India wins Independence from Britain after being divided into two separate nations, India and Pakistan
1947India and Pakistan go to war in the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir
1947Mahatma Gandhi is shot dead by Nathuram Godse
1948India becomes a republic with its Constitution coming into effect
1950India holds its first general elections after Independence
1951A war breaks out between India and China over different perceptions of the border
1962First Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru dies. Lal Bahadur Shastri becomes new PM on June 9, 1964
1964India and Pakistan fight war over Kashmir, which ends after a UN call for ceasefire
1965Shastri dies in Tashkent, a day after signing peace treaty to end 1965 India-Pakistan War. Indira Gandhi becomes next PM soon
1966India and Pakistan fight another major war over East Pakistan, which ends with the creation of Bangladesh
1971India conducts first successful nuclear bomb test
1974Indira Gandhi declares state of emergency, with press censorsed and thousands jailed. Congress loses the 1977 general elections
1975Indira Gandhi wins back power, becomes PM again
1980Indian cricket team makes history by clinching its first-ever World Cup title, beating West Indies in the finals at Lord's
1983Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma, a former IAF pilot, flies aboard Soyuz T-11 as part of Soviet Interkosmos programme
1984Security forces launch military operation to remove Damdami Taksal, Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale and their followers from Golden Temple, the holiest site for Sikhs located in Amritsar
1984Indira Gandhi is assassinated by his Sikh bodyguards. Her son Rajiv takes over as PM. Anti-Sikh riots follow
1984Deadly gas leaks from a pesticide plant owned by US-based Union Carbide Corporation in Bhopal, killing about 6,500 people
1984Violence erupts in Kashmir valley, inflaming tensions with Pakistan
1989Former PM Rajiv Gandhi is assassinated by a Tamil suicide bomber during an election campaign
1991Congress party wins general elections and government launches sweeping economic reforms and dismantles decades of socialist control.
1991Karsevaks bring down 16th century mosque in Ayodhya, claiming it to be the birthplace of Lord Ram. Incident sparks nationwide tension
1992A series of bomb blasts, planted by the Muslim underworld, hit the country’s commercial capital of Bombay, killing 257 people.
1993Bharatiya Janata Party forms a coalition government with Atal Bihari Vajpayee as PM
1998India conducts a series of 5 nuclear bomb test explosions at Indian Army's Pokhran Test Range. Pakistan retaliates with own tests soon
1998India launches offensive against Pakistan backed infiltrators around Kargil in Indian Kashmir.
1999Gunmen attack Indian parliament. New Delhi blames Pakistan-based militants, snaps transport and diplomatic links with Islamabad.
200159 Hindu pilgrims and karsevaks returning from Ayodhya are killed in Sabarmati Express train fire near Godhra in Gujarat
2002Day after Godhra train burning, state-wide riots begin in Gujarat, leaving over 1,000 people dead, officially. The victims were primarily Muslims.
2002Manmohan Singh becomes Prime Minister as Congress returns to power
2004A series of seven bomb blasts over a period of 11 minutes on the Suburban Railway in Mumbai kills 189 people
2006A series of terrorist attacks carried out by 10 gunmen rocks Mumbai and the nation
2008NIA and UAPA laws, the new anti-terror regime, come into force
2009ISRO launches Mars Orbiter Mission or Mangalyaan, India's first interplanetary mission
2013Narendra Modi becomes Prime Minister as BJP-led NDA wins Lok Sabha elections with overwhelming majority
2014Modi govt announces demonetisation of all ₹500 and ₹1,000 banknotes, issues new ₹500 and ₹2,000 notes
20165-judge SC Bench unanimously strikes down Section 377 of IPC, decriminalising same-sex relations between consenting adults
2018India records first case of Covid-19 infection, with a 20-year-old woman testing positive in Kerala
2020