| Geographical Information |
| Map Location |
Asia |
| Geographical Location |
20° 00' North Latitude
77° 00' East Longitude |
| Surface Area |
3,287,590 sq km |
| Climate |
Varies from tropical monsoon in south to temperate in north |
| Natural Resources |
Coal (fourth-largest reserves in the world), iron ore, manganese, mica, bauxite, titanium ore, chromite, natural gas, diamonds, petroleum, limestone, arable land |
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| Political Information |
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| Country Name |
Republic of India |
| Capital City |
New Delhi |
| Government Type |
Federal republic |
| Administrative Divisions |
28 states and 7 union territories*; Andaman and Nicobar Islands*, Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chandigarh*, Chhattisgarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli*, Daman and Diu*,
Delhi*, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Lakshadweep*, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland,
Orissa, Pondicherry*, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Uttaranchal, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal |
| Independence Day |
15 August 1947 (from UK) |
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| Demographical Information |
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| Population |
1,080,264,388 (July 2005 est.) |
| Nationality |
Indian |
| Ethnic Groups |
Indo-Aryan 72%, Dravidian 25%, Mongoloid and other 3% (2000) |
| Religion |
Hindu 81.3%, Muslim 12%, Christian 2.3%, Sikh 1.9%, other groups including Buddhist, Jain, Parsi 2.5% (2000) |
| Languages |
English enjoys associate status but is the most important language for national, political, and commercial communication; Hindi is the national language and primary tongue of 30% of the people; there are 14 other official languages:
Bengali, Telugu, Marathi, Tamil, Urdu, Gujarati, Malayalam, Kannada, Oriya, Punjabi, Assamese, Kashmiri, Sindhi, and Sanskrit; Hindustani is a popular variant of Hindi/Urdu spoken widely throughout northern India but is not an official language |
| Population Growth Rate |
1.4% (2005 est.) |
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| Economical Information |
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| Currency |
Indian rupee (INR) |
| Industries |
Textiles, chemicals, food processing, steel, transportation equipment, cement, mining, petroleum, machinery, software |
| Labor Force |
482.2 million (2004 est.) |
| Labor Force by Sectors |
Agriculture 60%, industry 17%, services 23% (1999) |
| Agriculture Products |
Rice, wheat, oilseed, cotton, jute, tea, sugarcane, potatoes; cattle, water buffalo, sheep, goats, poultry; fish |
| Export Commodities |
Textile goods, gems and jewelry, engineering goods, chemicals, leather manufactures |
| Export Partners |
US 18.4%, China 7.8%, UAE 6.7%, UK 4.8%, Hong Kong 4.3%, Germany 4% (2004) |
| Import Commodities |
Crude oil, machinery, gems, fertilizer, chemicals |
| Import Partners |
US 7%, Belgium 6.1%, China 5.9%, Singapore 4.8%, Australia 4.6%, UK 4.6%, Germany 4.5% (2004) |
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| Transportation |
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| Railways |
63,140 km (15,994 km electrified) |
| Highways |
2,525,989 km |
| Pipelines |
Gas 6,171 km; liquid petroleum gas 1,195 km; oil 5,613 km; refined products 5,567 km (2004) |
| Airports |
333 (2004 est.) |
| Ports and Harbors |
Chennai (Madras), Cochin, Jawaharal Nehru, Kandla, Kolkata (Calcutta), Mumbai (Bombay), Vishakhapatnam |
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| Communication |
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| Phone Code |
+91 |
| Internet Abbreviation |
.in |
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| Other |
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| Short History |
The Indus Valley civilization, one of the oldest in the world, dates back at least 5,000 years. Aryan tribes from the northwest invaded about 1500 B.C.;
their merger with the earlier Dravidian inhabitants created the classical Indian culture. Arab incursions starting in the 8th century and Turkish in the 12th were
followed by those of European traders, beginning in the late 15th century. By the 19th century, Britain had assumed political control of virtually all Indian lands.
Indian armed forces in the British army played a vital role in both World Wars. Nonviolent resistance to British colonialism led by Mohandas GANDHI and Jawaharlal NEHRU brought independence in 1947.
The subcontinent was divided into the secular state of India and the smaller Muslim state of Pakistan. A third war between the two countries in 1971 resulted in East Pakistan becoming the separate nation of Bangladesh.
Despite impressive gains in economic investment and output, India faces pressing problems such as the ongoing dispute with Pakistan over Kashmir, massive overpopulation, environmental degradation, extensive poverty, and ethnic and religious strife. |
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