Lal Bahadur Shastri Born : 2nd October, 1904 Died : 11th January, 1966 Took part in Gandhiji's Non-co-operation

Movement in 1921. Studied in the Kashi Vidyapeeth and graduated with the title of 'Shastri'. Joined servants of the People Society of Lala Lajpat Rai in 1926. Held various portfolios like Railways, Transport, Commerce and Industry, Home Af fairs etc. in the cabinet of Government of India. Indo-Pak War of 1965 took place during his tenure. Signed 'No-war' agreement at Tashkent where he died because of heart attack. Gave the country the slogan 'Jai Jawan, Jai Kishan'. Was posthumously awarded Bharat Ratna in 1966. Indira Feroze Gandhi Born : 19th November, 1917 Died : 31st October, 1984 Was the daughter of Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India. Created the 'Vanar Sean' movement for young children who played a notable role i n Indian Independence Movement. Married to Feroze Gandhi in 1942 and both took active part in 'Quit India' Movem ent and were arrested and jailed in 1942. Served as President of Indian National Congress in 1959-1960. Became the first woman Prime Minister of India in 1966 and remained in power til l 1977. In 1971, led India in a successful war against Pakistan, to separate East & West Pakistan and establish the nation of Bangla Desh. She declared state of 'Emergency' and assumed emergency powers in 1975. Was defeated in 1977 elections but became victorious in 1980 general elections. In 1984, she ordered 'Operation Bluestar' to storm the Golden Temple of Amritsar which was converted into an armory. Was assassinated by her sikh bodyguards on October 31, 1984. Was awarded Bharat Ratna in 1972. Rajiv Feroze Gandhi Born : 20th August, 1944 Died : 21st May, 1991 Preferred his career as airline pilot and was reluctant to enter politics. Was persuaded by his mother Indira Gandhi to join politics, after the death of h is younger brother Sanjay Gandhi. Became the Prime Minister in 1984 after the assassination of his mother Indira G andhi, the then Prime Minister. Put the country on the Third World Communication Network through his efforts to speedup the progress of science with sophisticated computer technology. Took steps to bring peace to the disturbed states of Punjab, Assam and Mizoram. Became a centre of controversy in Defence purchase of Bofors tanks. Was assassinated in Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu in 1991. Was awarded 'Bharat Ratna' posthumously in 1991. A magnificient memorial named ' Veer Bhumi' was constructed at his cremation spot. Vishwanath Pratap Singh Born : 25th June, 1931 Birth Place : Allahabad Was the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh from 1980 to 1982. Resigned as Congress Cabinet Minister under Rajiv Gandhi's government. Floated an opposition party 'Jan Morcha' to protest a defence contract. When 'Janta Dal' was formed in 1988 his party 'Jan Morcha' merged with it. In 1989 'Janta Dal' faugh elections along with BJP and Communist Parties. Became Prime Minister in 1989 after the victory of Janta Dal. His tenure was marred by student agitations that came up because of his 'Reserva tion Policy' in government jobs based on caste system. Was alienated after his government decided to implement the ideas of Mandal Comm ission, which favored affirmative action for the lower caste.

Was ousted when BJP withdrew support to the 'National Front' government after it s leader L.K. Advani was arrested during his 'Rath Yatra' supporting constructio n of 'Ram Mandir' in Ayodhya. Haradanahalli Dodde Deve Gowda Born : 18th May, 1933 Birth Place : Haradanahalli, Karnataka Was in Indian National Congress Party from 1953 to 1962. Was the Chief Minister of Karnataka State from 1994-1996. Contested elections as independent for legislative assembly from 1962 to 1977. Joined the wing that was opposed to Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's faction when the group split (1969). Was jailed for 18 months in 1975 during the time of 'Emergency' that was declare d by Indira Gandhi. In 1996, the Indian Parliament did not see any single party achieving a clear ma jority. Hence a coalition of political parties, the 'United Front' was formed. H e became the leader of this 'United Front' and hence became the 11th Prime Minis ter of India from 1st June, 1996 to 21st April, 1997 Chandra Shekhar Born 1927 He became the eighth Prime Minister of India on 10th November, 1990 and resigned on 6th March, 1991, but remained in office till 20th June, 1991 due to general elections. He was a staunch socialist. Dr. Manmohan Singh Born : 26th September, 1932 Birth Place : Gah, West Punjab, Pakistan Has got the doctorate in Economics from Oxford University. Is an economist by training and has formerly served in the International Monetar y Fund. Is a low-key politician, enjoying an image as 'squeaky clean'. Has worked as a finance minister under Prime Minister Narasimha Rao from 1991 to 1996. Was awarded the Outstanding Parliamentarian Award in 2002. Has worked as the leader of opposition in Rajya Sabha from 1998 to 2004. Has also worked as the governor of Reserve Bank of India from 1982 to 1985. Received Padma Vibhushan in 1987. Working as a Prime Minister since May, 2004 of the Congress Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Born : 31st October, 1875 Died : 15th December, 1950 Birth Place : Nadiad, Gujarat, India Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel was officially awarded the Bharat Ratna, India's highes t civilian honour posthumously in 1991. PRESIDENTS Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan Born : 5th September, 1888 Died : 17th April, 1975 Birth Place : Tiruttani, Tamil Nadu, India Mastered the classics of Indian Philosophy and specialized in Western Philosophy . Worked as Professor of Philosophy in University of Mysore (1918) and University of Calcutta (1921). Brought out a philosophic classic and a literary masterpiece 'Indian Philosophy' book in 1923. Invited to the Oxford University in England to be part of the special 'Upton Lec tures'. Was also invited by other Universities like Yale, Howard and Princeton.

Was Was Was Was Was

Vice Chancellor of Andhra University and Benares Hindu University. the first envoy of India to Soviet Union. the Vice President of India from 1952 to 1962. the President of India from 1962 to 1967. awarded 'Bharat Ratna' in 1954.

Dr. Rajendra Prasad Born : 3rd December, 1884 Died : 28th February, 1963 Was a great freedom fighter. Was a crucial leader of the Indian Independence Movement and was the architect o f the Indian Constitution. Was the President (from 1946 to 1950) of the Constituent Assembly that drafted t he Constitution of the Republic of India. Was a close associate of Mahatma Gandhi and was actively involved in the 'Swades hi' Movement. Had also joined the 'Dawn Society' run by Satishchandra Mukherjee and Sister Niv edita. Founded and edited the Hindi weekly, 'Desh' and started his lifelong campaign to establish Hindi as the national language. Had also served as a Cabinet Minister for some time, in the first Government of Independent India in 1946. Was awarded 'Bharat Ratna' in 1962. Dr. Zakir Husain Born : 8th February, 1897 Died : 3rd May, 1969 Birth Place : Hyderabad, India Got Ph. D. Degree in Economics from Berlin in Germany. Founded an institution named Jamia Milia Islamia & became Vice Chancellor of Jam ia Milia from 1926 for 22 years. Became Vice Chancellor of Aligarh University. Became the Governor of Bihar. Became Vice President of India from 1962-1967 and President of India from 1967-1 969. Had a keen interest in literary and academic work. Translated in Urdu, Plato's ' The Republic' and Cannon's 'Elementary Political Economy'. Awarded with Padma Vibhushan in 1954 and Bharat Ratna in 1963. Kocheril Raman Narayanan Born : 27th October, 1920 Died : 9th November, 2005 Had a brilliant academic career and graduated from London School of Economics sp ecialising in Political Science. Joined Indian Foreign Service. Has served as Ambassador in China, Thailand, USA and many other countries. Has worked as Vice Chancellor of Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. Has served as Union Cabinet Minister holding portfolios of Planning, External Af fairs and many other departments. Has worked as Vice President of India from 1992 to 1997. Has authored books viz. (1) India and America (2) Images and Insights and (3) No n-alignment in Contemporary International Relations. Dr. Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam Born : 15th October, 1931 Birth Place : Tamil Nadu, India He became the 11th President of India on 25th July, 2002. He is a well known Sci entist of International repute. He is an Architect of Indian Defence Research & Development, particularly Missil e Technology. Received Padma Bhushan in 1981 & Padma Vibhushan in 1990. He is the recipient of 'Bharat Ratna' award in 1998.