Highlights of 2010-11 budget presented by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee in parliament Friday February 26, 2010:

Highlights of 2010-11 budget presented by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee in parliament Friday February 26, 2010:
Highlights
· Online news agencies to attract tax
· Sensex surges 350 points on new tax slabs
· Rationalising tax criteria on gaming software
· No hike in service tax
· Corporate surcharge down from 10 per cent to 7.5 per cent
· Liquor prices set to go up
· Prices of gold, silver, precious stones set to rise
· Makers of mobile accessories to get tax breaks
· No taxes on transportation of pulses
· Prices to go up for cars, cement, fuel, cigarettes, air conditioners, TVs, steel
· To restore 7.5 per cent duty on petrol and diesel
· Raise excise duty on all non smoking tobacco
· Uproar over hike in fuel prices in Lok Sabha
· To restore 5 per cent duty on crude petroleum
· Fuel prices likely to go up
· Central exicse duty on petrol and diesel raised to Rs 1 per litre
· Rollback in excise duty to 10 per cent
· Govt announces partial rollback in excise duty
· Excise on large cars, SUVs and MUVs raised to 22 per cent
· Presumptive tax limit raised to Rs 60 lakh
· Investment linked deduction benefit for two star hotels
· Deduction of Rs 20,000 towards infrastructure bonds
· Reduce current surcharge on companies to 7.5 per cent
· Income above 8 lakh - 30 per cent tax
· Income from 5 lakh to 8 lakh - 20 per cent tax
· Income between 1.6 lakh to 5 lakh - 10 per cent tax
· No tax on income up to Rs 1.6 lakh
· IT department to notify Saral 2 forms
· Net market borrowing pegged at Rs 3.45 lakh crore
· IT return forms to be more user friendly
· Govt to bring subsidy related liability into fiscal accounting
· Borrowing plan to be decided in consultation with RBI
· FY 10 budget deficit seen at 6.9 per cent of GDP
· FY 13 fiscal deficit target at 4.1 per cent
· Fy 12 fiscal deficit target at 4.8 per cent
· Govt to set up National Mission of Delivery of Justice
· Gross tax receipts seen at Rs 7.46 lakh crore in FY'11
· Fiscal deficit target of 5.5 per cent in FY11
· 15 per cent increase in plan expenditure
· Defence Capex rasied to Rs 60000 crore for FY'11
· Allocation for defence raised to 1.47 lakh crore
· UIDA to roll out first set of IDs by end of 2010
· Allocation of Rs 1900 crore to Unique Identity Project
· Allocation to minority welfare ministry Rs 2600 crore
· Govt to contribute Rs 1000 per month for pension security
· Home loans up to Rs 20 lakh to get 1 per cent subvention up to March 2011
· Allocated RS 66,100 crore for rural development
· Social Security Fund to have a corpus of Rs 1000 crore
· National Social Security Fund for unorganised sector
· Extend interest subvention for housing loans up to Rs Rs 10 lakh
· To allocate Rs 10,000 crore to Indira Aawas Yojana
· Rs 1200 crore assistance for drought in Bundelkhand
· To allocate 48000 crore for Bharat Nirman
· Allocation to NREGA raised to Rs 41,000 crore
· To allocate 22,300 crore allocation for health ministry
· Social sector spending at 1.38 lakh crore for FY11
· 25 pc of plan allocation for development of rural infrastructure
· To increase plan allocation for education to 31600 crore
· Rs 300 crore of Krishi Vikas Yojna
· Body for macro supervision of big companies
· Annual health survey to be conducted in rural areas in 2011
· Govt ready with draft food securty bill
· To provide one time grant to Tirupur exports
· Competitive bidding for coal block for power sector
· Allocation for power sector Rs 5130 crore in FY11
· Allocation for road infrastructure raised to 19,894 crore
· Rs 1.73 lakh crore or 46 per cent of the plan allocation for infrastructure
· Oil ministry to consider Parikh report in due time
· Crop loan interest subvention for timely repayment raised to 2 per cent
· Period of repayment of farm loan waiver extended to June 30
· Farm credit target raised to Rs 3.75 lakh crores for FY11
· Govt to take a firm view on opening up retail trade
· More captial for rural banks
· Govt to provide credit support to farmers
· RBI will give addtional licenses to private banks
· Challenge is to make growth inclusive
· FDI regime has been simplified by the government
· India received more FDIs last FY
· Disinvestment target Rs 25000 crore this year
· Good and Services Tax to be in place next year
· Valuation of listed PSUs has increased greatly
· Listing of PSUs will ensure corporate governance
· Govt will implement direct tax code by April 1, 2010
· Process to make a simple taxation system
· Need to make growth broad-based
· Gradual phasing out of fiscal stimulus
· With economy recovering, need to review public spending
· Bad monsoon affected food prices adversely
· Food inflation should come down in 2010-11: Pranab
· Export figures for January have been encouraging: Pranab
· Hope to breach 10% growth mark in the near future: Pranab
· Manufacturing has been a growth driver: Pranab
· Growth registered a strong rebound in the second quarter: Pranab
· Govt must deliever to lesser privileged sector: Pranab
· Economy stabilised in first quarter of 2009-10: Pranab
· We have to sustain food security in rural areas: Pranab
· Modernisation of PDS a priority for the govt: Pranab
· Our task is to quickly revert to high GDP growth path: Pranab
· Challenge to make development more inclusive: Pranab
· Indian economy is in far better position now: Pranab
· Pranab Mukherjee begins Budget speech
· Pranab Mukherjee reaches Parliament
· Banks raise deposit rates ahead of budget.
· Mukherjee is scheduled to begin his budget speech at 11 am.
· Budget is expected to slash the deficit as the economy rebounds.
· Government borrowing was forecast to rise by another 2.2 per cent.
· Investors were hoping FM will also be firm on keeping borrowing in check.
· Calls for fiscal discipline are urgent as inflation is forecast to reach 10 pc in coming weeks.
· Mukherjee may also unveil plans to address shortfalls in food production and distribution.
· Budget may include initiatives to address India's chronic infrastructure deficit

List of Padma Awardees - 2010

Padma Vibhushan

1. Shri
Ebrahim Alkazi (Art), Delhi

2. Shri Umayalpuram K. Sivaraman (Art), Tamil Nadu

3. Smt. Zohra Segal (Art), Delhi

4. Dr. Yaga Venugopal Reddy (Public Affairs), Andhra Pradesh

5. Dr. Venkatraman Ramakrishnan (Science and Engineering),
UK*

6. Dr. Prathap Chandra Reddy (Trade and Industry), Tamil
Nadu

 
Padma Bhushan

1. Shri
Ilaiyaraaja (Art), Tamil Nadu

2. Shri Aamir Khan (Art), Maharashtra

3. Shri Akbar Padamsee (Art), Maharashtra

4. Shri Allah Rakha Rahman (Art), Tamil Nadu

5. Pandit Chhannulal Mishra (Art), Uttar Pradesh

6. Smt. Kumudini Lakhia (Art), Gujarat

7. Shri Kuzhur Narayana Marar (Art), Kerala

8. Prof. Madhusudan Amilal Dhaky (Art), Gujarat

9. Ms. Mallika Sarabhai (Art), Gujarat

10. Prof. (Dr.) Nookala Chinna Satyanarayana (Art), Andhra
Pradesh

11. Pandit (Dr.) Puttaraj Gavai (Art), Karnataka

12. Shri Ram Kumar (Art), Delhi

13. Shri Shrinivas Vinayak Khale (Art), Maharashtra

14. Ustad Sultan Khan (Art), Maharashtra

15. Shri B.K. Chaturvedi (Civil Service), Delhi

16. Shri Moosa Raza (Civil Service), Delhi

17. Dr. P. R. Dubhashi (Civil Service), Maharashtra

18. Shri Fareed Zakaria (Journalism), USA*

19. Shri Anil Bordia (Literature and Education), Rajasthan

20. Prof. Bipan Chandra (Literature and Education), Delhi

21. Shri G.P. Chopra (Literature and Education), Delhi

22. Prof. Mohammad Amin (Literature and Education), Delhi

23. Prof. Satya Vrat Shastri (Literature and Education),
Delhi

24. Prof. Tan Chung (Literature and Education), USA*

25. Prof. Belle Monappa Hegde (Medicine), Karnataka

26. Shri. E.T. Narayanan Mooss (Medicine), Kerala

27. Dr. Noshir M. Shroff (Medicine), Delhi

28. Dr. Panniyampilly Krishna Warrier (Medicine), Kerala

29. Dr. Rama kant Madanmohan Panda (Medicine), Maharashtra

30. Prof. (Dr.) Satya Paul Agarwal (Medicine), Delhi

31. Prof. Abhijit Sen (Public Affairs), Delhi

32. Shri Sailesh Kumar Bandyopadhyay (Public Affairs), West
Bengal

33. Shri Sant Singh Chatwal (Public Affairs), USA*

34. Prof. Arogyaswami Joseph Paulraj (Science and
Engineering), USA*

35. Prof. Bikash Chandra Sinha (Science and Engineering),
West Bengal

36. Shri Jagdish Chandra Kapur (Science and Engineering),
Delhi

37. Dr. Balagangadharanatha Swamiji (Social Work), Karnataka

38. Shri Eknath Rao alias Balasaheb Vikhe Patil (Social
Work), Maharashtra

39. Capt. C.P. Krishnan Nair (Trade and Industry),
Maharashtra

40. Dr. Kushal Pal Singh (Trade and Industry), Delhi

41. Shri Manvinder Singh Banga alias Vindi Banga (Trade and
Industry), UK*

42. Shri Narayanan Vaghul (Trade and Industry), Tamil Nadu

43. Shri S. P. Oswal (Trade and Industry), Punjab

 
Padma Shri

1. Shri Gulam
Mohammed Mir (Public Service), Jammu and Kashmir

2. Ms. Rekha (Art), Maharashtra

3. Shri Arjun Prajapati (Art), Rajasthan

4. Ms. Arundhati Nag (Art), Karnataka

5. Ms. Carmel Berkson (Art), Maharashtra

6. Ustad F. Wasifuddin Dagar (Art), Delhi

7. Smt. Gul Bardhan (Art), Madhya Pradesh

8. Smt Haobam Ongbi Ngangbi Devi (Art), Manipur

9. Shri Hari Uppal (Art), Bihar

10. Shri K. Raghavan (Art), Kerala

11. Guru Mayadhar Raut (Art), Delhi

12. Shri Mukund Lath (Art), Rajasthan

13. Shri Nemai Ghosh (Art), West Bengal

14. Pandit Raghunath Panigrahi (Art), Orissa

15. Shri Rajkumar Achouba Singh (Art), Manipur

16. Dr. Ram Dayal Munda (Art), Jharkhand

17. Shri Resul Pokutty (Art), Kerala

18. Shri Saif Ali Khan (Art), Maharashtra

19. Dr. (Smt.) Shobha Raju (Art), Andhra Pradesh

20. Ms. Sumitra Guha (Art), Delhi

21. Pandit Ulhas Kashalkar (Art), West Bengal

22. Shri D.R. Karthikeyan (Civil Service), Delhi

23. Dr. Ranjit Bhargava (Environment Protection),
Uttarakhand

24. Shri Arun Sharma (Literature and Education), Assam

25. Prof. Arvind Kumar (Literature and Education),
Maharashtra

26. Ms. Bertha Gyndykes Dkhar (Literature and Education),
Meghalaya

27. Prof. Govind Chandra Pande (Literature and Education),
Madhya Pradesh

28. Prof. Hamidi Kashmiri (Literature and Education), Jammu
and Kashmir

29. Prof. (Dr.) Hermann Kulke (Literature and Education),
Germany*

30. Shri Janaki Ballav Shastri (Literature and Education),
Bihar

31. Dr. Jitendra Udhampuri (Literature and Education), Jammu
and Kashmir

32. Dr. Lal Bahadur Singh Chauhan (Literature and
Education), Uttar Pradesh

33. Shri Lalzuia Colney (Literature and Education), Mizoram

34. Ms. Maria Aurora Couto (Literature and Education), Goa

35. Dr. (Smt.) Rajalakshmi Parthasarathy alias Y.G.
Parthasarathy (Literature and Education), Tamil Nadu

36. Prof. Ramaranjan Mukherji (Literature and Education),
West Bengal

37. Dr. Ranganathan Partha-sarathy (Literature and
Education), Tamil Nadu

38. Fr. Romuald D’Souza (Literature and Education), Goa

39. Prof. Sadiq-Ur-Rahman Kidwai (Literature and Education),
Delhi

40. Mr. Sheldon Pollock (Literature and Education), USA*

41. Dr. Surendra Dubey (Literature and Education),
Chhattisgarh

42. Dr. Anil Kumar Bhalla (Medicine), Delhi

43. Dr. Arvinder Singh Soin (Medicine), Uttar Pradesh

44. Dr. B. Ramana Rao (Medicine), Karnataka

45. Dr. Jalakantapuram Ramaswamy Krishnamoorthy (Medicine),
Tamil Nadu

46. Dr. K. K. Aggarwal (Medicine), Delhi

47. Prof. Kodaganur S. Gopinath (Medicine), Karnataka

48. Dr. Laxmi Chand Gupta (Medicine), Delhi

49. Dr. Philip Augustine (Medicine), Kerala

50. Dr. Rabindra Narain Singh (Medicine), Bihar

51. Dr. Vikas Mahatme (Medicine), Maharashtra

52. Dr. Rafael Iruzubieta Fernandez (Public Affairs), Spain*

53. Prof. M.R. Satyanarayana Rao (Science and Engineering),
Karnataka

54. Prof. (Dr.) Palpu Pushpangadan (Science and
Engineering), Kerala

55. Prof. Ponisseril Somasundaran (Science and Engineering),
USA*

56. Prof. Pucadyil Ittoop John (Science and Engineering),
Gujarat

57. Dr. Vijay Prasad Dimri (Science and Engineering), Andhra
Pradesh

58. Dr. (Ms.) Vijaylakshmi Ravindranath (Science and
Engineering), Karnataka

59. Ms. Anu Aga (Social Work), Maharashtra

60. Shri Ayekpam Tomba Meetei (Social Work), Manipur

61. Shri Deep Joshi (Social Work), Delhi

62. Dr. J.R. Gangaramani (Social Work), UAE*

63. Shri Kranti Shah (Social Work), Maharashtra

64. Dr. Kurian John Melam-parambil (Social Work), Kerala

65. Baba Sewa Singh (Social Work), Punjab

66. Ms. Sudha Kaul (Social Work), West Bengal

67. Dr. Sudhir M. Parikh (Social Work), USA*

68. Shri Ignace Tirkey (Sports), Orissa

69. Kumar Ram Narain Karthikeyan (Sports), Tamil Nadu

70. Shri Ramakant Vithal Achrekar (Sports), Maharashtra

71. Ms. Saina Nehwal (Sports), Andhra Pradesh

72. Shri Vijender Singh (Sports), Haryana

73. Shri Virendra Sehwag (Sports), Delhi

74. Dr. Alluri Venkata Satyanarayana Raju (Trade and
Industry), Andhra Pradesh

75. Dr. B. Raveendran Pillai (Trade and Industry), Bahrain*

76. Shri Deepak Puri (Trade and Industry), Delhi

77. Shri Irshad Mirza (Trade and Industry), Uttar Pradesh

78. Brig. Dr. Kapil Mohan (Trade and Industry), Himachal
Pradesh

79. Dr. Karsanbhai Khodidas Patel (Trade and Industry),
Gujarat

80. Shri T.N. Manoharan (Trade and Industry), Tamil Nadu

81. Shri Venu Srinivasan (Trade and Industry), Tamil Nadu

Powers of Prime Minister of India

Powers of Prime Minister of India:-
•Real excutive authority
•He is the ex-officio Chairman of the Planning Commission, National Development Council, National Integration Council and Inter state Council
•The President convenes and prorogues all sessions of Parliament in Consultation with him
•Can recommend the dissolution of Lok Sabha before expiry
•Appoints the council of ministers
•Allocates portfolios. Can ask a minister to resign & can get him dismissed by President
•Can recommend to the President to declare emergency on grounds of war, external aggression or armed rebellion
•Advises President about President’s Rule in the State or emergency due to financial instability
•Leader of the House

Following is the information about Vice President of India

Election	Elected by both the houses (Electoral College) in accordance with the system of proportional representation by means of single transferable vote and the vote being secret. Nominated members also participate in his election The Supreme court has the final and exclusive jurisdiction for resolving disputes and doubts relating to the election of the Vice President of India
Criteria	Citizen of India More that 35 years of Age Posses the qualification of membership of Rajya Sabha Not hold any office of profit under union, state of local authority. However, for this purpose, the President, Vice-President, Governor of a State and a Minister of the Union or a State, are not held to be holding an office of profit
Other Points	Holds office for 5 years. Can be re-elected Term can be cut short if he resigns or by a resolution of the Rajya Sabha passed by a majority of all the then members of the Rajya Sabha and agreed to by the Lok Sabha He is the ex-officio Chairman of Rajya Sabha. Since he is not a member of Rajya Sabha, he has no right to vote Being the Vice-President of India, he is not entitled for any salary, but he is entitled to the salary and allowances payable to the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha All bills, resolution, motion can be taken in Rajya Sabha after his consent Can discharge the function of the President, the Vice-President shall not perform the duties of the office of the Chairman of Rajya Sabha and shall not be entitled to receive the salary of the Chairman. During this period, he is entitled for the salary and privileges of the President of India Present salary is Rs. 85,000/month

President of India Qualification

Qualification	Must be a citizen of India Completed 35 years of age Eligible to be a member of Lok Sabha Must not hold any government post. Exceptions are: President and Vice-President Governor of any state Minister of Union State
Election	Indirectly elected through ‘Electoral College’ consisting of Elected members of both the Houses of Parliament & Elected members of the Legislative Assemblies of the States. (No nominated members) Security deposit of Rs 15,000/- Supreme court inquires all disputes regarding President’s Election. Takes OATH in presence of Chief Justice of India, or in his absence, senior-most Judge of Supreme Court
Terms and Emoluments	5 year term Article 57 says that there is no upper limit on the number of times a person can become President Can give resignation to Vice-President before full-term Present Salary- Rs. 1,00,000/month (including allowances & emoluments)
Impeachment	Quasi-judicial procedure Can be impeached only on the ground of violation of constitution The impeachment procedure can be initiated in either House of the Parliament
Vacancy	In case of office falls vacant due to death, resignation or removal, the Vice-President act as President. It he is not available then Chief Justice, it not then senior-most Judge of the Supreme court shall act as the President of India The election is to be held within 6 months of the vacancy
Powers	Appoints PM, Ministers, Chief Justice & judge of Supreme Court & High Court, Chairman & members of UPSC, Comptroller and Auditor General, Attorney General, Chief Election Commissioner and other members of Election Commission of India, Governors, Members of Finance Commission, Ambassadors, etc Can summon & prorogue the sessions of the 2 houses & can dissolve Lok Sabha Appoints Finance Commission (after every 5 years) that recommends distribution of taxes between Union & State governments The President can promulgate 3 types of Emergencies:- National Emergency (Article 352) State Emergency (President’s Rule) (Article 356) Financial Emergency (Article 360) He is the Supreme Commander of the Defence Forces of India President appoints Chief of Army, Navy and Air force Declares wars & concludes peace subject to the approval of the Parliament No money bill or demand for grant can be introduced or moved in Parliament unless it has been recommended by the President He has the power to grant pardon, reprieve or remit of punishment or commute death sentences

Following are some of the books by Indian Authors

Book Name	Author
A bend in the river	V.S. Naipal
A brush with life	Satish Gujral
A House of Mr. Biswar	V.S. Naipal
A Million Mutinies Now	V.S. Naipal
A Passage to England	Nirad C.Chodhury
A Prisoner's Scrapbook	L.K. Advani
A River Sutra	Gita Mehra
A sense of time	H.S.Vatsyayan
A strange and subline address	Amit Chaudhary
A suitable boy	Vikram Seth
A village by the sea	Anita Desai
A voice for freedom	Nayantara Sehgal
Aansoo	Suryakant Tripathi Nirala
Afternoon Raag	Amit Chaudhari
Ageless Body, Timeless Mind	Deepak Chopra
Agni Veena	Kazi Nazrul Islam
Ain-i-Akbari	Abul Fazal
Amar Kosh	Amar Singh
An autobiography	Jawaharlal Nehru
An Equal Music	Vikram Seth
An Idealist View of life	Dr. S. Radhakrishan
Amrit Aur Vish	Amrit Lal Nagar
Anamika	Suryakant Tripathi Nirala
Anandmath	Bankim Chandra Chatterjee
Areas of Darkness	V.S. Naipal
Arthashastra	Lautilya
Ashtadhyayi	Panini
Autobiography of an Unknown India	Nirad C. Choudhury
Bandicoot Run	Manohar Malgonkar
Beginning of the Beginning	Bhagwan Shri Rajneesh
Between the Lines	Kuldip Nayyar
Beyond Modernisation, Beyond Self	Sisirkumar Ghose
Bhagvad Gita	Ved Vyas
Bharat Bharati	Maithilisharan Gupt
Bharat Durdasha	Bhartendu Harischandra
Border and Boundaries: women in India's Partition	Ritu Menon & Kamla Bhasin
Bharat Bharati	Maithili Saran Gupt
Breaking the Silence	Anees Jung
Bride and the Sahib and the other stories	Khushwant Singh
Broken Wings	Sarojini Naidu
Bubble, The	Mulk Raj Anand
Buddha Charitam	Ashwaghosh
By God's Decree	Kapil Dev
Chandalika	Rabindra Nath Tagore
Chandrakanta Santati	Devkinandan Khatri
Chemmen: Thakazhi	Sivasankara Pillai
Chitra	Rabindranath Tagore
Chitralekha	Bhagwati Charan Verma
Chitrangada	Rabindra Nath Tagore
Circle of Reason	Amitav Ghosh
Clear Light of Day	Anita Desai
Confessions of a Lower	Mulk Raj Anand
Confrontation with Pakistan	B. M. Kaul
Conquest of Self	Mahatma Ghandhi
Continent of Crime	Nirad C Chaudhary
Coolie	Mulk Raj Anand
Court Dancer	Rabindranath Tagore
Culture in the Vanity Bag	Nirad C Chaudhury
Days of My Years	H.P. Nanda
Daybhag	Jeemootwahan
Death of a City	Amrita Pritam
Devdas	Sharat Chandra Chatterjee
Discovery of India	Jawaharlal Nehru
Distant Drums	Manohar Malgonkar
Distint Neighbours: India	Kuldip Nayar
Divine Life	Swami Shivananda
Durgesh Nandini	Bankim Chandra Chatterjee
Dynamics of Social Change	Chandra Shekhar
Eight Lives	Rajmohan Gandhi
English August	Upamanyu Chatterjee
Essays on Gita	Sri Aurobindo Ghosh
Eternal Himalayas	Major H.P.S. Ahluwalia
Eternal India	Mrs Indira Gandhi
Faces of Everest	Major H.P.S. Ahluwalia
Foreign Policy of India	I.K. Gujral
Forty Nine Days	Amrita Pritam
From Rajpath to Lokpath	Vijaya Raje Scindia
Gaban	Munsi Premchand
Ganadevata	Tara Shankar Bandopadhyaya
Gardener	Rabindra Nath Tagore
Geet Govind	Jayadev
Ghasiram Kotwal	Vijay Tendulkar
Gitanjali	Rabindranath Tagore
Gita Rahasya	Bal Gangadhar Tilak
Glimpses of World History	Jawaharlal Nehru
Godan	Prem Chand
Golden Threshold	Sarojini Naidu
Gora	Rabindra Nath Tagore
Guide	R.K. Narayanan
Harsha Charita	Bana Bhatta
Harvest	Manjula Padmanabhan
Heir Apparent	Dr. Karan Singh
Himalayan Blunder	Brigadier J.P. Dalvi
Hind Swaraj	M.K. Gandhi
Hindu View of Life	Dr. S. Radhakrishan
Hinduism	Nirad C. Choudhury
History of India	Romila Thapar
Hullabaloo in a Guava Orchard	Kiran Desai
Humanyunama	Gulbadan Beghum
Hungary Stones	Rabindranath Tagore
I follow the Mahatma	K.M. Munshi
Idols	Sunil Gavaskar
India After Nehru	Kuldip Nayyar
India Divided	Rajendra Prasad
India Unbound	Gurcharan Das
India of Our Dreams	M.V. Kamath
India Wins Freedom	Abdul Kalam Azad
India's Priceless Heritage	N.A. Palkhivala
Indian Philosophy	Dr. S. Radhakrishan
Indira Ghandi Returns	Khushwant Singh
Indira Gandhi: Badhate Kadam	Khushwant Singh
Inscrutable Americans	Anurag Mathur
Interpreter of Maladies	Jhumpa Lahiri
It's Always Possible	Kiran Bedi
Jai Somnath	K.M. Munshi
Jayadev	Geet Govind
Jhansi Ki Rani	Vrindavanlal Verma
Kadambari	Bana Bhatt
Kagaz Te Kanwas	Amrita Pritam
Kamasutra	S.H. Vatsyayan
Kanthapura	Raja Rao
Kapala Kundala	Bankim Chandra Chatterjee
Karmabhumi	Munsi Premchand
Kashmir: A Tale of Shame	Hari Jaisingh
Kashmr: A Tragedy of Errors Kayar	Thakazhi Sivasankara Pillai
Kitab-ul-Hind	Al-Beruni
Kitni Nawon Kitni Bar	S.H. Vatsyayan
Kulliyat	Ghalib
Kumar Sambhava	Kalidas
Kurukshetra	Ramdhari Singh Dinkar
Last Burden	Upamanyu Chatterjee
Life Divine	Sri Aurobindo Ghosh
Lipika	Rabindranath Tagore
Lost Child	Mulk Raj Anand
Mahabharta	Ved Vyas
Mahatma Gandhi and his Apolstles	Ved Mehta
Malgudi Days	R.K. Narayanan
Malti Madhav	Bhavabhuti
Meghdootam	Kalidasa
Mitakshara	Vigyaneshwar
Mrichhakatikam	Shudrak
My Days	R.K. Narayanan
My India	S. Nihal Singh
My Life and Times	V.V. Giri
My Music, My Life	Pt. Ravi Shankar
My Presidental Years	R. Venkatraman
My Truth	Indira Gandhi
Mudra Rakshas	Vishakhadatta
Natural History	Plini
New Dimensions of India's Foreign Policy	A.B. Vajpayee
Nisheeth	Uma Shankar Joshi
Operation Bluestar: The True Story	Lt. Gen K.S. Brar
Our Films, Their Films	Satyajit Ray
Padmavat	Malik Mohammed Jayasi
Painter of Signs	R.K. Narayan
Panchatantra	Vishnu Sharma
Parineeta	Sharat Chandra Chatterji
Past Forward	G.R. Narayanan
Pather Panchali	Bibhuti Bhushan
Plain Speaking	N. Chandrababu Naidu
Portrait of India	Ved Mehta
Post Office	Rabindranath Tagore
Prem Pachisi	Munsi Prem Chand
Prem Vatika	Raskhan
Rajatarangini	Kalhana
Ram Charita Manas	Tulsidas
Ramayana	Maharishi Valmiki
Raghuvamsa	Kalidas
Ranghbhommi	Munsi Premchand
Ratnavali	Harsha Vardhan
Ravi Paar (Across the River)	Gulzar
Red Earth and Pouring Rain	Vikram Chandra
Ritu Samhara	Kalidas
Saket	Maithili Sharan Gupta
Satya Karischandra	Bhartendu Harischandra
Sakharam Binder	Vijay Tendulkar
Secular Agenda	Arun Shourie
Seven Summers	Mulk Raj Anand
Shadow from Ladakh	Bhabani Bhattacharya
Shahnama	Firdausi
Shrikant	Sharat Chandra Chatterji
Snakes and Ladders: Essays on India	Gita Mehta
Social Change in Modern India	M.N. Srinivas
Sultry Days	Shobha De
Sunny Days	Sunil Gavaskar
Sursagar	Kabirdas
Swami and Friends	R.K. Narayanan
The Bride's Book of Beauty	Mulk Raj Anand
The Cat and Shakespeare	Raja Rao
The Company of Women	Khushwant Singh
The Critical Years: In Jail	Kuldip Nayyar
The Dark Room	R.K. Narayanan
The Degeneration of India	T.N. Seshan
The Glass Palace	Amitav Ghosh
The God of Small Things	Arundhati Roy
The Golden Gate	Vikram Seth
The Judgement	Kuldip Nayyar
The Men Who Killed Gandhi	Manohar Malgonkar
The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success	Deepak Chopra
The Songs of India	Sarojini Naidu
The Story of My Experiments with Truth	Mahatma Gandhi
The Strange and Subline Address	Amit Chaudhuri
The Sword and the Sickle	Mulk Raj Anand
The vendor of Sweets	R.K. Narayanan
The way of the Wizard	Deepak Chopra
Train to Pakistan	Khushwant Singh
Two Leaves and a Bud	Mulk Raj Anand
Untold Story	B. M. Kaul
Urvashi	Ramdhari Singh Dinkar
Visarjana	Rabindra Nath Tagore
Waiting for the Mahatma	R.K. Narayanan
Wake up India	Annie Besant
We, Indians	Khushwant Singh
Wreck, The	Rabindranath Tagore
Yama	Mahadevi Verma
Yashodhara	Maithili Sharan Gupt
Years of Pilgrimage	Dr. Raja Ramana

First/Longest/Oldest in Indian Railways

First Passenger Train Ran On	16th April 1853 (between Bombay to Thane)
First Railway Bridge	Dapoorie Viaduct on the Mumbai-Thane route
First Rail Tunnel	Parsik Tunnel
First Ghats Covered by the Rail lines	Thal and Bhore Ghats
First Underground Railway	Calcutta METRO
First Computerized Reservation System started in	New Delhi (1986)
First Electric Train ran on	3rd Feb' 1925 (between Bombay VT and Kurla)
Toilets on Trains were introduced in	1891 (1st Class) & 1907 (lower classes)
Shortest Station Name	Ib (Orissa)
Longest Station Name	Sri Venkatanarasimharajuvariapeta (Tamil Nadu)
Busiest Railway Station	Lucknow (64 trains everyday)
Longest Run (Time)	Himsagar Express (3751 km in 74 hrs and 55 min)
Shortest Run	Route between Nagpur to Ajni (3km)
Longest Run for Daily Train	Kerala Express (3054 km in 42.5 hrs)
Longest Non-Stop Run (Distance)	Trivandrum Rajdhani (528 km in 6.5 hrs)
Longest Railway Platform in the World	Kharagpur (2,733 ft in length)
Longest Railway Bridge	Nehru Setu on Sone River (10044ft in length)
Longest Tunnel	Karbude On Konkan Railway between Monkey hill & Khandala (6.5 km)
Oldest Preserved Locomotive	Fairy Queen (1855), still in working order
Indian Railway's Fastest Train	Bhopal-Shatabdi (runs at a speed up to 140 Km/ph)
Train with Maximum Number of Halts	Howrah-Amritsar Express (115 halts)

Following are the some of the important Indian Railway Facts

Following are the some of the important Indian Railway Facts


The total distance covered by the 14,300 trains on the Indian Railways everyday, equals three & half times the distance to moon

The first train on Indian soil ran between Bombay and Thane on the 16th of April 1853

IR has about 63,028 route kms. of track

IR employs about 1.55 million people

It carries over 13 million passengers & 1.3 million tones of freight everyday

It runs about 14,300 trains daily

IR has about 7,000 railway stations

The longest platform in the world is at Kharagpur and is 2,733 ft. in length

Nehru Setu on Sone River is the longest Railway bridge

42 Railway companies operated in the country before independence

Electric Locomotives are manufactured at Chittaranjan Locomotive Works, Chittaranjan

Coaches are manufactured at ICF/Chennai, RCF/Kapurthala and BEML/Bangaluru

The national Rail Museum at New Delhi was set-up in 1977

People Employed in Indian Railway are about 1.6 million

Stations across State Lines are Navapur (Maharashtra and Gujarat) and Bhawani Mandi (Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan)

Classes of travel on Indian Railway: Ist AC, 2nd AC, 3rd AC, AC Chair Car IInd sleeper & IInd ordinary

Railway Station with all the Three Gauges is Siliguri Railway Station

First in India

1.	British Governor General of Bengal	Warren Hastings
2.	Governor General of Independent India	Lord Mountbatten
3.	Commander-in-chief of Free India	General Roy Bucher
4.	Cosmonaut	Sqn. Ldr. Rakesh Sharma
5.	Emperor of Moghul Dynasty in India	Babar
6.	Field Marshal	S. H. F. J. Manekshaw
7.	Indian Governor General of Indian Union	C. Rajagopalachari
8.	Indian I.C.S. Officer	Satyendra Nath Tagore
9.	Indian Member of Viceroy's Executive Council	Sri S.P. Sinha
10.	Indian to swim across English Channel	Mihir Sen
11.	Indian woman to swim across-English Channel	Miss Arati Saha
12.	Man to climb Mount Everest	Tenzing Norgay
13.	Man to climb Mount Everest without Oxygen	Phu Dorjee
14.	Man to climb Mount Everest twice	Nwang Gombu
15.	Nobel Prize winner	Rabindra Nath Tagore
16.	President of Indian National Congress	W. C. Banerjee
17.	President of Indian Republic	Dr. Rajendra Prasad
18.	Talkie Film	Alam Ara (1931)
19.	Test Tube Baby (Documented)	Indira
20.	Viceroy of India	Lord Canning
21.	Woman Minister of Indian Union	Rajkumari Amrit Kaur
22.	Woman Chief Minister of State	Mrs. Sucheta Kriplani
23.	Woman Governor	Mrs. Sarojini Naidu
24.	Woman President of Indian National Congress	Dr. Annie Besant
25.	Woman Prime Minister	Mrs. Indira Gandhi
26.	Woman Speaker of a State Assembly	Mrs. Shanno Devi
27.	Prime Minister of India	Pt. Jawahar Lal Nehru
28.	Muslim President of Indian Union	Dr. Zakir Hussain
29.	Speaker of Lok Sabha	G. V. Mavlankar
30.	Woman to climb mount Everest	Bachhendri Pal
31.	Woman Judge in Supreme Court	Mrs. Meera Sahib Fatima Biwi
32.	Woman Chief Justice of a High Court	Smt. Leela Seth
33.	Indian Woman to go in space (Now U.S. Citizen)	Kalpana Chawla
34.	The first Indian weightlifter to win bronze medal in Olympics	Karnam Malleshwari (Sydney, in 2000)
35.	The First Indian World Chess Champion	Vishwanathan Anand
36.	India's first paperless Newspaper	The News Today (Launched on Jan. 3, 2001)
37.	India's First woman Merchant Navy Officer	Sonali Banerjee
38.	The first Dalit Speaker of the Lok Sabha	G. M. C. Balyogi
39.	The first Vice-President of India to die in harness	Krishna Kant
40.	The first Indian woman cricketer to score double century	Mithali Raj (August 2002 playing  against England)
41.	The first woman Air Vice-Marshal	P. Bandopadhyaya
42.	The first Indian to be appointed as United Nations Civilian Police Advisor	Ms. Kiran Bedi
43.	The first astronaut of Indian origin to perish aboard U.S. space shuttle in a tragic accident	Dr. Kalpana Chawla (Columbia space shuttle, Feb. I, 2003)
44.	The first woman to be appointed Deputy Governor of Reserve Bank of India	K. J. Udeshi (appointed on June 10, 2003)
45.	The first Indian girl to register a win in a Wimbledon tournament	Sania Mirza (2003)
46.	The first Indian lady to win a medal in World Athletic Championship	Anju Bobby George (Aug. 2003)
47.	The first woman Chairman and Managing Director of NABARD	Mrs. Ranjana Kumar
48.	The highest individual test scorer of India	Virendra Sehwag ( 309 runs in the  first test in Multan against Pakistan)
49.	The first Indian cricketer to make double centuries five times	Rahul Drgvid (playing test against Pakistan in Pakistan in. April 2004)
50.	The first Orissa woman to top I.A.S.	Smt. Roopa Misra (Indian Civil Services Exam., 2003)
51.	The first Sikh Prime Minister of India	Dr. Manmohan Singh
52.	The first woman Director General of Police of a State	Kanchan C. Bhattacharya (DGP Uttaranchal)
53.	The first woman to be appointed as the crime branch chief	MeeriJ Borwankar (took over as crime branch chief of Mumbai police)
54.	The first woman to reach the rank of Lt. General in the Indian army	Puneeta Arora (Commandant, Armed Forces Medical College, Pune)
55.	The first Indian to cross seven important seas by swimming	Bula Chaudhury
56.	The first woman to become Indian Air Force's first woman Air Marshal	Air Marshal Padma Bandhopadhyay
57.	The first youngest MP, at the age of 25 years	Dharmendra Yadav (Mainpuri : Samajwadi Party MP)
58.	India's first woman athlete to win WTA open Tennis title	Sania Mirza (Feb. 2005, Hyderabad)
59.	The first Indian to set a world record of ever having reached the highest of heights yet in a hot balloon	Vijaypath Singhania (Nov. 26, 2005. 69852 ft.)
60.	The first wonder child of Orissa only about 4 years and a half of age completes a race of 65 km.	Budhia (May 2006)
61.	The first woman Commissioner of Police of an Indian metro (Chennai Metro Police)	Letika Saran
62.	The first Indian to Ski to the North Pole	Ajeet Bajaj (April 26, 2006)
63.	The first sportsman ever to win Gold Medal in Shooting in the World Shooting Championship	Abhinav Bindra (July 24, 2006)
64.	The first person of Indian origin to win the Miss Great Britain title	Preeti Desai (2006)
65.	The first woman President of the Republic of India	Pratibha Patil

Important National Highways

National Highway	Route	Distance
NH-1	Jalandhar – Uri	663
NH-1A	New Delhi-Ambala-Jalandhar-Amritsar	456
NH-2	Delhi-Mathura-Agra-Kanpur-Allahabad-Varanasi-Kolkata	1465
NH-3	Agra-Gwalior-Nasik-Mumbai	1161
NH-4	Thane and Chennai via Pune and Belgaun	1235
NH-5	Kolkata - Chennai	1533
NH-6	Kolkata – Dhule	1949
NH-7	Varanasi – Kanyakumari	2369
NH-8	Delhi-Mumbai-(vai Jaipur, Baroda and Ahmedabad)	1428
NH-9	Mumbai-Vijaywada	841
NH-10	Delhi-Fazilka	403
NH-11	Agra- Bikaner	582
NH-12	Jabalpur-Jaipur	890
NH-13	Sholapur-Mangalore	691
NH-15	Pathankot-Samakhiali	1526
NH-17	Panvel-Edapally	1269
NH-22	Ambala-Shipkitr	459
NH-28	Lucknow-Barauni	570
NH-31	Barhi-Guwahati	1125
NH-37	Panchratna (near Goalpara) – Saiknoaghat	680
NH-44	Shillong-Sabroom	630
NH-49	Cochin-Dhanshkodi	440
NH-52	Baihata-Junction NH-47 (near Saikhoaghat)	850
NH-58	Delhi-Mana	538
NH-65	Ambala-Pali	690
NH-75	Gwalior-Ranchi	955
NH-76	Pindwara-Allahabad	1007
NH-78	Katni-Gumla	559
NH-86	Kanpur-Dewas	674
NH-91	Ghaziabad-Kanpur	405
NH-150	Aizawl-Kohima	700
NH-200	Raipur-Chandikhal	740
NH-205	Ananthapur-Chennai	442
NH-209	Dindigul-Bengaluru	456
NH-211	Solapur-Dhule	400
NH-217	Raipur-Gopalpur	508
NH-220	Kallam (Quilon)-Teui	265

Following are some Important dates of Indian History

Following are some Important dates of Indian History
Periods	Events/Significance
BC
300-5000	Indus Valley Civilisation
563	Birtd of Gautama Buddha (or 576 BC in some sources)
527-540	Birtd of Mahavir; Nirvana
327-326	Alexander's invasion of India. It opened a land route between India and Europe
313	Accession of Chandragupta Maurya, according to Jain traditions.
305	Defeat of Seleucus at tde hands of Chandragupta Maurya
273-232	Ashoka's reign
261	Conquest of Kalinga
145-101	Reign of Elara, tde Chola king of Sri Lanka
58	Beginning of Vikrami Era
AD
78	Beginning of Saka Era
120	Accession of Kanishka
320	Commencement of Gupta Era, tde golden age of Hindu India
380	Accession of Vikramaditya
405-411	Visit of Chinese traveller Fahien
415	Accession of Kumara Gupta I
455	Accession of Skanda Gupta
606-647	Harshavardhan's reign
712	First invasion in Sindh by Arabs
836	Accession of King Bhoja of Kannauj
985	Accession of Rajaraja tde Chola ruler
998	Accession of Sultan Mahmud
1001	First invasion of India by Mahmud Ghazni who defeated Jaipal, ruler of Punjab.
1025	Destruction of Somnatd Temple by Mahmud Ghazni
1191	First Battle of Tarain
1192	Second Battle of Tarain
1206	Accession of Qutub-ud-Din Aibak to tde tdrone oof Delhi
1210	Deatd of Qutub-ud-Din Aibak
1221	Changez Khan invaded India (Mongol invasion)
1236	Accession of Razia Sultan to tde tdrone of Delhi
1240	Deatd of Razia Sultan
1296	Accession of Ala-ud-Din Khilji
1316	Deatd of Ala-ud-Din Khilji
1325	Accession of Muhammad-bin Tughlaq
1327	Shifting of Capital from Delhi to Daulatabad in Deccan by tde Tughlaqs
1336	Foundation of Vijayanagar empire in Soutd
1351	Accession of Feroze Shah
1398	Invasion of India by Timur
1469	Birtd of Guru Nank
1494	Accession of Babur in Farghana
1497-98	First Voyage of Vasco de Gama to India (discovery of sea route to India via Cape of Good Hope) I
1526	First Battle of Panipat; Babur defeated Ibrahim Lodhi; foundation of Mughal dynasty by Babur
1527	Battle of Kanwaha-Babur defeated Rana Sanga
1530	Death of Babur and Accession of Humayun
1539	Sher Shah Suri defeated Humayun and became India's empreor
1555	Humayun recaptured the throne of Delhi
1556	Second battle of Panipal
1565	Battle of Talikota
1576	Battle of Haldighati - Rana Pratap defeated by Akbar
1582	Din-e-IIahi founded by Akbar
1600	East India Company established
1605	Death of Akbar and accession of Jehangir
1606	Execution of Guru Arjun Dev
1611	Jehangir marries Nur Jahan
1616	Sir Thomas Roe visits Jehangir
1627	Birth of Shivaji and death of Jehangir
1628	Shah Jahan becomes emperor of India
1631	Death of Mumtaz Mahal
1634	The English permitted to trade in India (in Bengal)
1659	Accession of Aurangzeb, Shahjahan imprisoned
1665	Shivaji imprisoned, by Aurangzeb
1666	Death of Shah Jahan
1675	Execution of Guru Teg Bahadur, the ninth Guru of Sikhs
1680	Death of Shivaji
1707	Death of Aurangzeb
1708	Death of Guru Gobind Singh
1739	Nadir Shah Invades India
1757	Battle of Plassey, establishment of British political rule in India at the hands of Lord Clive
1761	Third Battle of Panipat; Shah Alam II becomes India's emperor
1764	Battle of Buxer
1765	Clive appointed Company's Governor of India
1767-69	First Mysore War
1780	Birth of Maharaja Ranjit Singh
1780-84	Second Mysore War
1784	Pitt's India Act
1790-92	Third Mysore War
1793	The Permanent Settlement of Bengal
1799	Fouth Mysore War - Death of Tipu Sultan
1802	Treaty of Bassein
1809	Treaty of Amritsar
1829	Practice of Sati Prohibited
1830	Raja Ram Mohan Roy visits England
1833	Death of Raja Ram Mohan Roy
1839	Death of Maharaja Ranjit Singh
1839-42	First Afghan War
1845-46	First Anglo-Sikh War
1852	Second Anglo-Burmese War
1853	First Railway line opened between Bombay and Thane and a Telegraph line in Calcutta
1857	The Sepoy Mutiny of First War of Independence
1861	Birth of Rabindranath Tagore
1869	Birth of Mahatma Gandhi
1885	Foundation of Indian National Congress
1889	Birth of Jawaharlal Nehru
1897	Birth of Subhash Chandra Bose
1904	Tibet Expedition
1905	First Battle of Bengal under Lord Curzon
1906	Foundation of Muslim League
1911	Delhi Darbar; King and Queen visit India; Delhi becomes the Capital of India
1914	World War I begins
1916	Lucknow Pact Signed by Muslim League and Congress
1918	World War I ends
1919	Montague-Chemsford Reforms introduced; Jallianwala Bagh Massacre at Amritsar
1920	Khilafat Movement launched
1927	Boycott of Simon Commission; broadcasting started in India
1928	Death of Lala Lajpat Rai
1929	Lord Irwain's Pact; resolution of complete independence passed at Lahore Congress
1930	Civil disobedience movement launched; Dandi March by Mahatma Gandhi (6 April, 1930)
1931	Gandhi Irwin Pact
1935	Government of India Act enacted
1937	Provincial Autonomy; Congress forms ministries
1939	Word War II begins (September 1)
1941	Escape of Subhash Chandra Bose from India and death of Rabindranath Tagore
1942	Arrival of Cripps Mission in India; Quit India Movement launched (August 8)
1943-1944	Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose forms provisional Azad Hind Fauj and Indian National Army; Bengal Famine
1945	Trial of Indian National Army at Red Fort; Shimla Conference; World War II ends
1946	British Cabinet Mission visits India; Interim government formed at centre
1947	Division of India; Indian and Pakistan seperate independent dimensions
1948	Mahatma Gandhi assassinated (Jannuary 30); integration of princely states

India: At a Glance
Capital New Delhi
Area 32,87,263 sq.km
Area wise in the world 7th
Location India extends between latitudes 8o4'N and 37o6'N. It is a country of the east with its landmass lying beteen longitudes 68o7'E and 97o25'E.
Stretch 3,214 Kilometers from north to south 2,933 Kilometers from east to west
Land Frontier 15,200 km
Coastline 7516.5 km
Neighbouring Countries India shares its political borders with Pakistan and Afghanistan on the west and Bangladesh and Myanmar on the east. The northern boundary is made up of the Sinkiang province of China, Tibet, Nepal and Bhutan. India is seperated from Sri Lanka by a narrow channel of sea formed by the Palk Strait and Gulf of Mannar
Physical Feature The mainland consists of four well-defined regions: (i)The great mountain zone, (ii)The Indo-Gangetic plain, (iii)The desert region and (iv)The Southern Peninsula
Rivers The main rivers of the Himalayan group are the Indus, the Ganga and the Brahmaputra.
Climate There are four seasons which are recognised by the India Meteorological department. They are - Cold weather, hot weather, rainy season and the season of the retreating south-west monsoon.
Fauna Approx. 89,451 species
National Parks 94
Wildlife Sanctuaries 501
Official Languages Hindi
Population (2001 census) 1,02,70,15,247 (16.7% of the world's population)
Populationwise place in the world 2nd
Population density 324 person per square kilometer
Population growth 21.34 %
Sex Ratio 933 females per 1000 males
Literacy 65.38 %
Male Literacy 75.85 %
Female Literacy 54.16 %

General Knowledge - Biggest, Highest and Largest in India

Highest Award	Bharat Ratna
Highest Gallantry Award	Param Vir Chakra
Longest River in India	The Ganges
Longest Tributary river of India	Yamuna
Largest Lake	Wular Lake, Kashmir
Largest Lake (Saline Water)	Chilka Lake, Orrisa
Largest Man-Made Lake	Govind Vallabh Pant Sagar (Rihand Dam)
Largest Fresh Water Lake	Kolleru Lake (Andhra Pradesh)
Highest Lake	Devtal Lake, Gadhwal (Uttarakhand)
Highest Lake	Devatal (Gharhwal)
Highest Peak	Karkoram-2 of K-2(8,611 meters) Highest Peak in the world is Mount Everest which is in Nepal
Largest Populated City	Mumbai
Largest State	Rajasthan
Highest rainfall	Cherrapunhi (426 inches per annum)
Highest Watefall	Gersoppar Waterfall (292 meters high) in Mysore
State wise largest area under forest	Madhya Pradesh
Largest Delta	Sunderbans Delta
Largest River without Delta	Narmada and Tapti
Longest Cantilever Span bridge	Howrah Bridge
Longest River Bridge	Mahatma Gandhi Setu, Patna
Biggest Cave temple	Ellora
Longest Road	Grand Trunk Road
Highest Road	Road at Khardungla,(in Leh-Manali Sector)
Biggest Mosque	Jama Masjid at Delhi
Highest Gateway	Buland Darwaza at Fatehpur Sikri (53.6 meters high)
Tallest Statue	Statue of Gomateshwar (17 meters high In Karnataka
Largest Public Sector Bank	State Bank of India
Longest Canal	Indira Gandhi Canal or Rajasthan Canal (Rajasthan)
Largest Dome	Gol Gumbaz at Bijapur
Largest Zoo	Zoological Garden at Alipur (Kolkata)
Largest Museum	India Museum at Kolkata
Longest Dam	Hirakud Dam (Orrisa)
Highest Dam	Bhakra Dam ( 225.5 meters high)
Highest Tower	Kutab Minar at Delhi (88.4 meters high)
Largest Desert	Thar (Rajasthan)
Largest District	Ladakh
Fastest Train	Shatabadi Express running between New Delhi and Bhopal
State with longest coastline	Gujarat
State with longest coastline of South India	Andhra Pradesh
Longest Electric Railway Line	From Delhi to Kolkata via Patna
Longest Railway Route	From Jammu to Kanyakumari
Longest Railway Platform	Kharagpur (W. Bengal)
Longest Platform	Kharagpur (West Bengal) 833 meters in Length. It is also the longest railway station in world
Longest Tunnel	Jawahar tunnel (Jammu & Kashmir)
Longest Highway	NH-7 which turns from Varanasi to Kanyakumari
Smallest State (Population)	Sikkim
Smallest State (Area)	Goa
Largest State (Area)	Rajasthan
Largest State (Population)	Uttar Pradesh
Densest Populated State	West Bengal
Largest Cave	Amarnath (J&K)
Largest Cave Temple	Kailash Tmeple, Ellora (Maharastra)
Largest Animal Fair	Sonepur (Bihar)
Largest Auditorium	Sri Shanmukhanand Hall (Mumbai)
Biggest Hotel	Oberai-Sheraton (Mumbai)
Largest Port	Mumbai
Largest Gurudwara	Golden Temple, Amritsar
Deepest River Valley	Bhagirathi & Alaknanda
Largest Church	Saint Cathedral (Goa)
Oldest Church	St. Thomas Church at Palayar, Trichur (Kerala)
Longest River	Ganga (2640 km long)
Longest Beach	Marina Beach, Chennai
Highest Battle Field	Siachin Glacier
Highest Airport	Leh (Laddakh)
Biggest Stadium	Yuva Bharti (Salt Lake) Stadium, Kolkata
Largest River Island	Majuli (Brahmaputra River, Asom)
Largest Planetarium	Birla Planetarium (Kolkata)

Indian History

Important Battles of Indian History
BC
327-26	Alexander invades India. Defeats Porus in the Battle of Hydaspes (Jhelum) 326 BC
305	Chandragupta Maurya defeats the Greek King Seleucus.
216	The Kalinga War. Conquest of Kalinga by Ashoka.
c. 155	Menander's invasion of India
c. 90	The Saka invade India
AD
454	The first Huna invasion
495	The second Huna invasion
711-712	The Arab invasion of Sind under Mohammed-bin-Qasim
1000-27	Mahmud Ghazni invades India 17 times
1175-1206	Invasions of Muhammad Ghori. First Battle of Tarain. 1191 - Prithvi Raj Chauhan defeats Muhammad Ghori; Second Battle of Tarain, 1192 - Muhammad Ghori defeats Prithvi Chauhan; Battle of Chandawar, 1194 - Muhammad Ghori defeats Jayachandra Gahadvala of Kanauj.
1294	Alauddin Khilji invades the Yadava kingdom of Devagiri. The first Turkish invasion of the Deccan.
1398	Timur invades India. Defeats the Tughlaq Sultan Mahmud Shah; the Sack of Delhi
1526	Babur invades India and defeats the last Lodi Sultan Ibrahim Lohi in the first Battle of Panipat.
1539-40	Battles of Chusa or Ghaghra (1539) and Kanauj or Ganges (1540) in which Sher Shah defeats Humayun.
1545	Battle (siege) of kalinjar and death of Sher Shah Suri.
1556	Second Battle of Panipat. Akbar defeats Hemu.
1565	Battle of Rakatakshasi-Tangadi (Talikota) in which the forces of the empire of Vijanagar under King Sadasiva Raya and his regent Rama Raya are routed by the confederate forces of the Deccani states of Bijapur, Golkonda, Ahmadnagar, and Bidar.
1576	Battle of Haldighati, Akbar defeats Rana Pratap of Mewar.
1632-33	Conquest of Ahmadnagar by Shah Jahan.
1658	Battles of Dharmat (April-May 1658) and Samugarh (June 8, 1658). Dara Shikoh, elest son of Shah Jahan, defeated by Aurangzeb.
1665	Shivaji defeated by Raja Jai Singh and Treaty of Purandhar.
1739	Invasion of India by Nadir Shah.
1746	First Carnatic War.
1748-54	Second Carnatic War.
1756-63	Third Carnatic War.
1757	Battle of Plassey. Siraj-ud-Daulah, the Nawab of Bengal, defeated by Clive.
1760	Battle of Wandiwash, in which the English under Sir Eyre Coote defeated the French under Lally.
1762	Third Battle of Panipat. Marathas defeated by Ahmad Shah Abdali.
1764	Battle of Buxar. The English (under Munro) defeated Mir Kasim, the Nawab of Bengal and Nawab Shuja-ud-daulah of Awadh.
1767-69	First Mysore War.
1774	The Rohilla War between the Rohillas and the Nawab of Awadh supported by the East India Company.
1775-82	First Maratha War
1780-82	Maratha War
1780-84	Second Mysore War
1792	Third Mysore War
1799	Fourth Mysore War, Defeat and death of Tipu Sultan
1802-04	Second Maratha War
1817-18	Third Maratha War
1845-46	first Sikh War
1846	Battle of Aliwal between the English and the Sikhs. The Sikhs were defeated.
1848-49	Second Sikh war and annexation of the Punjab to British India.
1857	The Revolt of 1857 (The First War of Indian Independence)