Important Dates in Indian History

Mother Teresa received the Bharat Ratna in 1980. For exams remember years of Indian civilian honours and major personalities.

The Natal Indian Congress was founded in 1894. Remember it with Gandhi's public work in South Africa.

Indian Opinion was started in 1903. Link it with Gandhi's spread of ideas and struggle in South Africa.

Tolstoy Farm was established in 1910. Remember it with Gandhi's satyagraha training and community life.

Sabarmati Ashram was established in 1917. In exams, link it with Gandhi's constructive work and the Dandi March.

The Champaran Satyagraha took place in 1917. Remember it as Gandhi's first successful satyagraha in India.

The Kheda Satyagraha took place in 1918 in the Kheda district of Gujarat. Farmers faced crop failure and difficult economic conditions, yet revenue demands remained a serious burden. Gandhi and other leaders supported the peasants’ request for suspension or relief from land revenue when they could not pay. The movement used collective, non-violent resistance and negotiations rather than violent action. It is remembered as an important early example of organised peasant action associated with Gandhi.

Option B, 1918, is correct. Option A, 1917, is commonly associated with the Champaran Satyagraha, while 1919 is associated with the Rowlatt Act and the national agitation around that period. The year 1922 belongs to a later phase of the freedom movement. Connecting Kheda with Gujarat farmers’ demand for tax relief and the year 1918 gives the correct answer. The question asks for the year of Gandhi’s leadership, not the year of every related event.

The Ahmedabad mill workers' strike is associated with 1918. Remember it with Gandhi's labour struggle and satyagraha method.

The Non-Cooperation Movement began in 1920. Link it with Gandhi's mass movement and boycott of British rule.

The Dandi March was an important protest against the British salt law. Mahatma Gandhi began it in 1930, and it ended at Dandi on the Gujarat coast. By making salt, Gandhi challenged the colonial government’s control over salt and turned an everyday necessity into a symbol of freedom and resistance. This event is also called the Salt March or Salt Satyagraha.

Option C is correct because it gives the year 1930. The march was part of the Civil Disobedience Movement, which began in that period. The other years do not match this event: 1928 and 1929 relate to important developments before the march, while 1932 belongs to a later phase of the freedom struggle. Thus, the correct choice is C.

Mahatma Gandhi called for the Quit India Movement in August 1942. At the All India Congress Committee session in Bombay on 8 August 1942, he gave the message “Do or Die.” The year 1930 is more closely associated with the Civil Disobedience Movement and the Dandi March. Exam tip: remember Quit India Movement with 1942 and “Do or Die.”

Bal Gangadhar Tilak started the newspapers Kesari and The Mahratta in 1881. Kesari was published in Marathi, while The Mahratta was an English newspaper. Through these papers, Tilak discussed public issues, criticised colonial policies, and encouraged political awareness and national feeling among people. Thus, the newspapers were important instruments of public education and national awakening, not merely commercial publications.

The other years do not match the established founding date of these newspapers. Option B, 1881, is therefore correct. A useful way to remember the fact is to connect the year with Tilak’s early nationalist journalism. The newspapers helped him reach readers in different language communities and spread ideas about public participation, rights, and self-rule. The answer asks for the starting year, so the relevant date is 1881.

Tilak popularised the public Ganesh festival in 1893. Link it with national unity and public awakening.

Bal Gangadhar Tilak established his Home Rule League in 1916, during the period when Indian political leaders were demanding self-government. The Home Rule movement tried to build public support for the idea that Indians should have a greater role in governing their own country. Tilak’s organisation was especially active in parts of western and central India, while Annie Besant led a separate but related league.

Among the given years, 1916 is the historically correct date, so option C follows. The other dates belong to different stages or events in the nationalist period and do not identify the founding of Tilak’s Home Rule League. Linking 1916 with the Home Rule demand is a useful way to remember the answer, while keeping in mind that Tilak and Besant operated related leagues in the same movement.

Annie Besant started the Home Rule League in 1916. Link it with the spread of the demand for self-government in India.

The Servants of India Society was founded in 1905. Remember it with Gokhale's public service and educational work.

The East India Association was founded in 1866. Link it with raising Indian interests in Britain.

The Indian National Association was formed in 1876. Remember it as a political organisation before the Congress.

The Servants of the People Society was founded in 1921. Link it with Lala Lajpat Rai's social service work.

The Naujawan Bharat Sabha was formed in 1926. Link it with spreading revolutionary national consciousness among youth.