JuLY 10
7 Amarnath Pilgrims Killed
Seven pilgrims on the Amarnath Yatra—six of them women—are killed in a terror attack in Anantnag. At least 19 people are injured in one of the worst terror strikes in Jammu and Kashmir.
JuLY 11
14 Die in Arunachal Landslide
As many as 14 people are killed by a landslide triggered by incessant rains in Arunachal Pradesh’s Papum Pare district. The incident, the enormity of which shocks the people of the state, buries alive the victims when eight dwellings in Laptap village come under the landslide.
JuLY 16
Accident Claims 16 Amarnath Devotees
Sixteen people on a pilgrimage to the Amarnath shrine die in an accident on Jammu-Srinagar National
Highway. The bus carrying pilgrims falls into a gorge along the highway. The accident takes place in Ramban.
JuLY
Floods Sweep Hundreds to Death
Nearly 700 people die across India as monsoon rains submerge roads, damage electricity networks and trigger lethal lightning storms. From floods in the Northeastern state of Assam which also kill many animals at the Kaziranga National Park, to the ones in West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh and some hill states—it is a watery death for many.
JuLY 25
India Gets a New Prez
Former Bihar Governor Ram Nath Kovind takes oath as 14th President of India.
June 16
Darjeeling Burns
Crisis in Darjeeling deepens after the parties in the north Bengal hills come together to
demand a separate state. Trouble breaks out over the decades-long demand as hill parties go on a rampage and torch vehicles, forcing the administration to call out the army.
June 23
ISRO Puts 31 Satellites Through PSLV C-38
The PSLV, in its 40th flight, carries the Cartosat-2 series, and NIUSAT from the Noorul Islam University, Kanniyakumari. The other 29 nano satellites belong to Austria, Belgium, Chile, the Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia, the UK and the USA.
In the Line of Fire
2017 was one of the bloodiest years for our men in uniform. From facing militants in the Valley, to falling prey to Naxals in Chhattisgarh forests, to losing their lives in chopper crash in Arunachal Pradesh—none were spared.
According to some reports, more than a 100 army personnel lost their lives this year. Front pages of many a newspaper were splashed with heartbreaking images of grieving relatives—an old father burdened with memories, a 10-year-old grappling with the loss of a father she had hardly known, a shocked wife still refusing to believe her husband was dead. Now, with another year approaching, one only hopes that wounds heal and precious blood stops flowing.
August
Bihar Deluge Claims Nearly 500
Bihar has witnessed floods more than any other state in India. Rivers in spate sweep nearly 19 districts, affecting over 1.71 crore people this year. The death toll stands at 482. Seventy-six per cent of the population in north Bihar live under the recurring threat of flood devastation.
Aug 11
Naidu New Veep
Union minister M Venkaiah Naidu becomes the 13th Vice President of India.
Aug 13
Himachal Landslide Buries 46
Forty-six people are killed after a massive landslide bury two Himachal Pradesh roadways buses at Kotrupi in Mandi district on the Mandi-Pathankot national highway. The landslide strikes when the buses stop for tea around midnight at a roadside stall.
Aug 19
23 Die on Track as Kalinga Utkal Express Derails in UP
At least 23 people are killed and 40 injured when 14 coaches of the Hardwar-bound Kalinga Utkal Express derail in Uttar Pradesh’s Muzaffarnagar district, sending coaches ramming into each other as well as a house close to the tracks.
Aug 25
38 Dead in Ram Rahim Conviction Violence
Thousands of supporters of Sirsa-based Dera Sacha Sauda head Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh go on a rampage, setting fire to vehicles, buildings and railway stations soon after a special CBI court convicts the self-proclaimed godman in a 2002 rape case. Police respond by opening fire. The unrest results in 38 deaths.
Aug 22
SC Bans ‘Instant
Triple Talaq’
The Supreme Court bans the controversial Islamic divorce practice known as “triple talaq” in a landmark ruling. The practice that stretches back over a thousand years allows a husband to divorce his wife by simply saying the Arabic word for divorce, talaq, three times.
Aug 28
New CJI Appointed
Justice Dipak Misra is sworn in as 45th chief Justice of India.
Aug 29
Rains Ravage Mumbai
Heavy rains bring
Mumbai to a standstill, flooding swathes of area and sparking traffic snarls. Flights are diverted and movement of local trains are impeded. Approximately 30 lakh commuters are stuck on the railways by evening as local train services are paralysed due to water logging.
Aug 30
290 Kids Choke to Death in Gorakhpur
A total of 290 children die in the Baba Raghav Das Medical College allegedly due to lack of oxygen. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath forms a probe committee a day after the death of children.
Jun 18-Aug 28
Doklam Faceoff
On June 18, Indian troops enter Doklam—the trilateral border valley between Bhutan, India and China—to stop the Chinese troops from constructing a road. This leads to the military standoff till August 28, when both India and China announce withdrawal of their troops from the face-off site.
SEP 3
First Full-time Woman Defence Minister
Union minister Nirmala Sitharaman becomes the first full-time woman Defence Minister of India.
SEP 5
Journalist Shot Dead
Senior journalist-activist Gauri Lankesh, 55, is shot dead by unidentified assailants at the entrance of her home in Bengaluru West, triggering a nationwide outrage. Four bullets are pumped into the editor of the Kannada weekly Lankesh Patrike at her doorstep after she steps out of her car.
SEP 29
22 Die in Mumbai Station Stampede
At least 22 people are killed and more than 30 injured during a rush-hour stampede on a bridge between two railway stations in Mumbai. The crush occurs on a narrow footbridge connecting Prabhadevi station, formerly Elphinstone, and Parel station during the morning commuter rush and amid heavy rain.
NOV 1
32 Burnt to Death in NTPC
Boiler Blast in UP
As many as 32 workers are killed and over 100 injured when a high-pressure steam boiler in an NTPC-operated thermal power plant in Uttar Pradesh explodes. The incident occurs when workers are sent in to repair the newly commissioned 500 MW malfunctioning unit.
DEC 2
Cyclone Ockhi Claims 13 Lives
Cyclone Ockhi claims the lives of at least 13 people in Kerala and Tamil Nadu. It makes landfall in Lakshadweep. More than 500 fishermen stranded in the rough sea off Kerala and Lakshadweep coasts are rescued.
DEC 11
Marriage of Bollywood & Cricket
In one of the most-talked about weddings of the year, Team India captain Virat Kohli tie the knot with Bollywood actress and long-time girlfriend Anushka Sharma in Milan, Italy. The wedding receptions at Delhi and Mumbai see who’s who of politics, sports and film industry, including PM Narendra Modi, in attendance.
Dec 16
Rahul Anointed Congress Chief
After years of speculation and ‘will he-won’t he’ charade, Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi finally dons the mantle of the party president—the sixth in his family to do so.
Dec 18
BJP Clinches Guj & Himachal
BJP manages to pull off a nail-biting finish in Gujarat and another easy win in Himachal Pradesh, thanks in part to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s charisma and oratory skills.
Dec 23
Lalu Convicted Again
RJD president Lalu Prasad and 15 others
are found guilty of corruption in a second case pertaining to the fodder scam by a special CBI court in Ranchi. The court will pronounce the quantum of sentence on January 3.
DEC 25
Access ‘Denied’
Twenty-two months after
Pakistan arrested Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav for ‘spying’, a charge vehemently denied by India in forums across the globe, Jadhav is allowed to meet his wife and mother, across a glass wall at the Pakistan foreign office.
Jan 2
Agni-IV Tested Successfully
With a range of more than 4,000 km, the Agni-IV missile is successfully test-fired from an island off the Odisha coast. The indigenously developed surface-to-surface missile is a two-stage weapon system. It has the latest features to correct and guide itself for in-flight disturbances.
Jan 14
11 Drown in Bihar Boat Capsize
At least 11 people drown, including some minors, when a country boat carrying around 40 people on board capsizes on the Ganga in Patna suspectedly because of overloading. The passengers were returning to Ranighat in Patna from Sabalpur Diara across the river after watching a kite festival.
Jan 25
20 Perish in J&K Avalanches
Several avalanches and landslides hit the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway even as the death toll in the series of snow slides in Jammu and Kashmir cross 20. Two ghastly avalanches strike an army camp in Gurez sector of Bandipora district near the Line of Control and the Army camp of 115 Battalion at Sonmarg in central Kashmir’s Ganderbal district.
Feb 15
Single Mission, 104 Satellites
Space agency ISRO scripts history by successfully launching a record 104 satellites, including India’s earth observation satellite, on a single rocket from the spaceport in Sriharikota.
This is the highest number of satellites ever launched in a single mission.
March 11
Naxals Massacre 12 CRPF Men
Twelve CRPF personnel are killed and three others injured when Naxals ambush a road-opening party of the security forces in Maoist-hit Sukma district of Chhattisgarh. The attack takes place in the dense forests of Bhejji police station limits.