See also: 1946 in India, other events of 1947, 1948 in India and the Timeline of Indian history.
August 15
India gains its independence from Britain, but Hindu and Muslim unity is not achieved. A largely Hindu India and a Muslim Pakistan are created by partition of the subcontinent, with the Punjab and Bengal divided along religious-demographic boundaries between the two, and Kashmir remains in dispute. Jawaharlal Nehru becomes prime minister of India.