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The Sohan industry continued in developing forms until the third glaciations and possibly as the so called Evolved Sohan, until the fourth. It consists of typically pebble and flake tools amongst which chopper like implements predominate. Some of the pebble tools are struck from the original pebble surface without the more usual prepared striking platform. The flake tools on the other hand not infrequently show high angled platforms reminiscent of the Clactonian industry of England. As time went one, the proposition of pebble implement tended to dimish and the flakes approximated more nearly to the Levalloisian of the European mid Paleolithic. In terms of years, an antiquity of 400,000 years has been ascribed to the beginnings of the industry but necessarily with a wide margin its duration was immense, probably more than 300,000 years.

Alongside the Sohan industry both in its earlier and in its later aspects appeared another of a different kind based not on flakes but upon shaped cores in other words upon implements which have been shaped in a manner which has been compared to sculpture by the reduction of a lump of quartzite to the desired form through the removal of surplus material. At first, some hammers were used for this purpose but later more sensitive instruments, bars  of wood or horn were partially substituted with the result that shallower flake scars were produced resulting in a more shapely tool. The characteristics form was a pear shaped hand axe, of a type widely distributed in Europe and Africa and approximating to the Acheul of the classical typology.

Although in north western India and sometimes elsewhere the flake industries and the core industries overlap, they appear to be basically of diverse human types. At Swanscombe in Kent a skull essential modern in type has been found in gravels containing core artifacts with which it was contemporary, whilst on the other hand there is a tendency for the earlier flake industries to group with obsolete human species representing decadent collateral branches from the human stem. But whether the mixed Indian industries imply the partial coexistence of widely divergent human types in the subcontinent cannot be guessed in the present complete absence of associated human bones. The recovery of human skeletons of Paleolithic age is one of the major needs of Indian archaeology.

In the south of India the hand axe is the dominant Paleolithic form, and the term madras industry has been applied to the complex which it represents. But it dominance in peninsular India must not obscure its wide distribution also in the north, not only in Sohan Valley but also in Gujarat, where for instance hand axes of late Acheullian type from the terraces of the Sabarmati river have been ascribed to the period of the third glaciations, perhaps 150-200,000 years ago. Here again more work is needed.

On meager evidence of the kind recounted, little can be said of the way of life of these ancient populations. They were doubtless, in India as elsewhere, hunters and food gatheres, lacking domesticated animals and ignorant of agriculture, although not perhaps unaware of the nutritive value of wild grasses. Their communities must have been exceedingly small and at least semi nomadic. They may be imagined as foregathering here and there beside the rivers, living in rock shelters or under huts roofed with thatch or skins and supplementing their stone equipment with bone, wood and fiber. Speck of a primitive character may be supposed to have assisted the occasional interchange of knowledge and experience, but the sparseness and isolation of the family or small tribal groups must largely have nullified the accumulation and transmission of tradition on any effective scale. For millennium after millennium an unenterprising uniformity characterized these incipient societies. 

On the modern computation, species of men have existed on the earth for something like 500,000 years. For the greater part of that time our knowledge of hem is confined to certain of their more durable artifacts or in comparatively rare instances, to their skeletal remains. The earliest written records- those of Egypt and Mesopotamia- take us back no more than 5000 years and the oral traditions of India being nearly two millennia later. Indeed the first unquestioned historical records of the sub continent are not earlier than the end of the sixth century BC when north western India became a province of the Achemenid Empire.

In appreciating the significance of the most ancient vestiges of man, in India as elsewhere, two points may be emphasized are the outset. First, in a sparsely inhabited world devoid of systematic communication, immense periods of time may be represented even by relatively simple technical developments; a quarter of a million years may have gone to a slight improvement in the shaping of a stone. Secondly the evidence, limited as it is to imperishable materials, is not a fair index of cultural range and progress, of cultural pattern, and may tend therefore to exaggerate the appearance of stagnation. To these factors, India a third may be added. In Europe and North Africa the geological phases contemporary with early man have been systematized and can in some measure be related to one another regionally. But how far they can be equated with the geological phases which have been recognized sporadically in the Indian sub continent is much less certain. In the absence of such equation, the comparison of artifacts and technical methods in Europe and India remains of uncertain significance, and only provisional deductions can be drawn. Thus ‘hand-axes’ from Abbeville on the Somme and from the neighborhood of Madras may be almost identical in form and workmanship; but whether they represent a proximate moment in time is still matter for much further inquiry.

In central Europe it is now agreed that in the Pleistocene geological period, during which man in various specific forms is known to have existed, there were four major and a number of minor phases of acute cold, marked by advances of the ice field from the mountain zones on to the adjacent lowlands. These periods of glaciations have left identifiable deposits which serve to punctuate the appearance of human and animal life. In northern India and more particularly in the Rawalpindi district of the North West in the valley of the river of Sohan or Soan the evidence of four major glaciations has been equated tentatively with the four major glaciations of the European series, with the addition of a fifth advance of the ice in the post Pleistocene times. Much further fieldwork is required to confirm and amplify this equation but meanwhile it will serve as the basis of working classification. Less useful is the hypothetical equation of rainy or pluvial periods farther south with the northern glaciations. Particularly in the tropical zone the interrelationship of the two phenomena is quite uncertain.

To the first glacial period and to the milder interglacial period which followed it no trace of human occupation is at present attributed. Not, it seems, until the formation of the topmost gravels of the second glacial period did man begin to drop crude but recognizable implements of quartzite upon the ground, split pebbles and large flakes chipped mainly on one side, with large bulbs of percussion and small striking platforms. These rough implements have been named Pre_Sohan, to distinguish them from the slightly more sophisticated Sohan industry which began to appear in the succeeding second interglacial phase.

A brief survey of the present state of Indian historical studies will not be out of place in connexion with the foregoing review of the original authorities.

No general history of the Hindu period was in existence before the publication in 1904of the first edition of the Early History of India. The more condensed treatment of the subject in this volume is largely based on the fourth edition of that work, published in 1923, but much new material has been used: and the subject has been treated from a point of view to some extent changed. Many sections of the story need further elucidation, and it is certain that research will add greatly to our knowledge of the period in the near future.

THE MUSLIM PERIOD: the publication in 1841 of Elphinstone’s justly famous HISTORY OF INDIA made possible for the first time systematic study of the Indo-Muslim history of Hindustan or northern India down to the battle of Panipat in 1761. Although Elphinstones’s book, mainly based on the compilations Firishta and Khafi Khan, is of permanent value, it is no disparagement of its high merit to say that in these changed times it is no longer adequate for the needs of either the close student or the general reader. Since Elphinstone wrote many authorities unknown to him have become accessible, archaeological discoveries have been numerous, and corrections of various kinds have become necessary. Moreover, the attitude of readers has been modified. They now ask for something more than is to be found in the austere pages of Elphinstone, who modeled his work on the lines adopted by the Muslim chroniclers.

The history of the Sultans of Delhi is in an unsatisfactory state. A foundation of specialized detailed studies is always needed before a concise narrative can be composed with confidence and accuracy, and many years may elapse before a thoroughly sound account of the Sultanate of Delhi can be written.  Although considerable advance has been made in the study of the history of the Bahmani empire and other Muslim kingdoms which became independent of Delhi in the fourteenth century, there is plenty of room for further investigation. The story of the extensive Hindu empire of Vijaynagar (1336-1565) was originally elucidated by the labours of Robert Sewell, whose excellent work has been continued and in certain matters corrected by several Indian authors. In these days of the best research in Indian history is done by Indian scholars, a fact which has resulted in a profound change in the presentation of the history of their land. The public addressed by a modern historian differs essentially in composition and character from that addressed by Elphinstone or Mill.

The true history of the Mughal dynasty is beginning to be known. The story of Babur, Humayun and Akbar has been illuminated by the researches of Mr. and Mrs. Henry Beveridge, and the study of Akbar’s life by the author of this volume includes much novel matter. The interesting reign of Jahangir, which was badly handled by Elphinstone, has now been fully treated in the “History of Jahangir”, by Beni Prasad. Jahangir’s own memoirs are available in an English translation by A. Rogers, and there are numerous European sources, listed in Beni Prasad.

The reign of Shahjahan, prior to the war of succession, awaits further critical study, based on the original authorities; but my treatment of the material available will be found to present a certain amount of novelty. The long and difficult reign of Aurangzeb has been discussed by Professor Jadunath Sarkar with adequate care and learning. His work is an indispensible authority. The history of the later Mughuls has been considerably elucidated in the works by Irvine, Sarkar and Dr. Spear.

THE BRITISH PERIOD: James Mill’s famous book, the “History of British India”, published in 1817, brought together for the first time, to use the author’s words, ‘a history of that part of the British transactions which have an immediate relation to India’. Mill’s book, continued by H.H. Wilson form 1805 to 1835, notwithstanding its well-known faults, will always be valuable for reference. But it is a hundred and forty years old and can no longer be regarded as more than an introduction to the subject.

The British period can now be regarded as completed whole, but no fully satisfactory work has yet been written from this point of view, The best expression of the imperialist view is Sir A. Lyall’s ‘British Dominion in India’. A masterpiece of liberal imperial history was lost the issue of the first two volumes. His one time assistant, the late P.E. Roberts, did something to fill the gap in his scholarly and graceful edition. But this work is less satisfactory after the Mutiny than before; the more the implications of liberalism came to be realized, the more nervous Roberts became of them. The two volumes of ‘The Cambridge History of India’ end on the threshold of the Montford era in 1918. Though they contain much excellent work, they are so weighed down on the administrative side as hardly to merit the title of a general history. Edward Thompson and G.T. Garrant in their ‘Rise and Fulfillment of British rule in India” showed an awareness of new trends, of the Indianness of British Indian History. But its overload quotations and its incessant opinionativeness make it less readable than its authors expected and deprive it of the authority for which they hoped.

Those who wish to buy new house, Realty giant DLF has some good offers of its new housing project at Gurgaon. It is a first of its kind move and the company has written to the people who had booked flats at its New Town Heights residential project, where construction is yet to start, of an amendment to its sale agreement. The change entitles customers to benefits that will work out to a price reduction, it says, of about 20 per cent.

The company will offer a 5% discount on the basic sale price. Another 10% rebate would be offered for timely payment. The changes also include an increase in the compensation rates for delays from Rs 5 per sq ft per month to Rs 10. DLF has rescheduled the payment plans as well.
Now, instalments have been linked to various construction milestones. All payments received over and above 35 per cent of the sale price will thus be treated as advance payment, and a rebate equivalent to 13 per cent interest will be allowed to the customer.During the times of global economic meltdown, the company said the move was in tune with its earlier announcement to cut the prices of residential projects by 15-20 per cent. “We have been implementing the price correction on a project to project basis. Different models were worked out in cities like Chennai and Bangalore. In Hyderabad, reduced prices were announced. Each model reflects the price correction happening in specific cities,” Rajiv Talwar, group executive director, DLF said. According to him, DLF’s attempt is to hold all existing clients, boost customer confidence and attract new customers, to ensure continued cash flow in the times of global recession. “We are trying to be responsive to the market,” he said.  

Customers, however, said it wasn’t such a generous thing. Commenting on the 10 per cent timely payment rebate, they said the rebate was on 65 per cent of the total amount, as 35 per cent was always paid as advance. “This means the rebate is effectively 6 per cent and not 10 as claimed by DLF. When the total benefit may not be more than 11 per cent, how can the company claim to offer 20 per cent discount?” they asked.The project-specific and city-specific plans also came under criticism. However, the customers agreed that the DLF move was not a legal compulsion but a goodwill gesture.The move has generated interest among other players also. Delhi-based property developer, Omaxe, said the company was working out a similar offer for its Greater Noida customers.

What? Now People of Singur want the “Nano” plant back? I thought I must have overheard something else, however, I was wrong.  Global auto major Tata Motors may have moved out its Nano plant from the state but the people of Singur still want the project, says West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee.  “People of Singur want the factory over there, they are very hopeful and I have conveyed this to the higher authorities of the Tata Group,” Bhattacharjee said in an interview to a private regional news channel here.

Almost 40 Kms from the state’s Hoogly district, was no less than battleground for almost two and half years. It all started in May 2006 when the state government allotted land for the Nano project.  On Oct 3 last year the company announced it had scrapped its plans to bring out the small car, priced at Rs.100, 000, from the Singur facility. The plant was shifted to Sanand in Gujarat.Tata Motors had to wind up its Singur plant following sustained protests by a Trinamool Congress-led farmers agitation demanding return of 400 of the 997.11 acres acquired for the project. The agitators alleged that the 400 acres were forcibly taken by the government from farmers unwilling to part with their land.  “I am trying to set up a factory in that plot in Singur. We have already spoken to a few Indian as well as foreign companies. In fact, now our industry secretary is in China talking to a company over there,” the chief minister said. He, however, said whichever company sets up a plant in Singur, the government would ensure that it generates as much employment as the Nano project was supposed to do and “if possible even more than that. It is very important that the youth of the state get employment,” he said.

Talking about land acquisition and the compensation that was provided by the government to the farmers of Singur who gave their land for the Nano project, he said: “Around 85-86 percent of the farmers have taken compensation and of the remaining 10-15 percent many do not stay in India and few others don’t have proper papers of the land. That means the number of unwilling farmers were really small. I failed to make the opposition understand the meaning of ancillary industries. They didn’t understand that this was an integrated project and 400 acres cannot be given away like that. Giving away 400 acres would have meant stalling the project.”

Referring to the meeting between the Left Front government and the Trinamool at the behest of Governor Gopal Krishna Gandhi Sep 7 on the issue, Bhattacharjee said: “We didn’t sign any deal that night regarding the land in Singur. It was a joint statement in which we stated that we will give back as much land as possible keeping the project intact. Later our officials did a detailed study and found out 70 acres from the project, which we were ready to return keeping the nature of the project intact.”

He said the Left Front government did not believe in using brute force. “In Singur, 80 percent work was done and we thought we could start the factory. But after the attack on engineers we had to resort to applying force. Otherwise we didn’t have any problems with the agitation that the opposition was doing, had they been doing it in democratic way.” He said his government was against using fertile land for industrialisation. “But there is only one percent fallow land available in the state and it is not possible to set up all the industries on it,” Bhattacharjee said.

TRADITION: Almost the sole source of undated History. The knowledge, necessarily extremely imperfect, which we possess concerning ancient India between 650-326 BC, is almost wholly derived from tradition as recorded in literature of various kinds, chiefly composted in the Sanskrit, Pali and Prakrit language. Most of the early literature is of a religious kind, and the strictly historical facts have to be collected laboriously, bit by bit from works which were not intended to serve as histories. Some valuable scraps off historical tradition have been picked out of the writings of grammarians; and several plays, based on historical facts, yield important testimony. Tradition continues to be a rich source of historical information long after 326 BC.

ABSENCE OF HINDU HISTORICAL LITERATURE EXPLAINED: the trite observation that Indian literature, prior to the Muslim period, does not include formal histories, although true in a sense, does not present the whole truth. Most of the Sanskrit books were composed by Brahmans, who certainly had not a taste for writing histories, their interest being engaged in other pursuits. But the Rajas were eager to preserve annals of their own doings, and took much pain to secure ample and permanent record of their achievements. They are not to blame for the melancholy fact that their efforts have had little success. The records laboriously prepared and regularly maintained have perished almost completely in consequence of the climate, including insect pests in that term, and of the innumerable political revolutions from which India has suffered. Every court in the old Hindu kingdoms maintained official bards and chroniclers whose duty it was to record and keep up the annals of the state. Some portion of such chronicles has been preserved and published by Colonel Tod, the author of the famous book, ANNALS AND ANTIQUITIES OF RAJASTHAN, first published in 1829, but that work stands almost alone. The great mass of the Rajas’ annals has perished beyond recall. Some fragments of the early chronicles clearly are preserved in the royal genealogies and connected historical observations recorded in the more ancient Puranas; and numerous extracts from local records are given in the prefaces to many inscriptions. Thus it appears that the Hindus were not indifferent to history, although the Brahmans, the principal literary class, cared little for historical compositions as a form of literature, except in the form of PRSHASTIS, some of which are poems of considerable literary merit. Such Sanskrit histories as exist usually were produced in the border countries, the best being the metrical chronicle of Kashmir; call the Raja-tarangini, composed in the twelfth century. Even that work does not attain exactly to the European ideal of a formal history. Several Brahman authors, notably BANA in the seventh century, wrote interesting works, half history and half romance, which contain a good deal of authentic historical matter. Our exceptionally full knowledge of the story of Harsha-Vardhan, King of Thanesar and Kanauj, is derived largely from the works of Bana entitled “The deeds of Harsha”.

Historical of semi-historical compositions are numerous in language of the south. The Mackenzie collection of manuscripts catalogues by H.H. Wilson contains a large number of texts which may be regarded as histories of some degree.

FOREIGN EVIDENCE: The indigenous or native sources enumerated above, which must necessarily be the basis of early Hindu history, are supplemented to a most important extend by the writings of foreigners. Hearsay notes recorded by the Greek authors Herodotus and Ktesias in the fifth century BC record some scraps of information, but Europe was almost ignorant of India until the veil was lifted by the operations of Alexander and the reports of his officers. Those reports, lost as a whole, survive in considerable extracts quoted in the writings of later authors, Greek and Roman. The expedition of Alexander the Great is not mentioned distinctly by any Hindu author, and the references to the subject by Muslim authors are of little value. Megasthenes, the ambassador of Seleukos Nikator to Chandragupta Maurya in the closing years of the fourth century wrote a highly valuable account of India, much of which has been preserved in fragments.

Formal Chinese histories from about 120BC have something to tell us, but by far the most important and interesting of all the foreign witnesses are the numerous Chinese pilgrims who visited the Holy Land of Buddhism, between AD 400-700. FA-Hsian, the earliest of them gives life to the bald chronicles of Chandragupta Vikramaditya, as constructed from inscriptions and coins. The learned Hsuan Tsand or Yuna Chwang, in the seventh century, does the same for Harsa-vardhan, and also records innumerable matters of interest concerning every part of India. I-tsing and more than sixty other pilgrims have left valuable notes of their travels. A book on the early history of Hindu India would be a very meager and dry record but for the narratives of the Pilgrims, which are full of vivid details.

It was the settlement day of March series as tomorrow is Gudi padwa and the markets had to close all the settlements today itself. There was a stunning performance from the benchmark indices today. The Sensex once again had touched the 10,000 mark. It took almost 50 sessions and it managed to close above the same level. Nifty as well tested the 3100 mark but in the course of the day it retreated from that level during the last 10 minutes of the trade. There was good buying from the foreign as well as domestic investors. Local mutual funds were also active in midcaps on NAV propping.

Markets stayed positive as there was buying in infrastructure, metal, banking, technology, auto, FMCG and oil&gas sectors. It kept the mood positive throughout the day. Broader indices also followed the same trend but underperformed the benchmark indices. All sectoral indices ended higher barring Realty index.  The Sensex has touched an intraday high of 10,061.36, before closing the day at 10,003.10, up 335.20 points or 3.47%. The 50-share NSE Nifty shut shop at 3082.25, up 3.28% or 97.90 points, after hitting a high of 3103.35. The last time both indices had touched respective marks on January 7, 2009.

 The frontrunners include ONGC, Bharti Airtel, BHEL, TCS, L&T, Sterlite, Maruti and Tata Power which gained almost 6%, where as SBI, ITC, Infosys, Reliance Industries, NTPC, HDFC, HUL, ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank gained upto 4%. Due to F&O expiry, there was the highest turnover and markets reported turnover of more than Rs 90,000 crore for the third consecutive day. Total traded turnover stood at Rs 97,107.51 crore. This includes Rs 15,527.42 crore from NSE cash segment, Rs 76,957.01 crore from NSE F&O and the balance Rs 4,623.08 crore from BSE cash segment.

The wholesale price index (WPI) is very close to the 0% mark. Inflation for week ended March 14 came in at 0.27% — still in positive terrain — compared with 0.44% week on week (WoW). January 17 WPI inflation has been revised to 4.95% versus 5.64% provisionally. Everyone has very well-factored in a negative print in WPI and it is primarily on higher base last year. there will be lot more rate cuts going ahead. She forecasts another 50 basis points cut as far as reverse repo rate is concerned. But the Consumer Price Index still remains in double digit and that is something which hurts the common man.

European markets were trading marginally higher at the time of Indian closings. The FTSE was up 5 points, to 3,905. The CAC was up 8 points, to 2,901 and the DAX gained 15 points, to 4,238. US futures were also trading higher. The Dow Jones Futures was trading at 7,730, up 50 points and the Nasdaq Futures were up 14.5 points, to 1,248. Asian markets ended strong. Shanghai, Hang Seng and Straits Times gained 3-4%. Nikkei was up 1.84% and Kospi went up 1.2%. Taiwan moved up 0.75%.

The nature of the sources of original authorities for Hindu history from 650BC will not be considered briefly. The native or indigenous  sources may be classified under five heads, namely: (1) inscriptions, or epigraphic evidences;(2) coins, or numismatic evidence;(3) monuments, buildings and works of art, or archaeological evidence; (4) tradition as recorded in literature; and (5) ancient historical writings, sometimes contemporarily with the events narrated. The Sixth source, foreign testimony, is mostly supplied either by the works of travelers of various nations, or by regular historians, especially Sinhalese, Greek and Chinese. The value of each class of evidence will now be explained.

INSCRIPTIONS: inscriptions have been given the first place in the list because they are, on the whole, the most important and trustworthy source of our knowledge. Unfortunately, they do not at present go farther back than the third century BC with certainty, although it is not unlikely that records considerably earlier may be discovered, and it is possible that a very few know documents may go back beyond the reign of Asoka. Indian inscriptions, which usually are incised on either stone or metal, may be either official documents set forth by kings or other authorities, or records made by private persons for various purposes. Most of the inscriptions on stone either commemorate particular events or record the dedication of buildings or images. The commemorative documents range from the simple signature of a pilgrim to long and elaborate Sanskrit poems are called “PRSASTI”. The inscriptions on metal are for the most part grants of land inscribed on plates of copper. They are sometimes extremely long, especially in the south, and usually include information about the reigning king and his ancestors. Exact knowledge of the dates of events in early Hindu history, so far as it has been attained, rests chiefly on the testimony of the inscriptions.

Records of an exceptional kind occur occasionally. The most remarkable of such documents are the edicts of Asoka, which in the main are sermons on DHARMA, the Law of Piety or Duty. At Ajmer in Rajasthan and at Dhar in central India fragments of plays have been found inscribed on stone tablets. Part of a treatise on architecture is incised on one f the towers at Chitor, and a score of music for the VINA, or Indian lute, has been found in the former Pudukottai State, Madras. A few of the metal inscriptions are dedications and one very ancient document on copper, the Sohgaura plate from the Gorakhpur District is concerned with government storehouses.

The inscriptions which have been catalogued and published more or less fully aggregate many thousands. The numbers in the peninsula especially are enormous.

COINS: The legends on coins really are a class of inscriptions on metal, but it is more convenient to treat them separately. The science of numismatic, or the study of ancient coins, requires special expert knowledge. Coins, including those without any legends, can be made to yield much information concerning the condition of the country in the distant past. The dates frequently recorded on them afford invaluable evidence for fixing chronology. Even when the outline of the history is well known from books as is the case for most of the Muslim period, the numismatic testimony helps greatly in settling doubtful dates, and in illustrating details of many kinds. Our scanty knowledge of the Bactrian, Indo-Greek, and Indo-Parthian dynasties rests chiefly on inferences drawn from the study of coins.

ARCHAEOLOGICAL EVIDENCE: The archaeological evidence, regarded as distinct from that of inscriptions and coins, is obtained by the systematic skilled examination of buildings, monuments, and works of art. For our knowledge of the pre-Aryan Indus Civilization we are entirely indebted to the archaeologist. Careful registration of the stratification of the ruins on ancient sites, that is to say, of the exact order in which the remains of one period follow those of another, often gives valuable proof or date. The excavations on the site of Taxila, for instance, have done much to clear up the puzzle of the Kushan or Indo-Scythian chronology already mentioned. The scientific description of buildings erected for religious or civil purposes, such as temples, stupas, palaces, and private houses, throws welcome light on the conditions prevailing in ancient times. The study of works of art, including images, frescoes and other objects, enables us to draw in outline the history of Indian art, and often affords a most illuminating commentary on the statements in books.  The history of Indian religions cannot be properly understood by students who confine their attention to literary evidence. The testimony of the monuments and works of art is equally important, and, in fact, those remains tell much which is not to be learned from books. Intelligent appreciation of the material works wrought by the ancients in necessary for the formation of a true mental picture of the past. Such observations apply equally to the Hindu and Muslim Periods.

A body of history strictly so called must be built upon a Skelton on of chronology, that is to say, on a series of dates more or less precise. In India, as in Greece, such a series begins about the middle or close of the seventh century before Christ. Nothing approaching exact chronology being attainable for earlier times, the account which the historian can offer to those times necessarily is wanting in definiteness and precision. It is often difficult to determine even the sequence or successive order of events. Nevertheless no historian of India or the Indians can escape from the obligation of offering some sort of picture of the life of undated ancient Indian, in its political, social, religious, literary, and artistic aspects, previous to the dawn of the exact history.

The early literature, composted chiefly in the Sanskrit, Pali and Tamil languages, supplies abundant material, much of which is accessible in one or other European tongue. The thorough exploration of the gigantic mass of literature especially that of the southern books is a task so vast that it cannot ever be completed. Large fields of study have been hardly investigated at all. But a great deal of good work has been accomplished, and the labours of innumerable scholars, European, American and Indian have won results sufficiently certain to warrant the drawing of an outline sketch results sufficiently  certain to warrant the drawing  of an outline sketch  of the beginnings of Indian life and history. Although the lines of the sketch are somewhat wanting in clearness, especially with reference to the Vedic age and the early Dravidian civilization, we moderns can form a tolerably  distinct mental picture of several stages of Indian history prior to the earliest date ascertained with even approximate accuracy.  

Definite chronological history begins about 650 BC for northern India. No positive historical statement can be made concerning the peninsula until a date much later. Even in the north all approximate dates before the invasion of Alexander in 326 BC are obtained only by reasoning back from the known to the unknown. The earliest absolutely certain precise date is that just name, 326BC.

One may be glad to have in this place a brief exposition of the special difficulties which lie in the way of ascertaining precise dates for the events of early Hindu history. Numerous dates are recorded in one fashion or another, but the various authorities are often contradictory, and usually open to more than one interpretation. Dates expressed only in regnal years, such as in the 8 year after the coronation of King AB are not of much use unless we can find out by other means the time when King AB lived. Very often the year is given as simply the year 213 or the like without mention of the era used which to the writer needed no specification. In the same way when modern Europeans speak of the year, everybody understands that to mean after Christ AD or AC. In other cases an era may be named but it is not certain from what date the era is to be reckoned.  For example many dates recorded in the Gupta era were known long before historians could make confident use of them. When Fleet was able to prove that Gupta era, 320 AD, the whole Gupta Dynasty dropped at once into its proper historical setting. The fixation of that one date brought order into several centuries of early Indian history. Dated inscriptions of the Indo=Scythian or Kushan kings are even more abundant but up to the present time we do not know to which era a record of theirs dated, and in consequence an important section of Indian history continues to be the sport of conjecture, so that it is impossible to write with assurance a narrative of the events connected with one of the most interesting dynasties. That chronological uncertainty spoils the history of religion, art and literature as well as the purely political chronicle, for the first two centuries of the Christian era.  

Lalu Prasad and Ram Vilas Paswan showed congress its place when they did a secret seat sharing deal in Bihar. Sonia Gandhi must have got surprised by this move of Lalu Prasad. In fact it is not Mr. Lalu Prasad who is a problem for congress or for that matter Sonia Gandhi. The Problem lies with the Congress. Congress has a confined style of functioning and the party refuses to see any political reasoning beyond a particular point. Congress has lost its base in the Hindi speaking areas. It is increasingly dependent on its allies in different parts of the country. It has a hollow next generation leadership.  The vision of the party is wandering and this is for sure that it would not take the party to anywhere. Congress has been found weak in tackling with the communal forces. Congress appeared an ineffective salesman in the past five years.

 The party has lost its logical appearance in UP, Bihar, and Madhya Pradesh. With Mr. Narendra Modi in Gujarat, Congress has been corners for quite some time now. Rajasthan saw almost a close defeat. It was washed out in Himachal Pradesh and got trounced in Chhattisgarh. In Andhra Pradesh as well, the Congress party finds Chandra Babu Naidu, Chiranjeevi and Telangana Rashtra Samiti in its way. It was the overconfidence of Congress party in Karnataka which allowed space to a party which made its governmental debut in the electoral history of the state. In fact, the people of Kashmir also rejected the party for having rowed the Kashmir houseboat from a ready-to-take off stage to nowhere.

Well, present situation shows that the allies that congress is trusting for the next elections are putting salt on its wounds. Sharad Pawar is playing smartly in Maharashtra by claiming to be a Prime Ministerial candidate. Lalu and Paswas as I said have bruised Congress in Bihar. Mulayam is playing tricks with it in UP by just offering 16 seats. Mamta Banerjee has Pranab in her grip. She left the party almost ten years back. The parties in the south have always been merciless while bargaining for the seats in their respective states. We are yet to see what sort of seat sharing congress would do in the south.

 Talking about numbers, Congress does not hold much in offing for the coming Lok Sabha Elections. It is already been predicted that there would be a hung parliament. No party in fact no alliance, UPA or NDA is going to get a clear majority.  And by insisting on Manmohan Singh the Congress is living in its own cozy castle, removed from the ground realities. It presumes too many things-one being that only the Congress has the rightful claim to the throne. Probably why Sharad Pawar finds the idea revolting and declared that partners are at liberty to project their own PM candidate. And this is where it hurts the Congress even more.

Pawar is not the only one to voice for his wish. He as voiced the sentiments of most of the alliance partners who come to Delhi just to make their dreams come true. If a black American can defy history, then a Chandrasekhar Rao, a Paswan or a Mayawati too have the audacity to hope. And rightfully so.

Now the question comes that why can’t a Sharad Pawar, a Mulayam Singh, a Mayawati, a Chandrababu Naidu, Lalu, Paswan and even a Prakash Karat or a Budhadeb (if the Left decides not to repeat party’s historic blunder of 1996) stake claim to country’s CEO provided they decided to glue together as one entity post poll to “defeat the communal forces.” We already have seen non congress PM earlier as well. For good two years the Congress propped up United Front government in 1996. It then short-changed Deve Gowda mid-stream for I K Gujral and then dumped Gujral a year later.

Now the times have changed.  Once trapped in Bribery case, JMM is now alley of UPA. In fact, half of the then United Front has coalesced with UPA. The rest have vowed to revive United Front in a different avatar as Third Front. In Kashmir and Maharashtra, Congress can have a 50-50 deal for the Chief Minister chair. Congress is with its one time anathema Mulayam in UP. It only behooves the elder partner for making that much extra sacrifice to ensure longevity of the UPA coalition. If politics is all about give and take then Congress should sacrifice the PM ship for its alliance partners and get ready to be led rather than lead.

In the post 57 phase of the freedom struggle, the Namdharis or the Kukas must be given a pride of place. The leader of this movement was Baba Ram Singh of the Namdhari sect who was obviously inspired by the example of Maharaj Singh’s struggle against the usurpers of Punjab’s freedom. The British ruler became terribly afraid of this revolutionary movement and adopted inhuman measures to crush it. After the Malerkotla episode and the execution of the Kukas by the British at Jalandhar and Ludhiana, Ram Singh along with his chief supporters was arrested under Regulation III and deported to Rangoon. He was held responsible for the Cow Slaughter Incidents and violent acts of his followers though he had disowned them and had kept the police informed of their activities. The British Government in India and the Secretary of State in England held that the Kukas challenged the established authority in the Punjab and it was a dangerous rising against the British.

After Ram Singh’s deportation to Rangoon, the Kukas in India were continued to be watched and suspected. At Bhaini Sahib, police restrictions of all kinds were imposed upon the Kukas which remain unknown in the annals of British oppression in India. A Permanent police post consisting of one Sub- Inspector and twenty constables was set up at the place to keep continuous watch on the movement of members of Ram Singh’s family. The police post continued to operate till 1922, when it was withdrawn under the pressure of national leaders.

The blow struck on the Kuka movement in 1872 by the British was hard but it added to its charm both among the common people in the Punjab and influential ones abroad. A mystic began to be attributed to Baba Ram Singh’s interment in the Mandley Jail in Burma. Braving the manifold dangers involved in the journey to Burma, his followers went to Burma to meet their Master and to receive instructions personally from him. These instructions contained repeated warnings to the Kukas against accepting any government service. An exchange of correspondence between the Kuka leaders and the Russian authorities of Central Asia began and channels of communication between the two became active. Under instructions of the Kuka headquarters, Gurcharan Singh Virk, a Jat of Sialkot district, undertook the hazardous journey to contact the Russian authorities in Central Asia and to negotiate with them on the question of help against the British Government in India. There is some documentary evidence of letters, exchanged between another Kuka leader Baba Bodh Singh and the Russian Governor of Turkistan. In 1883, when the exiled Maharaja Dalip Singh landed in Russia, a Kuka leader Bishan Singh went all the way to Russia to hold discussions with him and to make plans to foment revolution in India, but nothing concrete came out.

The activities of Gurcharan Singh and Bishan Singh stirred the Kuka minds. In 1880 there was a lot of excitement among the Kukas all over the Punjab, but particularly so at Ludhiana. In 1880, about 150 Kukas held a secret meeting in the Dhok jungle at Lalton. In 1885, Baba Ram Singh breathed his last in Megui (Burma), still in exile.

The sacrifices made by the Kukas form a vital part of the Punjab’s contribution to freedom movement in Indian. The programme of non cooperation with the alien ruler, evolved by Ram Singh, the boycott of foreign made goods, government schools, law courts and the postal service and the use of the Swadeshi propagated by him in 1860’s were taken up again by Mahatma Gandhi in 1920. In 1939, Pandit Nehru himself visited Bhaini Sahib and paid glowing tribute to the sacrifices made by them for the cause of freedom struggle.

It is South Africa. Yes the second edition of the much hyped cricket tournament of the country, “IPL” would be played in South Africa. Lalit Modi, the commissioner of the IPL and Gerald Majola the CEO of cricket South Africa finalized the deal today. Now it is almost 23 days left for this cricket gala to start. This would be the second edition of the tournament. The decision to relocate to South Africa has seen mixed responses from all across the world. Shane Warne, the skipper of the defending champions Rajasthan Royals said that the tournament won’t quite be the same outside India. Former Australian wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist said knowledge of local conditions will be the key.  Elsewhere, teams such as the Bangalore Royal Challengers who have five South African players are hoping the move will work to their advantage. Clearly, little else in cricket circles these days is getting any attention other than talk of the IPL.

Coming back to the Indian fans and spectators, they have two options, to go to South Africa to watch the tournament. Those who cannot afford to go because of time or money crunch they have the option to watch it over Set Max. Multi Screen Media commonly known as Sony Entertainment Television will be broadcasting the tournament. An official announcement came from the IPL Tournament committee that World Sports Group and Multi Screen Media have been signed on as the Official Broadcast Partner for the DLF Indian Premier League. It is a fresh nine-year deal running through to 2017 and is worth Rs. 8,200 crores. This in fact raises the broadcast rights value by over 50 per cent, since the previous deal was signed at Rs. 5,500 crores. The new agreement gives MSM the exclusive audio visual rights in India to broadcast all 59 matches of IPL Season 2 on Set MAX. There was a question mark on the broadcast partner after the Bombay High Court announced its judgment earlier this week in the MSM vs. BCCI case allowing the cricket board to initiate conversation with any broadcaster for the IPL telecast rights.

With IPL going to foreign shores, the Indian tourism industry has been hit badly. Hotels were expecting a 25 per cent boost in occupancy and the government was hoping tourism would grow by 15 per cent but they will now have to recalculate their projections. The negative image may also cost Indian tourism close to Rs 10,000 crores in forex earnings over 2009 and 2010. Airlines are also worked up as no matches in India mean lower demand for domestic travel. But international travel may pick up a little.

But even that may not make a big difference. The sudden turn of events has shattered some big dreams. While experts do not see a long-term impact of this decision, the industry has definitely lost out on forex earnings and tourists at a time when its earnings from the corporate sector were already very low.

All this is because there are two IPLs which are to be conducted in the same months. Yes first is in the game of Cricket and the tournament is shifted to South Africa. The Second IPL is the most famous one in the political field. Yes the Indian Political League which often happens once in every five years. That was in fact the only reason that the cricket IPL has been shifted offshore. Both the tournaments are going to impact the lives of Indians in particular and the world in general. There would be new players which may come up after this tournament of the cricket and of course a new government of India would emerge from this election. Lets enjoy both in the days to come.

With Tug of War between BCCI and the Home Ministry coming to an end after IPL commissioner declare that he will take IPL abroad, it is clear that the Indian fans can only watch the season two of the tournament on television. Of course they have an option to fly to England to enjoy the game live. Most of the fans are disappointed about this decision and have started debating about what caused this problem between BCCI and the Government of India. Not only the fans but the Politicians have also expressed their views. Mr. Narendra Modi called it a “national shame”. 

I know it is something not easily welcomed by the hardcore Indian fans of the game. But here are few things I would request everyone to remember. We need to exercise our franchise rather than whining about IPL. Why, because it is better to do that  just for few day then for 5 years if you would not exercise your right to chose the right candidate. We cannot throw them out once they get elected for 5 years. IPL would happen twice a year. Elections would come only after 5 years. IPL has only 8 teams about which we need to think and cheer. In Elections we have 28 states and 7 union territories where from the candidates would be elected. IPL gives you almost 60 matches where as the election would be for almost 543 odd seats. IPL will consume your 45 days where as elections would last only for 35 days. The amount at stake in IPL is approximately 1500 crores which close to nothing when it comes to elections where the hard earned money of the tax payer would be consumed which may amount more than 10,000 crores. Indeed it is going to be the world’s most expensive election.  

Talking about the result of the two events. After IPL the organizers, the players, winning teams all would be richer by few more crores. Alas, the fans would not anything other than enjoyments though they would have lost a few thousands of rupees from their pockets. After Elections, choice between a good and a bad candidate/political party would ensure a good or a bad government for next five years. Yes this decision would impact the amount of money you may expect to come in your pockets. Of course both the events would be followed by beers, processions and crackers….. 

The memories of IPL would last only for one week, where as that of elections.. You may get a reminder everyday.. What you did while exercising your right to vote. You may be whining about the bad governance provided for 5 years if you elect a worthless candidate. Assurance of Job, education, health, safety everything would be jeopardized.  So it’s your call  to think and feel who is going right? 

Saif-ud-Din Kitchlu, a brave and bold patriot, was one of the earliest among the Muslim community of the Punjab to join the freedom movement. He was born at Faridkot in a well to do family. After receiving education in the Punjab, he went to England for higher studies. He received his B.A. degree from the Cambridge University. After that he received instruction in law and was called to the bar. Thereafter, he received his Ph. D degree from a German University.

After his return to India in 1913, he settled at Rawalpindi and began his legal practice. But in 1915 he shifter to Amritsar and established a roaring practice there. It was here that his passion for communal harmony and political solidarity grew.  To him goes the credit for getting his coreligionists associated fully and whole-heartedly with the anti-Rowlett Bills movement. It was the anti-Rowlett Bills agitation of 1918 which made him the hero of Jallianwala Bagh. Along with Dr. Satya Pal and Lala Duni Chand of Lahore, he addressed a dozen of meetings at various places in Punjab arousing the people’s indignation against the Black Bills. Alarmed at the public response, the Government prohibited them from making speeches. Six days later on Dr. Kitchlu and Dr. Satya Pal were arrested on Ram Naumi Day, under the  Defence of India Act and sent to Dharamsala Jail. The people, who went to see the Deputy Commissioner of Amritsar, were stopped from crossing the Railway Bridge, and when they insisted on proceeding they were fired upon. The situation went out of control and later culminated in the tragedy of Jallianwala Bagh. Dr. Kitchlu was tried under Sec. 184 of the Indian Penal Code and transported for life. But he was released on 26^th December 1919 as a result of Royal Proclamation declaring a general amnesty for political prisoners.

After his release from the jail, Dr. Kitchlu gave up his practice of law in order to take more active part in the national movement. He was the first rank leader in the Khilafat Movement. He took prominent part in the Non-Cooperation Movement of 1920 and the Civil Disobedience Movement of 1930.

During the Akali Morcha at Jaitu in 1923,  Dr. Kitchlu visited the scene and supported their cause. In 1929, he seconded the historic resolution demanding “Complete Independence” passed at Lahore. In July 1934, he observed a week’s fast for the national cause. He was elected the President of the Punjab Provincial Congress for one term and remained a member of the All India Congress Committee for many years.  He spent a total of 14 years behind the bars.

 After the partition of the country, Dr. Kitchlu settled at Delhi. His interest now mainly lay in the World Peace Movement. He was elected the first President of the All India Peace Conference in 1951 at Bombay. He continued to lead the Peace Movement in India till his death. He was elected a member of the Presidium of the World Peace Council in 1958. He was the first Indian to receive the Lenin Peace Prize in 1952. 

Prof. Puran Singh, the mystical father of modern Punjabi poetry was born in 1881 in the district of Abbotabad (now in Pakistan). In 1900 he went to Japan where he specialized in Applied Chemistry during his stay of three years there. On his return to India, he settled as a Professor at the Forest Research Institution DehraDun. Later he took service in the Gwalior State, but not finding service congenial to his freedom loving nature, he finally settled down near DehraDun.

Puran Singh was a great friend and follower of Swami Ram Tirath. Under his influence Puran Singh took to Vedanta. In fact, just before his marriage he wanted to become a Sanyasi. Puran Singh was not a sentimental emotionalist. His faith was built on solid doubt and whatever he wrote he experienced first. He was not a religious fanatic, but a positive affirmer of life. Even in his mystical themes Puran Singh emphasizes on the subjective experience of God than on God’s nature or reality.

Puran Singh’s love for God was not of a religious fanatic who can kill people for his beliefs but that of a Sufi who believes in cosmic unity. All the notable poems of Puran Singh have the titles that imply freedom of spirit: ‘open ground’, ‘open peace’, ‘under open skies’, etc. The merit of Puran Singh’s poetry is that it does not make the reader feel bored. One does not find the traits of a person who is preaching as the only representative of God. His poetry has two outstanding qualities viz universalism and humanity.

Pooran Singh was deeply in love with nature.  In his poems, he rejoices in the glory of dawn and the golden sunsets of October. He is thrilled to be in the company of mountains and hills with their pure icy water sparkling in sunshine. He enjoys the mighty silence of the forests and mountains.  His writings make one feel the freedom of the Punjab plains, the beauty of the fields of yellow flowers of mustard and that of green fields of wheat and the joy of the carefree flow of the rivers.

Puran Singh wrote both in English and Punjabi and translated some of Vir Singh’s poems. His excursion into blank verse was subject of much literary comment. In some of his works, he experimented with a new vocabulary and unconventional style of expound unfamiliar themes. Some of his English works are: the sister of spinning wheel, the ten masters, the spirit of oriental poetry, life of swami ram tirath, seven caskets of prose poems. At his feet, spirit of the Sikhs and an afternoon with self. Of his best Punjabi poems are Khulle Maidan, Channahn dian Lehran, Sasi Di neend, Punjab de majdoor, Punjab de darya, jawan Punjab de, sohni di jhugi, heer Te Ranjha, rani ichhran de ucha gham.

 Prof Puran Singh died prematurely in 1931 at Dehra Dun of tuberculosis.