History of Diamond Industry In India

The historians say that the first diamonds in India were found in the 4th century BC. At that time the Indian diamonds were very expensive because of their size and beauty.

India's most famous, expensive and wonderful diamonds were known as the “diamonds of Golconda”. Among them are the famous Koh-i-knor, which is now on the British crown, Darya-i-Nur, the Hope Diamond and many others. The largest of these precious stones was the Darya-i-nur, - “Sea of light”. It weighted over 35 grams, which for a diamond is a huge number.

How the diamonds were created?

The diamond is one of the strongest materials known to the human kind. It is almost unbreakable and it is used for cutting through rocks and other very hard and solid materials. The reason for this enormous strength of the diamond is the way it was created. The Indian diamonds were created deep in the earth, when the two gigantic tectonic plates – the Asian tectonic plate and the Thehis Oceanic Crust collides to each other. This collision generates incredible forces, which are able to change the structure of the chemical elements. Although, this happens in incredibly slow rate – only 10 cm per year, the forces was enough to create the Himalayas and to change the overlook of this part of the planet.

According to the ancient Indians, the perfect diamond had to be a perfect octahedron with sharp edges and very pure ( with no stains on it ).

In the second half of the 14th century, most of the diamonds brought to Europe originated in India. This long journey was the reason for the diamonds to become very rare and also expensive. The route of silk was used for transporting the diamonds, which meant that the caravans had to go through the lands of the Persians. who were keeping some of the stones, as a tariff for going through their territory. So, the Europeans had to find a new route, which they did with finding the sea route around Africa.

Today India has only one active diamond located in the centre of the country. It is owned by the state of Madhya Pradesh but the quantities which the mine is yielding are not very big.

The Gupta Era

After the fall of the Kushan empire, India was invaded by foreign nations like the Mlechchhas. The Gupta dynasty emerge as a result of the merging of the foreign tribes. Chandra Gupta the First was the responsible man for this event.

The Gupta Era is now known to be the golden saga of the classic Indian history. Also this period is famous for its beautiful architectures and paintings. For example the many wall-paintings in the cave of Ajanta are one of the most precious piece of the Indian arts some of which were created in the forth century AD. Elephanta temple is the place where you can see the big stone statue of the three-headed god Shiva. Every temple build and carved in the Gupta period can be identified by their hall and tower.

Writing in the Gupta age was centered around the religion, lyric and historical poetry. One of the most decorated writers of that period was Kalidasa. Also the famous Kamasutra was written in the golden age. Mathematicians also took historical step during the age of Gupta, like the greatest mathematician of India - Aryabhatta.

Today only several monuments from the Gupta age were able to survive. Some examples of the golden Indian age architecture is preserved in the temple of Tigawa and in the temple at Deogarhnear, respectively build in 415 and 510 AD. Some of the remaining ruins of Gupta architectures can be found in Bhita (Pradesh State) but most of them are in ruins.

The Gupta period was one of the most successive age of the Indian history. It sets the base for the period of “Greater India” which was the time when Indian culture started to influence the surrounding countries.

The History of Indian Football

The game of football was brought to India by the British. The first known matches were played between the army teams. During the British ruling some football teams were created, like Calcutta Club, and set the historical record for the oldest clubs in the world. In 1872 Calcutta FC was the first Indian football team to be established.

IFA or Indian Football Association was created in the year of 1893 and it organized one of the oldest football tournaments in the world (1898) which was called Durand Cup. The first ever victory in Indian football history was in 1911 when the Mohun Began won the IFA - Shield Trophy and for the first time give the glory to the Indian nations because previously it was held only by British teams. All India Football Federation or AIFF was created due to the increasing number of the country's football teams. In 1954 AIFF started the Asian Football Confederation.

The golden era of Indian football was between 1951 and 1962. During that period, India saw its talents winning the gold medals in the Asian Games and became the first nation to reach the semi-finals of the Olympic football games in Melbourne (1956). Nowadays India is considered as a worthy opponent in Asia but even though the Indian national football teams still can not make good presence in the other international tournaments.

The game of football is one of the most watched sport in India. In the popularity table football seats next to the cricket sport. Every football tournament is viewed by the football lovers and with the interest growing by every year India earns a good value of money which can help the development of the training bases in the country.

Taj Mahal - a Symbol of Eternal Love

Today Taj Mahal is known with one of the most beautiful buildings in the world. It is described as the “passion of an emperor's love” because it was built by emperor Shah Jahan from the Mughal dynasty in the memory of his second wife Mumtaz Mahal.

The story is quite interesting and started when Jahan's wife was still alive. She made a commitment with her husband that he has to build the Taj and visit it on the anniversary of her death. Bond on his promise to the love of his life the emperor ordered the building of the Taj Mahal to be started and so 20 000 Indians were employed for the job. The masterpiece was designed by Ustad who was an Iranian architect. The workmanship was so beautiful and perfect that people say the Taj Mahal was started by giants and it is finished by the finest jewellers in the world. After the death of Shah Jahan he was buried next to his wife in the Taj's chamber.

The monument was designed to provide different views of the beautiful woman. The main gate is like a big veil, covering the woman's face. The Indian tradition stated that the veil should be lifted gently so the beauty of the bride can be fully revealed.

Nowadays Taj Mahal is like a sparkling jewel in moonlight. It changes its colour during the daytime, for example the monument is pink during the sunrise and golden when the moon is shining. This design was made to show the changing mood of the woman.

Now the people have different views of the Taj Mahal, but they can not deny that it is a fine and a beautiful masterpiece of eternal and pure love.

The History of the European Power in India

There are many details in Indian history which are pointing to the fact that there was a solid European presence in India. The history reveals that the British were not the only one European power in the country. The first European nation which visited India was the Portuguese.

Vasco da Gama was the first ever European who was able to visit India (1498). Using the route which passes near the Cape of Good Hope the Portuguese started to monopolise the Indian trade with the continent of Europe. The control of this marine transport continued to the year of 1961 when the Portuguese were no longer able to maintain this worldwide empire and as a result they were quickly overshadowed by the French and the British.

The British assumed control over India back in 1600 when Queen Elisabeth the first granted the trading route with India to a London trading company. Surprisingly British India was ruled for 250 years not by a government but by a commercial trading company.

In 1672 the French arrived in India and immediately started the dispute between them and the British for the control of the Indian trade. In 1746 the French were able to take the lead in the century long rivalry by taking Madras. The French were the masters of India for only a four year period because in 1750 the French East India Company decided that trading is more important than the politics and all the representatives were called back. Even though the French company was able to raise its profits this decision was the final charter for the France's dominance over the Indian subcontinent.

Harappan Nation

Nowadays, the Harappan civilization is one of the most fascinating and mysterious cultures known to man. Its existence (3000-1500 B.C.) was along the Indus River in modern day Pakistan. The name came from the city Harappa. As the greatest achievements of the ancient culture, the cities of Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro were known for their impressive and organized layouts. The people of the region used the Dravidian language.

By finding ancient artefacts, archaeologists were able to understand and study the Harappa other known as Indus Valley Civilization. The similarity between the cities of Mohenjo and Harappa indicates that they were in one unified government and had very good organization. Catacombs of the cities show that the burials were not so magnificent. They were simple and in essence were close to the burial sides known today. No evidence of military were found, which suggested that the Harappans were peaceful nation.

Harappan Stone Seal

Indus Valley Civilization was known to be urban and mercantile. Harappans traded gold and silver with Mesopotamia, Afghanistan and Persia. The people followed the Mesopotamian model for agriculture and use it as defence against the flooding of Indus river. Also Harappans were the first nation to cultivate cotton for the production of cloth. Harappian art was found to be small and used as personal possession. Small stone seals were the firs artefacts obtained from the cities of Mohenjo and Harappa. Also there were many pottery figures shaped into humans and animals. Only few of them were recovered.

The Harappan Civilization reach its height by 2500 B.C. and began to fall by 2000 B.C. The causes for the downfall still remain uncertain. One of the many theories suggested that the Aryan people migrated into the Indus Valley an, killing its inhabitants and burn their cities. Another theory, with more evidence, suggests that the Harappan culture fall before the Aryands began to migrate into the Valley. The agricultural problem was the real reason and the downfall of the Harappan nation.

The Ancient Government of India

By the beginning of the Vedic age, in India, people started joining groups. Every group had its own leader or king. By the 6^th century BC, there were 16 Kingdoms, in India.

The Symbol of the Indian Government

Also, small republics started to emerge. Elements of democracy, appear in their administration. The head, raja or the king, was the superior, when it comes to giving the final word. He had his own advisers, for example the members of the council. Raja, was the only one, that can point and choose, the ministers and officials for the administration, or relive them of their duty, if needed.

Then came the Mauryan period. It was known, as the period, when civil and military officials, came to ruling. Their salary was good, and the payment was in cash, as the highest official was paid the 48 000 panas per year, which is big payment for that age. For example, the hard working soldiers were paid only 500 panas. By the end of the Mauryan, details were found, of clerks or low-ranked official of the administration, were given the job of collecting taxes and custom duties. Also, a delicate spying system was develop, and became important matter, of the administration. Royal agents, became the king's secret weapon, against secret developments. The emerged Indian empire, was divided into provinces, and each of them, had their own governor and council. Departments were made, to make important decisions, that have direct influence on the administration. The army was controlled, by specially chosen committees, from the king.

By the Gupta period, the structure of the administration was the same as the one from the Mauryan age, but it was far more good. The only known difference, was the centralization and decentralization of the administration. For example in the Gupta, the governor for each province was more independent, unlike the governors from the age of Mauryan. The Gupta period was known, as the greatest period, for the ancient Government of India.

India's Qutub Minar

Known as the tallest monument in India, it can be seen from almost every part of the Indian capital Delhi. Nobody knows exactly why Minar is so big, but the reason is presumed to be for something that is related to commemorating victories.

Qutub Minar

It was used by the Mughals for proclaiming and celebrating triumphs. Rumours, that the minaret of Qutub Minar was used for prayers, were written off by the well known fact, that you can not hear the person standing on the top. Delhi's Minar is among the famous and most highest towers in the world. For example, the minaret is 234 feet tall and it is the highest individual tower on Earth.

The Qutub Minar building was started by Prithviraj and his uncle, who won Delhi from the Rajputs. It was completed around 1200 A.D. Since then the structure stood upon Delhi, like a big beautiful guardian. Its great architecture belongs to the skilful Mughals. The storeys are filled with pretty drawings and carvings, also there are inscriptions that revealed actually who the finisher of the tower was. It was non other than Iltutmish. Counting the 378 steps in the Minar is always fun for its visitors. On the top of the Qutub you have a bird's eye view of Delhi, also on the left you can see Hauz Khaz, and on the right the walls of Jahanpanah and Siri. Over the years, Minar did receive some damage, due to earthquakes, but it was reinstated and renewed.

Today you is not set up as it used to be. At a close look, the tourist can see that it is slightly tilled on one side. But the good thing is that authorities in India very strictly look after the monument, just like they take care of the country's other historic monuments.

Chess

The game that today we all know as Chess was originated in India in 6^th century. It was first known as “chaturanga”.

Chess game in ancient India

The name means four divisions- infantry, chariotry, elephantry, cavalry. They were represented by the figures that evolve in modern bishop, knight, rook and pawn. The game was introduced in Persia where it became part of the education of the nobility. Today the game is played all around the world. It can be found in countries from India to USA.

Indian roots of Chess.

Viswanathan Anand

The specifics of earlier chess called Chaturanga are that different pieces have different powers. This is essential and it defines modern chess. The victory depends on the fate of each piece so the player have to “fight” for each pawn. In the past the game was not that developed as it is now. Some players used dice trying to decide which piece to move. There is also unproven theory that chess started as a gambling but the dice were removed because of Hindu religion. Some scholars make connections between the game and the military strategy,mathematics and even astronomy. It Is interesting that most of the ivory in India used to be used for producing of chess pieces. After India the game spreads in China, Japan, Mongolia, Pakistan and even East Siberia. Today one of the best players in the world is Viswanathan Anand. He is an Indian grandmaster and he is the Undisputed World Champion since 2007 till now. For these 4 years he defended his title several times against players like Vladimir Kramnik and Veselin Topalov. The next big game for the title will be in 2012 on the World Chess Championship. He is one of the six players in history which brake 2800 mark in FIDE (World Chess Federation) rating list.

Europeans in India

The contacts between Europe and India began with the trading established from Vasco Da Gama. After that the founded three colonies on the west coast of Diu. After them came the British. Maybe they have biggest influence on India's development as a country. There presence in India will last more than 300 years. First of all they set up a factories with the permission of Jahangir(local ruler). Not only that, the indians leased their lands to the Europeans. Later, this will become main obstacle for them to acquire independence.

After the name of East India Company they established factories in Ahmedabad, Broach and Agra. The interests of other European countries were overcome with the help of local princes. With that the English became the main factor in the trading with spaices and silk. With time the Indians understood that their freedom is very much in the hands of the rich British. So they started numerous wars with the only goal to achieve freedom.

Typical mixture of Indian and English architecture

The Indians succeeded just in the 1947 when India left the British Empire. The rule of the British has not only bad consequences. India inherited the governance structure that helped it in the future. Other positive consequence is the architectural mix that today is important for the tourist industry.

The British helped for the infrastructural development of the country. In the 1853 the first railway was found. It was connecting Bombay and Thane. It was found with the purpose to transport British troops and to improve the communications. Later it became very useful for common people.