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Introduction

Little Known Facts About India is specially intended for the reader who wants to explore the facts that are hidden all around us. This book provides some interesting, amazing, known and unknown facts and tidbits of information about India.

India, the seventh-largest country in the world in terms of geographical area, is surrounded by the grand snow capped Himalayan ranges in the north, the spectacular coastline of the Arabian Sea in the west, the vast Bay of Bengal in the east and the awesome Indian Ocean in the south. The rich vegetation and wildlife represent the unique flora and fauna of India and host a distinctive eco-system.

India is the second most populous country in the world with a rich tradition of history and culture. The ancient land of India has witnessed years of foreign rule, religious movements and spiritual discoveries, resulting in a rich collection of social habits, festivals and customs. Great structural formations and architectural monuments that witnessed this historical journey stand proud even today.

India has been the birthplace of some great personalities who have done the country proud with their dedication and work towards the growth of the country as a whole.

Through this series, a few startling and astounding facts about India have been illuminated for all.

4

● Oldest Dam

The Grand Anicut is the world’s oldest dam, which is still in use. It is built on the Kaveri River in Tamil Nadu. Grand Anicut was built by the Chola King Karikalan around the 1st century AD. It was built to divert the waters of the Kaveri across the fertile delta region for irrigation via canals. Grand Anicut was made of stone and mud, with outer granite layers in lime mortar. It has a length of 329 metres with a width of 20 metres.

● First Christian Church

St. Thomas Church is the oldest church in India. It is located in Palayur, Kerala. It was the first Christian church in India built in 52 AD. It is also known as Apostolic Church. The Church was established by St. Thomas, one of the twelve apostles of Jesus Christ. He preached and also started conversion of

people to Christianity in Palayur.

● Reita Faria

The first Asian to win the Miss World title was Reita Faria from India. Reita Faria won the Miss World crown in 1986. She concentrated on her medical studies instead of modelling or acting in films. In 1998, Reita was a judge at Femina Miss India contest.

5

● Postal Network

India has the largest postal network in the world. India has 1, 55,035 post offices and over 5, 66,000 employees. The postal network consists of four categories of post offices, which are Head Post Offices, Sub-Post Offices, Extra Departmental Sub-Post Offices and Extra Departmental Branch Post Offices. The modern postal system in India was established by Lord Clive in 1766 and was further developed by Warren Hastings by establishing the Calcutta G.P.O. under a Postmaster General in 1774.

● Chaturanga

The game of chess originated in India around 6th century AD. It was played as Chaturanga, a Sanskrit word that refers to the four branches of army, namely - infantry, cavalry, elephants and chariots. All the four divisions found representation in the modern game, in the form of pawn, knight, bishop and rook, respectively. Chess is now played at the international level and forms a part of the Olympic Games. Chess is played between two-players on a chessboard, a square-checkered board with 64 squares arranged in an eight-by-eight grid.

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6

● Rabindranath Tagore

The first non-European to win the Nobel Prize for Literature was Rabindranath Tagore. He won the Nobel Prize for Gitanjali in 1913. He was a Bengali poet, novelist, musician, painter, and playwright. Rabindranath Tagore started writing poems at the age of eight and wrote his first short stories and dramas in 1877.

● First Indian Film

Raja Harishchandra was the first Indian film. It was a silent film directed and produced by Dadasaheb Phalke in 1913. Raja Harishchandra is the first full-length Indian feature film. The story was based on the legend of King Harishchandra, recounted in the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. The film

was first shown in public at Mumbai’s Coronation Cinema, Narayan Choyal, Girgaon on May 3, 1913.

7

● Aryabhatta

The first satellite launched by India was Aryabhatta. It was named after the Indian astronomer, Aryabhatta. The satellite was built by the Indian Space Research Organization and weighed 390 kilograms. The objectives of the satellite was to gain experience in building

and operating a satellite in space. Aryabhatta was launched by the Soviet Union on April 19, 1975. It was launched from Kapustin Yar using a Cosmos-3M launch vehicle. It carried experiments related to X-Ray Astronomy, Solar Physics and Aeronomy. Aryabhatta re-entered the earth’s atmosphere on February 11, 1992.

● Panchatantra

Panchatantra is a Sanskrit classic written by Vishnu Sharma around 200 BC. Panchatantra is a combination of two words “pancha” means five and “tantra” means practice. Panchatantra illustrates five principles, which are ‘Mitra Bhedha’ (Loss of friends), ‘Mitra Laabha’ (Gaining friends), ‘Suhrudbheda’ (Causing discord between friends), ‘Vigraha’ (Separation) and ‘Sandhi’ (Union). The main purpose of Panchatantra is to implant moral values in children since each tale has a moral lesson in the end.

8

● Highest Cricket Ground

The highest cricket ground in the world is in Chail, Himachal Pradesh. The cricket pitch is 2,444 metres above sea level. The Chail cricket ground was built in 1893 after levelling a hilltop. The cricket ground is surrounded by thick forests of deodar. It is also used as a polo ground.

● Ellora Caves

Ellora Caves are one of the largest rock-hewn monastic-temple complexes in the world. The caves are located in Aurangabad, Maharashtra. The caves are an impressive complex of Buddhist, Hindu and Jain cave temples built between the 6th and 10th centuries AD. The Ellora Caves are carved out of Charanandri hills. There are 34 caves, out of these 12 are Buddhist caves (500-750 AD), 17 Hindu caves (600-870 AD) and 5 Jain caves (800-1000 AD). The Ellora Caves were designated as a World Heritage Site in 1983.

9

● Jana Gana Mana

The National Anthem of India, Jana Gana Mana, was first sung at Calcutta Session of Indian National Congress on December 27, 1911. The complete song consists of five stanzas. It was composed originally in Bengali by Nobel Laureate, Rabindranath Tagore. The Hindi version of the Jana Gana Mana was adopted as National Anthem by the Constituent Assembly on January 24, 1950.

● Hockey

Hockey is the national sport of India. The game is played between two teams on a field with curved sticks and a small hard ball. India played hockey in the Olympic Games for the first time in 1928, which was held in Amsterdam and won the title too.

10

● Rakesh Sharma

Rakesh Sharma became the first Indian to fly into space in 1984. He flew into space as a part of joint programme between Indian Research Organisation and Soviet Intercosmos Space program. Rakesh Sharma went in the Soyuz 7-II spacecraft on April 3, 1984 and spent eight days in space. He returned on April 11, 1984. He was awarded the Hero of Soviet Union award. The Indian government honoured him with the Ashok Chakra.

● Sachin Tendulkar

At the age of 16, Sachin Tendulkar played his first test match against Pakistan in Karachi in 1989. But he made just 15 runs and was bowled by Waqar Younis.

● The Ganges

The longest river of India is the Ganges. The total length of the river is about 2,510 km. The Ganges flows from the Himalayas and is considered as the holiest river of India and worshipped as the goddess Ganga in Hinduism. The

world’s largest delta, Sunderbans, is situated on the banks of the Ganges. Haridwar,

Varanasi, Allahabad and Rishikesh are the centres of pilgrimage situated on the banks of this river.

11

● Oldest Living City

Varanasi is the oldest living city of India. It is located on the banks of the river Ganges in Uttar Pradesh. Varanasi is a centre for studying Astrology, Sanskrit, Yoga and Ayurveda. The city is home to four universities: Banaras Hindu University, Mahatma Gandhi Kashi Vidyapeeth, Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies and Sampurnanand Sanskrit University. Varanasi is also famous for Banarasi saree, handicrafts, jari work and wooden items.

● Asia’s Richest Man

Mukesh Ambani is the richest man in Asia (as of July 2010). He is the managing director of India’s largest private sector company, Reliance Industries Limited. He joined Reliance Industries in 1981 and directed and led the world’s largest grassroots petroleum refinery at Jamnagar. Mukesh Ambani loves cars especially British and always owns executive cars like Mercedes, Bently and Maybach.

12

● Amitabh Bachchan

Do you know that superstar Amitabh Bachchan was a former stage actor, radio announcer and freight company executive in Calcutta? Amitabh Bachchan made his Bollywood film debut in 1969. He played the role of one of the seven protagonists in Saat Hindustani, a film directed by Khwaja Ahmad Abbas. He won his first National Film Award for Best Newcomer. Amitabh Bachchan has sung quite a few hit songs including Mere Angne Mein (Laawaris), Rang Barse (Silsila), Mere Paas Aao (Mr Natwarlal) and Tu Maike Mat Jaiyo (Pukar).

● Sanchi

Sanchi is the oldest Buddhist sanctuary in existence. It was a major Buddhist centre in India until the 12th century. Sanchi comprises a group of Buddhist monuments including monolithic pillars, palaces, temples, and monasteries. Sanchi is a small village in the Raisen district of Madhya Pradesh. The great stupa was originally commissioned by Emperor Ashoka in the 3rd century. The Stupas are large hemispherical domes, crowned by the chatra and containing a central chamber, built over the relics of the Buddha.

● Zero

The concept of zero was developed by Indian mathematicians in the 6th century. They introduced zero to keep their symbols in their proper place. It was first used by Aryabhatta.

13

● Mahavira

Mahavira was the last Tirthankara, an enlightened soul who is born as a human being and attains perfection through intense meditation. Mahavira observed the twelve vows of Ahimsa at the age of eight. He meditated deeply for twelve years to overcome his desires and cravings.

● First Woman President

Pratibha Devi Singh Patil is the first woman president of India. She is the 12th and current President of India. She was sworn in as President of India on July 25, 2007. She won the presidential election held on July 19, 2007, defeating her nearest rival Bhairon Singh Shekhawat.

● Lakshmi Bai

Manikarnika was the original name of Lakshmi Bai, the Queen of Jhansi. She was one of the leading figures of the first freedom struggle of India that started in 1857. Rani Lakshmi Bai was the embodiment of patriotism, self-respect and heroism. She became a national heroine and was seen as the epitome of female bravery in India.

14

● Mumbai

Mumbai is the most populous city in India. It has a population of about 14 million. Mumbai is the capital city of Maharashtra. It lies on the west coast of India and has a deep natural harbour. Mumbai was named as “the alpha world city”, in 2009.

● Nightingale of India

The Nightingale of India, Sarojini Naidu was the first Indian woman to become the President of the Indian National Congress. She was the first Indian woman to be the governor of an Indian state, Uttar Pradesh. Sarojini Naidu was a poet and used to write poetry in Bengali. She was fluent in many languages such as Urdu, Telugu, English, Bengali and Persian. Sarojini Naidu joined the Indian National Movement in the wake of the aftermath of partition of Bengal in 1905. She joined Mahatma Gandhi in the Salt March to Dandi.

● Ajanta Caves

UNESCO recognised the Ajanta Caves as the world’s greatest historical monument. The caves are situated in Aurangabad, Maharashtra. Ajanta caves are rock-cut monuments dating back to 2nd century BC. There are 30 caves in Ajanta of which 9, 10, 19, 26 and 29 are chaitya-grihas and the rest are monasteries. These caves

were discovered in 1819. The paintings and sculptures of Ajanta Caves depict the Jataka Tales, considered masterpieces of Buddhist religious art. Ajanta Caves were built in two phases starting around 200 BC, with the second group of caves built around 600 AD.

Little Known Facts About India 2

Publisher : SChand Publications ISBN : 9788184972962 Author : BPI

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