1897 in India

Incumbents

• Empress of India – Queen Victoria
• Viceroy of India – Victor Bruce, 9th Earl of Elgin

Events

• National income - 5,561 million
• The Indian famine of 1896–97 comes to a close
• Scindia School is established in Gwalior
• Frontier War of 1897–98
• Battle of Saragarhi
• 12 June – The 8.0 Assam earthquake shook northeastern India with a maximum Mercalli intensity of X, killing 1,542.
• Construction of Indian education service

Law

• Epidemic Diseases Act
• General Clauses Act
• Indian Fisheries Act

Births

• 23 January – Subhas Chandra Bose, one of the leaders of the Indian independence movement.
• 8 February – Zakir Husain, politician and third president of India.
• 19 April – Peter de Noronha, businessman and civil servant.
• 26 April – Nitin Bose, Indian film director, cinematographer and screenwriter.
• 3 May – V. K. Krishna Menon, nationalist and politician.
• 15 October – Mudicondan Venkatarama Iyer, Carnatic singer and musicologist.
• 2 November – Sohrab Modi, Indian Parsi stage and film actor, director and producer.
• Sahana Devi Indian singer and niece of Chittaranjan Das is born.

Deaths

• Abdul Ghani Saheb Saudagar, trader and business person dies