The following table illustrates the major events and respective timelines of India −
| Time |
Events |
| 9000 BCE |
Period of early Neolithic culture |
| 9000 BCE |
Bhimbetka rock shelters (found in Madhya Pradesh region); also evidenced some of the Stone Age rock paintings |
| 7000 to 2500 BCE |
Mehergarh Culture (Neolithic Age) |
| 3300 to 1700 BCE |
Phase of Indus Valley Civilization |
| 1800 BCE |
Indo-Aryan migration |
| 1500 to 1000 BCE |
Early Vedic Period |
| 1300 BCE |
End of Cemetery H culture |
| 1200 BCE |
Rigveda Period |
| 1000 to 500 BCE |
Late Vedic period |
| 1000 BCE |
Iron Age of India |
| 877 BCE |
Birth of Parsvanatha (23rd Jain Tirthankara) |
| 700 BCE |
Age of Upanishads |
| 600 BCE |
Period of Sixteen Maha Janapadas |
| 599 BCE |
Birth of Mahavira (24th Tirthankar of Jainism) |
| 563 BCE |
Birth of Siddhārtha Gautama (Buddha) |
| 558–491 BCE |
Bimbisara (also known as Srenika) founded Haryanka dynasty |
| 527 BCE |
Nirvana of Mahavira |
| 492–460 BCE |
Period of Ajatshatru (son of Bimbisara) |
| 483 BCE |
Mahaparinirvana of Gautama Buddha |
| 350 BCE |
Panini (a resident of Gandhara) had written Ashtadhyayi (Sanskrit Grammar book) |
| 326 BCE |
Battle of the Hydaspes River between Porus and Alexander |
| 321 BCE |
Chandragupta Maurya established Mauryan Empire in Magadha |
| 305 BCE |
Chandragupta Maurya defeated Seleucus Nicator |
| 300 BCE |
Chola dynasty (in south India) |
| 297–273 BCE |
Period of Bindusara (son of Chandragupta Maurya) |
| 268–232 BCE |
Period of the Great Ashoka (son of Bindusara) |
| 265 BCE |
Kalinga War (between Ashoka and the kingdom of Kalinga) |
| 260 BCE |
Ashoka inscribed the Edicts of Ashoka (written in Brahmi script) |
| 251 BCE |
Mahinda (son of Ashoka) introduced Buddhism to Ceylon (Sri Lanka) |
| 250 BCE |
The followers of Buddhists carved the first cave temples (namely Lomas Rishi) |
| 232 BCE |
Ashoka died (Kunala, his son, succeeded) |
| 184 BCE |
After the assassination of Brihadrata (by his general Pushyamitra shunga), Mauryan empire collapsed |
| 184 BCE |
Establishement of the Shunga dynasty by Pushyamitra Shunga |
| 78 BCE |
Beginning of Saka era |
| 57 BCE |
Beginning of Vikram Era |
| Common Era (CE) |
| 10 CE |
The Indo-Parthian kingdom established |
| 240 CE |
Sri-Gupta established the Gupta Empire in Magadha (and its capital was in Pataliputra) |
| 275 CE |
Pallava dynasty established |
| 320 CE |
Chandragupta I became the king of Gupta empire |
| 335 CE |
Samudragupta became the king of Gupta empire |
| 380 CE |
Chandragupta II (son of Samudragupta) became the Gupta Emperor |
| 405 CE |
Fahien, the Chinese traveler came India |
| 450 CE |
Huna invasions |
| 554 CE |
After the death of skandagupta, Gupta empire collapsed |
| 606 CE |
Harshavardhana became the kind |
| 629 CE |
Chinese monk Huang Tsang (Xuanzang) came to India |
| 753 CE |
After defeating Chalukyas of Badami, Danti Durga established Rashtrakuta Kingdom |
| 788 CE |
Birth of Adi Shankaracharya |
| 1001 CE |
Invasion of Mahmud Ghazni |
| 1025 CE |
Last invasion of Mahmud Ghazni that lead to destruction of temple of Somnath |
| 1030 CE |
Death of Mahmud of Ghazni |
| 1030 CE |
Alberuni came India |
| 1191 CE |
First battle of Tarain between Mohammed Ghori and Prithviraj III (Ghauri was defeated) |
| 1192 CE |
Second battle of Tarain between Mohammed Ghori and Prithviraj III (Prithviraj was defeated) |
| 1154 CE |
Battle of Chandawar fought between Ghauri and Jaichand of Kannauj (Ghauri defeated Jayachandra and killed) |
| 1192 CE |
Qutb al-Din Aybak constructed the Qutub Minar in Delhi |
| 1206 CE |
Qutb-ud-din Aibak established ‘Slave Dynasty’ (which later came to known as Delhi Sultanate) |
| 1210 CE |
While playing polo, Qutb-ud-din Aibak died |
| 1221 CE |
Invasion of Changez Khan (Mongol invasion) |
| 1240 CE |
Razia Sultan was killed by Turkish nobles |
| 1336 CE |
Harihara I and his brother Bukka Raya I founded the Vijayanagara Empire |
| 1398 CE |
Timur’s invasion |
| 1483 CE |
Babur born |
| 1498 CE |
The first voyage of Vasco de Gama from Europe to India |
| 1526 CE |
The first Battle of Panipat in which Mughal ruler Babur defeated Ibrahim Lodi |
| 1530 CE |
Babur died and his son Humayun became the emperor |
| 1539 CE |
Battle of Chausa fought between Mughal emperor Humayun and Sher Shah Suri (Humayun defeated) |
| 1540 CE |
Battle of Kannauj fought between Humayun and Sher Shah Suri and Humayun. Humayun lost the Mughal empire and hence escaped from India |
| 1545 CE |
Sher Shah Suri died and his son Islam Shah Suri succeeded |
| 1554 CE |
Islam Shah Suri died |
| 1555 CE |
Humayun recuperated the throne of Delhi |
| 1556 CE |
Humayun died and Akbar (his 12-year-old son) succeeded |
| 1556 CE |
Second Battle of Panipat fought between Hemu and Akbar's forces (Hemu was defeated and killed) |
| 1576 CE |
Battle of Haldighati fought between Rana Pratap and Akbar (Akbar defeated Rana Pratap) |
| 1600 CE |
East India company is formed (in England) resultantly received exclusive trading rights with India |
| 1605 CE |
Akbar died and his son Jahangir succeeded |
| 1628 CE |
Jehangir died and his son Shah Jahan succeeded |
| 1627 CE |
Birth of Chatrapati Shivaji |
| 1658 CE |
Aurangzeb became the Mughal emperor |
| 1666 CE |
Shah Jahan died |
| 1674 CE |
Shivaji defeated Mughal emperor’s troops and established Maratha empire |
| 1680 CE |
Death of Shivaji |
| 1707 CE |
Death of Aurangzeb |
| 1739 CE |
Invasion of Nadir Shah |
| 1756 CE |
Black Hole of Calcutta incident |
| 1760 CE |
Battle at Wandewash (British troops defeated French) |
| 1761 CE |
Third Battle of Panipat fought between Maratha and Afghans (led by Ahmad Shah); Marathas were defeated |
| 1767 CE |
First Anglo-Mysore War (Haidar Ali of Mysore defeated the combined armies of the East India Company) |
| 1772 CE |
Birth of Ram Mohan Roy |
| 1773 CE |
Warren Hastings appointed as first Governor-General of India |
| 1799 CE |
Fourth Anglo-Mysore War (Tipu Sultan died in the war) |
| 1806 CE |
Vellore Mutiny |
| 1814 |
Raja Ram Mohan Roy established "Atmiya Sabha" |
| 1820 CE |
Birth of Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar |
| 1824 CE |
Birth of Dayananda Saraswati |
| 1836 CE |
Birth of Sri Ramakrishna Paramhansa |
| 1853 CE |
Started Postal Service in India |
| 1853 CE |
First Rail run between Bombay and Thane |
| 1855 CE |
Santhal rebellion |
| 1856 CE |
Hindu Widows' Remarriage Act |
| 1856 CE |
Birth of Bal Gangadhar Tilak |
| 1857 CE |
Sepoy Mutiny |
| 1861 CE |
Birth of Rabindranath Tagore |
| 1863 CE |
Birth of Swami Vivekanand |
| 1865 CE |
Birth of Lala Lajpat Rai |
| 1869 CE |
Birth of Mahatma Gandhi |
| 1873 CE |
Satyashodhak Samaj was established by Jyotirao Phule |
| 1875 CE |
Arya Samaj was established |
| 1877 CE |
First time Delhi Durbar organized |
| 1885 CE |
Indian National Congress was founded |
| 1899 CE |
V.D.Savarkar organized ‘Mithra Mela’ |
| 1902 CE |
Anushilan Samiti was organized |
| 1905 CE |
Partition of Bengal |
| 1906 CE |
Muslim League formed in Dacca |
| 1907 CE |
Congress Session at Surat (Congress divided as Moderate and Extremists) |
| 1908 CE |
Alipore bomb case |
| 1909 CE |
Morley-Minto Reforms |
| 1911 CE |
Cancellation of Partition of Bengal |
| 1911 CE |
British government moved capital city from Calcutta to Delhi |
| 1912 CE |
Delhi conspiracy case |
| 1913 CE |
Formation of Gadar Party |
| 1914 CE |
Hindu–German Conspiracy |
| 1916 CE |
Lucknow Pact |
| 1917 CE |
Champaran and Kheda Satyagraha |
| 1919 CE |
Jallianwala Bagh massacre |
| 1919 CE |
Montagu–Chelmsford Reforms |
| 1919 CE |
Rowlatt Act |
| 1920 CE |
Non-cooperation movement (Khilafat Movement) |
| 1922 CE |
Chauri Chaura incident |
| 1924 CE |
Formation of Hindustan Socialist Republican Association |
| 1925 CE |
Kakori conspiracy |
| 1927 CE |
Simon Commission |
| 1928 CE |
Bardoli Satyagraha |
| 1929 CE |
Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt bombed on Central Assembly |
| 1929 CE |
Resolution of Purna Swaraj |
| 1930 CE |
Salt Satyagraha (Dandi March) |
| 1930 CE |
First Round Table Conferences |
| 1931 CE |
Gandhi–Irwin Pact |
| 1931 CE |
Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, and Sukhdev martyred |
| 1931 CE |
Second Round Table Conferences |
| 1932 CE |
Poona Pact |
| 1932 CE |
Communal Award |
| 1932 CE |
Third Round Table Conferences |
| 1935 CE |
Government of India Act 1935 |
| 1937 CE |
Indian provincial elections |
| 1939 CE |
Subhas Chandra Bose established ‘All India Forward Bloc’ |
| 1940 CE |
Lahore Resolution |
| 1940 CE |
August offer (1940) |
| 1942 CE |
Cripps’ Mission |
| 1942 CE |
Quit India Movement |
| 1942 CE |
Subhas Chandra Bose established Indian National Army |
| 1944 CE |
Subhas Chandra Bose named Mahatma Gandhi as the ‘Father of the Nation’ |
| 1945 CE |
Wavell Plan (Simla Conference) |
| 1946 CE |
Royal Indian Navy Mutiny |
| 1946 CE |
Cabinet Mission |
| 1946 CE |
Great Calcutta Killings |
| 1947 CE |
Indian Independence Act 1947 |
| 1947 CE |
Partition of India and Pakistan (both became independent nations) |
| 1948 CE |
Mahatma Gandhi assassinated by Nathuram Godse |
| 1948 CE |
India-Pakistan war |
| 1950 CE |
Indian became Republic (of India) |
| 1951 CE |
Congress Party won first general election |
| 1962 CE |
India won Diu, Daman, and Goa from Portuguese |
| 1964 CE |
Death of Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru |
| 1965 CE |
Second Pakistan-India war |
| 1966 CE |
Indira Gandhi (daughter of Jawaharlal Nehru) becomes prime minister |
| 1971 CE |
Third Pakistan-India war |
| 1974 CE |
India exploded first nuclear device (in underground test) |
| 1975 CE |
Indira Gandhi declared state of emergency |
| 1975 CE |
Birth control introduced |
| 1977 CE |
Janata Party came into power (Congress party lost the election) |
| 1979 CE |
Janta Party split |
| 1980 CE |
Congress again came into power |
| 1984 CE |
Operation Blue Star (Anti-Sikh Riots 1984) |
| 1984 CE |
Indira Gandhi was assassinated |
| 1988 CE |
SEBI (Security and Exchange Board of India) was established by The Government of India |
| 1991 CE |
Rajiv Gandhi assassinated |
| 1991 CE |
Economic reform program (liberalization) |
| 1992 CE |
Babri Mosque in Ayodhya is demolished |
| 1992 CE |
1992 Odisha liquor deaths incident |
| 1996 CE |
Amarnath Yatra tragedy |
| 1998 CE |
BJP forms coalition government under Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee |
| 2000 CE |
US President Bill Clinton’s India visit |
| 2001 CE |
Massive earthquakes in Gujarat |
| 2001 CE |
Suicide squad attacked parliament in New Delhi |
| 2002 CE |
Godhra (Gujarat) incident |
| 2003 CE |
Bomb blasts in Mumbai |
| 2004 CE |
Tsunami incident |
| 2005 CE |
Earthquake in Kashmir |
| 2007 CE |
India's first commercial space rocket is launched (carried Italian satellite) |
| 2008 CE |
Series of bomb explosions in Ahmedabad (Gujarat) |
| 2008 CE |
Attack on two hotels namely the Taj Mahal Palace & Tower and the Oberoi Trident (Mumbai) |
| 2009 CE |
India and Russia signed Uranium deal worth of $700 million |
| 2012 CE |
Ajmal Kasab the sole surviving gunman of 2008 Mumbai attacks was hanged |
| 2013 CE |
Mars Orbiter Mission, is successfully launched into the Orbit of Mars by ISRO (the Indian Space Research Organization) |
| 2014 CE |
Congress was routed in the general elections and Narendra Modi (BJP) elected as the Prime Minister |
| 2016 CE |
Terror Attacks on Pathankot Air Base |
| 2016 CE |
India becomes member of Missile Technology Control Regime |
