Modern History Syllabus 2025: Semester Subjects, Electives, Books, Specializations

Indian Independence Movement

• Lucknow Pact of 1916

• Non-Cooperation Movement

• Return of Subhash Chandra Bose to India

• Jallianwala Bagh Massacre

• 1915: Return of Mahatma Gandhi to India

• Revolt of 1857

• 1917: The Champaran Satyagraha

Indian National Congress

• Formation of INC

• Gandhi’s contribution

• India first policy

• Swadeshi

The Partition of India and Pakistan

• Reason of partition

• Conflict

• Gandhi’s contribution

• Britain’s stand on partition

• Effect of partition

The Cold War and India's foreign policy

• Reasons for the Cold War

• India’s stand on the Cold War

• Countries involved in the Cold War

India's foreign relations with the United States, China, and Russia

• Why are foreign relations important?

• What is India’s stand with each of the foreign countries?

• Conflicts

India's Foreign Relations with Nepal, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka.

• Countries under SAARC

• India’s contribution to SAARC

• India’s relation with SAARC countries

India's relations with the Middle East.

• How does India relate to the Middle East?

• Conflict with the Middle East

Kashmir issue

• Kashmir and its neighbouring areas

• Reason of conflict

• Origin of conflict

Internal insurgencies in India.

• What are Internal insurgencies?

• How does India relate?

• What is India’s approach?

1

Indian History (Ancient up to 600 AD)

Ancient Indian History

Students learn about Cave Architecture Polity, Age of the Guptas, Harappan Civilisation, and Reconstructing Ancient Indian History.

3

Indian History ( 600 AD to 1500 AD)

Transformation 1 era

The subject aims to provide the basic knowledge of Sanskrit Literature Temple, Institutional Structure (Varna System).

4

Indian History ( 1500 AD to 1800 AD)

Transformation 1 era

Students will learn about the Society, Religion and Culture in Mughal India, the Crisis of the Mughal Empire, Ideology and State in Mughal India.

4

Indian History ( 1800 AD to Modern Times)

Recent History

Students will learn the Colonial Intervention and Growth of Modern Education, Rural Economy & Society, East India Company - Theory of Rent.

Specialised in the Indian Independence Movement

• British Economic Policies

• Revolt of 1857

• Social and Religious reforms in India

• Foundation of Indian National Congress

• Revolutionary Terrorism and Home Rule Movement

• Foundation of the British empire

• Peasant and Tribal Movements

• The arrival of Mahatma Gandhi.

Students interested in India's movement for independence often choose this specialisation. You will be studying the Revolt of 1857, the Foundation of the British Empire, and other national movements.

India's foreign Relationship Expert

• Pakistan Issue

• Crude Oil Relations

• Foreign Policy with the USA

• Basic understanding of foreign communication and culture

• Five pillar Methods

Specialisation in India's foreign relationships allows students to learn in detail about relationships with neighbours and other EU countries, and the US. Students will learn the gradual relationship trends with other important nations.

Internal Insurgencies Specialist

• Security breaches

• Reasons for insurgency

• Analyse and prepare trend data

• Regional insurgency

The specialisation offers a deep insight into the insurgency across states and nations. Students can also learn about security breaches and prepare trend data for analysis.

Indian History after Gandhi's arrival

India After Gandhi

Ramachandra Guha

This book provides extensive knowledge of India’s political history in the later half of the 20th century, a great addition to what you already know about it. It can help you better understand and face India’s current economic and social climate.

India’s economic development under democracy

India — The Emerging Giant

Arvind Panagiriya

This book gives a thorough account of one of the most significant experiments in economic development under democracy. It goes over the economic path taken by Nehru to Manmohan Singh that has resulted in many successes and relatively few failures.

Lasting damage committed by British rule in India

An Era of Darkness: The British Empire in India

Shashi Tharoor

Tharoor explores the lasting damage committed by British rule in India and how it created a series of different issues that still exist today. He says this with an undertone of comedy, making the book not only informative but enjoyable to read.

Partition

The Great Partition

Yasmin Khan

The Great Partition is the best book about today's India if you're looking to understand both the execution and aftermath of when India and Pakistan split.

General History

The Argumentative Indian

Amartya Sen

This book is a compilation of essays on Indian History by Nobel Prize-winner Amartya Sen. Anyone interested in understanding the foundations of Indian polity must read it.