After gaining its independence on the 15th of August, 1947, India like any developing country has been through a lot of ups and downs as a nation. India as a growing country has seen several changes. Considering India s freedom is comparatively new, the enormity of the changes, achievements and developments over the years is tremendous.
Events Post Independence
Listed below are some of the important events-some bad, some good, achievements and accomplishments of India over the post-independence years:
- 1910 - A Satyagrahi’s camp known as the Tolstoy Farm was established at Lawley, 21 miles from Johannesburg.
- 15th Aug, 1947 - India gains freedom, Integration of princely states | Jawaharlal Nehru- first Prime Minister of Independent India
- 30th Jan, 1948 - Mahatma Gandhi assassinated by Nathuram Godse
- 12th Sep, 1948-49 - India wins its fourth Olympic gold medal in hockey, The new constitution is adopted by the Indian Constituent Assembly.
- 26th Jan, 1950 - India becomes a Republic, The Constitution of India comes into force
- 25th Oct 1951 to 21st Feb, 1952 - This period saw the first general election of independent India, First amendment | First five-year plan. Read more on Economic Planning in India and Important Amendments in the Indian Constitution on the given links.
- 1952- First general election | Panchayati Raj
- 1954- Indo-Chinese Panchsheel Treaty
- 1955 - The Imperial Bank of India transformed into the State Bank of India. Check out the History of Banking in India here.
- 1958 - Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act is passed. Read in detail about Armed Forces Special Powers Act – AFSPA
- 18th-19th Dec, 1961 - Indian army annexed Goa from the Portuguese
- 20th Oct-21 Nov, 1962 - The Sino-Indian war breaks out. It ends in a decisive victory for China
- May 27, 1964 - Jawaharlal Nehru dies the first Prime Minister of India dies.
- 5th Aug to 23rd Sep,1965 - Indo-Pak war over Kashmir, Hindi becomes the official language of India.
- 1966 -Tashkent conference
- b Nationalization of Banks. Check out the Types of Banks in India, their category, and Functions on the linked page.
- 1970- Operation Flood was the world's most prominent dairy evolution program
- 3rd-16th Dece, 1971 - Indo-Pak War – Bangladesh was born with India’s support.
- 1973 - 1st international telephone exchange in India
- 18th May, 1974 - India explodes Pokhran, a nuclear device in an underground test. India experimented with its first nuclear bomb in Rajasthan's Pokhran.India became the world's sixth nuclear power with the operation "Smiling Buddha."
- 1975- State of emergency | Launch of India’s first satellite, Aryabhatta. Read about India’s First Indigenously built satellite- Aryabhatta here.
- 1980-20 point program
1984 -The assassination of Indira Gandhi | Bhopal gas tragedy
- 25th Jun, 1983 - India wins the World Cup in cricket
- 31st Oct, 1984 - Indira Gandhi was assassinated by her Sikh guards. Anti-Sikh riots break out.
- 2nd-3rd Dec, 1984 - Poisonous gas leaks from a pesticide plant Union Carbide Corp. in Bhopal, killing thousands.
- 1988 - Viswanathan Anand becomes India s first Grandmaster in Chess, Securities Exchange Board of India was established
- May 21st, 1991 - Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated by suicide bombing. Economic reforms | Devaluation.
- 6th Dec, 1992 - Hindus tear down Babri Masjid in Ayodhya, leading to a nation-wide Hindu-Muslim riots.
- 1998- AEC (Atomic Energy Commission) and DRDO (Defence Research and Development Organization) executed more nuclear studies called "Pokhran-II" in Rajasthan.
- 1999 - Kargil war. Decisive Indian Armed Forces victory.
- 2000- Creation of new states of Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, and Uttranchal. Check out the Union and Its Territories and Jharkhand Area Autonomous Council (JAAC)
- 2001- Earthquake strikes Gujarat leading to massive casualties
- 2002 - Gujarat riots
- 26th Dec, 2004 - Thousands of people killed in the Tsunami. Launches an application for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council.
- 2006 -US and India sign a nuclear agreement.
- 7th Jul, 2007 - Taj Mahal, Indian monument was re-elected as one the new Seven Wonders of the World. First women President-Pratibha Patil.
- 9th Sep, 2007 - India win Asian hockey tournament
- 14th Sep, 2007 - India win first Twenty-20 world tournament.
- 11th Aug, 2008 - Abhinav Bindra won 1st ever individual gold medal for country in Olympics.
- 28th Aug, 2008 - India launches 10 satellites at a go and sets world record. Moon mission-Chandrayaan-1 launched on October 22.
- 28th Aug, 2008 - Aravind Adiga won man booker award 2008 for his debut novel “the white tiger”.
- 26th, Nov, 2008 - Mumbai terror attacks of 26/11 shook the whole nation, killing 183 people leaving the whole city in stress for 60 hrs.
- 1st Jan, 2009 - The new anti-terror regimes, National Investigation Agency (NIA) Bill and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Amendment (UAPA) Bill, came into force.
- Feb 2009 - India launches a national identity scheme, Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDA).
- 12th Jun, 2009 - A 148-year old colonial law banning homosexual intercourse in India is overturned by the High Court in New Delhi.
- 26th Jul, 2009 - India launches its first nuclear submarine, the INS Arihant.
- 4th Aug, 2009 - The Indian government initiates The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act.
- 7th Nov, 2009 - Russia signs a nuclear reactor deal with India
- 1st Apr, 2010 - India launches its new 2011 biometric census.
- 3rd -14th Oct, 2010 - XIX Commonwealth Games were held in Delhi.
- 2nd Apr, 2011 - India wins the 2011 Cricket World Cup.
- 5th Apr, 2011 - Anna Hazare undertakes fast for Jan Lokpal Bill at Jantar Mantar, New Delhi.
- 30th Oct, 2011 - F1 2011 Race comes to India at the Buddh International Circuit, Noida.
- 29th Mar, 2012 - India hosts 4th BRICS summit at New Delhi.
- 2011- Vivek Express, the Longest rail in India, officially started
- 2013 - The Bharatiya Mahila Bank, India's first women commercial bank, began its functioning. Mars Orbiter Mission
- 2014 - The country was announced 'polio free' by WHO.
- 2015 - India and Bangladesh sign a historic deal | First space laboratory Astrosat.
- 2016 - India- France to buy 36 Rafale fighter jets| India becomes a member of MCTR.
- 2017 - Goods and Service Tax implemented
- 2018 - Heavy rainfall causes a massive flood in the state of Kerala.
- 2019 - The scrapping of Article 370 and 35A, which granted special status to the state of Jammu and Kashmir. The final judgment in the Ayodhya dispute was declared by the Supreme Court of India on 9 November 2019.
- 2020 - The Government of India announced a total lockdown of the country on March 25th following a surge in Covid-19 cases in the preceding weeks. The World Health Organisation (WHO) declaring Covid-19 as a global pandemic was also one of the factors behind the decision to impose a country-wide lockdown.
- 2021- Authorisation of two COVID-19 vaccines, Covaxin and Covershield, in emergencies.
- July 25th, 2022- Droupadi Murmu took the oath of office as India’s 15th President.
- 2023 - Chandrayaan-3, India's third lunar exploration mission, lifted off successfully from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Andhra Pradesh's Sriharikota as per the scheduled launch time. India became the 2nd largest military force and largest voluntary army worldwide. Telugu blockbuster RRR’s “Naatu Naatu” saw a historic win as Best Original Song at the 2023 Oscars. India emerged as the fastest-growing major economy globally, surpassing the UK to claim the fifth position. The 18th G20 Summit was successfully conducted at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi during 9-10 September 2023.