South Asia: Creating Dilemmas of Diversity - Dragons and Tigers: A Geography of South, East and Southeast Asia - page 175

Figure 6-16
Old and New Delhi. Fascination with geometry
and perspective, concern for order and accessi-
bility , and desire for grand vistas and impres-
sive layouts led to New Delhi' s design. This
plan stands in stark contrast to the narrow
streets and winding passageways of the forti-
fied old city . Whereas New Delhi was planned,
Old Delhi evolved naturally .

There were those who thought that India would be re-
warded in a similar manner. It was not--but imperialist
ways would not prevail. Anything short of independ-
ence was unacceptable. After all, the Chinese Revolu-
tion of 1911 and the Russian Revolution of 1918
demonstrated that popular uprisings could overthrow
despotic regimes.
British opposition reached its lowest point in 1919
with a massacre of unarmed Indian demonstrators at
Amritsar in the Punjab. The toll was 400 dead and 1,000
injured. The British Raj lost the loyalty and support of
millions. Mohandas Gandhi (1869-1948), considered a
“saintly fanatic” by the viceroy , was profoundly affected
by this event.

Gandhi: Great Soul

Did you know that Martin Luther King, who led the
civil rights movement for African Americans in the
United States, was strongly influenced by the philoso-
phy of Gandhi?

Mohandas Gandhi (1869-1948), born in Gujarat,
experienced discrimination as an Indian practicing
law in South Africa. There, on behalf of the Indian
community , he developed the strategy of nonviolent
protest against injustice. Upon his return to India in