Drafting Committee of the Indian constitution

• On August 29, 1947, the Drafting Committee of the Indian constitution was set up and Dr. Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar was appointed its chairman. B.R. Ambedkar was also the first Law Minister of India.
• The symbol (seal) of the Constituent Assembly - The Elephant.
• The Constitutional advisor (Legal advisor) to the Constituent Assembly-Sir B.N. Rau.
• The first elected president of The Constituent Assembly- ?Dr. Rajendra Prasad.
• First interim chairman of the Constituent Assembly- Sachchidananda Sinha.
• Sachchidananda Sinha took charge on 9 Dec 1946 but resigned on 11 Dec 1946 as Dr. Rajendra Prasad was elected as the first chairman of the Constituent Assembly.

Partition of India

• Lord Mountbatten was the last Viceroy of India and the first Governor of independent India.
• After the partition of India on 17 August 1947, the "Radcliffe Line" became the border between India and Pakistan.
• The line was determined by the Border Commission headed by Sir Cyril Radcliffe."

Indian National Army

• The Indian National Army was formed in Singapore by Mohan Singh in 1942.
• It was formed by Indian soldiers in the British Army who were captured by the Japanese Army during the Malayan campaign and at Singapore.
• It however was disbanded due to differences between Singh and the Japanese over the intended size and the specific role of the INA.
• In 1943, Subhashchandra Bose led the organization.
• It fought alongside the Japanese Army in Burma(Myanmmar), Imphal and Kohima.
• Many of them were captured by the British Army and were put on trial. This is called as the famous Red Fort Trials of 1945.
• The trial inspired the Royal Indian Navy mutiny of 1946.
• 'Ittehad, Itmad aur Qurbani'(Unity, Faith and Sacrifice in Urdu) was its motto.

Cabinet Mission Plan, 1946

• In March 1946, Lord Attlee sent a Cabinet Mission to India consisting of three Cabinet Ministers, namely Lord Pethick Lawrence, Sir Stafford Cripps, and Mr A.V. Alexander.
• According to the Cabinet Mission Plan, there was to be a Union of India, comprising both British India and the States, and having jurisdiction over the subjects of Foreign Affairs, Defence, and Communication. All residuary powers were to be vested in Provinces and the States.
• The Union was to have an Executive and a Legislature consisting of representatives of the Provinces and the States.
• The Provinces could form groups with executives and legislatures, and each group could be responsible to determine the provincial subjects.
• India was too divided into three groups of provinces, Group A, Group B, and Group C.
• The plan provided that the Union Constitution was to be framed by a Constituent Assembly, its members were to be elected on a communal basis by the Provincial Legislative Assemblies and the representatives of the states joining the Union.

University Education Committee

• This committee is known as the Radhakrishna Committee, 1948-1949 under the chairmanship of Dr, Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan.
• It was the first attempt after the independence.
• The major outcome of this committee was the recommendation and set up of Univesity Grant Commission (UGC) in 1956.
• This committee also suggested the integration of secondary and higher secondary education which leads the foundation of the Mudliar Commission.
• Some of the important recommendations of this committee are as follows:-

1. 12 years of pre-university education
2. Intermediate colleges for class IX, X, XI, and XII
3. English as a medium in higher education, etc.
4. So it is clear from the above discussion that the University Education committee 1948-49 was set up under the chairmanship of Dr, S. Radhakrishnan.