The End of the Cold War: A fresh perspective to the Gorbachev/Reagan debate

The End of the Cold War: A fresh perspective to the Gorbachev/Reagan debate

The end of the cold war was a tumultuous period in the 20th century that came dangerously close to a violent outbreak of nuclear conflict. While there are a multitude of views on who is to be credited for their role in bringing about an end to the cold war, two names prominently stand out, [...]

The Breakdown of the Grand Alliance: Deconstructing the Causes

The Breakdown of the Grand Alliance: Deconstructing the Causes

The Cold War was a period crucial to shaping 21st century history as we know it today. Fought passively between the two remaining axes of the modern world after the destruction wrought by the Second World War, (the US and USSR), this long period of hostility lasting until 1991 threatened to cause a collapse of [...]

Factors that led to the Industrial Revolution: An analysis

Factors that led to the Industrial Revolution: An analysis

Industrialisation was a defining period in history that enabled the transition of predominantly agrarian economies to manufacturing hubs. The Revolution, which took place in the 1700s, ushered in a holistic transformation: an increase in demand, a shift to a culture incentivizing productivity and increased utilisation of economic resources. A booming market requires just this; the [...]

(India@75) 1958: The Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act was passed

(India@75) 1958: The Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act was passed

The AFSPA Act passed in the Indian Parliament in 1958, granting special powers to the Indian Armed Forces to maintain public order in “disturbed areas”. Passed by both houses of Parliament and approved by the President, the Act came into force in the context of the growing violence and brewing unrest in the North Eastern [...]

(India@75) 1957 : The Decimalisation of the Rupee

(India@75) 1957 : The Decimalisation of the Rupee

A decade after independence in 1957, the amended The Indian Coinage Act was adopted allowing a decimal system for coinage. The Rupee remained unchanged in value and nomenclature, but each rupee was now divided into 100 “Paisa” instead of the earlier 16 Annas or 64 Pice. To allow sufficient time for public recognition, the new [...]

India@75 (1956: Nationalisation of Life Insurance Corporation)

India@75 (1956: Nationalisation of Life Insurance Corporation)

Life Insurance Corporation was established on September 1, 1956, with the passing of the Life Insurance of India Act in Parliament. Its primary aim was to ensure that every insurable person in India received adequate financial cover at a reasonable cost irrespective of whether they are in rural or urban areas; to this end, the [...]

India@75 (1955: Nationalisation of the State Bank of India)

India@75 (1955: Nationalisation of the State Bank of India)

The origin of India’s largest bank, the State Bank of India, can be traced back to the 27th of January, 1921. Formerly known as the Imperial Bank of India, it was created because of a merger between the three presidency banks, Bank of Bengal, Bank of Bombay and Bank of Madras. It was the last [...]

India@75 (1954: The Signing of the Indo-Chinese Peace Pact: Panchsheel)

India@75 (1954: The Signing of the Indo-Chinese Peace Pact: Panchsheel)

India and China signed The Panchsheel or Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence on April 29, 1950, in what was seen as an attempt by the most populous states in Asia to coexist, despite the ambiguities they had inherited at the time. At the start of the 1950s, one of the main areas of dispute between [...]

India@75: (1953: Nationalisation of Air India)

India@75: (1953: Nationalisation of Air India)

JRD Tata founded Tata Airlines in the year 1932 with two aircraft as a fleet. Tata Airlines won a contract to carry mail for Imperial Airways. Passionate about flying, JRD as he was fondly called, frequently flew a single-engine de Havilland Puss Moth, a British three-seater high-wing monoplane. Post-WWII, regular commercial service was restored in [...]

India@75 (1952: The first Lok Sabha Elections)

India@75 (1952: The first Lok Sabha Elections)

The first ever Lok Sabha election in independent India was held between October 25 ,1951, and February 21, 1952. Around 173 million people out of our population of around 360 million at the time were eligible voters. 1949 candidates contested for 489 seats in the Lok Sabha, the founding elections of the world's largest democracy. [...]