KEY YEARS IN THE HISTORY OF INDIA

Aryan civilization.

Composition of the Upanishads and the great Epics, the Mahabharata and the Ramayana.

Mahavir and Buddha lay down the principles of Jainism and Buddhism.

Alexander, The Great invades India

Chandragupta Maurya finds the Mauryan Dynasty.

Asoka ascends the throne of Magadha.

The Great Kalinga War that transforms Asoka.

Rise of the Satavahana Dynasty.

Jews and Apostle St.Thomas arrive in the Malabar Coast.

The Saka era begins.

Rule of the Kushan king, Kaniskha.

Chandragupta 1 finds the Gupta Dynasty

Samudragupta establishes a large Empire-the whole of northern India up to the Deccan.

Reign of Chandragupta 11,the golden age of Indian culture and literature.

Fahien visits India.

Founding of the Chola empire by Rajaraja Chola.

Mahmud of Ghazni ransacks the Somnath temple.

Muhammad Ghori defeats Prithiviraj. Paves way for Muslim rule.

The Delhi Sultanate was found.

Fall of the Slave Dynasty; Beginning of the Khilji Dynasty.

Reign of Mughal emperor Babur.

Vascodagama lands at Calicut.

Time of Guru Nanak,the founder of Sikkhism.

Goa captured by Portuguese.

First battle of Panipat.Babar defeats the Lodis and establishes Mughal rule.

Accession of Akbar.

East India Company formed.

Shah Jahan builds the Taj Mahal.

Shivaji becomes king in Delhi.

Nadir Shah invades Delhi.

French rule consolidated in Pondicherry.

Battle of Plassey.

Ranjit Singh mobilizes the power of Sikhs.

Lord William Bentick becomes the first Governor General of India.

First Railway between Bombay and Thana.

The Sepoy Mutiny.

Government of India passes from East India Company to the British Crown.

Indian National Congress born.

Founding of the Muslim League.

Capital of India shifted from Calcutta to Delhi.

Non-cooperation movement begins.

Mahatma Gandhi leads the Dandi march in Ahmedabad.

Inauguration of New Delhi.

India gets freedom. Nehru is India's new Prime Minister.

Mahatma Gandhi is assassinated in Delhi.

India becomes a Republic.

Hindi proclaimed the National language.

Indira Gandhi is India's Prime Minister.

Indo- Pakistan clashes

Indo-China war.

Indira Gandhi comes to power.

Emergency declared by Indira Gandhi.

Indira Gandhi assassinated by her bodyguard. Rajiv Gandhi, Indira's son takes over.

General elections, V.P. Singh becomes the Prime Minister.

Rajiv Gandhi assassinated during election campaign, Narasimha Rao becomes the Prime minister.

Babri Masjid brought down. Riots followed in the whole of North India.

National Front comes to power.

BJP wins the elections and are ruling the country till date.

US President Bill Clinton makes groundbreaking visit to India to improve ties.

Massive earthquakes hit western state of Gujarat, leaving at least 30,000 dead.

Retired Scientist and architect of India's missile programme APJ Abdul Kalam elected president.

India, Pakistan agree to resume direct air links and to allow overflights.

The 7.6 M Kashmir Earthquake strikes, leaving 86,000people dead, and 2.8 million homeless

US and India sign a nuclear agreement during a visit by US President George W Bush

Pratibha Patil becomes first woman to be elected president of India.

India successfully launches its first mission to the moon, the unmanned lunar probe Chandrayaan-1.

Delhi court decriminalizes gay sex

India wins cricket world cup after 28 years under the captaincy of Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

Pranab Mukherjee, the former Finance Minister is elected as the 13th president of India.

Mars Orbiter Mission, is successfully launched into Mars orbit by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)

Narendra Modi of the BJP elected as prime minister of India, Congress was routed in the general elections.

The government withdraws high denomination notes from circulation causing chaotic scenes at banks across the country.

The worst flood in a century hits the southern state of Kerala, crippling it.