Indian History

B. R. Ambedkar plaque. 10 King Henry Road, Chalk Farm, London Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar who was a leader of the depressed classes throughout his life. He worked for the moral and material progress of the 'untouchables'. B. R. Ambedkar was born on 14 April 1891 in Mhow (now officially known as Dr Ambedkar Nagar) in Madhya Pradesh. He belonged to the 'untouchable' Mahar caste. Ambedkar was a great scholar who studied economics at Columbia University and the London School of Economics.  In 1924 Ambedkar founded the Depressed Classes Institute (Bahishkrit Hitkarni Sabha) in Bombay. Three years later in 1927 he established the Samaj Samta Sangh to propagate the gospel of social equality between caste Hindus and worked for the uplift of the 'untouchables'. In December 1927, he led a satyagraha in Mahad to fight for the rights of the 'untouchables' to draw water from public wells and tanks. In 1928 he organized temple entry movement named  Parvati temple satyagraha...

Born in 1311 AD, Abdul Malik Isami had written a political history called Futuh–us-Salatin which he dedicated to the founder of the Bahmani kingdom, Alauddin Hasan Bahman Shah (reigned 1347 – 1358). He had accompanied his grandfather to Devagiri when the populace of Delhi was ordered by Muhammad Bin Tugglaq to leave for Deogiri or Devagiri which the Tughlaq Sultan named Daulatabad. However, his old grandfather died on the way before reaching the destination.  Composed in Persian in the form of an epic, Futuh –us-Sulatin ("Gifts of the Sultans") begins with the rise of the Ghaznavi dynasty and concludes with the reign of Sultan Muhamamd bin Tughlaq. Futuh-us-Salatin was completed in 1350 AD.   According to Isami, Balban became the ruler of the Slave dynasty by murdering his predecessor and son-in-law Nasir-ud-din Mahmud. Regarding the rationale of shifting his capital from Delhi to Deogir (Daultabad) in the Deccan by Muhamamd bin Tughlaq,  this fourteen century historian s...

Ludovico di Varthema and King of Khambat / Image Credit   Ludovico di Varthema  was an Italian traveller, adventurer and soldier who came to India via Alexandria, Cairo, Damascus, Mecca, Aden and Hormuz. He has left behind a vivid account of the cities and customs and manners of the people  Apart from visiting the Adil Shahi capital of Bijapur in South India, Varthema visited the mighty Hindu kingdom of Vijayanagar. His description of the  Vijayanagar  city contains very interesting and valuable information. His voluminous travel account, The Itinerary of Ludovico di Varthema, provides a detailed account of Goa, Calicut and other ports on the west coast of India. Ludvico Di Varthema was knighted by the Portuguese for joining their services in India. According to him,  Gujarat's  Muzaffarid dynasty ruler  Mahmud Shah (1459-1511), also known as Mahmud Begada, had a long beard that reached his girdle, and he tied his very long moustaches behind his h...

Grand Anicut / Image Credit Cholas were one of the three major ruling dynasties of the Tamil Country during the Sangam period  (between the 3rd century B.C. and 3rd century A.D.). They ruled over an area known as Tondaimandalam or Cholamandalam. The most celebrated ruler of the Sangam Cholas was Karikalan who made a grand anicut at Kaveri and laid the foundation of the capital of Kaveripattinam, also known as Puhar. Kaveripattinam, now a non-descript fishing village silted up by the river mud, had an artificial harbour which was built by prisoners of war who were obtained by him following his successful raid on Sri Lanka. Before Kaveripattinam, Uraiyur was the capital of the Chola kingdom.   Karikalan' father was the son of Ilanjetcenni who was a valiant and brave ruler. Karikalan, which means man with a charred leg, was so named because his leg was caught in flames when the prison, in which he was incarcerated after being kidnapped by his enemies, was set on fire. He, ho...

December 16 is celebrated to commemorate the defeat of the Pakistani troops in the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971 and the emergence of an independent Bangladesh. On this day Pakistani army surrendered to Lt. General Jagjit Singh Aurora , the chief Commander of the Joint military command of India and Bangladesh. The day is celebrated as Victory Day or Bijoy Dibosh . Recently the iconic statue at the 1971 Shaheed Memorial Complex in Bangladesh, depicting the Pakistan Army's surrender, was vandalised amid the attacks on the Hindu population in the country.  The emergence of Bangladesh as a sovereign country in 1971 is an important event in the world history. At the time of Indian independence in 1947 Bangladesh was a part of newly created nation of Pakistan. Since then, (it is still the case) Pakistan had been carrying their hate India campaign since its creation. It was nor ready (is still not ready) to understand that the future of India and Pakistan depends on peace and coopera...

  Original image  by  W.Taylo The First Anglo-Afghan War (1838-42) was fought between the British East India Company (EIC) and, the Emirate of Afghanistan.  The war caused the greatest misfortune that ever befell the British army and dealt a severe blow to their prestige in India. With the fall of Napoleonic France in 1814, Russia had emerged as Britain’s potential rival by 1830s. India was the prized possession of the British Empire at that time. Russia has made its Asiatic ambitions clear. But to realize its ambition it would have to gain a diplomatic and military foothold in Afghanistan, an insignificant and impoverished tribal society in the early 19th century. Instead of entering into an alliance with Afghanistan’s ruler, Dost Mohammad, Britain chose to back Shah Shuja, the deposed ruler of Afghanistan, who had been living in exile in India for three decades. In 1837, Alexander Burnes, an envoy sent by  George Eden (Lord Auckland), the then Governor-Genera...

Terracotta head of Buddha Devnimori Excavations at Devni Mori, 2 km from Shamlaji in  the Aravalli district in northern Gujarat, have revealed a treasure trove of architecturally and sculpturally rich Buddhist remains that include a Buddhist monastery dating back to 3rd-4th century AD. The excavations at this archaeological importance also yielded various artifacts, such as terracotta statues, inscribed caskets, pottery, and  coins.  Devni Mori has been submerged under  the waters of the Meshwo reservoir since the 1970s. Today,  a Buddhist flag is hoisted on a pole in the middle of the reservoir which came into being due to the construction of the  Meshvo dam in the late 1960s. The flag  marks the location where the stupa once stood.     The excavation at the site was carried between 1960 and 1963 under the supervision of R N Mehta,  S. N. Chaudhary and B Subbharao. The relic casket of Devnimor The discovery of the stupa in Shamlaji is a...