History of Independence Day

At the stroke of midnight, as India moved into August 15, 1947, Jawaharlal Nehru, India's first Prime Minister, read out the famous speech proclaiming India's independence.

The moment ended three centuries of British colonial rule. The land was no longer the summer retreat of British sahibs who fancied spices, shikar, elephants and snake-charmers.Independence was also the end of nearly a century of struggle for freedom, battles, betrayals and sacrifices. It also created a situation where we were responsible for ourselves.But it wasn't a period of unqualified joy. For a lot of people, in spite of a new era promised by independence, partition was a painful reality and so was the bloodshed that accompanied it.That was 60 years ago. Much has changed; the struggle for freedom lives on in history books and memoirs, and on the tombstones of valiant martyrs.Politics has undergone a personality change from fiery idealism to a pragmatic cynicism. Karma drives the nation on its way forward, and population has crossed the billion mark.
But, come August 15, and the people put their troubles behind them for a while, as they stand up as a nation for the National Anthem. Along with the soaring cadences of the anthem, the hopes and dreams for a better tomorrow are renewed in political speeches and replays of the deeds of those who earned us our freedom.
Independence Day is an occasion to rejoice in our freedom and to pay collective homage to all those people who sacrificed their lives to the cause. But it is more than that. It also marks the coming together of more than 400 princely states into one nation - India. This was probably our biggest diplomatic success.

Each year, August 15 gives us the reason to celebrate all this, and do much more - it is a time to contemplate what we have and how we achieved it.

Though India had no dearth of religious and community festivals, there was, till Independence, no true national festival that the whole country could partake of. Independence Day, beginning as a day to commemorate the greatest moment in Indian history, has now come to signify a feeling of nationalism, solidarity and celebration.Independence Day remained the sole national festival till India declared itself a republic in 1950. On January 26, 1950, Republic Day became the second Indian national holiday. 

 Flag Hoisting

“Under this flag, there is no difference between a prince and a peasant, between the rich and the poor, between man and women."
                                                                                                                                -- Mrs. Sarojini Naidu

Preamble of the Flag Code of India says that:

The significance of the colours and the chakra in the National Flag was amply described by Dr. S. Radhakrishnan in the Constituent Assembly which unanimously adopted the National Flag. Dr. S. Radhakrishnan explained -

"Bhagwa or the saffron colour denotes renunciation of disinterestedness. Our leaders must be indifferent to material gains and dedicate themselves to their work."

"The white in the centre is light, the path of truth to guide our conduct."

"The green shows our relation to soil, our relation to the plant life here on which all other life depends."

"The Ashoka Wheel in the centre of the white is the wheel of the law of dharma. Truth or satya, dharma or virtue ought to be the controlling principles of those who work under this flag. Again, the wheel denotes motion. There is death in stagnation. There is life in movement. India should no more resist change, it must move and go forward. The wheel represents the dynamism of a peaceful change."

On 15 August 1947 India and Pakistan were created. India adopted the tricolour of orange, white, and green with a blue Ashoka Chakra at the centre. Unofficially this tricolour had been the flag of the Indian National Congress. The orange colour represented Hinduism, the green colour - Islam and the white colour represented peace. There was a blue spinning wheel in the centre, which represented Gandhiji's call for economic self-sufficiency through hand spinning.

Prime Minister of India hoists the flag and pays his homage to the freedom fighters and addresses the Nation. Children are brimming with enthusiasm on this day. Early in the morning, they attend the flag hoisting ceremony in their schools. They sing patriotic songs and present skits and dramas based on the freedom struggle.This special day revives in us the nationalist spirit. There are celebrations all over the country. We listen to patriotic songs, and there are assemblies all over to salute the national flag. People watch the colourful march-past of the local police or the military forces. In educational institutions, the march-past is usually done by students and the National Cadet Corps (NCC) cadets. Sweets are distributed and free movie shows featuring Nationalistic and Patrotic movies are shown.


India is full of talent, intelligence and creativity. There have been many stars in the galaxy of India, contributing a lot to this universe. Here is the glimpse of ancient India, which surely make every Indian proud for his motherland. These set of facts inspires every Indian to work hard with honesty and sincerity towards the goal and help the country to regain its shinning position

Proud to be Indian 

* India never invaded any country in her last 1000 years of history.
*  India invented the Number system. Zero was invented by Aryabhatta.* The world's first University was established in Takshila in 700BC.More than 10,500 students from all over      the world studied more than 60 subjects. The University of Nalanda built in the 4th century BC was one of       the greatest achievements of ancient India in the field of education.
* According to the Forbes magazine, Sanskrit is the most suitable language for computer software.
* Ayurveda is the earliest school of medicine known to humans.
* Although western media portray modern images of India as poverty striken and underdeveloped through political corruption, India was once the richest empire on earth.
* The art of navigation was born in the river Sindh 5000 years ago. The very word 'Navigation' is derived from the Sanskrit word NAVGATIH.

* The value of pi was first calculated by Budhayana, and he explained the concept of what is now k! nown as the Pythagorean Theorem. British scholars have last year (1999) officially published that Budhayan's works dates to the 6th Century which is long before the European mathematicians.

* Algebra, trigonometry and calculus came from India. Quadratic equations were by Sridharacharya in the 11th Century; the largest numbers the Greeks and the Romans used were 106 whereas Indians
* According to the Gemological Institute of America, up until 1896, India was the only source of diamonds to the world.

* USA based IEEE has proved what has been a century-old suspicion amongst academics that the pioneer of wireless communication was Professor Jagdeesh Bose and not Marconi.

* The earliest reservoir and dam for irrigation was built in Saurashtra.

* Chess was invented in India.

* Sushruta is the father of surgery. 2600 years ago he and health scientists of his time conducted surgeries like cesareans, cataract, fractures and urinary stones. Usage of anesthesia was well known in ancient India.

* When many cultures in the world were only nomadic forest dwellers over 5000 years ago, Indians established Harappan culture in Sindhu Valley (Indus Valley Civilisation).

* The place value system, the decimal system was developed in India in 100 BC.