document_title: The Legend of Tarzan (film)

question_text: who plays jane in the legend of tarzan

question_tokens: who plays jane in the legend of tarzan

text: The Legend of Tarzan (film)

text: Plot[edit]

text: As a result of the Berlin Conference, the Congo Basin is claimed by King Leopold II of the Belgians, who rules the Congo Free State in personal union with the Kingdom of Belgium. The country is on the verge of bankruptcy, Leopold having borrowed huge amounts of money to finance the construction of railways and other infrastructure projects. He sends his envoy Léon Rom (Christoph Waltz) to secure the fabled diamonds of Opar. Rom's expedition is ambushed and massacred. A tribal leader, Chief Mbonga (Djimon Hounsou), offers Rom the diamonds in exchange for an old enemy: Tarzan.

text: The man once called "Tarzan", John Clayton III (Alexander Skarsgård), has left Africa behind and settled down in London with his American-born wife, Jane Porter (Margot Robbie), taking up his birth name and ancestral family residence as Lord Greystoke. In the eight years since returning from Africa, John's story as Tarzan has become legendary among the Victorian public, although John himself wishes to leave the past behind him. Through the British Prime Minister (Jim Broadbent), John is invited by King Leopold to visit Boma and report on the development of the Congo by Belgium, though Greystoke declines. An American envoy, George Washington Williams (Samuel L. Jackson), privately reveals his suspicions that Leopold is enslaving the Congolese population to recoup his debts. Williams persuades John to accept the invitation in order to prove his suspicions. Jane is disappointed when John says that she should not come, as he thinks the trip would be too dangerous, remembering how both his parents died as a result of the jungle's brutality following their shipwreck there — his mother of disease and his father later killed by the Mangani apes — leaving the baby John to be raised as Tarzan by his Mangani "mother" Kala and "brother" Akut. However, Jane reminds him that she grew up in Africa as well, and misses her home and friends there. John relents, and allows Jane to accompany him.

text: John, Jane, and Williams take the trip to the Congo. There, the trio encounters a tribal village and villagers who knew John and Jane during their previous stay in the jungle. Jane explains to Williams that her husband was once considered an evil spirit by the African tribes, including that of Chief Mbonga. Jane recalls how, when she was younger, she and her father lived in the tribal village helping to care for local children. There she met Tarzan who was made feral and physically enhanced by his life with the apes. The naked ape man saved Jane's life by shielding her from a vicious mangani attack, suffering severe injuries in the process. Jane took the injured Tarzan home, nursed him back to health, and the two fell in love. That night, as the tribe sleeps, Rom and his mercenaries raid the village and kidnap John and Jane and kill the tribe's leader. They then escape to a nearby steamboat with Jane and several of the tribe's members, but Williams is able to rescue John before he can be taken to the boat.

text: With the aid of the tribe's warriors, John and Williams intercept a Belgian military train carrying captured slaves, providing Williams with the evidence he needs to expose King Leopold. They also discover that Rom intends to use the diamonds to pay for a massive army to subdue the Congo, and allow Belgium to mine its wealth for Leopold's benefit. As John and Williams continue onward, John encounters the adult Akut, who is now leader of the apes. Aware that Akut considers him a deserter, John prepares to fight Akut, though he soon loses. That night, as John recovers, Williams recalls the massacres of Native Americans during the Indian Wars, comparing to those of Rom and Leopold.

text: On Rom's steamboat, Jane dines with Rom, before escaping and swimming to shore. Jane stumbles into a group of mangani apes, where she is rescued by Rom, whose men then shoot and kill many of the apes. John saves the remaining group, reconciling with Akut, before pursuing Rom. He is cornered by Mbonga and his tribe, where it is revealed that John once killed Mbonga's only son for previously killing Kala. A defeated Mbonga tearfully accuses John of lacking honor, as his son was just a young boy when John killed him. John spares Mbonga, just as Akut and the manganis arrive to subdue the tribe. Rom takes Jane and the diamonds to Boma, where he plans to take control of the army. John, Williams and Akut trigger a massive stampede of wildebeest through Boma, destroying the town and distracting the soldiers, allowing John to rescue Jane. As Rom attempts to escape by boat, Williams sinks it with a machine gun as John swims aboard. Rom incapacitates John by strangling him and then tying him by the neck to the ship's railing, before trying to escape again. John then summons crocodiles with a mating call to devour Rom, before escaping the destroyed vessel himself.

text: Williams returns to England and presents the Prime Minister with evidence exposing the slave trade in the African Congo. One year later, John and Jane have remained in Africa and settled in Jane's father's old house. John returns to his rightful place among the great apes as Tarzan and finally actualizes his dream of having a child with Jane.

text: Cast[edit]

text:
Alexander Skarsgård as Tarzan / John Clayton III, Lord Greystoke.[5] On his character Tarzan, Skarsgård said, "This is about a man who’s holding back and slowly as you peel off the layers, he reverts back to a more animalistic state and lets that side of his personality out."[6] To get in Tarzan shape, Skarsgård spent four months in a training regimen before principal photography started and gained 24 pounds.[6][7] Part of his training was for movement work with choreographer Wayne McGregor.[7][8]

Rory J. Saper as 18 Year Old Tarzan
Christian Stevens as 5 Year Old Tarzan

Christoph Waltz as Captain Léon Rom,[9] a corrupt merciless Belgian captain sent by King Leopold of Belgium to find diamonds and control the region.
Samuel L. Jackson as George Washington Williams, an American entrepreneur and a veteran of the American Civil War [10][11]
Margot Robbie as Jane Porter Clayton, Lady Greystoke;[12] Tarzan's wife.
Djimon Hounsou as Chief Mbonga,[13] the leader of the leopard men of Opar (an African tribe that controls the diamond region), who wants revenge against Tarzan for the death of his son.
Jim Broadbent as the British Prime Minister
Casper Crump as Major Kerckhover, Rom's violent first lieutenant[14]
Ben Chaplin as Captain Moulle
Hadley Fraser as John Clayton II, Tarzan's father
Genevieve O'Reilly as Alice Clayton, Tarzan's mother
Yule Masiteng as Muviro, the tribe leader
Mimi Ndiweni as Eshe
Simon Russell Beale as Mr. Frum[15][16]
Matt Cross as Akut, Tarzan's adoptive ape brother, Kala's biological son, and the current leader of the Mangani.
Madeleine Worrall as Kala, Tarzan's adoptive ape mother and the biological mother of Akut[17]
William Wollen as Kerchak, the former leader of the Mangani who killed Tarzan's father and hates Tarzan.[17]

text: Production[edit]

text: Development[edit]

text: An updated version of Tarzan had been in the works since at least 2003, with John August writing.[18] However, by 2008, it was reported that a different version, co-written by Stephen Sommers and Stuart Beatle, that was said to resemble the Pirates of the Caribbean series, was in development.[19][20] By 2011, Craig Brewer, who also rewrote a version of the script, was set to direct the film,[21] although this did not come to pass. Instead, David Yates was chosen to direct in 2012.[3] Other directors in the running included Susanna White and Gary Ross.[22] In April 2013, it was reported that the production was temporarily suspended due to budgetary concerns.[23]

text: Casting[edit]

text: For a while, producer Jerry Weintraub (no relation to the 50s and 60s Tarzan producer Sy Weintraub) wanted swimmer Michael Phelps to play the title role, feeling that he was the heir apparent to Johnny Weissmuller, the actor who had famously played Tarzan, and who was also a prominent competitive swimmer. Weintraub changed his mind after watching Phelps host Saturday Night Live, reportedly deciding against the decision after watching the episode for only two minutes.[24] Other early contenders for the role included Henry Cavill, Tom Hardy, and Charlie Hunnam.[3][25] On November 14, 2012, Alexander Skarsgård was cast in the title role, the choice of director Yates, while Samuel L. Jackson was being eyed to play Williams in the film.[5] Yates found Skarsgård to be the perfect Tarzan. He liked that he was born in Sweden but had found a career in America, so "he has this wonderful quality of not quite belonging to one or the other", he said.[6] On March 6, 2013, it was reported that Yates wanted Jessica Chastain to play the female lead role, Jane Porter.[26] On September 26, 2013, Christoph Waltz was in talks to play the villain in the film; he was later cast, as Captain Rom.[9]

text: The studio eyed Margot Robbie and Emma Stone to play the female lead character, Jane Porter.[10] Emma Watson (who worked with Yates on the last four Harry Potter films), Sarah Bolger, Georgina Haig, Lucy Hale, Lyndsy Fonseca, Eleanor Tomlinson, Gabriella Wilde, Lucy Boynton and Cressida Bonas were all considered for the part. On January 18, 2014, Robbie was confirmed to play the female lead, Jane, in the film, opposite Skarsgård, beating Stone for the role.[12] On June 4, Djimon Hounsou was set to play Chief Mbonga in the film.[13] On June 17, Osy Ikhile was added to the cast to play a supporting role, but the character was not then named.[27] Casper Crump was cast to play Captain Kerchover.[14] The release of the first trailer in December 2015 revealed that Jim Broadbent was also part of the cast.

text: Filming[edit]

text: Principal photography on the film commenced on June 30, 2014, at Warner Bros. Studios in Leavesden, Hertfordshire, England.[28][29] Filming had begun on the day an announcement was made for the expansion of the studio.[30] Filming wrapped the same year on October 3.[31] Making Africa seem authentic was especially important to the filmmakers, since the film was shot in England, except for six weeks in Gabon, filming background without the cast. A working waterfall and a 100-foot-long collapsible pier were assembled at Warner Bros.’ Leavesden studios.[32] According to The Wall Street Journal, shooting the film in Africa would have made the budget even higher.[32] Filming took place for a total of 70 days.[33]

text: Soundtrack[edit]

text:
The Legend of Tarzan: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

Soundtrack album / Film score by Rupert Gregson-Williams

Released
June 16, 2016 (digital)
June 24, 2016 (physical)

Recorded
2016

Genre
Film score

Length
71:19

Label
WaterTower Music

Producer
Rupert Gregson-Williams

Rupert Gregson-Williams film scores chronology

The Do-Over
(2016)The Do-Over2016
The Legend of Tarzan
(2016)
Hacksaw Ridge
(2016)Hacksaw Ridge2016

Singles from The Legend of Tarzan: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

"Better Love"
Released: 2016

text: The film's score was composed by Rupert Gregson-Williams. The soundtrack was released on June 16, 2016 by WaterTower Music and on CD on June 24, 2016. Tony Clarke,[34] Thomas Farnon,[35] and Tom Howe[36] are credited for additional music. Hozier provided a single, Better Love, which is played at the film's end credits.[37]

text: Track listing[edit]

text: All music composed by Rupert Gregson-Williams, except where noted.

text:
No.
Title
Artist(s)
Length

1.
"Opar"
Zoe Mithyane
3:28

2.
"Diamonds"

4:50

3.
"Togetherness"

1:44

4.
"Steamer and Butterfly"

2:40

5.
"Orphaned"

2:46

6.
"Returning Home"

4:01

7.
"Campfire"

2:40

8.
"Tarzan and Jane"

3:39

9.
"Village Ambush"

4:41

10.
"Catching the Train"

2:16

11.
"Rom's Plan"

2:11

12.
"Akut Fight"

2:16

13.
"Elephants in the Night"

3:12

14.
"Jane Escapes"

2:44

15.
"Jungle Shooting"

2:41

16.
"Kala's Death"

5:15

17.
"Where Was Your Honor?"

2:29

18.
"Boma Port"

4:04

19.
"Stampede"

4:33

20.
"On the Boat"

3:10

21.
"The Legend of Tarzan"

2:36

22.
"Better Love"
Hozier
3:23

Total length:
71:19

text: Release[edit]

text: The film was released on July 1, 2016 by Warner Bros., in traditional formats as well as 3D and IMAX 3D.[4]

text: Home media[edit]

text: The film was released in October 11, 2016, in traditional formats, Blu-ray, DVD and 4K Blu-ray.[citation needed]

text: Reception[edit]

text: Box office[edit]

text: The Legend of Tarzan grossed $126.6 million in the United States and Canada and $230.1 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $356.7 million.[2] Deadline financial analysts state that the film lost the studio an estimated $40 million (though the studio, itself, asserts the film broke even). Given its $180 million production budget, it would have had to have earn at least $400 million to break even and justify a sequel.[38][39]

text: In the United States and Canada, The Legend of Tarzan opened alongside The BFG and The Purge: Election Year, and was projected to gross to $25–33 million in its opening weekend.[38][40][41] It opened Friday, July 1, 2016 across 3,561 theaters and 6,700 screens, and grossed $14 million on its opening day, including $1.4 million in IMAX showings.[42] This includes $2.6 million it made from Thursday night previews.[43] In its opening weekend, buoyed by positive word of mouth, the film grossed a better-than-expected $38.5 million, of which IMAX contributed $3.9 million, and $45.6 million over its four-day Independence Day holiday frame, finishing second place at the box office behind Finding Dory, but first among new releases. However, despite its opening numbers, Deadline.com called the film a "dud", due to its lofty budget.[44][45]

text: Internationally, The Legend of Tarzan received a scattered release pattern, in order to take advantage of the competitive landscape surrounding the 2016 European Championship.[46] It is likely that a recoup of the film's hefty production budget will be dependent on international audiences and returns. Jeff Goldstein, Warner's executive vice president of domestic distribution, told The New York Times, "This property has always really been about the international opportunity."[47] The film opened across 19 markets on the same weekend it debuted in North America, including major territories like Russia and South Korea.[38] In its opening weekend, it grossed $19.3 million on about 6,700 screens, and an IMAX total of $1.2 million from 122 IMAX theaters.[46] In Russia and the CIS, it opened with $3.1 million, debuting in first place at the box office. However, it was the lowest No. 1 opening for a film since April,[48] while in South Korea it debuted at No. 2, with $4 million. In the latter market, it faced significant competition from local films Familyhood and The Hunt, both of which performed strongly.[46][49] In the United Kingdom and Ireland, it came in second place with $4.7 million, including previews, debuting behind the animated The Secret Life of Pets, and in Australia with $3.2 million, behind Finding Dory.[50] Elsewhere, Asia had No. 1 openings in India, Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia. The studio also reported No. 1 debuts in Mexico ($4.6 million), Brazil ($3.4 million), Spain ($1.8 million), Italy ($1.6 million), the majority of Eastern European markets, and Puerto Rico.[46][50][51][52] Germany ($2 million), the UAE ($1.6 million), and Japan ($1.5 million) had similar opening figures.[53]

text: In China – the film's second biggest market – the film was granted a rare release date in the month of July, a peculiar move since July is typically the month when Chinese regulators ban foreign films (including Hollywood films) in order to protect and promote their own local films.[54][55] It opened on Tuesday, July 19, and made $7 million on its opening day. It went on to deliver a six-day opening of around $27 million and a three-day weekend opening of $12 million. Although the opening number was regarded strong, it came in second place, behind Skiptrace, which occupied a market share in excess of 56%, in comparion to The Legend of Tarzan's 16%.[52][56]

text: In terms of total earnings, its biggest markets outside of the United States are China ($45.1 million), Mexico ($13.7 million) and the U.K. and Ireland ($11.9 million).[57]

text: Critical response[edit]

text: The Legend of Tarzan received generally mixed reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 36% based on 210 reviews with an average rating of 5.1/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "The Legend of Tarzan has more on its mind than many movies starring the classic character, but that isn't enough to make up for its generic plot or sluggish pace."[58] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 44 out of 100 based on 41 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[59] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A–" on an A+ to F scale.[60]

text: Manohla Dargis of The New York Times gave the film a positive review, stating "What makes it more enjoyable than a lot of recycled stories of this type is that the filmmakers have given Tarzan a thoughtful, imperfect makeover."[61] In his review, Peter Travers of Rolling Stone stated "At least it's watchable. In summer, baby, that's high praise."[62]

text: Peter Debruge of Variety gave the film a negative review, stating "A talky and mostly turgid attempt by British director David Yates to build on the epic vision he brought to the final four Harry Potter movies via another beloved literary hero."[63] Jordan Hoffman of The Guardian criticized the film for its story and writing, stating "Committed performances aren’t enough to save this film from uncomfortable colonial optics, uninspiring CGI and tedious plotlines."[64]

text: Accolades[edit]

text: IMDb named The Legend of Tarzan as one of its Top 10 Movies of 2016, as in being among the "most consistently popular with IMDb users this past year,"[65] by noting:

text: IndieWire named The Legend of Tarzan as the 24th most romantic film released so far in the 21st Century, calling it an "underrated old-fashioned romantic adventure."[67]

text:
Award
Date of ceremony
Category
Recipient(s)
Result
Ref(s)

Alliance of Women Film Journalists
December 21, 2016
Actress Most in Need of a New Agent
Margot Robbie (also for Suicide Squad)
Nominated
[68]
[69]

Jupiter Awards
March 29, 2017
Best International Actress
Margot Robbie
Nominated
[70]

Saturn Awards
June 28, 2017
Best Action or Adventure Film
The Legend of Tarzan
Nominated
[71]


document_title: List of largest shopping malls in the United States

question_text: what is the biggest outlet mall in the usa

root

text: This article uses citations that link to broken or outdated sources. Please improve the article or discuss this issue on the talk page. Help on using footnotes is available. (August 2016) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

tag: table

text: The lead section of this article may need to be rewritten. Please discuss this issue on the article's talk page. Use the lead layout guide to ensure the section follows Wikipedia's norms and to be inclusive of all essential details. (August 2016) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

text: List of the shopping malls in the United States of America and its territories greater than or equal to 2,000,000 total square feet of retail space (gross leasable area). The list is based in part on information provided by the International Council of Shopping Centers and by the Department of American Studies at Eastern Connecticut State University as part of its Shopping Mall Studies.[1]

tag: p

text:
#
Mall name
Location
Metro area
Retail space
Sq. feet/(m²)
Stores
Anchor Stores/Entertainment Venues
Year opened
Ownership

1
King of Prussia Mall
King of Prussia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia
2,900,000 Sq Ft
510+
Macy's, Nordstrom, Primark, Dick's Sporting Goods, Bloomingdale's, Lord & Taylor, Neiman Marcus
1963
King of Prussia Associates, Simon Property Group

2
Mall of America
Bloomington, Minnesota
Minneapolis
2,500,000 Sq Ft
500+
Macy's, Sears, Nordstrom (Rack), Best Buy, Forever21, Marshall's, Nickelodeon Universe, LEGO World, American Girl, Sea Life Minnesota Aquarium, FlyOver America, JW Marriott, Radisson Blu
1992
Triple Five group

3
Aventura Mall
Aventura, Florida
Miami
2,700,000 square feet (250,000 m2)[2]
300+[3]
Nordstrom, Bloomingdale’s, Macy's (2 Stores), JCPenney, AMC Theaters
1983
Turnberry Associates, Simon Property Group

4
South Coast Plaza
Costa Mesa, California
Los Angeles
2,600,000 square feet (240,000 m2)[4]
280
Macy's (3 stores – Main, Men's, Home), Sears, Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue, Bloomingdale's
1967
Segerstrom family

5
Del Amo Fashion Center
Torrance, California
Los Angeles
2,600,000 square feet (240,000 m2)
200+
Nordstrom, Macy's (2 stores – Main and Men, Home, and Furniture), JCPenney, Sears, T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, Burlington Coat Factory, JO-ANN Fabric and Craft, AMC Theaters
1961
Simon Property Group

6
Destiny USA
Syracuse, New York
Syracuse
2,450,000 square feet (228,000 m2)[5]
250+
Macy's, JCPenney, Best Buy, Lord & Taylor, H&M, Dave & Buster's, Off Broadway Shoes, Nordstrom Rack, Saks Off Fifth, DSW Shoe Warehouse, DICK'S Sporting Goods, Forever 21, Old Navy, Burlington Coat Factory, At Home, T.J. Maxx, Sears Outlet, Pole Position Raceway, Regal IMAX theater, Regal Cinemas, Destiny USA Hotel (being built at time of edit)
1990 (expanded in 2012 which added 40+ stores)
The Pyramid Companies

7
The Galleria
Houston, Texas
Houston
2,400,000 square feet (220,000 m2)[6]
375
Nordstrom, Macy's, Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, Guess, Louboutin, Yves Saint Laurent, Coco Channel, Mac, Emporio Armani, Hugo Boss, Sephora, Aldo,
1970
Simon Property Group, Walton Street Real Estate Funds, Sony Corporation & CalPERS

8
Ala Moana Center
Honolulu, Hawaii
Honolulu
2,400,000 square feet (220,000 m2)[7]
330+
Macy’s, Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, Shirokiya, Bloomingdale's, Forever 21, Saks Fifth Avenue Off 5th, Old Navy, Disney Store, Coach, Louis Vuitton , Apple Store, Victoria Secret, Bath and Body Works, Sephora, Aldo, Chanel, Abercrombie & Fitch, Champs, Claire's, Armani Exchange, Banana Republic, Barnes & Noble Booksellers, Emporio Armani, Foot Locker, GAP, Gucci, Guess, Microsoft, Versace.
1959
General Growth Properties

9
Tysons Corner Center
McLean, Virginia
Washington, D.C.
2,400,000 square feet (220,000 m2)[8]
300
Bloomingdale’s, Macy’s, Nordstrom, Lord & Taylor, AMC Theatres, L. L. Bean, Barnes and Noble, American Girl
1968
Macerich

10
Sawgrass Mills
Sunrise, Florida
Fort Lauderdale
2,383,906 square feet (221,472.1 m2)[9]
350
P.F. Chang's China Bistro, Villago, Grand Lux Cafe, Matchbox, Last Call by Neiman Marcus, Marshalls, Dick's Sporting Goods, Bloomingdale's - The Outlet Store, Rainforest Cafe, Century 21 Department Store, Off 5th Saks Fifth Avenue, Gap Outlet, Forever 21, Off Broadway Shoe Warehouse, Nordstrom Rack, Old Navy Outlet Store, The Cheesecake Factory, California Pizza Kitchen, Ron Jon Surf Shop, Polo Ralph Lauren Factory Store, Nike Factory Store, TJ Maxx, Bed Bath & Beyond, Urban Planet, Camille La Vie, Super Target, Brandsmart USA, Trendmax Outlet Store, Burlington Coat Factory, GameRoom, Regal Cinemas, IMAX.
1990
Simon Property Group

11
Roosevelt Field
Garden City, New York
New York City
2,244,581 square feet (208,528.4 m2)[10]
294
Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s, Nordstrom, JCPenney, Dick's Sporting Goods, Neiman Marcus
1956
Simon Property Group

12
Woodfield Mall
Schaumburg, Illinois
Chicago
2,224,000 square feet (206,600 m2)[11]
300
Sears, JCPenney, Macy's, Nordstrom, Lord & Taylor
1971
Simon Property Group

13
Palisades Center
West Nyack, New York
New York City
2,217,322 square feet (205,996.0 m2)[12]
400
Lord & Taylor, Barnes & Noble, Macy's, Target, AMC Theaters
1998
The Pyramid Companies

14
Millcreek Mall
Erie, Pennsylvania
Erie County
2,200,000 square feet (200,000 m2)[13]
175
Macy's, JCPenney, Bon-Ton, H&M
1975
Cafaro Company

15
Plaza Las Américas
San Juan, Puerto Rico
San Juan
2,173,000 square feet (201,900 m2)[14]
300+
Macy's, Sears, JCPenney, Old Navy, Caribbean Cinemas, Kmart, Toys R' Us, Forever 21
1968
Plaza Las Américas, Inc, Empresas Fonalledas, Inc.

16
South Shore Plaza
Braintree, Massachusetts
Boston
2,165,000 square feet (201,100 m2)
225
Macy's, Lord & Taylor, Sears, Nordstrom, Target
1961
Simon Property Group

17
Westfield Garden State Plaza
Paramus, New Jersey
New York City
2,132,112 square feet (198,079.7 m2)[15]
346
Macy’s, Nordstrom, JCPenney, Neiman Marcus, Lord & Taylor, AMC Theatres
1957
Westfield Corporation

18
Lakewood Center
Lakewood, California
Los Angeles
2,092,710 square feet (194,419 m2)[16]
255
Macy's, Target, Forever 21, JCPenney, Pacific Theatres, Costco
1951
Macerich

19
Scottsdale Fashion Square
Scottsdale, Arizona
Phoenix
2,049,169 square feet (190,374.0 m2)[17]
250+
Macy’s, Dick's Sporting Goods, Dillard's, Forever 21, H&M, Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus
1961
Macerich

20
Oakbrook Center
Oak Brook, Illinois
Chicago
2,018,000 square feet (187,500 m2)[18]
175
Macy’s, Sears, Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, Lord & Taylor
1962
General Growth Properties, CalPERS


document_title: Canasta

question_text: how many decks of cards for hand and foot canasta

text: Canasta

text: Rules for original Canasta[edit]

text: Cards and deal[edit]

text: The classic game is for four players in two partnerships. Variations exist for two and three player games wherein each plays alone, and also for a six player game in two partnerships of three. If partners are chosen they must sit opposite each other. Canasta uses two complete decks of 52 playing cards (French Deck) plus the four Jokers. All the Jokers and twos are wild cards.

text:
Point values for cards in Canasta

Card
Value

Red 3s
100 (200 each if all four held)

4, 5, 6, 7
5

8, 9, 10, J, Q, K
10

2 (Wild), A
20

Joker (Wild)
50

text: The initial dealer is chosen by any common method, although it should be remembered that in Canasta there is no privilege or advantage to being the dealer. The deal then rotates clockwise after every hand. The dealer shuffles the pack, the player to the dealer's right cuts, and the dealer deals out a hand of 11 cards to each player.

text: The remaining cards are left in a stack in the center of the table.

text: Play[edit]

text: The player to the dealer's left has the first turn, and play then proceeds clockwise. A turn begins either by drawing the first card from the stock into the player's hand or by picking up the entire discard pile. However, there are restrictions on when one can pick up the discard pile. (See Picking up the discard pile, below.) If the card drawn from the stock is a red three the player must table it immediately, as one would if melding, and draw another card.

text: The player may then make as many legal melds as they wish from the cards in their hand. A turn ends when the player discards one card from their hand to the top of the discard pile. No player may "undo" a meld or laid card, or change their mind after drawing a card from the deck if they decide that they could have taken the discard pile.

text: Melds and Canastas[edit]

text: Each player/team keeps separate melds of the various ranks of cards. A player may never play to an opponent's meld. A legal meld consists of at least three cards of the same rank. Suits are irrelevant except that black threes are treated differently from red threes. Wild cards can be used as any rank except for threes. Threes may never be melded in ordinary play, although 3 or 4 black threes may be melded last in the process of a player going out.

text: A meld must consist of at least two natural cards, and can never have more wild cards than natural cards (and therefore more than three wild cards). Examples: 5-5-2 and 9-9-9-2-2-Joker are legal melds. 5-2-2 is not a legal meld as it contains only one natural card. 9-9-2-2-2-Joker is not legal as it contains more wild cards than natural cards.

text: A canasta is a meld of at least seven cards, whether natural or mixed. A natural canasta is one that comprises only cards of the same rank. A mixed canasta (or dirty canasta) is one that comprises both natural and wild cards.

text: A "concealed" canasta is a canasta assembled in the player's hand and is played to the table complete, or requiring only the top card from the discard pile (the discard pile being picked up in the usual way). A concealed  canasta may be natural or mixed and carries a bonus score of 100 points (so 400 for a concealed mixed canasta and 600 for a concealed natural canasta).

text: Initial melds[edit]

text:
At the beginning of a game, both teams have an initial meld requirement of 50.
When a player/team has not yet made any melds in a hand, that player must meet an additional point score requirement to make their first meld(s). The sum of the values of the cards played in the player's turn must equal or exceed the minimum initial meld requirement according to the player/team's total score:

text:
Team score
Minimum initial meld

Negative
15

0–1495
50

1500–2995
90

3000 and above
120

text: Example: If a player/team has a score of 1,600 and has not yet made any melds in a hand, an initial meld of 6-6-6, K-K-K-2 cannot be made as it scores only 65 points and the requirement is 90. A meld of 6-6-6, A-A-A-2 would score 95 points and can be played. Note that both initial melds can be played if the team's total score is below 1500, and that neither can be played if the team's total score is 3000 or higher.

text: Picking up the discard pile[edit]

text: At the beginning of their turn, a player may pick up the entire discard pile instead of drawing a card from the stock. They may only pick up the discard pile if they can use the top card, either in an existing meld or by making a new meld along with at least two other cards from their hand. Only the top card is relevant for the player/team to pick up the rest of the discard pile. In addition, if the play/team has not yet melded, they must meet the initial meld requirement using the top card of the discard pile in order to pick up the pile.

text: If a wild card has previously been discarded to the pile, the discard pile is frozen. When the discard pile is frozen, it may only be thawed (picked up) if the player can meld the top card with two natural cards of the same rank in the player's hand. The discard pile is also frozen for a player/team that has not yet melded at all this hand; though it will not be frozen for another player/team that has melded.

text: If a wild card or a black three is on top of the discard pile, it may not be picked up. Playing a black three does not freeze the pile, however; it just acts as a "stop card".  The card discarded after a black three allows the pile to be picked up again (unless it is a wild card or another black three).

text: Going out[edit]

text: If more than one player/team has finished with over 5000 points, then the team that "came out" first wins the overall game. A player may go out by using all the cards in their hand only if that player/team has made one or more canastas. The player may go out only by melding all his cards, and may discard a single final card if necessary. It is not required to discard a card in the process of legally going out. If the player/team has not yet made any canastas, players in that team may not make a play which would leave them with no cards in their hand at the end of their turn. The hand ends immediately when any player goes out.

text: When considering going out, a player may ask their partner for permission to go out; however, it is not required to ask partner's permission, but if done the player must abide by the partner's answer. If the partner refuses permission, the player may not go out this turn. If the partner responds "yes", the player must go out this turn.

text: If a player can legally go out, but has three or more black threes in his hand, these may be melded at this time only.

text: Scoring[edit]

text: At the end of each hand, the score for each team is calculated as follows:

text: The total value of all cards melded by that player/team, including cards in canastas minus the total value of all cards remaining in the team's hands, plus any bonuses:

text:
Bonus scores

Going out
100

Each mixed canasta
300

Each natural canasta
500

Each red three, up to three
100

If all four red threes are held

800

text: If a partnership has accumulated red threes, but has not yet made any melds when the opposition team goes out, then the total value of all the cards left in the player/team's hand(s) as well as the bonus value of melded red threes are subtracted from that team's previous score. That is, if a team has three red threes but had not yet made any melds, at the end of that hand the team will suffer a penalty of 300 points rather than gaining a 300-point bonus.

text: The game ends when a player/team's total score reaches 5,000 or above. The team with the highest total score at this point wins.

text: Canasta for two or three players[edit]

text: Canasta can be played with fewer than four players with some variations in the rules. The most significant changes are in the number of cards dealt at the beginning of the hand and the fact that each person plays individually. In a game with three players, each player receives 13 cards. In a two player game each player receives 15 cards and each player draws two cards on each of their turns and discards one. If each player draws two cards, there is usually the additional requirement that a player must have made two canastas in order to go out.

text: US American Canasta[edit]

text:
This version of Canasta is widespread, especially in the United States, and it was the official tournament version used by the (possibly defunct) American Canasta Association. American Canasta can be found in few books. One notable exception is Scarne's Encyclopedia of Card Games, where the author claims to have invented a game which he calls International Canasta.
Most of the elements of Modern American Canasta can be found in Scarne's International Canasta, although there are some differences.

text: Winning Moves Games USA first published Canasta Caliente in 1999 and still markets the game in the USA.

text: Due to its relative complexity and unforgiving scoring rules, which give large penalties for many melds that would be acceptable and even good in other versions, this may not be the best version for beginning players; "classic" canasta or Hand & Foot may better serve this purpose. (On the other hand, these versions can teach habits that become major liabilities in American canasta.) This version is only meant to be played by exactly four players, in two two-person partnerships. Important differences between this version and the "classic" version include:

text: Setup and play[edit]

text:
13 cards are dealt to each player, then two face down groups of cards are dealt on either side of the draw pile and discard pile, one with four cards and one with three. The latter are referred to as the talons or wings. The four card and three card talons are taken immediately by the partnerships after making their initial melds respectively. The discard pile itself starts out empty.
The draw-two-cards rule is not used. Two canastas are required to go out. Play is to 8,500.
Initial meld requirements are higher - 125 for teams with less than 3,000 points, 155 for teams with 3,000 or more but less than 5,000, 180 thereafter. Moreover, somewhere in your initial meld must be a matching set of three natural cards, though you are allowed to have wild cards in this meld in addition to the natural cards.
Melding a complete canasta, however, is always considered to meet the initial meld requirement, regardless of the point values of the cards involved. (There is no other bonus for such a play.)
The discard pile is always frozen. Many groups do not allow taking the pile and making your team's initial meld on the same turn; those that do allow this, require you to make the initial meld first, then take the pile. (The latter was the "official" tournament rule). This can be done on the strength of a pair of natural cards that were already melded that turn, or by producing such a pair from your hand after having met the initial meld requirement without it.
There are some limitations on legal discards. Threes can't be discarded, except as your final discard when going out; the same is true of wild cards. If the discard pile is empty, aces and sevens can't be discarded. It is possible (though very unlikely), however, to be in a situation where you have only wild cards, or only aces, sevens and wild cards with an empty discard pile. In this case you may make such a discard (aces or sevens if possible, wild cards only if there is no other choice - never a three under any circumstances). However, an opponent may challenge the legality of such a play, in which case you must show the opponent your hand to verify that the play was in fact legal.
Both red and black threes may be played to the table as red threes can in "classic" canasta. Unlike in other versions of canasta, this is optional. As in other versions, a player who plays a three draws a replacement card.

tag: ul

text: Melding rules[edit]

text:
Melds that do not include sevens or aces work as in "classic" canasta, except that such melds can include at most two wild cards rather than three.
Melds of more than seven cards are strictly forbidden, as are duplicate melds of the same rank by the same team. This has a few strategic implications; for example, it is impossible to pick up the pile on the strength of a pair of (say) jacks in your hand if your team already has a meld of five jacks, natural or otherwise.
One common exception, is to allow melds of 8 or more cards when going out. Skilled players will play a wild card on an existing canasta for the win.
Sequences (such as those that define Samba, described below) are not legal melds and play no role in the normal play of American Canasta. The closest thing to a sequence that is normally allowed is one of the Special Hands, described below.
Melds of sevens cannot include wild cards. A canasta of sevens is worth 2,500 points rather than the usual 500. However, if the hand ends without your team completing this canasta, your team loses 2,500 points. Retaining three or more sevens in your hand is nearly as bad, carrying a penalty of 1,500.
Aces are treated the same way as sevens, with one exception. If your team's initial meld includes aces, wild cards may be added at that time; if this is done, the aces are treated like any other meld rather than being treated in the special way sevens are. Otherwise, all the same rules, including the potential penalties, apply to aces as to sevens.
Melds consisting entirely of wild cards are legal, much like in the aforementioned[clarification needed] Bolivia variant. A canasta consisting of wild cards is worth 3,000 points if it consists entirely of twos, 2,500 points if it contains all four jokers, or 2,000 points for any other combination. However, failing to complete a canasta once such a meld is made carries a 2,000 point penalty.
It is legal to meld certain special hands as your team's first and only meld. These are hands of exactly 14 cards which you can conceivably have after drawing your card for the turn. If a team plays a special hand, the play ends immediately; the team scores only the points for the special hand (there are no penalties for the cards in the other partner's hand). This is also the only time a player is allowed to not discard a card; even when going out, a player must otherwise have something to discard. There is considerable variation in what special hands are allowed and how they are scored. Among the most commonly accepted special hands are the following (these are the ones that were legal in the tournament version):
Straight - one card of every rank, including a three (the reason you are allowed to retain threes in your hand), plus a joker. This is worth 3,000.
Pairs - seven pairs, which either do not include wild cards (worth 2,500), or include twos, sevens and aces (all three must be present - this combination is worth 2,000).
Garbage - Two sets of four of a kind and two sets of three of a kind, which do not include any wild cards or threes. For example, 4-4-4-4-7-7-7-9-9-9-9-J-J-J would be considered a Garbage hand. This is worth 2,000.

text: Other scoring rules[edit]

text:
Yet another variation on scoring threes is used. Scoring is 100 for one three of a particular colour, 300 for two, 500 for three or 1,000 for four; red threes and black threes are counted separately. This is a penalty if your team has no canastas at the end of the hand (and for this purpose threes in your hand count as though they were on the table), ignored entirely if your team has exactly one canasta, and a bonus if your team has two or more canastas.
If your team has no complete canastas when the play ends, any cards that have been melded count against that team, in addition to any of the above penalties that may apply. A team with at least one canasta gets positive points for these cards as usual.

text: Samba[edit]

text: Samba is a variant of Canasta, played with three decks, including jokers, for a total of 162 cards. 15 cards are dealt to each of four players, and an additional card is turned up. The game is to 10,000 points instead of 5,000. Samba allows sequence melds of three or more (for example, the 4, 5, and 6 of hearts or the Queen, King and Ace of Spades). If a player is able to make a sequence of seven (for example, the 5 through J of diamonds), this is a samba and is worth 1,500 points. Rather than four red threes being worth 800 points, six red threes are worth 1,000 points. Two wild cards is the maximum allowed for a meld. The minimum initial meld is 150 if a partnership has 7,000 or more.

text: Other "national" canastas[edit]

text: Bolivian Canasta[edit]

text: Bolivian Canasta is similar to Samba, as it uses three decks and sequence melds.[11]  Play is to 15,000. Wild card canastas (bolivias) count 2,500. A side must have a samba (called escalera in this game) and at least one other canasta to go out. Red threes only count positive if two or more canastas have been melded. Black threes are negative 100 instead of negative 5 when left in hand.

text: Brazilian Canasta[edit]

text: Similar to Bolivia, but only to 10,000. The minimum meld requirements are 150 from 5,000 to 7,000; a canasta from 7,000 to 8,000; 200 from 8,000 to 9,000; and a natural canasta from 9,000 up. Wild card canastas count 2,000. Partnerships receive 1,000 for five red threes and 1,200 for all six. If a side has a sequence of five cards or less, it loses 1,000.

text: British Canasta[edit]

text:
Similar to the original rules but with the important addition of 'Acaba' (Spanish for 'The End'). A player may say this at any point during their turn and will immediately forfeit the round awarding the opposing player or team 1,500 points and receiving 0 points, ending the very dull phase where one player or team has total control over the discard deck. When playing in teams a player may ask their teammate for permission to say acaba just as they may ask before going out and they will also be bound by the response in the same way.[12]
[13]

text: Chilean Canasta[edit]

text: Allows both sambas and bolivias. Can be played with either three decks (162 cards) or four decks (216 cards)

text: Cuban Canasta[edit]

text: A two-deck variant to 7,500. Requires 150 for an initial meld if a partnership is over 5,000. The deck is always frozen. Wild card canastas are worth between 2,000 and 4,000; depending on the number of deuces. Threes are scored only if canastas are made; they count 100 for one, 300 for two, 500 for three and 1,000 for four. Black threes are removed from play if a discard pile is taken; a partnership that removes all four black threes this way gets 100 points.

text: Italian Canasta[edit]

text: Italian canasta is a Samba variant. The number of cards in the discard pile at the beginning of the game varies with the initial card turned up. The discard pile is always frozen. Deuces may, but a partnership may not play deuces as wild cards if deuces have been melded and a canasta is incomplete. Game is to 15,000

text: Uruguayan Canasta[edit]

text: It is exactly like the original canasta, in its original version.[14]

text: Boat Canasta[edit]

text: This variation originates in Slovakia. Since the definition of Canasta rules differed from player to player a strong urge has risen for unified rules. This in turn was satisfied by the creation of Boat Canasta, which really is a mix of other known rules, but thoroughly optimized. Currently this variant of Canasta is steadily gaining popularity mainly in Slovakia, but also in countries such as France, Germany and England.

text: Hand and Foot Canasta[edit]

text: This version is a quad deck game that is played with a hand and a foot, unlike traditional canasta that just has a hand. Hand and Foot is a Canasta variant involving four to seven decks and is played by teams of two players (usually two teams, but it also works with three or four teams). The number of decks used is typically one more than the number of players, though this can vary. Due to the larger pool of available cards, it is much easier to form canastas in Hand and Foot than in standard Canasta, which changes the strategy considerably. Some players feel this version is more enjoyable for beginners. The variant was born in the 1970s; commercial decks to play Hand and Foot have been available since 1987. Important rule changes for this variant include:

text:
Each player is dealt two piles of 11 cards, which will be referred to as the "hand" and the "foot". The hand is picked up normally, while the foot remains face down until the hand is exhausted.
A player who melds all cards from the original hand picks up the foot as a new hand and continues playing. A player who exhausts the original hand by discarding picks up the foot as a new hand, but does not play from it until the next turn.
On each turn, players draw two cards from the stock. Each player discards one card on each turn.
The number of canastas required to go out are three red (or clean, i.e. no wild cards)[further explanation needed] and four black (dirty, i.e. with wild cards)[further explanation needed] canastas. When playing a singles game (that is, without partners), the requirement is one red canasta and two black canastas.
Discards may be picked up with a natural pair, but a player must take the top five cards from the discard pile.
Threes may not be melded; so, since the only way to get rid of them is by discarding them one at a time, the number of threes in your hand represents a minimum number of turns before you could possibly go out.
Black threes (in your hand or foot) score five points, red threes are scored as negative 300 points.

text: Initial melds[edit]

text: At the beginning of a game, both teams have an initial meld requirement of 50. The requirement increases in value in subsequent hands.

text:
Hand
Minimum initial meld

1st hand
50

2nd hand
90

3rd hand
120

4th hand
150

text:
Rules for going out are:
You must have a minimum of three red (no wild cards) and 4 black canastas.
You ask your partner for permission to go out.

text: The scoring[edit]

text:
Bonus scores

Going out
100

Each mixed (black, dirty) canasta
300

Each natural (red, clean) canasta
500

text: Point values are:

text:
Point values for cards in Canasta

Card
Value

4, 5, 6, 7
5

8, 9, 10, J, Q, K
10

2 (Wild), A
20

Joker (Wild)
50

text: Miscellaneous variations for Classic Canasta and other types[edit]

text:
There is a special case where any player/team that manages to meld 7 canastas in one hand (natural or mixed) automatically gain 5000 points and thus win the game.
A number of cards other than 11 may be dealt at the beginning of the game, 13 and 15 being common choices. Some groups vary the number of cards drawn inversely with the number of players.
To make picking up the discard pile more challenging, require that a natural pair be played on the same turn that the pile is picked up.
A concealed canasta occurs when a canasta is melded directly from a players hand. Usually in also going out: going out concealed which earns an extra 100 point bonus over the standard 100 point going out bonus.
One variant allows melding up to three wild cards in a meld, regardless of the number of natural cards melded.
When the stock is depleted, consider flipping over the discard pile and turning it into a new stock to extend play.

text: In popular culture[edit]

text: The expression "as dead as Canasta" cites the transience of popular interest in the game within the United States.

text: In the J. D. Salinger novel The Catcher in the Rye, protagonist Holden Caulfield says of fellow student Ackley, "'Listen,' I said, 'do you feel like playing a little Canasta?' He was a Canasta fiend."


document_title: History of the Republic of India

question_text: when did the constitution of india came into force

question_tokens: when did the constitution of india came into force

text: History of the Republic of India

text: 1947–1950: Dominion of India[edit]

text: Independent India's first years were marked with turbulent events – a massive exchange of population with Pakistan, the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947 and the integration of over 500 princely states to form a united nation. Credit for the political integration of India is largely attributed to Vallabhbhai Patel (deputy Prime Minister of India at the time),[1] who post-independence and before the death of Mahatma Gandhi teamed up with Jawaharlal Nehru and the Mahatma to ensure that the constitution of independent India would be secular.[2]

text: Partition of India[edit]

text: An estimated 3.5 million[3][4][5][6] Hindus and Sikhs living in West Punjab, North-West Frontier Province, Baluchistan, East Bengal and Sind migrated to India in fear of domination and suppression in Muslim Pakistan. Communal violence killed an estimated one million Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs, and gravely destabilised both dominions along their Punjab and Bengal boundaries, and the cities of Calcutta, Delhi and Lahore. The violence was stopped by early September owing to the co-operative efforts of both Indian and Pakistani leaders, and especially due to the efforts of Mohandas Gandhi, the leader of the Indian freedom struggle, who undertook a fast-unto-death in Calcutta and later in Delhi to calm people and emphasise peace despite the threat to his life. Both governments constructed large relief camps for incoming and leaving refugees, and the Indian Army was mobilised to provide humanitarian assistance on a massive scale. The assassination of Mohandas Gandhi on 30 January 1948 was carried out by Nathuram Vinayak Godse, a Hindu nationalist, who held him responsible for partition and charged that Mohandas Gandhi was appeasing Muslims. More than one million people flooded the streets of Delhi to follow the procession to cremation grounds and pay their last respects.

text: In 1949, India recorded almost 1 million Hindu refugees into West Bengal and other states from East Pakistan, owing to communal violence, intimidation and repression from Muslim authorities. The plight of the refugees outraged Hindus and Indian nationalists, and the refugee population drained the resources of Indian states, who were unable to absorb them. While not ruling out war, Prime Minister Nehru and Sardar Patel invited Liaquat Ali Khan for talks in Delhi. Although many Indians termed this appeasement, Nehru signed a pact with Liaquat Ali Khan that pledged both nations to the protection of minorities and creation of minority commissions. Although opposed to the principle, Patel decided to back this pact for the sake of peace, and played a critical role in garnering support from West Bengal and across India, and enforcing the provisions of the pact. Khan and Nehru also signed a trade agreement, and committed to resolving bilateral disputes through peaceful means. Steadily, hundreds of thousands of Hindus returned to East Pakistan, but the thaw in relations did not last long, primarily owing to the Kashmir dispute.

text: Integration of princely states[edit]

text: British India consisted of 17 provinces and 562 princely states. The provinces were given to India or Pakistan, in some cases in particular — Punjab and Bengal — after being partitioned. The princes of the princely states, however, were given the right to either remain independent or join either dominion. Thus India's leaders were faced with the prospect of inheriting a fragmented nation with independent provinces and kingdoms dispersed across the mainland. Under the leadership of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, the new Government of India employed political negotiations backed with the option (and, on several occasions, the use) of military action to ensure the primacy of the central government and of the Constitution then being drafted. Sardar Patel and V. P. Menon convinced the rulers of princely states contiguous to India to accede to India. Many rights and privileges of the rulers of the princely states, especially their personal estates and privy purses, were guaranteed to convince them to accede. Some of them were made Rajpramukh (governor) and Uprajpramukh (deputy governor) of the merged states. Many small princely states were merged to form viable administrative states such as Saurashra, PEPSU, Vindhya Pradesh and Madhya Bharat. Some princely states such as Tripura and Manipur acceded later in 1949.

text: There were three states that proved more difficult to integrate than others:

text:
Junagadh (Hindu majority state with a Muslim nawab) – a December 1947 plebiscite resulted in a 99% vote[7] to merge with India, annulling the controversial accession to Pakistan, which was made by the Nawab against the wishes of the people of the state who were overwhelmingly Hindu and despite Junagadh not being contiguous with Pakistan.
Hyderabad (Hindu majority state with a Muslim nizam)– Patel ordered the Indian army to depose the government of the Nizam after the failure of negotiations, which was done between 13–17 September 1948. It was incorporated as a state of India the next year.
The area of Kashmir (Muslim majority state with a Hindu king) in the far north of the subcontinent quickly became a source of controversy that erupted into the First Indo-Pakistani War which lasted from 1947 to 1949. Eventually a United Nations-overseen ceasefire was agreed that left India in control of two-thirds of the contested region. Jawaharlal Nehru initially agreed to Mountbatten's proposal that a plebiscite be held in the entire state as soon as hostilities ceased, and a UN-sponsored cease-fire was agreed to by both parties on 1 Jan. 1949. No statewide plebiscite was held, however, for in 1954, after Pakistan began to receive arms from the United States, Nehru withdrew his support. The Indian Constitution came into force in Kashmir on 26 January 1950 with special clauses for the state.

tag: ol

text: Constitution[edit]

text: The Constituent Assembly adopted the Constitution of India, drafted by a committee headed by Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, on 26 November 1949. India became a sovereign democratic republic after its constitution came into effect on 26 January 1950. Dr. Rajendra Prasad became the first President of India. The three words 'socialist', 'secular' and 'integrity' were added later with the 42nd Constitution Amendment 1976.

text: Indo-Pakistani War of 1947–1948[edit]

text: The Indo-Pakistani War of 1947–1948 was fought between India and Pakistan over the princely state of Kashmir and Jammu from 1947 to 1948. It was the first of four Indo-Pakistan Wars fought between the two newly independent nations. Pakistan precipitated the war a few weeks after independence by launching tribal lashkar (militia) from Waziristan,[8] in an effort to secure Kashmir, the future of which hung in the balance. The inconclusive result of the war still affects the geopolitics of both countries.

text: 1950s and 1960s[edit]

text: India held its first national elections under the Constitution in 1952, where a turnout of over 60% was recorded. The National Congress Party won an overwhelming majority, and Jawaharlal Nehru began a second term as Prime Minister. President Prasad was also elected to a second term by the electoral college of the first Parliament of India.[9]

text: Nehru administration (1952–1964)[edit]

text: Prime Minister Nehru led the Congress to major election victories in 1957 and 1962. The Parliament passed extensive reforms that increased the legal rights of women in Hindu society,[10][11][12][13] and further legislated against caste discrimination and untouchability.[14] Nehru advocated a strong initiative to enroll India's children to complete primary education, and thousands of schools, colleges and institutions of advanced learning, such as the Indian Institutes of Technology, were founded across the nation.[15] Nehru advocated a socialist model for the economy of India — no taxation for Indian farmers, minimum wage and benefits for blue-collar workers, and the nationalisation of heavy industries such as steel, aviation, shipping, electricity and mining. Village common lands were seized, and an extensive public works and industrialisation campaign resulted in the construction of major dams, irrigation canals, roads, thermal and hydroelectric power stations and many more.[14]

text: States reorganisation[edit]

text: Potti Sreeramulu's fast-unto-death, and consequent death for the demand of an Andhra State in 1953 sparked a major re-shaping of the Indian Union. Nehru appointed the States Re-organisation Commission, upon whose recommendations the States Reorganisation Act was passed in 1956. Old states were dissolved and new states created on the lines of shared linguistic and ethnic demographics. The separation of Kerala and the Telugu-speaking regions of Madras State enabled the creation of an exclusively Tamil-speaking state of Tamil Nadu. On 1 May 1960, the states of Maharashtra and Gujarat were created out of the bilingual Bombay State, and on 1 November 1966, the larger Punjab state was divided into the smaller, Punjabi-speaking Punjab and Haryanvi-speaking Haryana states.[16]

text: Foreign policy and military conflicts[edit]

text:
Military conflicts

Lt Col Sucha Singh, CO 1 PARA, of India's Maroon Beret Parachute Regiment accepts the surrender of Portuguese forces at a military camp in Bambolim during the Annexation of Goa.

Sino-Indian War resulted in a Chinese victory. Aksai Chin comes under exclusive Chinese control.

text: Nehru's foreign policy was the inspiration of the Non-Aligned Movement, of which India was a co-founder. Nehru maintained friendly relations with both the United States and the Soviet Union, and encouraged the People's Republic of China to join the global community of nations. In 1956, when the Suez Canal Company was seized by the Egyptian government, an international conference voted 18-4 to take action against Egypt. India was one of the four backers of Egypt, along with Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and the USSR. India had opposed the partition of Palestine and the 1956 invasion of the Sinai by Israel, the United Kingdom and France, but did not oppose the Chinese direct control over Tibet,[17] and the suppression of a pro-democracy movement in Hungary by the Soviet Union. Although Nehru disavowed nuclear ambitions for India, Canada and France aided India in the development of nuclear power stations for electricity. India also negotiated an agreement in 1960 with Pakistan on the just use of the waters of seven rivers shared by the countries. Nehru had visited Pakistan in 1953, but owing to political turmoil in Pakistan, no headway was made on the Kashmir dispute.[18]

text:
India has fought a total of four wars/military conflicts with its rival nation Pakistan, two in this period. In the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947, fought over the disputed territory of Kashmir, Pakistan captured one-third of Kashmir (which India claims as its territory), and India reclaimed three-fifths (which Pakistan claims as its territory). In the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, India attacked Pakistan on all fronts after attempts by Pakistani troops to infiltrate Indian-controlled Kashmir.
In 1961, after continual petitions for a peaceful handover, India invaded and annexed the Portuguese colony of Goa on the west coast of India.[19]
In 1962 China and India engaged in the brief Sino-Indian War over the border in the Himalayas. The war was a complete rout for the Indians and led to a refocusing on arms build-up and an improvement in relations with the United States. China withdrew from disputed territory in what is to China South Tibet, and to India part of the North-East Frontier Agency that it crossed during the war. Unrelated to that war, India disputes China's sovereignty over the smaller Aksai Chin territory that it controls on the western part of the Sino-Indian border.[20]

text: Post-Nehru India[edit]

text: Jawaharlal Nehru died on 27 May 1964. Lal Bahadur Shastri succeeded him as Prime Minister. In 1965 in the Second Kashmir War India and Pakistan again went to war over Kashmir, but without any definitive outcome or alteration of the Kashmir boundary. The Tashkent Agreement was signed under the mediation of the Soviet government, but Shastri died on the night after the signing ceremony. A leadership election resulted in the elevation of Indira Gandhi, Nehru's daughter who had been serving as Minister for Information and Broadcasting, as the third Prime Minister. She defeated right-wing leader Morarji Desai. The Congress Party won a reduced majority in the 1967 elections owing to widespread disenchantment over rising prices of commodities, unemployment, economic stagnation and a food crisis. Indira Gandhi had started on a rocky note after agreeing to a devaluation of the rupee, which created much hardship for Indian businesses and consumers, and the import of wheat from the United States fell through due to political disputes.[21]

text: Morarji Desai entered Gandhi's government as Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister, and with senior Congress politicians attempted to constrain Gandhi's authority. But following the counsel of her political advisor P. N. Haksar, Gandhi resuscitated her popular appeal by a major shift towards socialist policies. She successfully ended the Privy Purse guarantee for former Indian royalty, and waged a major offensive against party hierarchy over the nationalisation of India's banks. Although resisted by Desai and India's business community, the policy was popular with the masses. When Congress politicians attempted to oust Gandhi by suspending her Congress membership, Gandhi was empowered with a large exodus of Members of Parliament to her own Congress (R). The bastion of the Indian freedom struggle, the Indian National Congress, had split in 1969. Gandhi continued to govern with a slim majority.[22]

text: In 1971, Indira Gandhi and her Congress (R) were returned to power with a massively increased majority. The nationalisation of banks was carried out, and many other socialist economic and industrial policies enacted. India intervened in the Bangladesh War of Independence, a civil war taking place in Pakistan's Bengali half, after millions of refugees had fled the persecution of the Pakistani army. The clash resulted in the independence of East Pakistan, which became known as Bangladesh, and Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's elevation to immense popularity. Relations with the United States grew strained, and India signed a 20-year treaty of friendship with the Soviet Union - breaking explicitly for the first time from non-alignment. In 1974, India tested its first nuclear weapon in the desert of Rajasthan, near Pokhran. Meanwhile, in the Indian protectorate of Sikkim, a referendum was held that resulted in a vote to formally join India and depose the Chogyal. On 26 April 1975, Sikkim formally became India's 22nd state.

text: Green revolution and Operation Flood[edit]

text: India's population passed the 500 million mark in the early 1970s, but its long-standing food crisis was resolved with greatly improved agricultural productivity due to the Green Revolution. The government sponsored modern agricultural implements, new varieties of generic seeds, and increased financial assistance to farmers that increased the yield of food crops such as wheat, rice and corn, as well as commercial crops like cotton, tea, tobacco and coffee.[23] Increased agricultural productivity expanded across the states of the Indo-Gangetic Plain and the Punjab. Under Operation Flood, the government encouraged the production of milk, which increased greatly, and improved rearing of livestock across India. This enabled India to become self-sufficient in feeding its own population, ending two decades of food imports.[24]

text: Indo-Pakistan War of 1971[edit]

text: The Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 was the third in four wars fought between the two nations. In this war, fought over the issue of self rule in East Pakistan, India decisively defeated Pakistan, resulting in the creation of Bangladesh.

text: Indian Emergency[edit]

text: Economic and social problems, as well as allegations of corruption, caused increasing political unrest across India, culminating in the Bihar Movement. In 1974, the Allahabad High Court found Indira Gandhi guilty of misusing government machinery for election purposes. Opposition parties conducted nationwide strikes and protests demanding her immediate resignation. Various political parties united under Jaya Prakash Narayan to resist what he termed Gandhi's dictatorship. Leading strikes across India that paralysed its economy and administration, Narayan even called for the Army to oust Gandhi. In 1975, Gandhi advised President Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed to declare a state of emergency under the constitution, which allowed the central government to assume sweeping powers to defend law and order in the nation. Explaining the breakdown of law and order and threat to national security as her primary reasons, Gandhi suspended many civil liberties and postponed elections at national and state levels. Non-Congress governments in Indian states were dismissed, and nearly 1,000 opposition political leaders and activists were imprisoned and a programme of compulsory birth control introduced.[25] Strikes and public protests were outlawed in all forms.

text: India's economy benefited from an end to paralysing strikes and political disorder. India announced a 20-point programme which enhanced agricultural and industrial production, increasing national growth, productivity and job growth. But many organs of government and many Congress politicians were accused of corruption and authoritarian conduct. Police officers were accused of arresting and torturing innocent people. Indira's son and political advisor, Sanjay Gandhi, was accused of committing gross excesses - Sanjay was blamed for the Health Ministry carrying out forced vasectomies of men and sterilisation of women as a part of the initiative to control population growth, and for the demolition of slums in Delhi near the Turkmen Gate, which left thousands of people dead and many more displaced.

text: Janata interlude[edit]

text: Indira Gandhi's Congress Party called for general elections in 1977, only to suffer a humiliating electoral defeat at the hands of the Janata Party, an amalgamation of opposition parties.[26] Morarji Desai became the first non-Congress Prime Minister of India. The Desai administration established tribunals to investigate Emergency-era abuses, and Indira and Sanjay Gandhi were arrested after a report from the Shah Commission.[27]

text: But in 1979, the coalition crumbled and Charan Singh formed an interim government. The Janata party had become intensely unpopular due to its internecine warfare, and a perceived lack of leadership on solving India's serious economic and social problems.

text: Indira Gandhi and her Congress Party splinter group, the Indian National Congress or simply "Congress", were swept back into power with a large majority in January 1980.

text: But the rise of an insurgency in Punjab would jeopardise India's security. In Assam, there were many incidents of communal violence between native villagers and refugees from Bangladesh, as well as settlers from other parts of India. When Indian forces, undertaking Operation Blue Star, raided the hideout of self-rule pressing[25] Khalistan militants in the Golden Temple- Sikhs' most holy shrine - in Amritsar, the inadvertent deaths of civilians and damage to the temple building inflamed tensions in the Sikh community across India. The Government used intensive police operations to crush militant operations, but it resulted in many claims of abuse of civil liberties. Northeast India was paralysed owing to the ULFA's clash with Government forces.

text: On 31 October 1984, the Prime Minister's own Sikh bodyguards assassinated her, and 1984 anti-Sikh riots erupted in Delhi and parts of Punjab, causing the deaths of thousands of Sikhs along with terrible pillage, arson and rape. Senior members of the Congress Party have been implicated in stirring the violence against Sikhs. Government investigation has failed to date to discover the causes and punish the perpetrators, but public opinion blamed Congress leaders for directing attacks on Sikhs in Delhi.

text: Rajiv Gandhi administration[edit]

text: The Congress party chose Rajiv Gandhi, Indira's older son, as the next Prime Minister. Rajiv had been elected to Parliament only in 1982, and at 40, was the youngest national political leader and Prime Minister ever. But his youth and inexperience were an asset in the eyes of citizens tired of the inefficacy and corruption of career politicians, and looking for newer policies and a fresh start to resolve the country's long-standing problems. The Parliament was dissolved, and Rajiv led the Congress party to its largest majority in history (over 415 seats out of 545 possible), reaping a sympathy vote over his mother's assassination.[28]

text: Rajiv Gandhi initiated a series of reforms - the Licence Raj was loosened, and government restrictions on foreign currency, travel, foreign investment and imports decreased considerably. This allowed private businesses to use resources and produce commercial goods without government bureaucracy interfering, and the influx of foreign investment increased India's national reserves. As Prime Minister, Rajiv broke from his mother's precedent to improve relations with the United States, which increased economic aid and scientific co-operation. Rajiv's encouragement of science and technology resulted in a major expansion of the telecommunications industry and India's space programme, and gave birth to the software industry and information technology sector.[29]

text: In December 1984, gas leaked out at the Union Carbide pesticides plant in the central Indian city of Bhopal. Thousands were killed immediately, while many more subsequently died or were left disabled.[25]

text: India in 1987 brokered an agreement between the Government of Sri Lanka and agreed to deploy troops for peacekeeping operation in Sri Lanka's ethnic conflict led by the LTTE. Rajiv sent Indian troops to enforce the agreement and disarm the Tamil rebels, but the Indian Peace Keeping Force, as it was known, became entangled in outbreaks of violence - ultimately ending up fighting the Tamil rebels itself, and becoming a target of attack from Sri Lankan nationalists.[30] V. P. Singh withdrew the IPKF in 1990, but thousands of Indian soldiers had died. Rajiv's departure from Socialist policies did not sit well with the masses, who did not benefit from the innovations. Unemployment was a serious problem, and India's burgeoning population added ever-increasing needs for diminishing resources.

text: Rajiv Gandhi's image as an honest politician (he was nicknamed "Mr. Clean" by the press) was shattered when the Bofors scandal broke, revealing that senior government officials had taken bribes over defence contracts by a Swedish guns producer.[31]

text: Janata Dal[edit]

text: General elections in 1989 gave Rajiv's Congress a plurality, a far cry from the majority which propelled him to power.[32]

text: Power came instead to his former finance and defence minister, VP Singh of Janata Dal. Singh had been moved from the Finance ministry to the Defence ministry after he unearthed some scandals which made the Congress leadership uncomfortable. Singh then unearthed the Bofors scandal, and was sacked from the party and office.[33] Becoming a popular crusader for reform and clean government, Singh led the Janata Dal coalition to a majority. He was supported by BJP and the leftist parties from outside. Becoming Prime Minister, Singh made an important visit to the Golden Temple shrine, to heal the wounds of the past. He started to implement the controversial Mandal Commission report, to increase the quota in reservation for low-caste Hindus.[34] The BJP protested these implementations and took its support back, following which he resigned. Chandra Shekhar split to form the Janata Dal (Socialist), supported by Rajiv's Congress. This new government also collapsed in a matter of months, when Congress withdrew its support.

text: The then-Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir Farooq Abdullah (son of former Chief Minister Sheikh Abdullah) announced an alliance with the ruling Congress party for the elections of 1987. But, the elections were allegedly rigged in favour of him. This led to the rise of the armed Muslim insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir composed, in part, of those who unfairly lost elections. Pakistan supplied these groups with logistical support, arms, recruits and training.

text: Islamist militants in Kashmir killed and tortured local Kashmiri Pandits, who were Hindu, forcing them to leave Kashmir in large numbers.[35] Around 90% of the Kashmiri Pandits left Kashmir during the 1990s, resulting in the ethnic cleansing of Kashmiri Hindus.

text: On 21 May 1991, while former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi campaigned in Tamil Nadu on behalf of Congress (Indira), a Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) female suicide bomber assassinated him and many others, setting off the bomb in her belt by leaning forward while garlanding him. In the elections, Congress (Indira) won 244 parliamentary seats and put together a coalition, returning to power under the leadership of P.V. Narasimha Rao. This Congress-led government, which served a full five-year term, initiated a gradual process of economic liberalisation and reform, which has opened the Indian economy to global trade and investment. India's domestic politics also took new shape, as traditional alignments by caste, creed, and ethnicity gave way to a plethora of small, regionally-based political parties.

text: But India was rocked by communal violence (see Bombay Riots) between Hindus and Muslims that killed over 10,000 people, following the Babri Mosque demolition by Hindu extremists in the course of the Ram Janmabhoomi dispute in Ayodhya in 1992. The final months of the Rao-led government in the spring of 1996 suffered the effects of several major political corruption scandals, which contributed to the worst electoral performance by the Congress Party in its history as the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party emerged as the largest single party.

text: Economic reforms[edit]

text: Under the policies initiated by late Prime Minister P. V. Narasimha Rao and his then-Finance Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh, India's economy expanded rapidly. The economic reforms were a reaction to an impending balance of payment crisis. The Rao administration initiated the privatisation of large, inefficient, and loss-inducing government corporations. The UF government had attempted a progressive budget that encouraged reforms, but the 1997 Asian financial crisis and political instability created economic stagnation. The Vajpayee administration continued with privatisation, reduction of taxes, a sound fiscal policy aimed at reducing deficits and debts, and increased initiatives for public works. Cities like Bangalore, Hyderabad, Pune, and Ahmedabad have risen in prominence and economic importance, becoming centres of rising industries and destinations for foreign investment and firms. Strategies like forming Special Economic Zones - tax amenities, good communications infrastructure, low regulation - to encourage industries has paid off in many parts of the country.[39]

text: A rising generation of well-educated and skilled professionals in scientific sectors of industry began propelling the Indian economy, as the information technology industry took hold across India with the proliferation of computers. The new technologies increased the efficiency of activity in almost every type of industry, which also benefitted from the availability of skilled labor. Foreign investment and outsourcing of jobs to India's labor markets further enhanced India's economic growth. A large middle class has arisen across India, which has increased the demand, and thus production of a wide array of consumer goods. Unemployment is steadily declining, and poverty has fallen to approximately 22%. Gross Domestic Product growth increased to beyond 7%. While serious challenges remain, India is enjoying a period of economic expansion that has propelled it to the forefront of the world economy, and has correspondingly increased its influence in political and diplomatic terms.[40]

text: Era of coalitions[edit]

text: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) emerged from the May 1996 national elections as the single-largest party in the Lok Sabha but without enough strength to prove a majority on the floor of that Parliament. Under Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the BJP coalition lasted in power 13 days. With all political parties wishing to avoid another round of elections, a 14-party coalition led by the Janata Dal emerged to form a government known as the United Front. A United Front government under former Chief Minister of Karnataka H.D. Deve Gowda lasted less than a year. The leader of the Congress Party withdrew support in March 1997. Inder Kumar Gujral replaced Deve Gowda as the consensus choice for Prime Minister of a 16-party United Front coalition.

text: In November 1997, the Congress Party again withdrew support for the United Front. New elections in February 1998 brought the BJP the largest number of seats in Parliament (182), but this fell far short of a majority. On 20 March 1998, the President inaugurated a BJP-led coalition government, with Vajpayee again serving as Prime Minister. On 11 and 13 May 1998, this government conducted a series of five underground nuclear weapons tests, known collectively as Pokhran-II — which caused Pakistan to conduct its own tests that same year.[41] India's nuclear tests prompted President of the United States Bill Clinton and Japan to impose economic sanctions on India pursuant to the 1994 Nuclear Proliferation Prevention Act and led to widespread international condemnation.

text: In the early months of 1999, Prime Minister Vajpayee made a historic bus trip to Pakistan and met with Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, signing the bilateral Lahore peace declaration.[25]

text: In April 1999, the coalition government led by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) fell apart, leading to fresh elections in September. In May and June 1999, India discovered an elaborate campaign of terrorist infiltration that resulted in the Kargil War in Kashmir, derailing a promising peace process that had begun only three months earlier when Prime Minister Vajpayee visited Pakistan, inaugurating the Delhi-Lahore bus service. Indian forces killed Pakistan-backed infiltrators and reclaimed important border posts in high-altitude warfare.[42]

text: Soaring on popularity earned following the successful conclusion of the Kargil conflict, the National Democratic Alliance - a new coalition led by the BJP - gained a majority to form a government with Vajpayee as Prime Minister in October 1999. The end of the millennium was devastating to India, as a cyclone hit Orissa, killing at least 10,000.[25]

text: Under Bharatiya Janata Party[edit]

text: In 2000 May, India's population exceeded 1 billion. President of the United States Bill Clinton made a groundbreaking visit to India to improve ties between the two nations. In January, massive earthquakes hit Gujarat state, killing at least 30,000.

text: Prime Minister Vajpayee met with Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf in the first summit between Pakistan and India in more than two years in the middle of 2001. But the meeting failed without a breakthrough or even a joint statement because of differences over Kashmir region.[25]

text: Three new states — Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Uttarakhand (originally Uttaranchal) — were formed in November 2000.

text: The National Democratic Alliance government's credibility was adversely affected by a number of political scandals (such as allegations that the Defence Minister George Fernandes took bribes) as well as reports of intelligence failures that led to the Kargil incursions going undetected, and the apparent failure of his talks with the Pakistani President.[25][44] Following the 11 September attacks, the United States lifted sanctions which it had imposed against India and Pakistan in 1998. The move was seen as a reward for their support for the War on Terror. The tensions of an imminent war between India and Pakistan again rose by the heavy Indian firing on Pakistani military posts along the Line of Control and the subsequent deadly Indian Parliament attack and the 2001–02 India–Pakistan standoff.[25]

text: In 2002, 59 Hindu pilgrims returning from Ayodhya were killed in a train fire in Godhra, Gujarat. This sparked off the 2002 Gujarat violence, leading to the deaths of 790 Muslims and 254 Hindus and with 223 people reported missing.

text: Throughout 2003, India's speedy economic progress, political stability and a rejuvenated peace initiative with Pakistan increased the government's popularity. India and Pakistan agreed to resume direct air links and to allow overflights, and a groundbreaking meeting was held between the Indian government and moderate Kashmir separatists.[25] The Golden Quadrilateral project aimed to link India's corners with a network of modern highways.

text: Congress rule returns[edit]

text: In January 2004 Prime Minister Vajpayee recommended early dissolution of the Lok Sabha and general elections. The Congress Party-led alliance won a surprise victory in elections held in May 2004. Manmohan Singh became the Prime Minister, after the Congress President Sonia Gandhi (born Antonia Edvige Albina Maino), the widow of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, declined to take the office, in order to defuse the controversy about whether her foreign birth should be considered a disqualification for the Prime Minister's post. The Congress formed a coalition called the United Progressive Alliance with Socialist and regional parties, and enjoyed the outside support of India's Communist parties. Manmohan Singh became the first Sikh and non-Hindu to hold India's most powerful office. Singh continued economic liberalisation, although the need for support from Indian Socialists and Communists forestalled further privatisation for some time.[45][46]

text: By the end of 2004, India began to withdraw some of its troops from Kashmir. By the middle of the next year, the Srinagar–Muzaffarabad Bus service was inaugurated, the first in 60 years to operate between Indian-administered and Pakistani-administered Kashmirs. However, in May 2006, suspected Islamic extremist militants killed 35 Hindus in the worst attacks in Indian-administered Kashmir for several months.[25]

text: The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami devastated Indian coastlines and islands, killing an estimated 18,000 and displacing around 650,000. The tsunami was caused by a powerful undersea earthquake off the Indonesian coast. Natural disasters such as the Mumbai floods (killing more than 1,000) and Kashmir earthquake (killing 79,000) hit the subcontinent in the next year. In February 2006, the United Progressive Alliance government launched India's largest-ever rural jobs scheme, aimed at lifting around 60 million families out of poverty.[25]

text: The United States and India signed a major nuclear co-operation agreement during a visit by United States President George W. Bush in March 2006. According to the nuclear deal, the United States was to give India access to civilian nuclear technology while India agreed to greater scrutiny for its nuclear programme. Later United States approved a controversial law allowing India to buy their nuclear reactors and fuel for the first time in 30 years. In July 2008, the United Progressive Alliance survived a vote of confidence brought after left-wing parties withdrew their support over the nuclear deal. After the vote, several left-wing and regional parties formed a new alliance to oppose the government, saying it had been tainted by corruption. Within three months, following approval by the U.S. Congress, George W. Bush signed into law a nuclear deal with India, which ended a three-decade ban on American nuclear trade with Delhi.[25]

text: In 2007 India got its first female President as Pratibha Patil was sworn in. Long associated with the Nehru–Gandhi family, Pratibha Patil was a low-profile governor of the state of Rajasthan before emerging as the favoured presidential candidate of Sonia Gandhi.[47] In February, the infamous Samjhauta Express bombings took place, killing Pakistani civilians in Panipat, Haryana. As of 2011, nobody had been charged for the crime, though it has been linked to Abhinav Bharat, a shadowy Hindu fundamentalist group headed by a former Indian army officer.[48] In 2008 October, India successfully launched its first mission to the Moon, the unmanned lunar probe called Chandrayaan-1. In the previous year, India had launched its first commercial space rocket, carrying an Italian satellite.[25] In July 2009, the Delhi High Court decriminalised consensual homosexual sex, declaring the British Raj-era law, Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, as unconstitutional.[49][50]

text: In November 2008, Mumbai attacks took place. India blamed militants from Pakistan for the attacks and announced a "pause" in the ongoing peace process.[25] In the Indian general election in 2009, the United Progressive Alliance won a convincing and resounding 262 seats, with Congress alone winning 206 seats. However, the Congress-led government faced many allegations of corruption. Inflation rose to an all-time high, and the ever-increasing prices of food commodities caused widespread agitation.

text: 21st-century India is facing the Naxalite-Maoist rebels, in the words of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, India's "greatest internal security challenge",[51] and other terrorist tensions (such as Islamist terrorist campaigns in and out of Jammu & Kashmir and terrorism in India's Northeast).[51][52] Terrorism has increased in India, with bomb blasts in leading cities like Mumbai, New Delhi, Jaipur, Bangalore, and Hyderabad.[42] In the new millennium, India improved relations with many countries and foreign unions including the United States, the European Union, Israel, and the People's Republic of China.[25] The economy of India has grown at a very rapid pace. India is now being looked at as a potential superpower.[45][46]

text: The concerns and controversies over the 2010 Commonwealth Games rocked the country in 2010, raising questions about the credibility of the government followed by the 2G spectrum scam and Adarsh Housing Society scam. In mid-2011, Anna Hazare, a prominent social activist, staged a 12-day hunger strike in Delhi in protest at state corruption, after government proposals to tighten up anti-graft legislation fell short of his demands.[25]

text: Despite all this, India showed great promise with a higher growth rate in gross domestic product.[53] In January 2011, India assumed a nonpermanent seat in the United Nations Security Council for the 2011-12 term. In 2004, India had launched an application for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council, along with Brazil, Germany and Japan. In March, India overtook China to become the world's largest importer of arms.[25]

text: The Telangana movement reached its peak in 2011-12, leading to formation of India's 29th state, Telangana, in June 2014.

text: The 2012 Delhi gang rape case and subsequent protest by civil society resulted in changes in the laws related to rape and offences against women. In April 2013, the Saradha Group financial scandal was unearthed, caused by the collapse of a Ponzi scheme run by Saradha Group, a consortium of over 200 private companies in Eastern India, causing an estimated loss of INR 200–300 billion (US$4–6 billion) to over 1.7 million depositors.[54][55][56][57] In December 2013, the Supreme Court of India overturned the Delhi High Court ruling on Sec 377, criminalising homosexual sex between consenting adults once again in the country.[58][59]

text: In August 2010, cloudbursts and the ensuing flooding in the Ladakh region of North India resulted in the deaths of around 255 people, while affecting 9,000 people directly.[60] In June 2013, a multi-day cloudburst in Uttarakhand and other north Indian states caused devastating floods and landslides, with more than 5,700 people "presumed dead."[61] In September 2014, floods in the state of Jammu and Kashmir, following heavy rains due to monsoon season, killed around 277 people and brought extensive damage to property.[62] A further 280 people died in the neighbouring Pakistani regions, particularly in Pakistani Punjab.[63]

text: In August - September 2013, clashes between Hindus and Muslims in Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh, resulted in at least 62 deaths,[64] injured 93, and left more than 50,000 displaced.[65][66][67][68]

text: In November 2013, India launched its first interplanetary mission, the Mars Orbiter Mission, popularly known as Mangalyaan, to Mars and, was successful, so ISRO on 24 September 2014, became the fourth space agency to reach Mars, after the Soviet space program, NASA, and the European Space Agency.[69] ISRO also became the first space agency and India the first country to reach Mars on its maiden attempt.

text: 2014 – Return of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Government[edit]

text: The Hindutva movement advocating Hindu nationalism originated in the 1920s and has remained a strong political force in India. The major party of the religious right, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), since its foundation in 1980 won elections, and after a defeat in 2004 remained one of the leading forces against the coalition government of the Congress Party. The 16th national general election, held in early 2014, saw a dramatic victory of the BJP; it gained an absolute majority and formed a government under the premiership of Narendra Modi, a BJP leader and till then the Chief Minister of Gujarat. The Modi government's sweeping mandate and popularity helped the BJP win several State Assembly elections in India. The Modi government implemented several initiatives and campaigns to increase manufacturing and infrastructure — notably — Make in India, Digital India and Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.


document_title: White House basement

question_text: when was the bowling alley put in the white house

text: White House basement

text: History[edit]

text: During World War II, a bomb shelter was constructed under the East Wing,[4] later converted into the Presidential Emergency Operations Center.

text: The sub-basement was added during the reconstruction of the White House under Harry S. Truman. It contains storage space, the laundry, elevator control machinery, the water softener, and incinerator, as well as dressing rooms for White House performers.[5]

text: Dwight Eisenhower made the first White House television broadcast from a special room in the basement in 1953,[1] though the "broadcast room" was soon divided for other purposes.

text: A bowling alley was added by Richard Nixon in 1969. There had previously been a bowling alley in the West Wing, built for President Truman in 1947, which had been moved to the Old Executive Office Building in 1955.[6]

text: After the Recording Industry Association of America suggested that the White House Library should be expanded to include sound recordings, that trade group donated over 2200 LPs during the Nixon and Carter administrations; when Ronald Reagan took office, the collection was moved to the White House basement, where it is still located.[7]


document_title: SI base unit

question_text: what is the standard base unit for length

text: SI base unit

text: Seven SI base units[edit]

text:
SI base units

Name
Symbol
Measure
Current (2005) formal definition[1]
Historical origin / justification
Dimension
symbol

metre
m
length
"The metre is the length of the path travelled by light in vacuum during a time interval of 1  ⁄ 7008299792458000000♠299792458 of a second."
17th CGPM (1983, Resolution 1, CR, 97)
1  ⁄ 10,000,000 of the distance from the Earth's equator to the North Pole measured on the circumference through Paris.
L

kilogram
kg
mass
"The kilogram is the unit of mass; it is equal to the mass of the international prototype of the kilogram."
3rd CGPM (1901, CR, 70)
The mass of one litre of water at the temperature of melting ice. A litre is one thousandth of a cubic metre.
M

second
s
time
"The second is the duration of 7009919263177000000♠9192631770 periods of the radiation corresponding to the transition between the two hyperfine levels of the ground state of the caesium 133 atom."
13th CGPM (1967/68, Resolution 1; CR, 103)
"This definition refers to a caesium atom at rest at a temperature of 0 K."
(Added by CIPM in 1997)
The day is divided in 24 hours, each hour divided in 60 minutes, each minute divided in 60 seconds.
A second is 1  ⁄ (24 × 60 × 60) of the day.
T

ampere
A
electric current
"The ampere is that constant current which, if maintained in two straight parallel conductors of infinite length, of negligible circular cross-section, and placed 1 metre apart in vacuum, would produce between these conductors a force equal to 2 × 10−7 newton per metre of length."
9th CGPM (1948)
The original "International Ampere" was defined electrochemically as the current required to deposit 1.118 milligrams of silver per second from a solution of silver nitrate. Compared to the SI ampere, the difference is 0.015%.
I

kelvin
K
thermodynamic temperature
"The kelvin, unit of thermodynamic temperature, is the fraction 1  ⁄ 7002273160000000000♠273.16 of the thermodynamic temperature of the triple point of water."
13th CGPM (1967/68, Resolution 4; CR, 104)
"This definition refers to water having the isotopic composition defined exactly by the following amount of substance ratios: 0.000 155 76 mole of 2H per mole of 1H, 0.000 379 9 mole of 17O per mole of 16O, and 0.002 005 2 mole of 18O per mole of 16O."
(Added by CIPM in 2005)
The Celsius scale: the Kelvin scale uses the degree Celsius for its unit increment, but is a thermodynamic scale (0 K is absolute zero).
Θ

mole
mol
amount of substance
"1. The mole is the amount of substance of a system which contains as many elementary entities as there are atoms in 0.012 kilogram of carbon 12; its symbol is 'mol'.
2. When the mole is used, the elementary entities must be specified and may be atoms, molecules, ions, electrons, other particles, or specified groups of such particles."
14th CGPM (1971, Resolution 3; CR, 78)
"In this definition, it is understood that unbound atoms of carbon 12, at rest and in their ground state, are referred to."
(Added by CIPM in 1980)

Atomic weight or molecular weight divided by the molar mass constant, 1 g/mol.
N

candela
cd
luminous intensity
"The candela is the luminous intensity, in a given direction, of a source that emits monochromatic radiation of frequency 7014540000000000000♠540×1012 hertz and that has a radiant intensity in that direction of 1/683 watt per steradian."
16th CGPM (1979, Resolution 3; CR, 100)
The candlepower, which is based on the light emitted from a burning candle of standard properties.
J

Name
Symbol
Measure
Current (2005) formal definition[1]
Historical origin / justification
Dimension
symbol

text: Proposed redefinitions[edit]

text: The definitions of the base units have been modified several times since the Metre Convention in 1875, and new additions of base units have occurred. Since the redefinition of the metre in 1960, the kilogram is the only unit that is directly defined in terms of a physical artifact, rather than a property of nature. However, the mole, the ampere, and the candela are linked through their definitions to the mass of the platinum–iridium cylinder stored in a vault near Paris.

text: It has long been an objective in metrology to define the kilogram in terms of a fundamental constant, in the same way that the metre is now defined in terms of the speed of light. The 21st General Conference on Weights and Measures (CGPM, 1999) placed these efforts on an official footing, and recommended "that national laboratories continue their efforts to refine experiments that link the unit of mass to fundamental or atomic constants with a view to a future redefinition of the kilogram." Two possibilities have attracted particular attention: the Planck constant and the Avogadro constant.

text: In 2005, the International Committee for Weights and Measures (CIPM) approved preparation of new definitions for the kilogram, the ampere, and the kelvin and it noted the possibility of a new definition of the mole based on the Avogadro constant.[2] The 23rd CGPM (2007) decided to postpone any formal change until the next General Conference in 2011.[3]

text: In a note to the CIPM in October 2009,[4] Ian Mills, the President of the CIPM Consultative Committee - Units (CCU) catalogued the uncertainties of the fundamental constants of physics according to the current definitions and their values under the proposed new definition. He urged the CIPM to accept the proposed changes in the definition of the kilogram, ampere, kelvin, and mole so that they are referenced to the values of the fundamental constants, namely the Planck constant (h), the electron charge (e), the Boltzmann constant (k), and the Avogadro constant (NA).[5]