Current Leaders
India and Neighbours
India Closeup
Albert Einstein said:
We owe a lot to the Indians, who
taught us how to count, without which
no worthwhile scientific discovery
could have been made
Land of Contrast – Poverty
- There are 250 million poor people in India But,
- Three of the 20 most riches people in the world are from India.
Culturally Rich - Inventions- The digit zero and the numbering system
- Chess
- Algebra, Trigonometry, and Calculus
- The decimal system
- The game of Snakes and Ladders
- The value of “pi”
- Noble prizes in Literature, Physics, Economics, Peace, and Medicine
And,- Ayurveda is the earliest literature of medicine known to mankind. The father of medicine, Charaka, practiced medicine 2500 years ago.
- Until 1896, India was the only source for diamonds to the world.
- India never invaded any country in her 10,000 years of history
- Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism borne in India and followed by 25% of the world's population
Achievement made by Indian Engineers in theSilicon Valley include:- Vinod Khosla Founded Sun Microsystems
- Vinod Dham Invented Pentium Microprocessor
- Sabeer Bhatia created and founded Hotmail
There are 3.22 millions Indians in USA (1.5% ofpopulation), but they constitute38% of doctors12% scientists36% of NASA scientists34% of Microsoft employees28% of IBM employees17% of INTEL scientists13% of XEROX employees
History of IndiaDivided in 7 Periods1. Original Indians (1700BC – 3300BC)- Indus Valley Civilization: Mohenja-daro and Harappa People
2. Aryans (2500BC – 322BC)- India’s Root Culture
3. The Mauryan Empire (322BC – 188BC)- Spread of Buddhism
4. Gupta Period (320AD – 480AD)- Golden Age of India
5. Muslim Period (1175AD – 1800AD)- Turks and Mughals
6. European Rule (1800AD – 1947AD)- Portuguese, French, Dutch, and English
7. Independence and Democratic India1. Indus Valley Civilization (1700BC – 3300BC)
Indus Valley Civilization- Excavation in Northwest part of Pakistan has discovered civilization that is over 5,000 years old.
- This is the period where people in the rest of the world were nomadic
The artifacts discovered from the excavationreveal the knowledge of:- Urban planning
- Sanitation system
- Advancements in Art and science
- Agriculture and trade
- Engineering – metallurgy
- Medicine – dentistry
- Peaceful egalitarian society
Remains of a 5,000 years old city
Sewage System – view of a drain
Same size Houses – Egalitarian Society
Sindhu River – Navigation Know-how
Impact of Indus Valley Civilization- Legacy of knowledge and appreciation of arts, science,engineering, and peaceful co-existence
- Manifested for centuries in India and by Indians living abroad through achievements in:
- Engineering
- Science
- Medicine
- Arts
2. Aryans (2500BC – 322BC)- Group of nomadic tribes who had originally inhabited Central Asia (There is a dispute on this)
- Tall, fair haired, with clear cut features, they settled in Punjab, in the Indus Valley River region.
- Fought with the original people of Indus Valley Civilization, who were dark skin and known as Dasyus or Dravidians
- The superiority of the Aryans resulted in the Dravidian submission and retirement to the south.
- The Aryan society was very well organized, ruled by a monarch.
- Practiced the four Vedas
- Caste system was introduced and practiced, based on one’s profession:
- Brahmins: Priests, teachers, intellectuals
- Khsatriyas: Warriors, soldiers
- Vashya: Traders, merchants, peasants
- Shudras: People in service of others
- Aryan period ended At the end of 322BC.
Cultural Impact of Aryans- The culture of the Aryan period exist today and has been an integral pat of Hindus all over the world.
- All Hindus accept Vedas as their most sacred scripture.
- Hindu religion originated with Aryans
- With the invasion of Persian kings Cyrus and Darius in the 500 BC, there were significant changes and commingling of Aryan and Persian culture.
Persian and Greek Invasion- The Persian Invasion in 500BC, and the invasion of Alexander the Great of Greece in 327 BC, changed the Indian culture for ever.
- The most significant impact of this period was:
- (1) Cultural mixing
- (2) Establishment of contacts with foreign countries
3. Mauryan Empire (322BC -188BC)- The Mauryans were better rulers and culturally rich.
- They had a highly centralized and hierarchical government, well developed trade and commerce, welfare of foreigners, maintenance of public places including markets, and temples.
- The most significant ruler of this period was Emperor Ashoka who converted to Buddhism and introduced Buddhism outside India
- After the death of Ashoka, the Mauryan Empire disintegrated rapidly and all of South Asia fragmented into regional powers.
Cultural Impact of Mauryans- Origin of non-violence in India
- War in Kalinga
- Ashoka promoted non-violence, along with Buddhism.
- spread of Buddhism to neighboring countries of China,Thailand, Vietnam, Japan, etc.
- Education and Intellectual movement
- The World's first university was established in India. More than 10,500 students from all over the world studied more than 60 subjects.
Mauryan Art – Ajanta Ellora Caves
Ajanta and Ellora Caves – One piece carving
Symbol of non-violence and secularism
Ashoka Lion and ChakraSymbol on Indian currency and flag
4. Gupta Period (320 AD – 480 AD)- After the decline of Mauryans, Gupta rulers rose to power
- The Gupta period in Indian history is known as the Golden Age of India.
- Era of the most advanced civilization, flush with wealth,higher education, trade with foreign countries, and an overall happy life.
- Religious tolerance and freedom of worship
- Period of Hindu renaissance.
Impact of the Gupta Period- Emperor Ashoka promoted Buddhism, but Gupta rulersshowed a preference for Hindu religion
- Music, architecture, sculptures and painting were at its best.
- Various copper statues images of Buddha reflect the craftsmanship of the Gupta period.
- After the death of the last Gupta ruler in 570 AD, the Gupta empire declined and broke off.
Gupta Period (320 AD – 480 AD)Huien Tsang has provided a good historicalaccount of the life in this period.Foreign Invasions Due to its wealth and culture, India has attracted foreigners throughout its history:
- Persian invasion in 500BC
- Greek Invasion in 327 BC
- Turks in 1175AD
- Mughal in 1526
- Portuguese in 16th century
- Dutch and French in 17th century
- English in 18th through 20th century
5. Muslim Period – Turks and Mughals (1175 –1800 AD)- Turks from Central Asia invaded India and ruled from1175 to 1340 AD.
- Attracted by India’s wealth, looted and destroyed temples.
- More interested in wealth rather than politics and were soon replaced by the Mughals.
- The Turks’ dominance ended in 1526 with the invasion of Mughals from central Asia
The Turks- Fierce and famous Turk invader, Mahmud of Ghazni
Muslim Period (1175 – 1800 AD) – The Mughals- Nomadic people of central Asia. The first invader was Babur, related to Genghis Khan.
- He defeated Rajputs and Afgans and ruled in India
- Babar’s successors: Akbar and Shahjahan are the most prominent in Indian history.
- Akbar is known to be the first Muslim emperor to unite Hindus and Muslims, and marrying a Hindu woman.
- Shahjahan is known in history for building the world famous monument Tajmahal.
- Shahjahan built the Tajmahal in memory of his deceased wife Noorjahan, who died on June 17,1631 in child birth.
- Aurangzeb was the last significant ruler of the Mughal Empire, preceding the european rulers
- His successors were week and corrupt, Aurangjeb is generally regarded as the last significant Mughal ruler.
- The Hindu Maratha Empire mostly replaced Mughal rule during the rest of the 18th century
Last Mughal Emperor - Aurangzeb
Cultural Impact of Muslim Period
- Today, 13.4% of India’s population is Muslim
- Muslims are an integral part of the Indian culture.
-
- However,Interreligious marriages are rare
6. European Rule (1800 – 1947) – Discovery of India- The invasion of Alexander had boosted trade contacts outside India
- Italians and Portuguese made several attempts to find an easy route to India that will avoid the hostile route through northern part of India.
- Columbus, in his quest to find India ended up in North America and erroneously thought he had reached India, calling the native of the new land as Indians.
- On April, 1498 Vasco da Gama reached the western coast of India and the quest for Europeans to reach India was fulfilled.
- Subsequent to Vasco Da Gama’s arrival in India, the Portuguese fought and established their dominance and appointed Portuguese Governor in India.
- After a century, due to the incompetent administration,the Portuguese power began to decline.
European Rule (1800 – 1947)Portuguese Explorere –Vasco da Gama
Dutch Rule- After the Portuguese, the Dutch rose to power and established the Dutch East India Company
- Only after a short rule, the Dutch East India Company declined under the pressure from the English.
- The British navy was much superior to the Dutch and the English controlled the Dutch possessions in India.
The British Rule- Lured by the Portuguese’s success in India, the English too wished to have their share of wealth and profits.
- Despite the looting and plundering by Muslims and east Europeans, India was still one of the most rich countries in the world.
- In 1600 Queen Elizabeth granted a charter to a company of merchants to trade freely with India.
- British East India Company flourished and controlled the whole country.
- India was ruled by British from 1858 to 1947. Lord Mount Batten was the last governor general to rule over India.
- The independence movement by Indians ended the British rule on August 15,1947.
Impact of Europeans- The impact of Portuguese and Dutch rule was insignificant
- However, there was a significant impact of the British rule
- Before the advent of the British, India was ruled by selfish kingdoms under rival chiefs and rulers.
Impact of British Rule- The British influence inspired western education and thoughts:
- Created a new educated class.
- Created a common language – English
- Inspired freedom and exchange of ideas
- Built a railway system
- The largest single employer in the world today, employing over a million people.
- Created the largest English speaking nation in the world
7. Independence and Modern India- Although unintended, the British rule helped Indians become organized and united for freedom.
- Gandhi’s non-violence movement for freedom appealed to the civilized
- world and helped achieve India’s freedom.
Independence of India- The main historical figures of the Indian independence movement include Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru,
- and Mohammad Ali Jinnah.
- India and Pakistan become free and independent countries on August 15, 1947
- Nehru became the first prime minister of newly formed democratic country of India
Independence of India
Independence of India- Muhammad Ali Jinnahbecame the first governor general of Pakistan.
Sad Chapter - Partition of India and Pakistan- At independence, the British partitioned India into India and Pakistan
- Two parts of India were divided, Bengal and Punjab. The eastern part of Bangal became East Pakistan and western part of Punjab formed the West Pakistan.
- Mohandas Gandhi believed that Hindus and Muslims could and should live in amity and opposed the partition
Partition of India and Pakistan- Gandhi’s support for Muslims and low caste hindus enraged many people. (Gandhi was assassinated soon after Partition by a Hindu Nationalist
- Once the lines of partition were established, about 14.5 million people crossed the borders to seek shelter
- in religious majority.
- Based on 1951 Census of displaced persons,7,226,000 Muslims went to Pakistan from India while 7,249,000 Hindus and Sikhs moved to India from Pakistan after partition.
- East and West Pakistan,shown in green.
- The newly formed governments were completely unequipped to deal with migrations of such staggering magnitude, and massive violence and slaughter occurred on both sides of the border.
- Estimates of the number of deaths range around 500,000, with high estimates at 1,000,000.
Carnage after partitionIndependence and Democratic India- The Constitution declares India to be a socialist democratic republic.
- It adopted features from the constitution of many countries, especially, the Parliamentary form of government from Britain and the Federal Structure of governance from USA.
- As Pakistan went through several dictators, including the current one, India has remained as the largest democratic country in the world.
FACTS and Statistics- India is one of the ten nuclear state in the world
- Has a labour force of over 509 million, 60% of which is employed in agriculture and related industries
- India is the second most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world.
- It is the world’s 4th largest economy in terms of purchasing power.
- India's median age is 24.9, and the population growth rate of 1.38% per annum.
- Hindi is the national language. There are 21 other languages that are either spoken or have classical status. The number of dialects in India is as high as
- 1,652.
- Over 800 million Indians, or about 80.5% of the country's population, are Hindu
- Other religious groups include Christians (2.3%), Sikhs(1.9%), Buddhists (0.8%), Jains (0.4%)
- And minorities include Jews, Zoroastrians, Bahá'ís and aboriginals
- The national gender ratio is 944 females per 1,000 males.
- Major industries include automobiles, cement,chemicals, consumer electronics, food processing,machinery, mining, petroleum, pharmaceuticals, steel,transportation equipment, and textiles.
- Almost 70% of Indians reside in rural areas.
- India's largest cities are Mumbai (formerly Bombay),Kolkata (formerly Calcutta), Delhi, Chennai (formerly
- Madras), Bangalore, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad
- It is the largest democracy in the world
Glimpse of everyday Life in India
Q & A
Environment - current issues- deforestation
- soil erosion
- overgrazing
- desertification
- vehicle emissions
- water pollution from raw sewage and runoff of agricultural pesticides
- tap water is not potable throughout the country
- huge and growing population is overstraining natural resources
PopulationPopulation: 1,129,866,154 (July 2007)0-14 years: 31.8%15-64 years: 63.1%65 years and over: 5.1%Median Age: 24.8Growth Rate: 1.606% (2007)Economy- GDP: 4.164 trillion (2006 est) (6th)
- GDP Growth rate: 9.4% (2206 est.) (23rd)
- GDP per Capita: $3,800 (2006 est.) (154th)
- Labor force: 506.9 million (2006 est.)
- Labor force - by occupation:
- agriculture: 60%
- industry: 12%
- services: 28% (2003)
- Unemployment rate: 7.8% (2006 est.)
- Population below poverty line: 25% (2002 est.)
Birth of Religions- Religion How Old
- Hindu 4000 – 2500 BC
- Judaism 2000 BC
- Buddhism 560 -490 BC
- Shinto, Confucianism 500 BC
- Jain 420 BC
- Christanity 30 BC
- Islam 622 AD
- Sikhism 1500 AD
- Bahai 1863
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