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| India
Facts and Figures |
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| India
Facts |
Whenever we look at India
at a glance, the first thing we notice is
its rich culture and unique diversity.
"India is the cradle of the human race,
the birthplace of human speech, the mother
of history, the grandmother of legend, and
the great grand mother of tradition. Our most
valuable and most astrictive materials in
the history of man are treasured up in India
only!"
- By Mark Twain
The above quote about India truly describes
what India is all about. India is a mix of
various traditions, cultures, rituals, religions,
casts, etc. a comprehensive of all these is
what we call India.
Read on further to explore other facts and
information on India-
Name: India, also known as
Bharat or Hindustan.
Area: 3.3 million sq. km
Population: 1027 million
(as per 2001 Census)
Capital: New Delhi
Religion: India is a secular
country where many religions co-exist. The
major religions practiced are-
Hindu: 80%
Muslim: 14%
Christian: 2.4%
Sikh: 2%
Buddhist: 0.7%
Jain: 0.5%
Zoroastrian and others: 0.4%
Location: Between latitudes
8 ° 4' and 37 ° 6 ' north and longitudes
68 ° 7 ' and 97 ° 25' east.
Coastline length: 7,600 km
Languages: 17 Major languages,
844 dialects. Hindi and English are most Popular
Climate: India experiences
three major seasons - winters, summers and
Monsoon.
States and Union Territories:
India has 28 states and 7 Union Territories
Government: Democratic form
of Government
Prime Minister: Mr. Manmohan
Singh.
President: Mr. A.P.J. Abdul
Kalaam
Currency: Rupees
National anthem: Jan Gana
Mana, written by Rabindranath Tagore
National emblem: Replica
of the Lion Capital of Sarnath
National flag: Horizontal
tricolor in equal proportion of deep saffron
on the top, white in the middle and dark green
at the bottom. In the center of the white
band is a wheel in navy blue colour.
National animal: Tiger
National bird: Peacock
National flower: Lotus
National tree: Banyan
National fruit: Mango
Time Zone: The Indian time
zone, Indian Standard Time (IST) is 5.5 hours
(5 hours and 30 minutes) ahead of the Greenwich
Mean Time (GMT).
Business Hours: 10 A.M. -
5 P.M. (Monday to Friday)
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| Economy
of India |
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India,
a land of rich culture, is the second most populous
country of the world. And area wise, it is the
seventh largest nation. Our Indian economy has
undergone a tremendous change, with the implementation
of a series of economic reforms.
These reforms focused attention
on deregulating the country and inducing foreign
investments. Eventually, it paved way for
India occupying a position among the top countries
in the fast growing Asia Pacific region. Read
on to explore further information about the
economic conditions in India. India has the
largest democracy in the world and has experienced
stability, since its independence. India's
political institutions have encouraged the
growth of an open society, where people can
express themselves freely. It is truly an
example of a free economy.
When the talk is about the
economy of India, it can be undoubtedly said
that it provides a complete security to its
foreign investors. It promotes a transparent
environment that includes a free press and
a proper legal and accounting system. India
has a competitive and dynamic private sector
that forms the backbone of India's economic
activities. It also accounts for more than
75% of India's Gross Domestic Product. It
has a lot of scope for joint ventures and
mergers.
India has established itself
as one of the most aggressively emerging markets
of the world, by harnessing the talent and
skills of its managerial and technical manpower.
India's abundant workforce provides it a competitive
edge in the global market.
India's economy is vast and
varied and consists of traditional village
farming, modern agriculture, handicrafts,
a wide distinctive range of modern industries,
and a large number of support services. Government
has become more liberal and has reduced its
control on foreign trade and investment and
is heading its way towards privatizing the
domestic sector.
Since 1990, the economy
of India has witnessed a decent growth rate
of 6% and has been successful in overcoming
poverty by about 10%. The strength of India
lies in its vast pool of educated and skilled
citizens. But, the weakness of India is the
continuing public-sector budget deficit, which
is nearly 10% of GDP.
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| Geography
of India |
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India
is a vast country with enormous geographical
variations. The features that make Indian geography
unique are - its mountain ranges, valleys, desert
regions, tropical rain forests, fertile plains,
dry plateaus, coastal areas etc. Read on to
know other facts about India:
India is the largest democracy in the world.
Other names of the country include Bharat or
Hindustan. The identity of India is unique with
its incredible diversity, both culturally and
physically. India offers big regional variations
in its climate, from cool mountain pastures
beside the glaciers, through windy plateau,
to warm river valleys and burning deserts. This
diversity in the climatic conditions throughout
the country is also reflected in its rich flora
and fauna.
By area, India is the seventh largest country
in the world. It consists of twenty-eight states
and seven Union Territories. Area covered by
India is 3.3 million sq. kms. Regarding the
location of India, it lies in the northern hemisphere.
The Indian mainland measures 3214 kms from north
to south between extreme latitudes and about
2933 kms from east to west between extreme longitudes.
Its land frontier is approximately 15200 kms.
India is also the second largest populous country
in the world, next only to China. Its population
is around 1027 million (as per 2001 census).
Around 16% of the world’s population lives
in India. However, regarding area, India accounts
for only 2.42% of the total world area.
India lies between 8º4' and 37º6'
north of the Equator. Surrounding the country
is the Bay of Bengal in the east, the Arabian
Sea in the west and the Indian Ocean in the
south. In the neighborhood of India lie Bangladesh
(in east), Pakistan (in west), Nepal (in north-east),
China (in north-east) and Sri Lanka (in south).
Separating India from Sri Lanka is the Gulf
of Mannar and the Palk Straits. Also a part
of India is the Andaman and Nicobar Island in
the Bay of Bengal and the Lakshwadeep in the
Arabian Sea. |
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| Indian
Holidays |
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India
is a land of Fairs and festivals. Almost every
month, some major festival is celebrated. Only
some of the holidays and festivals of India
have fixed date. Other festival dates change
from year to year. Given below is a list of
festivals in India:
Id - Ul Zuha (Bakrid)
It is a Muslim festival commemorating the sacrifice
of Abraham.
Republic Day
Republic Day, on Jan 26, marks the anniversary
of the adoption of the Constitution of India
in 1950.
Muharram
Another Muslim festival, it commemorates the
martyrdom of Imam Hussain, the grandson of the
holy Prophet Mohammed.
Rama Navami
Rama Navami is celebrated to mark the birthday
of a Hindu God, Shri Rama.
Mahavir Jayanthi
It is the birth anniversary of Vardhamana Mahavira,
the twenty-fourth Tirthankara.
Holi
It is a festival of colors welcoming the onset
of summer.
Good Friday
On this day, Christians mourn over the nailing
of Jesus Christ.
Buddha Purnima
This day marks the birth and enlightenment of
Buddha.
Id - Ud – Fitr
This festival celebrates the end of Ramzan,
the Muslim month of fasting.
Independence Day
On 15th August is the Independence Day of India.
Gandhi Jayanti
On 2nd October, India celebrates the birth anniversary
of Mahatma Gandhi.
Dussehra
To commemorate the win of good over evil, Dussehra
is celebrated in India.
Diwali
One of the major festivals in India, Diwali
celebrates the return of Hindu God, Rama, to
his birthplace.
Guru Nanak Jayanti (Gurupurab)
This day celebrates the birth anniversary of
Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism.
Christmas Day
On 25th December is celebrated Christmas, a
Christian festival.
Janamashtami
Janamashtami marks the birth anniversary of
Lord Krishna, a Hindu God.
Pongal
It is three-day harvest festival joyfully celebrated
in South India.
Baisakhi
On this day, Guru Gobind Singh organised them
into the 'Khalsa', brotherhood of man. Punjab
farmers start harvesting on this day.
Easter
A Christian festival, Easter celebrates the
resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Public holidays in
India tend to be observed on a strictly regional
basis. The only holidays to be observed throughout
India are Republic Day, Independence Day and
Gandhi Jayanti. In addition, there are a number
of festivals and fairs that are also observed
in some States as holidays.
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| Popular
Indian Language |
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Hindi
is the mother tongue of about 20% people in
India and the most popular of all the languages
spoken in India. It was declared to be the official
(national) Indian language by the Constitution
of India. English is the additional official
language of India. Hindi and English are spoken
and understood in most of the regions in India.
Apart from Hindi and English, there are 18 regional
languages of India.
Following is a list of languages spoken in India:
Assamese
It is the language of Assam, spoken by nearly
60 percent of the population.
Bengali
It is an official language of West Bengal.
Gujarati
It is the official language of Gujarat, spoken
by 70 percent of the population.
Hindi
Hindi is the national language of India.
Kannada
It is a language of Karnataka, spoken by 65
percent of the population.
Kashmiri
55 per cent of the state's population speaks
Kashmiri.
Malayalam
It is the state language of Kerala.
Marathi
It is an official language of Maharashtra.
Oriya
Oriya is the official language of the State
of Orissa.
Punjabi
It is the official language of the State of
Punjab.
Sanskrit
Sanskrit is the classical language of India.
It is also one of the oldest languages in the
world.
Sindhi
It is mainly spoken by a great number of people
in the Northwest frontier of the Indian sub-continent
comprising parts of India and Pakistan.
Tamil
It is the State language of Tamil Nadu.
Telugu
It is a language of Andhra Pradesh.
Urdu
The state language of Jammu and Kashmir is Urdu.
Apart from these major Indian languages, there
are a number of other languages spoken in India.
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| Indian
Weather |
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You will experience
a range of variations in the Indian climatic
conditions. India has three major seasons
– summers, winters and monsoon. The
lines below will tell you about Indian weather
in detail:
Summer
The summer season in India lasts from March
to June. During summers, temperature can even
go above average, causing unbearable heat.
Another drawback of summers is the dust-laden
air that can hamper views. Many Indians, themselves,
head to "hill stations" to get a
relief from the extreme heat of the lowlands.
Winters
The winter season lasts from October to February.
It is the best time to visit India. The weather
is pleasant throughout the country with minimal
rainfall in most places. It is the ideal time
to enjoy the beauty of India.
Monsoon
The monsoon season lasts from July to September.
Rains sweep across the country with heavy
downpours. The drawback of this season is
a high possibility of flooding in some areas.
This makes it difficult to travel around.
Duration of monsoons may vary in different
regions by several weeks.
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