from
Health Missionb and vegitatively reproducing thermal power plants,
73. What is Chikunguniya? How plants. Naturally it is not industries and automobiles.
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(which stores bile).
9. Blood group O do not
contains both the antigen (A
& B). So there is no
possibilities to agglutinate it.
3. It synthesis blood clotting cells are called somatic
nd
and it is safe to transfuse factors mutations. They are not
into persons of any blood 4. It stores glycogen, fats heritable and disappear with
group. the death of that individual.
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the sweat glands inside the 7. Production of RBC in the new mutations and increase
body are stimulated to secrete foetal stage. the frequency of spontaneous
sweat. When sweat evaporates
8. Liver produces heparin, mutations is called
from the body it produces a
the natural anticoagu- mutagens. The main physical
cooling effect, and temperature lant. mutagenes are temperature,
is brought down. So sweating UV radiations, and ionising
on a hot day is bodys natural 9. It synthesis urea from
ammonia through or- radiation. Nitrous acid,
way of keeping the body alkylating agents etc are
temperature normal. nithin cycle.
12. Mutations are sudden stable chemical mutagen.
11. Liver is the largest gland in 13. It is a glass structure of
heritable changes that occur
human body. The main variable size, shape and
in the genotype of an
functions of liver are complexity in which plants
organism. Genotype can
1. It secretes bile which change due to changes in the are grown under artificially
helps in digestion. chromosome number, chrom- created environment as is
2. It synthesis aminoacids, osome structure and gene necessary for the production
plasma proteins, choles- mutation. Those mutations of fruits, vegetables or flowers
terol etc. that affect at the negetative of market value.
in
carbohydrates and fats is
utilised by the mitochondria measured in terms of B.O.D. the multiplicity of its function
BOD is the oxygen in and also of its control over
and synthesize the energy
rich compound known as
ATP (adenosine triphos- it.
milligrams required for five
days in one litre of water at
other endocrine glands.
25. The chromosomes are
nd
20C for the microorganisms capable of replication and
phate). Thus mitochondria
to metabolise organic waste. maintaining the morphol-
mainly concerned with the
BOD is high in highly ogical and physiological
production of ATP and hence
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17. Any material which when dead decaying leaves in their material to the next
added to the soil, increases burrows which ultimately generation and hence are
the quantity of mineral form the humus content of the known as hereditary vehicles.
elements in it, is called a soil. Thus they are regarded 26. The heredirary unit which is
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and is found at the point condition usually ends available for the use of
where superior venacava fatally. The total lecucocyte organism.
empties into the right auricle.
If the activity of the existing
it.
nd
Pacemaker system is disru-
pted due to any reason leads
to heart failure. Such persons
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pace maker.
29. The pressure exerted by
blood on the walls of blood
vessels is known as blood
pressure or arterial blood
pressure. It is in high in aorta
near the heart. It is low in the
capillaries and veins. The
maximum blood pressure is
known as systolic pressure
and minimum is known as
diastolic pressure. In man the
systolic pressure is 120 mm
Hg and diastolic pressure is
80 mm Hg. It is generally
expressed as 120/80 mm Hg.
The pressure can be
Illustration of blood cells maturing from stem cells
measured by an instrument
in
36. Animals like frog, lizards etc. as the secretion of the normal ordinary vision. It is
undergo a kind of inactivity pituitary gland exerts a a herditary diseases
during winter as a short-term
adaptation. A very low rate of
it.
powerful influence on the
development of skeletal
43. Disinfectant or germicide is
an agent which kills
nd
metabolism is maintained just structures. infectious organisms out side
for survival until favourable 38. Autopsy is a post-mortem the body by direct exposure to
conditions of the environment examination of the body. It is chemical or physical agent.
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return. This phenomenon is done to find out the reason of They are too corrosive or toxic
called hibernation. During death. to be applied to tissues. They are
this period the energy for life used on inanimate surface. eg.
39. B.C.G. (Bacillus Calmette
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shaped gland attached to the occasionally fossils of soft busy streets. Badly mainta-
hypothalamus by pitutary organism have also been ined vehicle engines and
it.
stalk. Pituitary gland plays recognised. fossils are indiscriminate use of horns
an important role in the important to archeologists for often make the situation worse
nd
regulation of many other their usefulness in the study leading to various types of
endocrine glands and of pre-historic forms of physiological disorders such
influence the physiological organisms and subsequent as high blood pressure and
changes with time. heart problems. Loud noise is
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of pitutary gland is growth called gene therapy. For eg used to determine chromo-
bormone (GH), thyroid genetic disorders such as some abnormalities of the
stimulating hormone (TSH), sickle cell anaemia, SCID etc foetus. In this tehcnique, a
adrenocorticcotropic hor- can be cured by gene therapy small sample of amniotic fluid
mone (ACTH), and Gonad Currently, its use is restricted is taken from the mothers
stimulating hormones (GSH). to the treatment of somatic womb (uterus) using a
Dovarfism is a disorder of cells (which include all the surgical needle without
children due to hyposecretion cells of the body), except the causing any damage to the
(low production) of GH and reproductive or germ cells - foetus. The foetus cells
gigantism is a disorder due to the egg and the sperm cells. obtained from this fluid are
hyper secretion (excess 52. Any unwanted form of examined for chromosomal
production) of GH. In an adult sound, such as noise of abnormalities and bichemical
person the excess secretion of vehicles, machinery, jet defects.
GH hormone leads to a planes, indiscriminate use of 54. It is a process by which living
particular condition known loud speakers, are examples organisms break down
as acromegaly. The victims of noise pollution. Just as we complex matter into its
have a gorilla like appear- measure temperature on simpler constituents. The
ance. celsius scale, the level of noise agents of the process, mainly
in
bodys internal organs. times more infectious than the which the virus spreads.
Endoscopes are inserted in Human Immuno Deficiency 60. On the basis of the antigens,
the body to produce images
of the organs that can be
Virus (HIV). Like HIV,
it.
Hepatitis - B is passed on
human blood can be
classified into various types
nd
viewed on a TV monitor or through sexual contact, or groups. The most common
captured by a camera. This infected needles, blood blood group system is the
painless method of diagn- transfusion and from infected ABO blood group which was
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osis is known as endoscopy. mothers to the infants born. discovered in 1900 by Karl
56.Transgenics or transgenic However, unlike HIV, Landsteiner. Depending on
organisms are Genetically Hepatitis - B can infect the presence or absence of the
am
Modified Organism (GMOs) another person merely two antigens called A and B,
which have been made to through exposure to body this system divides human
incorporate in their genetic secretions such as saliva, blood into four types. Type A
make up some useful foreign tears, vomit, bleeding, cuts blood group has erythrocytes
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in
68. Hydrophobia is a disease
62. Pasteurization is the caused by a virus after the bite towards diseases, pests and
sterilization of food by stress like drought or heat. It
it.
by an infected animal.
heating it to a temperature Symptoms like headache, can also be used to keep
below 1000 C to reduce the vegetables fresh for long
nd
fever, difficulty in drinking
number of micro-organisms it water and food will be periods with increased
contains and so to protect it developed 4 to 6 days after the nutritive value.
from decay. For milk, the
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in
flavi virus family. This virus
also needed for the activity of
lymphadenopathy and occurs along the orient, from
the heart and muscles.
conjunctivities. The vector is korea and Japan in the north
Aedes aegypti mosquito.
it.
and Malaysia in the south.
The disease has been
Hence, a certain amount of
calcium must be included in
nd
The incubation period is 1 to our daily diet. It may be
12 days. They spread only recognised in Japan since worthwhile to mention here
through mosquitoes. Spread 1871. The virus was first that the daily intake of
isolated in Japan in 1935. The
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in
and plants keep track of time. normal values and spills over will diffuse until their colour
It is this tracking mechanism into the urine, causing large become evenly distributed
inside them help the clock to
announce the arrival of
it.
volumes to be produced.
Treatment is coupled with
throughout.
Ecology : The study of plants
nd
morning and flowers to strict dietary control and and animals in relation to
bloom in spring. application of insulin their environment. The term
Chromosomes : Chromosomes depending on the type of was coined by the biologist
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are thread like structure diabetes. It is estimated that Ernest Haeckel in 1866.
present in a cell nucleus that nearly 4% of world
population suffers from this Electro Cardio Gram(ECG) :
carry the genes. They are
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in
ment, and, often protection. normal level is 90-180 mg per diseases into the country
100 ml of blood in man. under DIP Act 1914.
Vaccine: A preparation of
it.
pathogens or substances Fermentation : The chemical Germplasm: Germplasm is
derived from them changes brought about by the sum total of all alleles of
nd
administered to a person in living organisms (yeasts, genes present in various
order to establish resistance bacteria, etc)in which bigger varieties of crop plant, its
to an infection. Vaccine is organic molecules are related species and wild
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available for most of the converted into smaller relatives. Germ plasm is the
diseases caused by bacteria. molecules, e.g., conversion of foundation over which all the
BCG, triple antigen, polio glucose and sugar into improved varieties are
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living world and the generation to another. The together in the progeny. The
application of this knowledge deoxyribonucleic acids individual used in hybrid-
to the world of machines. (DNA) in the chromosomes isation are called parents.
Hypermetropia: It is a defect carry them forward during Hybridisation is the most
of eye in which near objects reproduction. common method of creating
are not distinctly visible. This Demography : It is the study genetic variation.
is also called long- of all aspects of population Animal breeding: It is the
sightedness. It can be like number, birth rate, death science of producing impro-
corrected by using convex rate, age groups, sex relation, ved breeds of domesticated
lenses (converging lenses). occupation, education etc. in animal, by improving their
Hydroponics: The cultivation human beings. genotype through selective
of plants by placing the roots Morphine : White crystalline, mating. The main objectives
in liquid nutrient solutions bitter narcotic principal for animal breeding are
without soil. alkaloid of opium. It is used increased quantity and
Osmosis: The flow of a in medicine as hydrochloride improved quality of their
solvent through a membrane or sulphate to dull pain, products and resistance to
that permits the passage of sedation and induce sleep. diseases etc.
in
with starch. The new plastic
urce or biological sources are entire range located in India.
takes only two months to
all those organisms which Bioethics: Bioethics is a set of degrade inside the soil.
it.
breastbone. The heart is usually felt to be on the
nd
left side because the left heart (left ventricle) is
stronger (it pumps to all body parts). The left
lung is smaller than the right lung because the
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Right left
atrium atrium friction during heart contractions (the serous
Aortic Pulmonary
pericardium). The mediastinum, a subdivision
valve valve of the thoracic cavity, is the name of the heart
Tricuspid Mitral cavity.
valve valve
The apex is the blunt point situated in an inferior
Right ventricle Left
ventricle
(pointing down and left) direction. A stethoscope
Inferior vena cava Septum
can be placed directly over the apex so that the
(blood from the body) beats can be counted. It is located posterior to the
5th intercostal space in the left mid-clavicular line.
In normal adults, the mass of the heart is 250-350
Anterior (frontal) view of the opened heart.
g (9-12 oz), or about three quarters the size of a
clenched fist, but extremely diseased hearts can
be up to 1000 g (2 lb) in mass due to hypertrophy.
In the human body, the heart is usually situated in It consists of four chambers, the two upper atria
the middle of the thorax with the largest part of the (singular: atrium ) and the two lower ventricles.
heart slightly offset to the left (although sometimes On the left is a picture of a fresh human heart
it is on the right, see dextrocardia), underneath the which was removed from a 64-year-old male.
in
26. The element most 45. study of sound is known as
8. The hydrometer is an abundantly found in the .............
instrument used to measure
............. of liquids
27. The element found on the
it.
earths crust is ............. 46. The speed greater than speed
of sound is .............
nd
9. The laws of electrolysis were surface of the moon, which is 47. ............. is used to reproduce
propounded by ............. also described as strategic sound.
10. ............. is used to measure metal is ............. 48. Rocket propulsion is based on
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13. ............. is used to determine magnitude and not direction 51. Nautical mile is used in
the concentration of salt are called ............. navigation. One nautical
solutions by measuring their 31. Rate of change of velocity is mile is equal to ............. km.
densities. called ............. 52. One inch (in) is equal to
14. Sonometer is used to study the 32. The amount of water vapour ............. cm.
behaviour of ............. in the air is termed as ............. 53. One yard (yd) is equal to
15. ............. is used to calculate the 33. The density of water is ............. m.
curvature of spherical objects. maximum at ............. temper- 54. One foot (ft) is equal to ............. m.
16. ............. is used to see two ature. 55. One mile is equal to ............. km.
dimensional pictures as 34. Weight of a body at the centre 56. ............. is the amount of heat
having depth and solidity. of earth is ............. required to raise the
17. ............. is to hear and analyse 35. The escape velocity of earth temperature of 1 gm of water
beats of heart and lungs. is ............. by 1o C.
18. ............. is used to record small 36. The force of attraction 57. One Acre (a) is equal to ............. m2
intervals of time in the between like molecules is 58. 1 Hectare (ha) is equal to
laboratory, races etc. called ............. ............. acres.
in
16. Stereoscope 42. decreases 4. Barometer was invented by -
it.
17. Stethescope 43. rise 5. Intensity of an earthquake is
18. Stopwatch 44. surface tension measured by-
nd
19. Stereoplotter 45. Acoustics 6. Raman effect is related with
20. Tachometer the-
46. supersonic
21. direct current 7. The instrument which is
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47. phonogram
used to measure very high
22. Nephoscope 48. Newtons third law of motion. temperatures -
23. Potential 49. Angstrom 8. The instrument which detects
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in
6. Scattering of light as short circuit.
in astronomical calculations.
7. Pyrometer It is the distance that light
Write Short Notes
8.
9.
Bolometer
density
it.
travels in one year at the speed
of about 3 lakh km per second.
1. Laser
nd
10. potential energy 2. Radiography is the prod-
uction of photographs of the 2. EDUSAT Programme
11. Hookes law internal structure of bodies 3. SRE
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in
about 63,240 astronomical units bodies have their natural
wide spectrum of wave- frequency of vibration. When
lengths. about 0.3066 parsecs
it.
we apply a small signal of the
In 1916, Albert Einstein laid same frequency to the body,
the foundation for the transmitting data, voice, and
nd
the signal is greatly amplified
invention of the laser, while images by the passage of light and this is called reonance.
the first working laser was through thin, transparent 8. When monochromatic light is
made by Theodore H. fibres or some other
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in
certain metals (caesium,
12. Three systems of temperature rubidium, pottassium) elect- arrangement of ions in these
measurement are now in use- rons are liberated from them. crystals and an electric field
the Celsius scale, the
Fahrenheit scale and the Kelvin
it.
This phenomenon is known
as photo electric effect.
is built up. This effect is
known as direct piezoelectric
nd
Scale. The Celsius scale was effect and is used in devices
15. The luminescence obtained
worked out by the Swedish like electronic gas lighters,
when certain substance
Physicist, Anders Celsius in microphones, phonograph
absorb radiation of one wave
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in
functioning of an aircraft and
water displays greater viscosity its systems on a tape. The extinguisher by cutting off its
than water recorder is contained in a oxygen supply to a burning
21. It is the form of luminescence
in which a substance emits it.
crash - proof, floatable box
which is ejected in case of an
object.
Why do the stars twinkle ?
nd
light of higher wavelength accident and is usually fitted
Stars appear to twinkle
after absorbing an electrom- with a homing radio beacon
because its light travels
agnetic radiation. Phosphore- and flashlight to reveal its
through different layers of
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is polytetra fluoroethane. 25. It is the velocity that a The blazing light of the sun
Because of its properties high projectile, space probe etc., during daytime prevents the
resistance to heat, chemical must have in order to escape less intense light of the stars
etc. It is used to coat non-stick the gravitational field of a from being seen distinctly.
cooking materials, electrical planet or the moon. It depends Why does the ice float on
insulation etc. on the mass and diameter of water while it sinks in
23. The Science of sound waves the planet. The escape alcohol?
of frequency greater than the velocity is about 11.2 km/s for
The specific gravity of ice is
audible range, i.e., greater the earth and escape velocity
less than that of water but the
than 20,000 Hz (20 KHz). The of moon is 2.37 km/s
same is more than that of
vibrations of certain crystals 26. According to this theory, alcohol, hence ice floats on
(quartz, zinc oxide, barium changes of energy in atoms water but sinks in alcohol.
litanate etc) under the and molecules occur only in
discrete packets, each an Why is mercury used in
influence of an applied
integral multiple of a thermometer ?
alternating voltage produces
ultrasound or ultrasonic fundamental quantity (h) Mercury is the only metal
waves up to well above 20 generally referred to as which is in liquid state even
KHz. In the medical field, quantum. Light packet at the ordinary room tempe-
in
pipes freezes. On freezing into wind. The hole allows the air
to run out of the parachute brim with water and a piece
ice the water increases in
regularly. of ice is floating on it. As the
it.
volume, which results in
ice melts, will the water
bursting of water pipes. How does a flute produce overflow or not? Give reason
nd
Why is cooking quicker in different sound notes? for your answer.
pressure cooker ? A flute produces different
Level of water remains
In a pressure cooker, boiling sound notes because air unchanged because the
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temperature and so cooking and opening of the holes. of ice. On melting, the water
becomes quicker. Why do we use a fuse in an will be equal to the volume of
We bring our hands close to electric circuit? water displaced by the ice.
mouth while shouting to A fuse is used in an electric When a moving train slows
ex
somebody at a distance. circuit because when excess down quickly, will a passen-
Why? current flows through the ger tend to fall backward or
By bringing the hands close circuit the fuse melts and forward? Explain why?
to our mouth, the sound breaks the circuit and The passenger will tend to fall
energy is not allowed to prevents the damage to any forward because the lower
spread in all directions, of the electrical goods used. portion of his body which is
rather being made unidirec- What causes wind ? in contact with the seat will
tional (i.e. directed in a Winds are caused by the come to rest quickly whereas
particular direction). Hence unequal heating of the earths the upper portion of the body
the sound produced becomes surface and rotation of earth. continues to be in a state of
louder. Why does a drop of liquid motion. Hence, the person is
Why do we lean forward assume a spherical shape ? thrown forward, due to inertia.
while climbing a hill ? A drop of liquid assumes a Explain why it takes more
Leaning forward enables us spherical shape due to time to cook meat and
to keep the line passing surface tension. A sphere has vegetables at hill stations?
through the centre of gravity the least surface area for a At higher altitudes, the
vertically downward, within given volume. atmospheric pressure is low
in
great air wave that has the and if we use it in electric
(water droplets) gathers on
the outer side of a glass sound of thunder. heater it cannot withstand
it.
tumbler containing ice-cold high temperature.
Why are mornings and
water? evenings less warm than noon? What would happen if the
nd
The water vapour present in force of gravity were to
In the mornings and disappear suddenly ?
air gets cooled and appear as evenings, the rays of the sun
droplets of water on coming falling on earth are slanting In the absence of gravitational
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in contact with the cold and their distance is more. force, all living objects on the
surface of the glass tumbler. The earth gets heated up only earth will be practically in a
Why does a metal seen colder slightly. At noon, the rays of floating condition. They will
am
in winter and hotter in the sun falling on the earth be thrown away because of
summer compared with a are nearly vertical and the the centrifugal force caused
piece of wood? distance is also less, with the by the rotation of earth. After
Metals absorb and transmit result that the earth gets a certain time the whole earth
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is changing. presence of electric charge. temperature from great
Altimeter : The instrument Eudiometer : It is a glass tube distance by making use of the
it.
used in aircraft for measuring for measuring volume law of radiation.
altitudes. changes in chemical reactions Quadrant : For measuring
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Audiophone : Used to impr- between gases. altitudes and angles in
ove the imperfect sense of Galvanometer : For measuring navigation and astronomy.
hearing. currents of small magnitude. Quartz clock : A highly
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barograph : For continuous G.M. counter : For detecting accurate clock used in
recording of atmospheric the presence of radiation and astronomical observations
pressure. counting certain atomic and other precision works.
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in
temperatures. are fused to form helium
motion of the particles. In
Ultra sonoscope : It is an nuclei. The first hydrogen
solids, heat is transmitted by
it.
instrument used to determine bomb was exploded at
conduction.
the viscosity of liquids. Eniwetok Atoll in the Pacific
Convection : It is a process by
nd
ocean by the US 1952.
Venturimeter: It is a device which heat is transferred by
based on Bernoulli's theorm, actual motion of the particles Inertia : It is a property of
for measuring the quantity of themselves. In liquid and matter by which it resists
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a liquid flowing through the gases, heat is transmitted by change in its state of rest or in
pipe. convection. its direction of motion.
Newtons first law gives the
Wireless : It is an instrument Critical Temperature : The
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in
different colours. transmission and reception
helps the sailors to determine
Radioactivity : It is the of pulses helps determine the
the North-South direction.
it.
spontaneous disintegration distance of the object.
Mirage : It is an optical of an unstable atomic nucleus Seismograph: An instrument
illusion often observed in
nd
accompanied by the emission used for recording the
deserts due to total internal of alpha, beta and gamma
reflection and atmospheric intensity and origin of
radiations. Nucleus having earthquake.
refraction.
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Ashes : Cricket, Australia and England Lady Ratan Tata Trophy: Hockey, India
in
Champions Trophy: Hockey, International
Santosh Trophy: Football, India
Colombo Cup: Football, International
it.
Scindia Gold Cup: Hockey, India
Davis Cup: Tennis, International
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Subrato Mukherjee Cup: Football, India
DCM Trophy: Football, India
Swaythling Cup: Table Tennis, International
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The Lives of Others - Neel Mukherjee Ashoke Gajapati Raju Pusapati -
Vizianagaram , Andhra Pradesh
it.
The Substance and the Shadow - Uday Tara
Nayar - Autobiography of Dilip Kumar Narendra Singh Tomar - Gwalior
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Train to Pakistan - Khuswant Singh Jual Oram - Sundargarh
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A Bend in the River - V.S Naipaul Thawar Chand Gehlot - Shajapur, Madhya
Pradesh
What Young India Wants - Chetan Bhagat
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Central Excise Day - February 24
Air Force Day - October 8
it.
National Science Day - February 28
National Postal Day - October 10
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National Security Day - March 4
Azad Hind Day - October 21
Ordinance Factories Day (India) - March 18
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National Minorities Rights Day - December 18 April 6 International Day of Sport for
Development and Peace
Kissan Day (Farmers Day) - December 23
April 7 World Health Day
National Consumer Day - December 24
April 12 International Day of Human Space
IMPORTANT INTERNATIONAL Flight
January 26 International Customs Day April 23 World Book and Copyright Day
February 21 International Mother Language April 29 Day of Remembrance for all Victims
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March 3 World Wildlife Day May 1 May Day, International Workers' Day
March 21 International Day for the May 22 International Day for Biological
Elimination of Racial Discrimination Diversity
March 22 World Water Day First Tuesday of May World Asthma Day
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Desertification and Drought October 1 International Day of Older
Persons
it.
June 18 Autistic Pride Day
October 1 World Vegetarian Day
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June 20 World Refugee Day
October 2 International Day of Non-
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July 17 - World Day for International Justice October 11 International Day of the Girl
Child
July 18 Nelson Mandela International Day
October 16 World Food Day
July 28 World Hepatitis Day
October 24 United Nations Day
July 29 International Tiger Day
November 12 World Pneumonia Day
July 30 International Day of Friendship
November 14 World Diabetes Day
August 12 International Youth Day
November 16 International Day for
August 13 International Lefthanders Day Tolerance
December 2 International Day for the 2009 International Year of the Shark
Abolition of Slavery
2010 International Year of Biodiversity
December 3 International Day of Persons
with Disabilities 2010 International Year of Youth
in
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A
African Development Bank ADB - Abidjan (Cote dIvoire)
Asian Clearing Union ACU - Tehran
Asian Development Bank ADB Manila
C
Commonwealth Foundation - London
E
European Council EU - Brussels, Belgium
F
Food and Agriculture Organization FAO - Rome
I
International Atomic Energy Authority IAEA - Vienna
International Bank for Reconstruction and Development IBRD - Washington
International Civil Aviation Organization ICAO - Montreal
International Court of Justice- Hague, Netherlands
International Chamber of Commerce - Paris
International Development Association IDA - Washington
in
International Finance Corporation IFC - Washington
International Fund for Agricultural Development IFAD - Rome
it.
International Labor Organization ILO - Geneva
International Maritime Organization IMO - London
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International Monetary Fund IMF - Washington
International Organization of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI) - Vienna, Austria
International Criminal Police Organization InterPol - Lyon, France
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Azerbaijan - Baku Comoros - Moroni
it. Gambia - Banjul
Congo - Brazzaville
Georgia - Tbilisi
B
nd
Costa Rica - San Jose
Germany - Berlin
Bahamas - Nassau Cote d'Ivoire - Abidjan
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Ghana - Accra
Bahrain - Al-Manamah Croatia - Zagreb
Greece - Athens
Bangladesh - Dhaka Cuba - Havana
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Guinea - Conakry
Belgium - Brussels
D
Guyana - Georgetown
Belize - Belmopan
Denmark - Copenhagen
Bhutan - Thimphu H
Djibouti - Djibouti City
Bosnia & Herzegovina - Haiti - Port-au-Prince
Dominica - Roseau
Sarajevo Honduras - Tegucigalpa
Dominican Republic - Santo
Botswana - Gaborone Hungary - Budapest
Domingo
Brazil - Brasilia
Democratic Republic of the I
Brunei - Bandar Seri Congo - Kinshasa
Begawan Iceland - Reykjavik
E India - New Delhi
Bulgaria - Sofia
East Timor - Dili Indonesia - Jakarta
Burkina Faso -
Ouagadougou Ecuador - Quito Iran - Tehran
in
Mongolia - Ulaanbaatar Portugal - Lisbon
Korea North - Pyongyang it.
Montenegro - Podgorica Q
Korea South - Seoul
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Morocco - Rabat
Kosovo - Pristina Qatar - Doha
Mozambique - Maputo
R
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M O Slovakia - Bratislava
Spain - Madrid Y
Sri Lanka - Colombo Yemen - Sanaa
Sudan - Khartoum
Z
Sweden - Stockholm
Zambia - Lusaka
Switzerland - Bern
Zimbabwe Harare
Syria - Damascus
T
Taiwan - Taipei
Tajikistan - Dushanbe
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Tanzania - Dodoma it.
Thailand - Bangkok
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Trinidad and Tobago - Port
of Spain
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Tunisia - Tunis
Turkey - Ankara
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Turkmenistan - Ashgabat
U
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Uganda - Kampala
Ukraine - Kyiv
Uruguay - Montevideo
Uzbekistan - Tashkent
V
Vanuatu - Port-Vila
in
Nepal : Rupee
Chile : Peso
Netherlands : Euro
it. Vatican City : Euro
China : Yuan
Norway : Krone Z
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Cuba : Peso
North Korea : Won Zimbabwe : Dollar
D
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P
Denmark : Krone
Pakistan : Rupee
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E
Philippines : Peso
Egypt : Pound
Portugal : Euro
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F
Q
France : Euro
Qatar : Riyal
G
R
Germany : Euro
Romania : Leu
H Russia : Ruble
Hong Kong : Dollar
S
I Saudi Arabia : Riyal
India : Rupee Singapore : Dollar
Indonesia : Rupiah South Africa : Rand
Iran : Rial South Korea : Won