Did you know that India used to be an island 100 million years ago?

Around 50–60 million years ago, India collided with the Asian continent, giving rise to the Himalayas, the “roof of the world.” Amazing fact, right? India is renowned for its rich heritage and culture, and its brilliance doesn't stop there. In fact, India’s greatness spans across history, art, ancient technologies, science, and much more. India has been the inventor of countless things. Today, we bring you 30 fascinating facts about India:

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1. Chess, the game of intellect, was gifted to the world by India. It was invented during the Gupta Empire around 1500 years ago and was originally called Chaturanga.
2. Yoga, which promotes health and fitness worldwide, was born in ancient India around the 5th century BCE. Today, people across the globe practice yoga for better health.
3. The wettest place on Earth is Mawsynram, a village in Meghalaya, India, which receives an average of 11,872 mm of rainfall annually.
4. India is a linguistically diverse country with hundreds of languages spoken. Hindi is the most widely spoken, followed by English—making India the 24th largest English-speaking country in the world.
5. One of the world’s oldest living cities, Kashi (Varanasi or Banaras), is located on the banks of the Ganges. Believed to be over 3,000 years old, Hindu mythology claims that Lord Shiva founded the city 5,000 years ago.
6. The Golden Temple in India serves free vegetarian meals daily to over 50,000 visitors, regardless of race, religion, or social class—a true message of unity and humanity.
7. India has emphasized water conservation since ancient times. The Kallanai Dam is the fourth oldest dam in the world, still in use. The Chittorgarh Fort has enough tanks and stepwells to supply water for 50,000 people for a year.
8. Aryabhata, a brilliant mathematician and astronomer, explained the motion of the solar system and the moon as early as 499 CE in his work Aryabhatiya.
9. India was home to the world’s first university—Takshashila—established around 700 BCE, attracting thousands of students from across the world.
10. The largest religious gathering in the world, the Kumbh Mela, is held in India. In 2011, over 75 million pilgrims attended, a crowd so large it was visible from space.
11. India was the first country to produce and refine sugar, and this knowledge was later adopted by many other countries.
12. At Magnetic Hill in Ladakh, objects appear to defy gravity—vehicles in neutral gear seem to roll uphill!
13. The world’s highest bridge, Bailey Bridge, was built by the Indian Army in Ladakh in 1982.
14. India has the largest postal network in the world, with over 155,000 post offices. The most unique one floats on a boat in Dal Lake, Srinagar.
15. Women’s empowerment has deep roots in India. Ancient Indian women could speak freely on all issues and had the right to choose their partners through Swayamvar.
16. India invented snakes and ladders, chess (Chaturanga), buttons, shampoo, the calculation of pi, diamond mining, the concept of zero, algebra, trigonometry, and even detected water on the moon.
17. The Indus Valley Civilization was one of the world’s three oldest civilizations. It featured advanced urban planning, cotton production, stepwells, and a sophisticated drainage system.
18. The world’s highest cricket ground is in Chail, Himachal Pradesh, built in 1893 at an altitude of 2,444 meters.
19. The first granite temple in the world is the Brihadeeswarar Temple in Tamil Nadu, built in the 11th century. It took five years to construct.
20. Surgery was practiced in India as early as 2600 BCE. Ancient texts describe procedures for cataracts, bone setting, and kidney stone removal.
21. Madhopatti, a small village in Uttar Pradesh, has produced over 50 IAS and IPS officers—an extraordinary feat for such a tiny place.
22. Dr. Rajendra Prasad, India’s first President, only accepted half his salary and later took only 25% of it, believing he needed no more.
23. India pioneered navigation around 6,000 years ago during the Indus Valley Civilization.
24. Indian women hold 11% of the world's total gold. Until 1986, India was officially the only source of diamonds in the world.
25. India’s space agency ISRO launched its first rocket in 1963 from a church in Thumba, Kerala. The rocket was transported on a bicycle! Today, the launch center is known as the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre.
26. India exports software to over 90 countries, establishing itself as a global software powerhouse.
27. India is the largest producer of milk in the world, with over 150 million tons annually (as of 2015).
28. The Karni Mata Temple in Deshnok, Rajasthan, is home to thousands of rats that roam freely. Devotees consider them sacred, and the temple is famously known as the “Rat Temple.”
29. The Jantar Mantar in Jaipur is the largest stone observatory in the world, built by Maharaja Jai Singh in 1727. It accurately measures weather and celestial movements.
30. The Sonar Fort in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, is still inhabited. About 25% of the city’s population lives within the fort walls—one of the few such living forts in the world.