INDIA AT A GLANCE
India is one of the oldest civilizations in the world with a kaleidoscopic variety and rich cultural heritage. It has achieved all-round socio-economic progress during the last 65 years of its Independence. India has become self-sufficient in agricultural production and is now one of the top industrialised countries in the world and one of the few nations to have gone into outer space to conquer nature for the benefit of the people. It covers an area of 3,287,590 sq. km (1,269,346 sq mi), extending from the snow-covered Himalayan heights to the tropical rain forests of the south. As the 7th largest country in the world, India stands apart from the rest of Asia, marked off as it is by mountains and the sea, which give the country a distinct geographical entity. Bounded by the Great Himalayas in the north, it stretches southwards and at the Tropic of Cancer, tapers off into the Indian Ocean between the Bay of Bengal on the east and the Arabian Sea on the west.Lying entirely in the northern hemisphere, the mainland extends between latitudes 8° 4' and 37° 6' north, longitudes 68° 7' and 97° 25' east and measures about 3,214 km from north to south between the extreme latitudes and about 2,933 km from east to west between the extreme longitudes. It has a land frontier of about 15,200 km. The total length of the coastline of the mainland, Lakshadweep Islands and Andaman & Nicobar Islands is 7,516.6 km.
India is one of the oldest civilizations in the world with a kaleidoscopic variety and rich cultural heritage. It has achieved all-round socio-economic progress during the last 65 years of its Independence. India has become self-sufficient in agricultural production and is now one of the top industrialised countries in the world and one of the few nations to have gone into outer space to conquer nature for the benefit of the people. It covers an area of 3,287,590 sq. km (1,269,346 sq mi), extending from the snow-covered Himalayan heights to the tropical rain forests of the south. As the 7th largest country in the world, India stands apart from the rest of Asia, marked off as it is by mountains and the sea, which give the country a distinct geographical entity. Bounded by the Great Himalayas in the north, it stretches southwards and at the Tropic of Cancer, tapers off into the Indian Ocean between the Bay of Bengal on the east and the Arabian Sea on the west.Lying entirely in the northern hemisphere, the mainland extends between latitudes 8° 4' and 37° 6' north, longitudes 68° 7' and 97° 25' east and measures about 3,214 km from north to south between the extreme latitudes and about 2,933 km from east to west between the extreme longitudes. It has a land frontier of about 15,200 km. The total length of the coastline of the mainland, Lakshadweep Islands and Andaman & Nicobar Islands is 7,516.6 km.
PEOPLE
Particulars
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Description
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Population
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India's population, as on 1 March
2011 stood at 1,210,193,422 (623.7 million males and 586.4 million females).
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Population Growth Rate
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The average annual exponential
growth rate stands at 1.64 per cent during 2001-2011.
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Birth Rate
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The Crude Birth rate was 18.3 in
2009.
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Death Rate
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The Crude Death rate was 7.3 in
2009.
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Life Expectancy Rate
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65.8 years (Males); 68.1 years
(Females) in the period 2006-2011.
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Sex Ratio
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940 females per 1000 males
according to 2011 census
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Nationality
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Indian
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Ethnic Groups
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All the five major racial types -
Australoid, Mongoloid, Europoid, Caucasian, and Negroid find representation
among the people of India.
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Religions
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According to the 2001 census, out
of the total population of 1,028 million in the Country, Hindus constituted
the majority with 80.5%, Muslims came second at 13.4%, followed by
Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, and others.
|
Languages
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There are 22 different languages
that have been recognised by the Constitution of India, of which Hindi is an
Official Language. Article 343(3) empowered Parliament to provide by law for
continued use of English for official purposes.
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Literacy
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According to the provisional
results of the 2011 census, the literacy rate in the Country stands at 74.04
per cent, 82.14% for males and 65.46% for females.
|
GOVERNMENT
Particulars
|
Description
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Country Name
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Republic of India; Bharat Ganrajya
|
Government Type
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Sovereign Socialist Secular
Democratic Republic with a Parliamentary system of Government.
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Capital
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New Delhi
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Administrative Divisions
|
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Independence
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15th August 1947
(From the British Colonial Rule)
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Constitution
|
The Constitution of
India came into force on 26th January 1950.
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Legal System
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The Constitution of
India is the fountain source of the legal system in the
Country.
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Executive Branch
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The President of
India is the Head of the State, while the Prime Minister is
the Head of the Government, and runs office with the support of the Council of
Ministers who form the Cabinet Ministry.
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Legislative Branch
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The Indian Legislature comprises
of the Lok Sabha (House
of the People) and the Rajya Sabha (Council
of States) forming both the Houses of the Parliament.
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Judicial Branch
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The Supreme Court of India is the
apex body of the Indian legal system, followed by other High Courts and
subordinate Courts.
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Flag Description
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The National Flag is
a horizontal tricolour of deep saffron (kesaria) at the top, white in the
middle, and dark green at the bottom in equal proportion. At the centre of
the white band is a navy blue wheel, which is a representation of the Ashoka
Chakra at Sarnath.
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26th January (Republic Day)
15th August (Independence Day)
2nd October
(Gandhi Jayanti; Mahatma Gandhi's Birthday)
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