India Before 1947

• Today India is a modern and developing country. It is a country which has always been famous for its culture and ancient civilization. It is said that human life in India was first found during stone age. Paintings at Bhimbetka in Madhya Pradesh proves the life during stone age.
• It was over 9000 years age, when the first permanent settlement appeared in India and it developed into the Indus Valley Civilization which is till now known for its advanced urban features. The superior civil drainage system of this age was the best scientific accomplishments and was followed by the Vedic Civilization.
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• According to the Hindu Mythology, the land of India at that period was referred to as Bharatavarsha and it was Vedic Civilization which laid the foundation of Hinduism in India. During this period many independent kingdoms and republics spread all over the country and this resulted in the complex religious culture in India. This was the same time when Jainism and Buddhism took birth in the country.
• India is a country which was ruled by many emperors during early ages and several dynasties flourished under the patronage of these kings. When the Gupta Dynasty came into power during the third century, the period got better for the people living in the country and it was referred to as the Golden Age of ancient India.
• Mughals and Marathas entered north India and gradually expanded their reign throughout the country. Many European invades arrived India as traders and later established colonies in the country. India came under the control of British East India Company by 1856 which had its capital at Calcutta. Later after the First War of India Independence, India came under the direct control of the British Monarch.
• British ruled India for many years till twentieth century. After this big English rule in the country, the Indian National Congress launched a struggle for independence throughout the nation. Many Indian leaders started mass campaigns and fought this struggle through ahimsa and total non violence.
• Gandhi lead Indians in the Dandi Salt March while others including Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Sardar Patel, Jawaharlal Nehru and many more revolted demanding Britishers to quit India. India gained independence in 1947 but this independence resulted in forming Pakistan with the Muslim Majority separated from India and had their own land.
•  The name ‘India‘ is derived from the River Indus, the valleys around which were the home of the early settlers. The Aryan worshippers referred to the river Indus as the Sindhu.
•  The Persian invaders converted it into Hindu. The name ‘Hindustan’ combines Sindhu and Hindu and thus refers to the land of the Hindus.
• The Art of Navigation & Navigating was born in the river Sindh over 6000 years ago. The very word Navigation is derived from the Sanskrit word ‘NAVGATIH’. The word navy is also derived from the Sanskrit word ‘Nou’.
•  India is the largest democracy in the world, the 6th largest Country in the world, and one of the most ancient civilizations.
• The largest employer in the world is the Indian Railways, employing over a million people.
•  India has the largest number of Post Offices in the world.
•  India was one of the richest countries till the time of British rule in the early 17th Century. Christopher Columbus, attracted by India’s wealth, had come looking for a sea route to India when he discovered America by mistake.
• Until 1896, India was the only source of diamonds in the world
•  Baily Bridge is the highest bridge in the world. It is located in the Ladakh valley between the Dras and Suru rivers in the Himalayan mountains. It was built by the Indian Army in August 1982.
•  India exports software to 90 countries.
•  India never invaded any country in its last 100000 years of history.
• There are 300,000 active mosques in India, more than in any other country, including the Muslim world
•  The World’s First Granite Temple is the Brihadeswara Temple at Tanjavur, Tamil Nadu. The shikhara of the temple is made from a single 80-tonne piece of granite. This magnificent temple was built in just five years, (between 1004 AD and 1009 AD) during the reign of Rajaraja Chola.
• Varanasi, also known as Benaras, was called “the Ancient City” when Lord Buddha visited it in 500 B.C., and is the oldest, continuously inhabited city in the world today.