Every new year brings the hope of a bright future bringing with it development and progress for the nation and peace and contentment for its citizens. This year was a remarkable one for India which involved important decisions being taken, new President being elected, great achievements in the field of sports and so on. Here are some highlights of important events that took place in 2017

GST was implemented

After a series of intense political debates and parliamentary deliberations, the much-contested Goods and Services Tax (GST) was rolled out on July 1, 2017, replacing multiple taxes levied by governments. The GST was implemented to tackle issues such as price rise, tax avoidance. The uniform taxation paved the way for the accelerated growth of GDP. It replaced over 15 different taxes and various cesses imposed by central and state governments. 

Triple Talaq Bill was passed

The Supreme Court banned Triple Talaq, the pernicious practice of Muslim men pronouncing 'talaq' (divorce) by repeating the word thrice, be it in person or even through e-mail or SMS. Recently, the Triple Talaq bill was passed by the Lok Sabha which termed it illegal. This is a big victory for Muslim women leading to gender equality and empowerment of Muslim women. The bill was hailed as historic by writers and journalists in social media.

FIFA Youth World Cup

For the first time, India hosted the FIFA Youth World Cup in October this year. The 17th FIFA U-17 World Cup was held across six cities in India. The matches of this biennial tournament drew record crowds who enthusiastically cheered the players. Talented players from 24 countries across the world participated in the tournament which saw England clinch the trophy by defeating Spain in the finals.

Election of President

India elected its 14th President in July 2017. Seventy-one-year-old Ram Nath Kovind took the office of the President from former Pranab Mukherjee who did not contest for a re-election owing to ill-health. Kovind won a majority of over 65 percent votes defeating Indian National Congress’s Meira Kumar who also formerly held the chair of Lok Sabha speaker. Additionally, BJP’s M Venkaiah Naidu was elected as India’s 13th Vice-President overpowering Opposition’s Gopalkrishna Gandhi in an election on August 5, 2017.

ISRO’s achievements continue to soar skywards

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) achieved a historic feat when it launched total104 satellites from its Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) in February. The Indian rocket successfully managed to launch Cartostat-2 (India’s earth observation satellite weighing 714 kgs) along with 103 other co-passenger satellites in a single go. After the tremendous success of Chandrayan I and Mars Orbiter Mission, It is now working on Chandrayan II and Aditya –L1 .

May the new year usher in many more achievements for India that will trigger the development and advancement of the country. At the same time, may all Indians be happy, cheerful and prosperous throughout the new year.