Tell about Partition of India ?

The date for independence was moved up to Aug. 15, 1947, and all that was left was "fine-tuning": determining the physical border separating the two new states.

With the decision in favor of partition made, the parties next faced this nearly impossible task of fixing a border between the new states

The Muslims occupied two main regions in the north on opposite sides of the country, separated by a majority-Hindu section.

In addition, throughout most of northern India, members of the two religions were mixed together—not to mention populations of Sikhs, Christians, and other minority faiths.

The Sikhs campaigned for a nation of their own, but their appeal was denied.

In the wealthy and fertile region of Punjab, the problem was extreme, with a nearly even mixture of Hindus and Muslims.

Neither side wanted to relinquish this valuable land, and sectarian hatred ran high.

According to historian Joya Chatterji, the border ruptured agricultural communities and divided towns from the hinterlands that they had habitually relied on to supply their needs.

Markets were lost and had to be reintegrated or reinvented; supply railheads were separated, as were families

he result was messy, with cross-border smuggling emerging as a thriving enterprise and an increased military presence on both sides.

On Jan. 30, 1948, Mohandas Gandhi was assassinated by a young Hindu radical for his support of a multireligious state.

Separately from India's partition, Burma (now Myanmar) and Ceylon (Sri Lanka) gained independence in 1948; Bangladesh gained independence from Pakistan in 1971.

Since August 1947, India and Pakistan have fought three major wars and one minor war over territorial disputes

The boundary line in Jammu and Kashmir is particularly troubled.

These regions were not formally part of the British Raj in India, but were quasi-independent princely states; the ruler of Kashmir agreed to join India despite having a Muslim majority in his territory, resulting in tension and warfare to this day.

In 1974, India tested its first nuclear weapon. Pakistan followed in 1998. Thus, any exacerbation of post-Partition tensions today could be catastrophic.