Prof. Bipan Chandra, an Indian historian, was specialized in Indian Independence Movement, economic and political history of modern India.

Prof. Bipan Chandra – Indian Historian

Bipan Chandra was an Indian historian. He was specialized in the economic and political history of modern India. He specialized in the Indian Independence Movement and is considered a leading scholar on Mahatma Gandhi. Bipan Chandra was a respected professor of modern history at Jawaharlal Nehru University.

Early Life and Education of

Bipan Chandra was born on 27 May 1928 in Kangra, Punjab, British India (now in Himachal Pradesh). He did his studies in the Urdu language because at that time it was taught in Urdu in Punjab of British-India.

He graduated from Forman Christian College, Lahore in 1946. He studied at Stanford University, California, United States, to complete his graduation and post-graduation. 

In the early 1950s, Bipan Chandra was appointed lecturer in History at the Hindu College, Delhi. Later, he completed his Ph.D. from Delhi University in 1963.

Career of Prof. Bipan Chandra

Bipan Chandra taught at Hindu College, Delhi for many years as a lecturer and then as a reader. Soon after the Jawaharlal Nehru University was founded, he became a professor of History. After retirement, he was appointed as an emeritus professor there. He founded the journal Enquiry and was a member of its editorial board.

Chandra was a sectional president and then the general president of the Indian History Congress in 1985. He was chairperson of the Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. In 1993, he became a member of the University Grants Commission.

He was the chairman of the National Book TrustNew Delhi from 2004 to 2012. As Chairman of National Book Trust, India, he started many new series such as Popular Social Science, Autobiography, Afro-Asian Countries series, Indian Diaspora Studies, etc. In his retirement years, he was appointed as a national research professor in 2007.

Research by Prof. Bipan Chandra

Chandra was at the forefront of the communist movement in India since independence. His co-authored book, Freedom Struggle, was censored by the new central government that came to power in India in 1977.

Chandra collaborated with historians such as Nurul HasanRam Sharan SharmaSarvapalli GopalSatish ChandraRomila ThaparIrfan HabibBarun De, and Arjun Dev and some of his students, such as Mridula Mukherjee, Aditya Mukherjee, Sucheta Mahajan, and Vishalakshi Menon.

Publications

  • The Making of Modern India: From Marx to Gandhi, Orient Blackswan, 2000 (Buy Now)
  • History of Modern India, Orient Blackswan, 1990 (Buy Now)
  • Communalism: A Primer, (New Delhi, 2008) (Buy Now)
  • In the Name of Democracy: The JP Movement and the Emergency, (New Delhi, 2003) (Buy Now)
  • Essays on Colonialism, (New Delhi, 1999) (Buy Now)
  • India Since Independence, (jointly with Mridula Mukherjee and Aditya Mukherjee), (New Delhi, 1999) (Buy Now)
  • Ideology and Politics in Modern India, (New Delhi, 1994) (Buy Now)
  • Essays on Indian Nationalism, (New Delhi, 1993) (Buy Now)
  • Essays on Contemporary India, (New Delhi, 1993) (Buy Now)
  • The Epic Struggle, (New Delhi, 1992) (Buy Now)
  • India’s Struggle for Independence, 1857-1947, (New Delhi, 1989) (Buy Now)
  • Indian National Movement: The Long Term Dynamics, (New Delhi, 1988) (Buy Now)
  • Communalism in Modern India, (New Delhi, 1984) (Buy Now)
  • The Indian Left: Critical Appraisal, (New Delhi, 1983)
  • Nationalism and Colonialism in Modern India, (New Delhi, 1979) (Buy Now)
  • Freedom Struggle, (jointly with Amalesh Tripathi and Barun De), (New Delhi, 1972) (Buy Now)
  • The Rise and Growth of Economic Nationalism in India: Economic Policies of Indian National Leadership, 1880-1905, (New Delhi, 1966) (Buy Now)

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