An Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Contemporary India (1947-2002)

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The Present work 'An Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Contemporary India' is the sixth title under the ongoing series 'An Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Indian History and Culture'. The volume aims to be a handy reference manual for understanding the different aspects of Indian history and culture since the dawn of independence in 1947. It is a saga of the triumphs and tragedies of independent India during the last 55 years of its existence, covering the period from 1947 to 2002.

Independence brought India face to face with a number of serious problems. Some of these problems which demanded immediate attention were ensuring political stability, communal peace, resettlement of millions of refugees, integrating Indian rates, framing of the Constitution, maintaining peace ith Pakistan and bringing about an all-round economic development and social transformation. India had also to carve out a place for itself in the international field. All these objectives were to be realised with the overwhelming consideration of preserving unity and integrity of the country.

The Indian leaders from Jawaharlal Nehru onwards have tried to solve these problems. Inspite of their efforts the country is facing a number of problems in almost all phases of public life. In political field alone frequent elections for legislative bodies bring opportunistic coalitions. Terrorism, criminalisation, corruption, regionalism, casteism, decline of Parliament, politicisation of bureaucracy and need for electoral reforms are some of the issues which merit serious attention.

The present work, like earlier titles, is divided into four sections. Section one deals with the historical perspectives and concentrates on political developments, the constitutional scheme and social and economic change. Section two the Dictionary- contains about 300 entries drawn from various trends and currents in social, political, economic, educational, art and literature of Indian Public life. While, Section three describes major dates and events of the last half century, Section four furnishes an exhaustive bibliography on different aspects of independent India.

A.N. Kapoor After obtaining M.A., D.Phil. in English from Allahabad Universiy, Dr. Kapoor taught English at Agra and Delhi Universities for over four decades and has edited, compiled and authored more than hundred titles including reference books, encyclopaedias and language dictionaries. His dictionary of geographical terms published in 1955 was the first work of its kind in Hindi.

His comprehensive English-Hindi Dictionary stands as the crowning work of the four decade long effort. The lexicon is considered a work of tremendous relevance for the entire gamut of bilingual activity, being undertaken in the country as almost all levels of our social system, educational institutions and government departments.

V.P. Gupta: A former Professor at Delhi University, Chief Editor, Macmillan India and Deputy Director, Institute of Constitutional and Parliamentary Studies. V.P. Gupta is presently Secretary, Radha Kamal Mukerji Memorial Society. While he has been engaged in teaching, research and publishing activity for the last four decades, he has of late been concentrating on a study of Indian Freedom Movement, its ideas, events, personalities and forces which have laid the foundations of contemporary India along with all its triumphs and tragedies.

Mohini Gupta: A constant collaborator in the intellectual pursuits of her husband V.P. Gupta she is co-author in a number of his publications including an Encyclopaedia of History and Culture of Punjab, and biographical studies of Raja Rammohun Roy, Swami Dayanand Saraswati, Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Lala Lajpat Rai, Gopal Krishna Gokhale, Mahatma Gandhi, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and Dr. B.R. Ambedkar. A two- volume study of India since independence critically examines the triumphs and tragedies of Indian people during the last fifty five years. These books brought out in both the languages- English and Hindi-have been widely acclaimed as the harbinger of awareness about the ideals of our freedom struggle.

The present work 'An Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Contemporary India' is the sixth title under the ongoing series 'An Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Indian History and Culture'. The volume aims at being a handy reference manual for understanding the different aspects of India's development since independence to the present day.

With the dawn of independence, India started its journey on the path of nation-building and socio-economic regeneration. It has been an epic saga to usher in an economically vibrant nation. amidst the building gloom of divisive tendencies. The response of the international community has not been very favourable. The hostility of our neighbour and consequent wars, the Chinese attack on India in 1962 and the collapse of the Soviet system has placed India in a vulnerable position. Inspite of all these problems India is marching ahead and has registered notable advances in education, women empowerment, science and technology, space research, panchayati raj, rural development, agriculture, industry, transport, foreign trade, banking and media.

India has been following the path of planned development. The first plan was launched in 1951. So far nine five year plans have been implemented and the tenth plan is in the offing. However, the overall experience of the planned development has not been very encouraging and since 1991 India has switched towards liberalisation and globalisation.

Nehru was the architect of India's foreign policy, which is based on non-alignment and co-existence. India has championed the cause of the third world countries and condemned racialism and imperalism. She is at present engaged in a global war against terrorism. India has also played an important role in the UNO and its various agencies.

Book's Contents and Sample Pages