First in India

Earliest school of medicine known to humans: Ayurveda

First Air Force in Asia to fly jets: Indian Air Force (1948)

First Book in any Indian Language: It was printed in 1578 in Tamil.

First Census in India: 1901

First Cinema House in India: It was built by J.F.Madan in 1907 in Calcutta.

First complete Technicolor film: Jhansi Ki Rani (1953)

First Constitutional Amendment: 1950

First country-wide agricultural census: 1970-71

First English Newspaper in India: Bengal Gazette printed in 1790 by James Augustus in Calcutta.

First Film Centre: Nandan. Located in Calcutta, it was inaugurated in September 1985.

First Film with an all-female cast: Marathi Film Bindhast, directed by Chandrakant Kulkarni.

First Five-Year Plan: Started in 1951

First General Elections: They were held in 1952.

First hydroelectric project in India: Shivasamudram, across the River Kaveri in 1902

First Indian state to set up a women’s court: Andhra Pradesh

First international co-production: Nala Damayanti (1921) made in collaboration with Italy.

First Marine National Park: Jamnagar

First Moonlit Animal House in Asia: Located in the Nehru Zoological Park, Hyderabad.

First Navodaya School: Navegaon-Khairi in Nagpur

First Postage Stamp: It was issued in India in 1852 at Karachi.

First Printing Press: It was set up in Goa in 1556 by the Portuguese.

First Railway Line: It was opened on April 16, 1853 between Bombay and Thane.

First Rupee in India: It was minted during the reign of Sher Shah Suri in 1542.

First ship built in India: Jala Usha built by Vishakapatnam Shipyard was commissioned in 1948.

First silent feature film in India: Pundalik made in 1912 by N.G. Chitre and R.G. Torney. It was half British in its make.

First solar crematorium: It is proposed to be set up in Valsad, Gujarat.

First Solar Energy Centre: Gwalpahar, Gurgaon, Haryana

First song-less film: JBH Wadia's Naujawan (1937).

First south Indian film to be released in Korea: Tamil Film Muthu Maharaja (June, 2000)

First Talkie Film: Alam Ara (1931)

First Telefilm: Satyajit Ray's Sadgati (telecast on Doordarshan in April 1981)

First Telegraph Line: It was laid between Calcutta and Agra in 1854. This line was 1280 km long. It was extended up to Lahore in 1857.

First Telephone system: It was started in 1881 from Calcutta.

First Television Reception Centre: Arvi, located in Maharashtra

First veterinary college: Opened in Parel in Bombay in 1885. It is still in existence and is the oldest veterinary college in Asia.

First Wind farm: Mandvi, Kutch in Gujarat

Highest Airfield in the world: Thoise, Ladakh

Highest road in India: Khardung La Pass

India’s first Antartica expedition: January 11, 1982

India’s first Satellite: Aryabhatta, April 19, 1975

India's first colour film: Prabhat's Sairandhri, which was processed and printed in Germany in 1933.

India's first fully indigenous silent feature film: Raja Harishchandra produced by Dada Saheb Phalke on May 3, 1913.

India's first indigenously built missile destroyer: INS 'Delhi' (commissioned on November 15, 1997 at Mumbai).

India's first indigenously built submarine: INS 'Shakti' (commissioned on February 7, 1992)

India's first indigenously made colour film: Ardashir Irani’s Kisan Kanya made in 1937.

India's first manufacturer of light bulbs and electrical equipment: Bengal Lamps, Calcutta (1933)

India's First Oil well: Digboi (1890)

India's first radio programme: This was broadcast privately with a 40w transmitter by the Madras Presidency Club Radio in 1924.

India's largest inland lake: Lake Chilika, Orissa

Largest circulated multi-edition daily in India: Roudramukhi Swar in Hindi (12,92,277 copies in 1997).

Largest circulated periodical in India: Malayala Manorama (11,27,414 copies)

Largest circulated single edition newspaper in India: Hindustan Times from Delhi (5,40,919 copies in 1997).

Largest Nandi in India: Nandi of the Leepakshi Temple at Andhra Pradesh

Largest Stupa in India: Mahachaitya Stupa, Amravati, Andhra Pradesh

Oldest era in the world: Hindu Era

Oldest para-military force in India: Assam Rifles (1835) in Shillong

Only Place in the world where a Brahma Temple is found: Pushkar in Rajasthan

Shortest era in the world: Christian Era

State with the highest % of Scheduled Castes to total population: Punjab (28.31% - 1991 Census)

State with the highest% of Scheduled tribes to total population: Mizoram (94.75%)

State with the largest number of Scheduled Castes: Uttar Pradesh (29.276 million - 1991 Census)

State with the largest number of Scheduled Tribes: Madhya Pradesh (15.399 million - 1991 Census)

State with the largest number of towns: Uttar Pradesh (704)

State with the largest number of villages: Uttar Pradesh (1,12,803 - 1991 Census)

State with the least number of towns: Nagaland (7)

State with the lowest % of Scheduled tribes to total population: Uttar Pradesh (0.21%)

State with the lowest number of Scheduled Castes: Mizoram (1000 - 1991 Census)

State with the lowest number of Scheduled Tribes: Sikkim (91,000)

State with the lowest number of villages: Goa (360 - 1991 Census)

World's First University: Taxila (700 B.C.)

World's highest STD/PCO facilities: Siachen glacier (established in November 1997)

World's largest school: The Guinness Book of World Records recognizes City Montessori School in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, as the world's largest school with 23,000 students on its rolls.

Youngest para-military force in India: Coast Guard (1978)
>