Bihar is a state located in the eastern part of India.
Neolithic (10800–3300 BC)
Chirand, located on the northern bank of the Ganga River in the Saran district, Bihar has archaeological records starting from the Neolithic age (about 2500–1345 BC). Settlement in Chirand covers three periods – Period I (Neolithic, 2500–1345 BC), Period II ( Chalcolithic, 1600 B.C) and Period III ( Iron Age).
Bronze Age (3300–1300 BC)
Iron Age (1500–200 BC)
Late Vedic Kingdoms
1100–500 BCE: Mithila region of Bihar became the center of Indian power during the Vedic Period under the rule of Janaks. Sita, daughter of one of the Janaks of Mithila, is mentioned as the consort of
Lord Rama
Rama (; ), Ram, Raman or Ramar, also known as Ramachandra (; , ), is a major deity in Hinduism. He is the seventh and one of the most popular ''avatars'' of Vishnu. In Rama-centric traditions of Hinduism, he is considered the Supreme Being ...
Vajji
The Vajjika (Pāli: ) or Vrijika (Sanskrit: ) League, Confederacy, or Sangha, also called simply Vajji (Pāli: ) or Vriji (Sanskrit: ), was an ancient Indo-Aryan tribal league which existed during the later Iron Age period in north-east South ...
, a confederation of various
republic
A republic () is a "state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th c ...
an clans, in the
Mithila region
Mithila (), also known as Tirhut, Tirabhukti and Mithilanchal is a geographical and cultural region of the Indian subcontinent bounded by the Mahananda River in the east, the Ganges in the south, the Gandaki River in the west and by the foothill ...
of present-day Bihar with a capital at Vaishali. The Lichhavis were the most powerful clan of the Vajji.
*560-480 BCE: Rule of Anga Kingdom in present-day south-eastern Bihar.
*490 BCE: Establishment of Pataliputra (Modern Patna).
*Before 325 BCE: Nanda clan rules in Magadha.
Nanda
Nanda may refer to:
Indian history and religion
* Nanda Empire, ruled by the Nanda dynasty, an Indian royal dynasty ruling Magadha in the 4th century BCE
** Mahapadma Nanda, first Emperor of the Nanda Empire
** Dhana Nanda (died c. 321 BCE), last ...
dynasty.
*325 BC-185 BCE: Period of the Maurya dynasty.
*340 BCE: Period of
Chandragupta Maurya
Chandragupta Maurya (350-295 BCE) was a ruler in Ancient India who expanded a geographically-extensive kingdom based in Magadha and founded the Maurya dynasty. He reigned from 320 BCE to 298 BCE. The Maurya kingdom expanded to become an empi ...
*304 BCE: Ashoka born in Pataliputra
*273 BCE: Ashoka crowned emperor of Magadh
*273 BC-232 BCE: Ashoka expands Magadh to greatest territorial extent, with Pataliputra (modern Patna) the capital of Magadh
*232 BCE Death of Ashoka
Magadh
Magadha was a region and one of the sixteen sa, script=Latn, Mahajanapadas, label=none, lit=Great Kingdoms of the Second Urbanization (600–200 BCE) in what is now south Bihar (before expansion) at the eastern Ganges Plain. Magadha was ruled ...
general
Pushyamitra Shunga
Pushyamitra Shunga (IAST: ) or Pushpamitra Shunga (IAST: ) (ruled ) was the co-founder and the first or second ruler of the Shunga Empire which he and Gopāla established against the Maurya Empire. His original name was Puṣpaka or Puṣpami ...
.
*75 BCE-26 BCE:
Kanva
Kanva (Sanskrit: कण्व '), also called Karnesh, was an ancient Hindu rishi of the ''Treta Yuga'', to whom some of the hymns of the ''Rig Veda'' are ascribed. He was one of the Angirasas. He has been called a son of Ghora, but this lineag ...
dynasty
*240 AD-600 AD:
Gupta Dynasty
The Gupta Empire was an Outline of ancient India, ancient Indian empire which existed from the early 4th century CE to late 6th century CE. At its zenith, from approximately 319 to 467 CE, it covered much of the Indian subcontinent. This period ...
. First ruler is Srigupta.
*375 AD-415 AD: Reign of
Chandragupta II
Chandragupta II (r.c. 376-415), also known by his title Vikramaditya, as well as Chandragupta Vikramaditya, was the third ruler of the Gupta Empire in India, and was one of the most powerful emperors of the Gupta dynasty.
Chandragupta continue ...
.
*500 AD: Attack by Huna tribe weakens the Gupta dynasty.
*Around 6th century-11th century: The rule of
Pala Pala may refer to:
Places
Chad
*Pala, Chad, the capital of the region of Mayo-Kebbi Ouest
Estonia
* Pala, Kose Parish, village in Kose Parish, Harju County
* Pala, Kuusalu Parish, village in Kuusalu Parish, Harju County
*Pala, Järva County, vi ...
Harsha Vardhana
Harshavardhana (IAST Harṣa-vardhana; c. 590–647 CE) was a Pushyabhuti dynasty, Pushyabhuti emperor who ruled northern India from 606 to 647 CE. He was the son of Prabhakaravardhana who had defeated the Alchon Huns, Alchon Huna invaders, an ...
expands into Magadh.
*750 - 1200: The Pala dynasty expands into Magadh.
*11th century - around 1325: The Karnat dynasty rules the Mithila region.
Medieval Period (1206–1526)
*1200: Bakhtiyar Khilji's army destroys the Buddhist universities at
Nalanda
Nalanda (, ) was a renowned ''mahavihara'' (Buddhist monastic university) in ancient Magadha (modern-day Bihar), India.Vikramshila. Start of Afghan-Muslim rule in the Magadh region.
*1200-1400: Sharp decline of Buddhism in Bihar and northern India in general
*1250-1526: Magadh (c. 1250) and Mithila (c. 1325) regions come under the rule of the
Delhi Sultanate
The Delhi Sultanate was an Islamic empire based in Delhi that stretched over large parts of the Indian subcontinent for 320 years (1206–1526).
.
Modern Period (1526 - 1757)
*1526-1540:
Mughal
Mughal or Moghul may refer to:
Related to the Mughal Empire
* Mughal Empire of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries
* Mughal dynasty
* Mughal emperors
* Mughal people, a social group of Central and South Asia
* Mughal architecture
* Mug ...
Emperor
Babur
Babur ( fa, , lit= tiger, translit= Bābur; ; 14 February 148326 December 1530), born Mīrzā Zahīr ud-Dīn Muhammad, was the founder of the Mughal Empire in the Indian subcontinent. He was a descendant of Timur and Genghis Khan through his ...
defeats the last Sultan of the
Delhi Sultanate
The Delhi Sultanate was an Islamic empire based in Delhi that stretched over large parts of the Indian subcontinent for 320 years (1206–1526).
, Lodi, and establishes the Mughal Empire.
*1540-1555: Sher Shah captures empire from Mughals.
*1540-1555: Building of the Grand Trunk Road, introduction of the
rupee
Rupee is the common name for the currencies of
India, Mauritius, Nepal, Pakistan, Seychelles, and Sri Lanka, and of former currencies of Afghanistan, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, the United Arab Emirates (as the Gulf rupee), British East Africa, B ...
and of custom duties.
*1556: Mughal dynasty regains control of Agra after the Battle of Panipat.
*1556 - 1764: The province of Bihar is formed and governed by the Mughal Empire.
*1666:
Guru Gobind Singh
Guru Gobind Singh (; 22 December 1666 – 7 October 1708), born Gobind Das or Gobind Rai the tenth Sikh Guru, a spiritual master, warrior, poet and philosopher. When his father, Guru Tegh Bahadur, was executed by Aurangzeb, Guru Gobind Sing ...
, the tenth and last Sikh Guru, is born in modern-day Patna.
Battle of Buxar
The Battle of Buxar was fought between 22 and 23 October 1764, between the forces under the command of the British East India Company, led by Hector Munro, and the combined armies of Mir Qasim, Nawab of Bengal till 1764; the Nawab of Awadh, Sh ...
: Tax collection becomes the duty of the East India Company.
*1764-1920 Migration of Bihari & United Provinces workers across the British world by the Company and later British government.
*1857: Period of the Indian Rebellion of 1857. East India Company Sepoys from the Bengal Army (80% Hindu according to William Daryample in the book "The Last Mughal") declare Bahadur Shah Zafar II Emperor of Hindustan. The region becomes the centre of resistance to the East India Company. End of the Muslim Era.
The British Rulers
*1858:
Mughal
Mughal or Moghul may refer to:
Related to the Mughal Empire
* Mughal Empire of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries
* Mughal dynasty
* Mughal emperors
* Mughal people, a social group of Central and South Asia
* Mughal architecture
* Mug ...
Bihar and Orissa
Bihar and Orissa was a province of British India, which included the present-day Indian states of Bihar, Jharkhand, and Odisha. The territories were conquered by the British in the 18th and 19th centuries, and were governed by the then Indian Ci ...
separated from Bengal.
*1913: Start of the dramatic slowdown in wealth creation in India and Bihar
*1916: Patna High Court founded
*1917: Mahatma Gandhi arrives in Champaran with a team of eminent lawyers:
Brajkishore Prasad
Brajkishore Prasad (1877–1946) was a lawyer inspired by Mohandas Gandhi during the Indian Independence Movement.
Early life and education
Born in a Kayastha family in Srinagar, Siwan district, Prasad gained his early education in Chhap ...
Shri Krishna Sinha
Shri Krishna Sinha (21 October 1887 – 31 January 1961), also known as Shri Babu, was the first chief minister of the Indian state of Bihar (1946–61). Except for the period of World War II, Sinha was the chief minister of Bihar from the time ...
,
Anugrah Narayan Sinha
Anugrah Narayan Sinha (18 June 1887 – 5 July 1957), known as '' Bihar Vibhuti'', was an Indian nationalist statesman, participant in Champaran Satyagraha, Gandhian & one of the architects of modern Bihar, who was the first Deputy Chief Minis ...
and others. The Champaran
Satyagraha
Satyagraha ( sa, सत्याग्रह; ''satya'': "truth", ''āgraha'': "insistence" or "holding firmly to"), or "holding firmly to truth",' or "truth force", is a particular form of nonviolent resistance or civil resistance. Someone w ...
movement is launched.Establishment of Patna University.
*1925: Patna Medical College Hospital was established under the name "Prince of Wales Medical College"
*1935: 1935 Government of India Act federates the Indian Empire.
*1936: Sir James David Sifton appointed the first Governor of Bihar.
*1937: First Democratic election of Bihar in March 1937.Congress emerged as the largest political party, Muslim Independent Party headed by Barrister Muhammad Yunus stood second. Barrister Mohammad Yunus formed Government and became first Premier(April- July, 1937 )of Bihar province.
*1937:The first Congress ministry is formed in Bihar under provincial autonomy granted by British rule, Dr. Sri Krishna Sinha sworn in as Premier and Dr.
Anugrah Narayan Sinha
Anugrah Narayan Sinha (18 June 1887 – 5 July 1957), known as '' Bihar Vibhuti'', was an Indian nationalist statesman, participant in Champaran Satyagraha, Gandhian & one of the architects of modern Bihar, who was the first Deputy Chief Minis ...
became Deputy Premier cum Finance Minister. Other two ministers inducted were Syed Mehmud and Jaglal Chaudhry.
*1940: The
All India Jamhur Muslim League
The All India Jamhur Muslim League ( ur, ) was formed in 1940, to counter the Lahore resolution, passed by the All-India Muslim League, for a separate Pakistan based on Muhammad Ali Jinnah's Two nation theory.
The first session of the party was ...
Muhammad Ali Jinnah
Muhammad Ali Jinnah (, ; born Mahomedali Jinnahbhai; 25 December 1876 – 11 September 1948) was a barrister, politician, and the founder of Pakistan. Jinnah served as the leader of the All-India Muslim League from 1913 until the ...
Anugrah Narayan Sinha
Anugrah Narayan Sinha (18 June 1887 – 5 July 1957), known as '' Bihar Vibhuti'', was an Indian nationalist statesman, participant in Champaran Satyagraha, Gandhian & one of the architects of modern Bihar, who was the first Deputy Chief Minis ...
Anugrah Narayan Sinha
Anugrah Narayan Sinha (18 June 1887 – 5 July 1957), known as '' Bihar Vibhuti'', was an Indian nationalist statesman, participant in Champaran Satyagraha, Gandhian & one of the architects of modern Bihar, who was the first Deputy Chief Minis ...
as Bihar's first Deputy Chief Minister cum Finance Minister (also in charge of Labour, Health, Agriculture and Irrigation). Other ministers are inducted later. The cabinet served as the first Bihar government after independence in 1947.
*1947: Indian Independence; Bihar becomes a state in the new Dominion of India.
*1947-1949: Hindu-Muslim religious violence leads to the migration of millions of Bihari Muslims to Pakistan (West and East)
*1952 Indian Government adopts symbols related to Bihar ( Ashoka Chakra for the Indian flag, the Lion Pillar is made the symbol of the central government of India, all state governments, reserve bank, and the military, whilst the rupee, introduced in the area which is part of modern-day Bihar, is retained as the currency)
*1950 Dr. Rajendra Prasad is appointed first President of India.
*1952: State government initiates many irrigation and industrial development projects. It included several river valley projects right from Koshi, Aghaur and Sakri to several other such river projects.
*1952-57:Purulia became a part of West Bengal state.Bihar rated as the best administered among the states in the country.
*1955 The Birla Institute of Technology(BIT) is established at Mesra, Ranchi.
*1957-62:Second five-year plan period, Bihar government brought several heavy industries like Barauni Oil Refinery, HEC plant at Hatia, Bokaro Steel Plant, Barauni Fertiliser Plant, Barauni Thermal Power Station, Maithon Hydel Power Station, Sulphur mines at Amjhaur, Sindri Fertiliser Plant, Kargali Coal Washery, Barauni Dairy Project, etc. for the all round development of the state.
*1974 - 1977: Suspension of the Republican Constitution. Immediately after proclamation of emergency, prominent opposition political leaders from Bihar like Jayaprakash Narayan &
Satyendra Narayan Sinha
Satyendra Narayan Sinha (12 July 1917 – 4 September 2006) was an Indian politician and statesman, participant in the Indian independence movement, a leading light of Jaya Prakash Narayan's ‘ ''complete revolution''’ movement during the E ...
were arrested without any prior notice. Bihar is the centre of resistance against the Emergency.
*1977: Janata Party Came to power at Centre and in Bihar;
Karpoori Thakur
Karpoori Thakur (24 January 1924 – 17 February 1988) was an Indian politician from the Bihar state. He was popularly known as Jan Nayak (Hindi for people's hero). He served as the Chief Minister of Bihar from December 1970 to June 1971 (Socia ...
became CM after winning chief ministership battle from the then Janata PartyPresident Satyendra Narayan Sinha.
*1984:
Indira Gandhi
Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi (; Given name, ''née'' Nehru; 19 November 1917 – 31 October 1984) was an Indian politician and a central figure of the Indian National Congress. She was elected as third prime minister of India in 1966 ...
Leader Of Opposition
The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...
Lalu Prasad
Lalu Prasad Yadav (born 11 June 1948) is an Indian politician and president of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD). He is a former Chief Minister of Bihar (1990-1997), a former Railway Minister of India (2004-2009), and a former Member of Parliam ...
becomes Bihar Chief Minister (CM), defeating former Janata Party CM
Ram Sundar Das
Ram Sundar Das ( hi, राम सुन्दर दास; 9 January 1921 – 6 March 2015) was an Indian politician and former Chief Minister of Bihar state. He was a two-time Member of Parliament from Hajipur constituency.
Early life and f ...
.
*1990 - 2005: Social justice
*1995: Janata Dal's second electoral victory.
*1995- 2000: Economic stagnation, state GDP contracts.
*1996: Lalu Prasad appoints wife, Rabri Devi, as CM.
*1997: Split in Janata Dal, Nitish Kumar and Ram Vilas Paswan create Janata Dal (United).
*1999: Presidential rule imposed in Bihar because of complete denigration of governance, then lifted because not endorsed by the Rajya Sabha, Rabri Devi back as CM.
*2000: Bihar divided into two states, Bihar and Jharkhand, by the
National Democratic Alliance
National Democratic Alliance (NDA) () is a Centre-right politics, centre-right to Right-wing politics, right-wing and Conservatism, conservative Indian big tent political alliance led by the right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). It was foun ...
central government.
*2000:
Lalu Prasad
Lalu Prasad Yadav (born 11 June 1948) is an Indian politician and president of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD). He is a former Chief Minister of Bihar (1990-1997), a former Railway Minister of India (2004-2009), and a former Member of Parliam ...
's split Janata Dal wins elections.
*2000: Nitish Kumar becomes Bihar CM for seven days, then resigns after his government fails to garner majority. Janata Dal back in power.
*2002 - 2004: Deadly crime wave grips Patna and Bihar.
*2003:
Maharashtra
Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...
*2005: In February Lalu Prasad Yadav and Rabri Devi lose power after 15 years
*2005: In November, Janata Dal (United) and the BJP win the state election.
*2005 - 2007: Nitish Kumar is declared the best Chief Minister in India by India Today magazine
*2007:
Bhojpuri
Bhojpuri (;Bhojpuri entry, Oxford Dictionaries , Oxford U ...
cinema hall complex bombed in Punjab. Six UP and Bihari migrant workers killed.
*2008: Second Bihari-Bhojpuri Immigrant Worker Crisis: Migrants and students attacked in
Maharashtra
Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...
, Assam, Manipur, and Nagaland. Economic revival Q1 2008, resulting in labour shortages in Punjab, Maharashtra.
*2008: Floods in Mithla region kill 3,000 people, displace millions.
*2010: Nitish Kumar again becomes Bihar CM after a historic mandate.
*2014: Nitish Kumar resigns after the historic debacle in 2014 Lok Sabha elections;
Jitan Ram Manjhi
Jitan Ram Manjhi (born 6 October 1944) is an Indian politician from the eastern state of Bihar who served as its 23rd Chief Minister from 20 May 2014 to 20 February 2015. He is President of Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM). Previously, he had serv ...
is new CM
*20 November 2015 Nitish Kumar sworn in as Bihar CM for the fourth time after resignation of incumbent
Jitan Ram Manjhi
Jitan Ram Manjhi (born 6 October 1944) is an Indian politician from the eastern state of Bihar who served as its 23rd Chief Minister from 20 May 2014 to 20 February 2015. He is President of Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM). Previously, he had serv ...