A DIFFICULT YEAR

REWIND

The country’s economy took a beating after the 1971 war with Pakistan. With crop failure, a serious fall in food production and declining industrial growth, inflation skyrocketed and Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was forced to admit that it was “a very difficult year”. India had to resort to loans from Japan, Britain, Canada and the World Bank even as it strove to increase the volume of bilateral trade with Russia. Diplomatic ties in the neighbourhood did not seem to be heading anywhere, with the prime minister rejecting Zulfikar Ali Bhutto’s invitation to visit Pakistan.

UNSETTLING RESISTANCE

The Shanti Bahini guerrillas, members of the Chakma tribe, took up arms after Bangladesh rejected their demands for autonomy over a 5,500-sq mile region bordering India and Burma. They demanded the ouster of over three lakh people settled in their original homeland. There have been many armed clashes between the Shanti Bahini and the Bangladeshi military.

FIRST CUT

The first national championship of women’s cricket was conducted and Bombay emerged winner.

The first all-woman police station in the country was set up at Calicut in October.

MP Govind Das was felicitated on November 21 in the Central Hall of Parliament, on completing 50 years as a parliamentarian, an unprecedented record then.

DID YOU KNOW

Indira Gandhi broke with tradition, appointing Justice A.N. Ray chief justice of the Supreme Court, superseding three judges senior to him, triggering protests in the judiciary. Jayaprakash Narayan wrote to her asking whether these out-of-turn promotions were intended to make the Supreme Court “a creation of the government of the day”. She answered that a mechanical adherence to the “seniority principle had led to an unduly high turnover of chief justices”.

TANK TOP

The largest ship in the Indian merchant fleet, the supertanker Jawaharlal Nehru, with a dead weight tonnage of 88,000, was launched on February 4.

PRIZED PRINCE
Karan Singh

Through agreements between the Centre and the state of Jammu and Kashmir, the title and power of the Sadar-i-Riyasat, Karan Singh, had been abolished. In exchange, Singh became a Central Cabinet minister in 1973, in charge of Tourism and Aviation. Because of the special status of J&K and his lineage, Singh became a prominent member of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s cabinet and was soon elevated to the better Ministry of Health and Family Planning. In 1974, he made headlines when he said at the first-ever World Population Conference, “Development is the best contraceptive.”

HEADY ROMANCE

Scripted by K.A. Abbas and outfitted by Bhanu Athaiya, Bobby became the epitome of youthful cool at a turbulent time. As Madhu Jain wrote, there was mass hysteria when Bobby was released, with “teenagers sporting shirts with Bobby written on them”. Main shayar to nahin and Hum tum ek kamre mein band hon defined puppy love.

Reaping Reward

The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the un presented Indira Gandhi with the Ceres medal in recognition of the advances made in the Green Revolution.

ELSEWHERE...

President Nixon announced the suspension of all US offensive action in Vietnam, claiming to “bring peace with honour” (above).

Oil prices almost quadrupled following the Yom Kippur war as Arab countries cut down on oil exports to the West. Japan and the US faced severe oil shortages.

Sheikh Mujibur Rehman and the Awami League won a landslide victory in the first elections in Bangladesh. l Artist Pablo Picasso died of a heart attack at his home in France.

1,827 was the number of tigers in the country in 1972. Project Tiger was launched in 1973 to protect the species.

10,800 trains of the Indian Railways were in operation, covering a route length of 60,234 km.

1974: INDIA AT 60

THE BIG BANG

REWIND

On the morning of May 18, 1974, in the Pokharan desert, the ground shook violently as India conducted its first atomic bomb test, cloaking it as a peaceful nuclear explosion. In doing so, India became the world’s sixth nuclear power after the US, Soviet Union, Britain, France and China. The US took offence to India barging into the exclusive nuclear club angrily stating that India’s test would seriously undermine the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty of 1968 and trigger an arms race in the sub-continent. The US then blocked aid to India and imposed numerous sanctions.

FIRST CUT

The first tripartite meeting between India, Pakistan and Bangladesh was conducted in Delhi.

India’s first lion safari park was opened in Hyderabad.

DID YOU KNOW

India topped the list of US wheat buyers, with cash orders for 3.8 million tonne and another 3 lakh tonne expected to be delivered under the food-for-peace aid programme.

SINKING FEELING

Cause: The nation faced a food shortage of 8 million tonne and prices were up by 25 per cent. Effect: Indira Gandhi cracked down on striking workers.

“GANDHIJI SPOKE OF SWARAJ IN ONE YEAR. I SPEAK OF REAL PEOPLE’S GOVERNMENT IN ONE YEAR.”

Jayaprakash Narayan

“Give me one year to build a new country” declared prominent socialist Jayaprakash Narain when he called for a total revolution which became the rallying point for opposition to Indira Gandhi and dissent against the ruling Congress. The Gandhian, despite his advancing age, attracted huge crowds at rallies and his Citizens for Democracy movement gathered pace, eventually forcing Indira to impose the Emergency. JP, as he was known, campaigned against Indira during the post-Emergency election, leading to her loss in the Rae Bareily elections.

Snapshot Visit

On March 25, Iraqi Vice-President Saddam Hussein arrived in Delhi on an official visit. At the time, he was just as powerful as the then president Ahmed Hassan Bakr, but five years later, he officially became head of the state when Bakr resigned on July 16, 1979.

VILLAGE VISION

Shyam Benegal’s first masterpiece, Ankur, starring Shabana Azmi in the role of a villager, and Anant Nag as the feudal visitor who desired her, explored caste and class conflict in rural Indian society. Art cinema, finally, came of age.

ELSEWHERE...

A revolution in Portugal restored democracy.

In August, President Nixon became the first US president to resign from office, charged with conspiracy in the Watergate scandal. Gerald Ford became President (above).

The World Trade Centre, the tallest building in the world at 110 storeys, was inaugurated in New York City.

2.5 crore were unemployed. Currently, the figure is well over 4 crore.

15,000 workers were laid off by the Indira Gandhi Government during the year. The number of mandays lost came down from 210 lakh in 1973 to 160 lakh.

1975: INDIA AT 60

REIGN OF TERROR

PICTURE SPEAK

THIS MEANS WAR: George Fernandes being arrested

REWIND

The Allahabad High Court found Indira Gandhi guilty of electoral malpractices, and she declared national Emergency on June 26, announcing on air that it was a necessary response to the “deep and widespread conspiracy which has been brewing ever since I began to introduce certain progressive measures of benefit to the common man and woman of India”. Thousands, including Opposition firebrands like Jayaprakash Narayan, George Fernandes, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, were held under MISA—the Maintenance of Internal Security Act, dubbed the Maintenance of Indira and Sanjay Act.

FIRST CUT

Durba Banerjee became the first professional woman pilot in the world to command a commercial passenger flight.

Shireen Kiyash became the only person to have represented India in three different sports—basketball, hockey and cricket.

India’s first electric typewriter was produced by Hindustan Teleprinters Ltd.

FREAK TRAGEDY

India’s worst coal mine disaster occurred in Chas Nala mine near Dhanabad on December 26—372 people inside the mine perished as a result of caving in of a roof of coal, which let in seven million gallons of water per minute. The Indian Iron and Steel Company, which owned the mine, said it conformed to international standards.

“IF WE CAN CELEBRATE CHILDREN’S DAY, WHY NOT KISAN DAY?”
Raj Narain

The irrepressible Raj Narain not only challenged the authority of Indira Gandhi and ultimately led to her downfall in the elections of 1977, but also beat her in her own stronghold in Uttar Pradesh, Rae Bareily. When the court upheld the petition filed by the bandanna-donning Narain, accusing her of fraud in the 1971 polls, she became the first Indian prime minister to testify—for five hours in the Allahabad High Court.

RETURN OF THE LION

Sheikh Abdullah, the Sher-e-Kashmir, had proclaimed himself the ‘prime minister’ of Jammu and Kashmir in 1948. He had demanded autonomy for the state in 1953. For all this, he was jailed for 11 years. After an exile, Abdullah was back to being the polestar of Kashmir in 1975 after Indira Gandhi reassured him that the special status conferred on the state by Article 370 would stay. The leader of the National Conference returned as chief minister in 1977, 23 years after being forced to give it up.

“KITNE AADMI THE?”

One of the biggest blockbusters in Bollywood history, G.P. Sippy’s Sholay, with its impressive cast and memorable dialogues, caught the fancy of a nation steeped in drama. Gabbar’s “kitne aadmi the” and Amitabh’s “Basanti, tumhara naam kya hai” are enshrined in every cinema-goer’s memory. The first Indian film to be made in 70mm, Sholay ran for five years, with 190 prints being made in the first year. Over five lakh records and cassettes were sold soon after the release.

ELSEWHERE...

The Suez Canal, connecting the Mediterranean and Red seas, was reopened by Egypt eight years after it was closed due to the war with Israel.

Mozambique became independent after almost five centuries of Portuguese rule.

Sheikh Mujibur Rehman was assassinated in Bangladesh on August 15.

Margaret Thatcher (above) was elected the first ever woman leader of the British Conservative Party.

676 people were jailed on the day the Emergency was declared.

360 kg was the payload of the first Indian satellite, Aryabhatta. Designed by the ISRO , the satellite was launched into orbit on April 19.

1976: INDIA AT 60

THE GREAT HUSH

PICTURE SPEAK

TOTAL CONTROL: Police cracking down on protesters

REWIND

The Emergency remained in force and India’s jails were flooded with people. On March 28, the Supreme Court held that habeas corpus petitions of detainees would not be allowed during the Emergency. A series of constitutional amendments was passed to aid Indira Gandhi’s longevity. With the population crossing the 60-crore mark, the country’s new family planning policy was announced, envisaging a dramatic reduction of the country’s birth rate from 3.5 per cent to 2.5 per cent by 1984—it stands at 2.3 currently. The minimum age of marriage was increased to 18 for women and 21 for men. Allegations of forced sterilisation flew thick and fast, but were denied vehemently by Indira and Sanjay Gandhi. “I have to keep India together,” justified Indira, “That is an absolute must.”

JOURNEY OF CONFIDENCE

The first train connecting India and Pakistan, the Samjhauta Express, was flagged off on July 22. In September, an Indian Airlines Boeing hijacked to Lahore returned safely with help from Pakistan.

FIRST CUT

The Congress secured a two-thirds majority for the first time in the Rajya Sabha on March 27.

The first-ever trade agreement between India and Algeria was signed on February 10, providing for the import of petroleum products by India.

WRITE PROTEST

Cartoonist K. Shanker Pillai shut down his magazine saying “dictatorships cannot afford laughter”. “In all the years of Hitler, there never was a good comedy, not a good cartoon, not a parody, not a spoof.” Hindi novelist Phanishwarnath Renu returned his Padma Shri and Kannada writer Shivarama Karanth returned his Padma Bhushan. The Press Council was abolished and 253 journalists were placed under arrest.

DID YOU KNOW

It took the government nearly a year to arrest socialist leader George Fernandes, who had led the 1974 railway strike. He travelled from place to place, sending letters attacking “that woman”. His brother, Lawrence, was tortured.

MASTER STROKES

Sunil Gavaskar, “the little master”, scored 102 runs, and G.R. Viswanath cobbled up a bold 112, leading the Indian cricket team to a historic win against the West Indies at Port of Spain in April. With a fantastic 85 runs to his credit, Mohinder Amarnath, who batted for well over 400 minutes, was not far behind. India, chasing the then highest-ever fourth innings target of 403, won by six wickets.

“SHE LISTENED TO ME EVEN WHEN I WAS FIVE YEARS OLD.”
Sanjay Gandhi

So said Sanjay Gandhi about the prime minister in an interview to a magazine called Surge. Surrounded by his coterie of Naveen Chawla, P.S. Bhinder, Rukhsana Sultana and Ambika Soni, Sanjay, who held no office, but was regarded as the prime minister’s adviser, launched the controversial family planning programme amidst allegations of coercion. His five-point programme of family planning, tree planting, ban on dowry, removal of illiteracy and slum clearance turned India into what Times columnist Bernard Levin called a tin-pot dictatorship, transforming the country into a “fully authoritarian regime under its seedy dictator, Mrs Indira Gandhi”.

ELSEWHERE...

James Callaghan became prime minister of the United Kingdom (below). He promised a reformist government to the people.

The US Supreme Court ruled that the death penalty was not inherently cruel and was a constitutionally acceptable form of punishment.

Jimmy Carter defeated Gerald Ford in the US presidential elections, becoming the first candidate from deep south to win since the Civil War.

153 metre was the length of the world’s thickest coal seam discovered in Bihar.

Rs 440 crore was the estimated rural indebtedness in Andhra Pradesh. The average liability of a rural family was Rs 663.09.

1977: INDIA AT 60

PEOPLE’S VICTORY

REWIND

With international criticism of the Emergency mounting and its author, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi under increasing pressure, she advised the President to dissolve the Lok Sabha and order fresh elections. The resulting poll in 1977 saw her Congress party badly mauled and the country got its first non-Congress government in 30 years, led by Morarji Desai of the Janata Party. Mrs Gandhi lost her own seat in her stronghold of Rae Bareily and the Congress strength in the Lok Sabha shrunk from 350 to 153. The party failed to win a single seat in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Punjab, Haryana and Delhi. The new government set up the Shah Commission to probe into Emergency excesses, indicting many senior Congress leaders.

FIRST CUT

Meher Moos became the first woman to reach Antarctica.

Michael Ferreira became the first Indian to win both the World Amateur and the Open Billiards Championship held in Melbourne.

Saudi Arabia extended its first ever loan to India. The loan, meant for two power projects, totalled Rs 10 crore.

SOUTHERN RUIN

A cyclone in Andhra Pradesh killed over 35,000 people and two to three lakh animals. Lakhs were left homeless.

DRAMA OF DECADENCE

Satyajit Ray’s first step into Hindi films, Shatranj Ke Khiladi, with its star cast of Sanjeev Kumar, Saeed Jaffrey, Amjad Khan and Shabana Azmi, was also one of his most expensive. Based on a story by Premchand that revolves around two chess players, and set in 19th-century aristocratic Lucknow, it mocked the apathy of the upper class.

DID YOU KNOW

Two hundred and fifty “notorious smugglers” like Yusuf Patel, Haji Mastan and Sukarnarain Bakhia took a pledge before Jayaprakash Narayan in Bombay to renounce smuggling.

BREAKAWAY BABU
Jagjivan Ram

It is said that when Babu Jagjivan Ram was campaigning in the Ram Lila Grounds in Delhi for the 1977 elections, Doordarshan was showing the hit film Bobby, in spite of which his address drew huge crowds, eliciting the headline “Babu beats Bobby” from the newspapers. Ram and five other Cabinet ministers deserted the Congress to form the Congress for Democracy, launching an attack on the ruling party—though he had moved the resolution in the Lok Sabha endorsing the Emergency. He became deputy prime minister in the new Janata Party government.

“AS A NEWCOMER TO THE UN, I FEEL A SPECIAL SENSE OF EXHILARATION.”
ATAL BIHARI VAJPAYEE at the UN General Assembly

As minister of external affairs, Atal Bihari Vajpayee addressed the United Nations General Assembly in Hindi. This was the first-ever United Nations address in the language.

ELSEWHERE...

In Pakistan, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was overthrown in a coup by General Zia ul-Haq. Martial law was imposed.

The Vietnam-Cambodia border conflict escalated and Cambodia accused Vietnam of aggression, even as it was criticised for the gruesome Khmer Rouge atrocities (above).

Rock and roll king Elvis Presley died of a heart attack in Memphis.

The tomb of King Philip II, Alexander the Great’s father, was discovered in Greece.

893 cars could be accommodated in the world’s largest open-air theatre opened in Bombay.

112 million horsepower was needed to cultivate 140 million hectares, but only 37 million was available.

Index