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'''India''', officially the '''Republic of India''',<ref name=BRITANNICA>[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/285248/India India] Britannica Online</ref> is a country in South Asia. India occupies 2.4% of the world's land area, and supports over 15% of the world's population. Only China has a larger population. India's median age is 25, one of the youngest among large economies. About 70% live in more than 550,000 villages, and the remainder in more than 200 towns and cities. Over the thousands of years of its history, India has been invaded from the Iranian plateau, Central Asia, Arabia, Afghanistan, and the West; Indian people and culture have absorbed and modified these influences to produce a remarkable racial and cultural synthesis.
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'''India''', officially the '''Republic of India''',<ref name=BRITANNICA>[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/285248/India India] Britannica Online</ref> is a country in South Asia. India occupies 2.4% of the world's land area, and supports over 15% of the world's population. Only China has a larger population. India's median age is 25, one of the youngest among large economies. About 70% live in more than 550,000 villages, and the remainder in more than 300 towns and cities. Over the thousands of years of its history, India has been invaded from the Iranian plateau, Central Asia, Arabia, Afghanistan, and the West; Indian people and culture have absorbed and modified these influences to produce a remarkable racial and cultural synthesis.
 
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Religion, caste, and language are major determinants of social and political organization in India today. However, with more job opportunities in the private sector and better chances of upward social mobility, India has begun a quiet social transformation in this area. The government has recognized 18 official languages; Hindi, the national language, is the most widely spoken, although English is a national lingua franca. Although 81% of its people are Hindu, India also is the home of more than 138 million Muslims--one of the world's largest Muslim populations. The population also includes Christians, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, and Parsis.
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The Hindu caste system reflects Indian occupational and socially defined hierarchies. Ancient Sanskrit sources divide society into four major categories, priests (Brahmin), warriors (Kshatriya), traders (Vaishya) and farmers/laborers (Shudra). Although these categories are understood throughout India, they describe reality only in the most general terms. They omit, for example, the tribes and those once known as "untouchables." In reality, Indian society is divided into thousands of jatis--local, endogamous groups based on occupation--and organized hierarchically according to complex ideas of purity and pollution. Discrimination based on caste is officially illegal, but remains prevalent, especially in rural areas. Nevertheless, the government has made strong efforts to minimize the importance of caste through active affirmative action and social policies. Moreover, caste has been diluted if not subsumed in the economically prosperous and heterogeneous cities, where an increasing percentage of India's population lives. In the countryside, expanding education, land reform and economic opportunity through access to information, communication, transport, and credit have lessened the harshest elements of the caste system.
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==History==
 
==History==
The people of India have had a continuous civilization since 2500 B.C., when the inhabitants of the Indus River valley developed an urban culture based on commerce and sustained by agricultural trade. This civilization declined around 1500 B.C., probably due to ecological changes.
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[[Image:Image-Mohenjodaro toy.jpg|thumb|right|A children's toy found in Mohenjo-daro, one of the largest city-settlements of the Indus Valley Civilization.]]
  
During the second millennium B.C., pastoral, Aryan-speaking tribes migrated from the northwest into the subcontinent, settled in the middle Ganges River valley, and adapted to antecedent cultures.
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Whereas human settlement in India dates back to roughly 400,000 to 200,000 B.C., extensive urbanization and trade appear to have begun in the Indus River Valley around 3000 B.C. with the Harappan civilization.<ref name=LOC>[http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/India.pdf Country Profile: India] Country Studies, Library of Congress</ref> This civilization declined around 1500 B.C., probably due to ecological changes.<ref name=USSTATEDEPARTMENT>[http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/3454.htm  Background Note: India] [[United States Department of State]]</ref> The Aryans, who migrated from Persia to northwestern India around 2000 B.C.<ref name=LOC/> and settled in the middle Ganges River valley,<ref name=USSTATEDEPARTMENT/> brought a new pantheon of anthropomorphic gods, an early form of Sanskrit language, a tiered social system essentially based on ethnicity and occupation, and religious texts that are an important part of living Hindu traditions.<ref name=LOC/> The political map of ancient and medieval India was made up of myriad kingdoms with fluctuating boundaries.<ref name=USSTATEDEPARTMENT/> From 326 B.C. to around 200 B.C., the Mauryan Empire emerged as India’s first imperial power and ruled its areas with a highly centralized and hierarchical administration. For the next few hundred years, North and South India experienced a succession of ruling powers. From 320 A.D. to 550 A.D., most of North India was ruled by the Gupta Empire, which in contrast to the Mauryan Empire maintained a decentralized form of government, using numerous regional and local officials to govern vast territories with an array of local political, economic, and social arrangements.<ref name=LOC/> During this period, known as India's Golden Age,<ref name=USSTATEDEPARTMENT/> multiple components of Hindu culture became crystallized into a more unified system of thought.<ref name=LOC/>
  
The political map of ancient and medieval India was made up of myriad kingdoms with fluctuating boundaries. In the 4th and 5th centuries A.D., northern India was unified under the Gupta Dynasty. During this period, known as India's Golden Age, Hindu culture and political administration reached new heights.
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From the disintegration of the Gupta Empire to the mid-thirteenth century, various regional kingdoms emerged and no highly centralized government was formed in South India, and South Indian villages and districts enjoyed much greater local autonomy than those in North India. During this period, South India engaged in flourishing trade with Arabs and Southeast Asia, which facilitated the diffusion of Indian mathematical concepts to the Middle East and Indian art, literature, and social customs to Southeast Asia. Islamic influence in South Asia emerged around 711 as Arabs conquered part of Sindh (now in Pakistan),<ref name=LOC/> and in the 10th and 11th centuries, Turks and Afghans invaded India and established sultanates in Delhi. Islam spread across the subcontinent over a period of 700 years. In the early 16th century, Babur established the Mughal Dynasty, which lasted for 200 years. South India followed an independent path, but by the 17th century large areas of South India came under the direct rule or influence of the expanding Mughal Empire.<ref name=USSTATEDEPARTMENT/>
  
Islam spread across the subcontinent over a period of 700 years. In the 10th and 11th centuries, Turks and Afghans invaded India and established sultanates in Delhi. In the early 16th century, Babur, a Turkish adventurer and distant relative of Timurlane, established the Mughal Dynasty, which lasted for 200 years. South India followed an independent path, but by the 17th century large areas of South India came under the direct rule or influence of the expanding Mughal Empire. While most of Indian society in its thousands of villages remained untouched by the political struggles going on around them, Indian courtly culture evolved into a unique blend of Hindu and Muslim traditions.
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[[Image:Image-Gandhi Salt March.jpg|thumb|left|Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi in a salt march. Gandhi promoted the concept of ''Satyagraha'', a practice of nonviolent resistance and was a major figure in the Indian independence movement. According to George Woodcock, Gandhi was also an self-identified anarchist.<ref>George Woodcock, ''Anarchism: a History of Libertarian Ideas and Movements'', Chapter: "Prologue", pp 21, Broadview Press, 2004, ISBN 1551116294</ref> Gandhi said, "The state evil is not the cause but the effect of social evil, just as the sea-waves are the effect not the cause of the storm. The only way of curing the disease is by removing the cause itself." Anarchism in India finds its first well-known expression with this statement by Gandhi.<ref>Adams, Jason, [http://raforum.info/article.php3?id_article=3225&lang=en Non-Western Anarchisms: Rethinking the Global Context], Zalabaza Books, Johannesburg, South Africa.</ref>]]
  
The first British outpost in South Asia was established by the English East India Company in 1619 at Surat on the northwestern coast. Later in the century, the Company opened permanent trading stations at Madras (now Chennai), Bombay (now Mumbai), and Calcutta (now Kolkata), each under the protection of native rulers.
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The first British outpost in South Asia was established by the English East India Company in 1619 at Surat on the northwestern coast. Later in the century, the Company opened permanent trading stations at Madras (now Chennai), Bombay (now Mumbai), and Calcutta (now Kolkata), each under the protection of native rulers. The British expanded their influence from these footholds until, by the 1850s, they controlled most of present-day India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh. In 1857, a rebellion in north India led by Indian soldiers seeking the restoration of the Mughal Emperor failed and the British Parliament transfered political power from the East India Company to the Crown. Great Britain began administering most of India directly, while controlling the rest through treaties with local rulers. In the late 1800s, the first steps were taken toward self-government in British India with the appointment of Indian councilors to advise the British Viceroy and the establishment of Provincial Councils with Indian members; the British subsequently widened participation in Legislative Councils. Beginning in 1920, Indian leader Mohandas K. Gandhi transformed the Indian National Congress (INC) political party into a mass movement to campaign against British colonial rule. The party used both parliamentary and nonviolent resistance and non-cooperation to agitate for independence.<ref name=USSTATEDEPARTMENT/> Rising civil disobedience and World War II eventually rendered India too costly and difficult to administer, and the British granted independence in 1947.<ref name=LOC/>
  
The British expanded their influence from these footholds until, by the 1850s, they controlled most of present-day India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh. In 1857, an unsuccessful rebellion in north India led by Indian soldiers seeking the restoration of the Mughal Emperor caused the British Parliament to transfer political power from the East India Company to the Crown. Great Britain began administering most of India directly, while controlling the rest through treaties with local rulers.
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After independence, Jawaharlal Nehru became the first prime minister. In 1966, Nehru's daughter Indira Gandhi became prime minister who in 1975, declared a state of emergency and suspended many civil liberties. In 1984, Gandhi was assassinated and Indian politics witnessed a series of turmoil for a period of time. In the early 1990s, under the leadership of P.V. Narasimha Rao, the Congress-led government initiated a process of privatization, which opened the Indian economy to global trade and investment. Hindu nationalists supportive of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) destroyed a 17th century mosque in Ayodhya in 1992, sparking widespread religious riots in which thousands, mostly Muslims, were killed. In May 1996 national elections, the Hindu nationalist BJP emerged as a major national political party.<ref name=USSTATEDEPARTMENT/> In 1998, India conducted five<ref name=NTI>[http://www.nti.org/e_research/profiles/India/index.html India Profile] The Nuclear Threat Initiative</ref> underground<ref name=USSTATEDEPARTMENT/> nuclear tests, making India a nuclear state.<ref name=NTI/> The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) - a coalition led by the BJP - won a majority to form the government in October 1999. In February 2002, 57 Hindu volunteers returning from Ayodhya were burnt alive when their train caught fire. Alleging that the fire was caused by Muslim attackers, anti-Muslim rioters throughout Gujarat killed over 900 people and left 100,000 homeless. This led to accusations that the Hindu nationalist BJP-led Gujarat state government had not done enough to contain the riots, or arrest and prosecute the rioters. The ruling BJP-led coalition was defeated in the 2004 election, and a Congress-led coalition, known as the United Progressive Alliance (UPA), took power on May 22.<ref name=USSTATEDEPARTMENT/>
  
In the late 1800s, the first steps were taken toward self-government in British India with the appointment of Indian councilors to advise the British Viceroy and the establishment of Provincial Councils with Indian members; the British subsequently widened participation in Legislative Councils. Beginning in 1920, Indian leader Mohandas K. Gandhi transformed the Indian National Congress political party into a mass movement to campaign against British colonial rule. The party used both parliamentary and nonviolent resistance and non-cooperation to agitate for independence. During this period, however, millions of Indians served with honor and distinction in the British armed forces, including service in both World Wars and countless other overseas actions in service of the Empire.
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==Government and politics==
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[[Image:Image-Sansad Bhavan.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Sansad Bhavan]]
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The Constitution of India, came into force on January 26, 1950,<ref name=BRITANNICA/> defines India as a "sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic republic."<ref name=USSTATEDEPARTMENT/> India has a bicameral parliament consists of the Rajya Sabha (Council of States)<ref name=CIA>[https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/in.html India] ''The World Factbook''</ref> and the Lok Sabha (House of the People), which forms the legislative branch. The President of India is the head of state<ref name=INDIAGOV>[http://india.gov.in/knowindia/india_at_a_glance.php India at a Glance] Official Portal of the Indian Government</ref> elected indirectly by an electoral college for a five-year term.<ref name=USSTATEDEPARTMENT/> The Prime Minister of India is the head of government.<ref name=INDIAGOV/> The Rajya Sabha is the upper house with 12 appointed members and 233 members elected by state and union territory assemblies and the Lok Sabha is the lower house with 543 elected members and 2 members appointed by the president. Lok Sabha members serve five-year terms, and Rajya Sabha members serve six-year terms, with one-third of members up for election every two years. The two houses have the same powers, but the Rajya Sabha’s power in the legislative process is subordinate to the Lok Sabha.<ref name=LOC/>
  
With Indians increasingly united in their quest for independence, a war-weary Britain led by Labor Prime Minister Clement Attlee began in earnest to plan for the end of its suzerainty in India. On August 15, 1947, India became a dominion within the Commonwealth, with Jawaharlal Nehru as Prime Minister. Strategic colonial considerations, as well as political tensions between Hindus and Muslims, led the British to partition British India into two separate states: India, with a Hindu majority; and Pakistan, which consisted of two "wings," East and West Pakistan--currently Bangladesh and Pakistan--with Muslim majorities. India became a republic within the Commonwealth after promulgating its Constitution on January 26, 1950.
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The government exercises its broad administrative powers in the name of the president, whose duties are largely ceremonial. Real national executive power is centered in the Council of Ministers (Cabinet), led by the prime minister.<ref name=USSTATEDEPARTMENT/> The president, vice-president and the Council of Ministers form the executive branch.<ref name=BRITANNICA/> The president appoints the prime minister, who is designated by legislators of the political party or coalition commanding a parliamentary majority in the Lok Sabha. The president then appoints subordinate ministers on the advice of the prime minister.<ref name=USSTATEDEPARTMENT/> The judicial branch consists of the Supreme Court of India<ref name=INDIAGOV/> which is the top legal entity,<ref name=LOC/> High Courts and subordinate Courts.<ref name=INDIAGOV/>
  
After independence, the Indian National Congress, the party of Mohandas K. Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru, ruled India under the leadership first of Nehru and then his daughter (Indira Gandhi) and grandson (Rajiv Gandhi), with the exception of brief periods in the 1970s and 1980s, during a short period in 1996, and the period from 1998-2004, when a coalition led by the Bharatiya Janata Party governed.
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Emerging as the nation's single largest party in the 2004 Lok Sabha election, the Indian National Congress (INC) currently leads a government with a coalition<ref name=USSTATEDEPARTMENT/> called the United Progressive Alliance (UPA), supported by the Left Front headed by the Communist Party of India (Marxist).<ref>Vinay Lal, [http://www.sscnet.ucla.edu/southasia/History/Independent/indep.html Independent India]</ref> The Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) holds the second-largest number of seats in the Lok Sabha<ref name=USSTATEDEPARTMENT/> and leads governments without forming any coalition in the states of Himachal Pradesh,<ref>[http://www.rediff.com/news/2007/dec/28hppoll.htm BJP sweeps Himachal Pradesh polls] rediff NEWS</ref> Chattisgarh,<ref>[http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/BJP_retains_power_in_Chhattisgarh/articleshow/3807602.cms BJP retains power in Chhattisgarh] ''The Times of India''</ref> Gujarat,<ref>[http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/handful-of-industrialists-cant-decide-our-next-pm-congress/411294/ Handful of industrialists can’t decide our next PM: Congress] Expressindia.com</ref><ref>[http://www.headlinesindia.com/politics-news/congress/rahul-takes-on-bjp-while-in-gujarat-6015.html Rahul takes on BJP while in Gujarat] Headlinesindia.com</ref> Madhya Pradesh<ref>[http://www.rediff.com/news/2008/dec/09madhyapradesh-polls-bjp-wins.htm Madhya Pradesh: Chouhan does it for BJP] rediff NEWS</ref> and Karnataka.<ref>[http://www.livemint.com/2008/12/25232131/Karnataka-byelection-crucial.html Karnataka by-election crucial for ruling BJP] Livemint.com</ref> The Communist Party of India (Marxist) leads governments in the states of West Bengal and Tripura with a coalition called Left Front<ref name=USSTATEDEPARTMENT/><ref>[http://www.hindu.com/2008/03/08/stories/2008030854971200.htm  CPI(M) attributes win to Left Front record] The Hindu</ref> and in the state of Kerala with a coalition called Left Democratic Front.<ref>[http://www.hindu.com/2005/10/25/stories/2005102510310100.htm  Congress alleges CPI(M) bid to sabotage byelection] The Hindu</ref> The Left Front's support provides the crucial seats necessary for the UPA to retain power in New Delhi.<ref name=USSTATEDEPARTMENT/> Lack of internal democracy within political parties, electoral fraud, money politics, criminalization of the political system and corruption is observed in Indian politics.<ref>[http://www.ipcs.org/India_articles2.jsp?action=showView&kValue=900&country=1016&status=article&mod=a Crisis of Governance in India] Institute of Peace & Conflict Studies</ref>
  
Prime Minister Nehru governed the nation until his death in 1964. Nehru was succeeded by Lal Bahadur Shastri, who also died in office. In 1966, power passed to Nehru's daughter, Indira Gandhi, Prime Minister from 1966 to 1977. In 1975, beset with deepening political and economic problems, Mrs. Gandhi declared a state of emergency and suspended many civil liberties. Seeking a mandate at the polls for her policies, she called for elections in 1977, only to be defeated by Morarji Desai, who headed the Janata Party, an amalgam of five opposition parties.
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==Geography==
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India sits atop the northwestern portion of the Indian-Australian Plate. There are three main geographical regions in India: the Himalayas, the Indo-Gangetic Plain and the Deccan.<ref name=BRITANNICA/> These and other portions of India can be classified into diverse physiological regions that include highlands, plains, deserts, and river valleys. The country’s lowest elevation is zero meters at the Indian Ocean, and the highest is 8,598 meters at Kanchenjunga, which is the third highest mountain in the world and located in the Himalayas.<ref name=LOC/> The Himalayas, the highest mountain system in the world, is approximately 2,500 km long. The Indo-Gangetic Plain, also known as the North Indian Plain, is situated between the Hialayas and the Deccan. The main part of the Indo-Gangetic plain is the Ganges River basin. The western parts of the plain consists of the Indus River basin.<ref name=BRITANNICA/> The Thar Desert or the Great Indian Desert, which is world's seventh largest desert,<ref>[http://www.worldwildlife.org/wildworld/profiles/terrestrial/im/im1304_full.html Thar desert] World Wildlife Fund</ref> also forms an important part of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. The Deccan is the plateau region situated in the south. The Western Ghats or the Sahyadri is a mountain range situated at the western edge of the Deccan plateau region and the Eastern Ghats, a discontinuous range of mountains, run northeast-southwest parallel to the coast of the Bay of Bengal.<ref name=BRITANNICA/>
  
In 1979, Desai's Government crumbled. Charan Singh formed an interim government, which was followed by Mrs. Gandhi's return to power in January 1980. On October 31, 1984, Mrs. Gandhi was assassinated, and her son, Rajiv, was chosen by the Congress (I)--for "Indira"--Party to take her place. His Congress government was plagued with allegations of corruption resulting in an early call for national elections in 1989.
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India’s total coastline is 7,516 kilometers in length, which comprises 5,422 kilometers for the mainland, 132 kilometers for the Lakshadweep Islands, and 1,962 kilometers for the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.<ref name=LOC/>
  
Although Rajiv Gandhi's Congress Party won more seats than any other single party in the 1989 elections, he was unable to form a government with a clear majority. The Janata Dal, a union of opposition parties, then joined with the Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on the right and the Communists on the left to form the government. This loose coalition collapsed in November 1990, and the Janata Dal, supported by the Congress (I), came to power for a short period, with Chandra Shekhar as Prime Minister. That alliance also collapsed, resulting in national elections in June 1991.
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India’s longest rivers are the Brahmaputra and Indus, which are both 2,896 kilometers long. However these two rivers are not entirely within India. Other major rivers are the Ganga (Ganges, 2,525 kilometers), Godavari (1,465), Kaveri (Cauvery, 800), Krishna (1,401), Mahanandi (851), Narmada (1,312), and Yamuna (1,370).<ref name=LOC/>
  
While campaigning in Tamil Nadu on behalf of Congress (I), Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated on May 27, 1991, apparently by Tamil extremists from Sri Lanka, unhappy with India's armed intervention to try to stop the civil war there. In the elections, Congress (I) won 213 parliamentary seats and returned to power at the head of a coalition, under the leadership of P.V. Narasimha Rao. This Congress-led government, which served a full 5-year term, initiated a gradual process of economic liberalization and reform, which opened the Indian economy to global trade and investment. India's domestic politics also took new shape, as the nationalist appeal of the Congress Party gave way to traditional caste, creed, regional, and ethnic alignments, leading to the founding of a plethora of small, regionally based political parties.
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Climate in India varies significantly from the permanently snow-capped Himalayas in the north to the tropics in the south. The country has four seasons. December to February is relatively dry and cool, March to May is dry and hot, from June to September predominating southwest maritime winds bring monsoon rains to most of the country, and in October and November there are retreating dry monsoons originating from the northeast. Average temperatures range from 12.5° C to 30° C in the northwest, 17.5° C to 30° C in the north and northeast, and 22.5° C to 30° C in the south. Average annual rainfall is around 1,000 to 1,500 millimeters for much of the country, but can be quite low in some parts of the northwest (150 to 300 millimeters annually) and very high in the northeast and along the west coast (1,500 to 2,500 millimeters annually).<ref name=LOC/>
 
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The final months of the Rao-led government in the spring of 1996 were marred by several major corruption scandals, which contributed to the worst electoral performance by the Congress Party in its history. The Hindu-nationalist BJP emerged from the May 1996 national elections as the single-largest party in the Lok Sabha but without a parliamentary majority. Under Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the subsequent BJP coalition lasted only 13 days. With all political parties wishing to avoid another round of elections, a 14-party coalition led by the Janata Dal formed a government known as the United Front, under the former Chief Minister of Karnataka, H.D. Deve Gowda. His government collapsed after less than a year, when the Congress Party withdrew its support in March 1997. Inder Kumar Gujral replaced Deve Gowda as the consensus choice for Prime Minister at the head of a 16-party United Front coalition.
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In November 1997, the Congress Party again withdrew support from the United Front. In new elections in February 1998, the BJP won the largest number of seats in Parliament--182--but fell far short of a majority. On March 20, 1998, the President approved a BJP-led coalition government with Vajpayee again serving as Prime Minister. On May 11 and 13, 1998, this government conducted a series of underground nuclear tests, spurring U.S. President Clinton to impose economic sanctions on India pursuant to the 1994 Nuclear Proliferation Prevention Act.
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In April 1999, the BJP-led coalition government fell apart, leading to fresh elections in September. The National Democratic Alliance--a new coalition led by the BJP--won a majority to form the government with Vajpayee as Prime Minister in October 1999. The NDA government was the first in many years to serve a full five year term, providing much-needed political stability.
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The Kargil conflict in 1999 and an attack by terrorists on the Indian Parliament in December 2001 led to increased tensions with Pakistan.
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Hindu nationalists supportive of the BJP agitated to build a temple on a disputed site in Ayodhya, destroying a 17th century mosque there in December 1992, and sparking widespread religious riots in which thousands, mostly Muslims, were killed. In February 2002, 57 Hindu volunteers returning from Ayodhya were burnt alive when their train caught fire. Alleging that the fire was caused by Muslim attackers, anti-Muslim rioters throughout the state of Gujarat killed over 900 people and left 100,000 homeless. This led to accusations that the BJP-led Gujarat state government had not done enough to contain the riots, or arrest and prosecute the rioters.
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The ruling BJP-led coalition was defeated in a five-stage election held in April and May of 2004, and a Congress-led coalition, known as the United Progressive Alliance (UPA), took power on May 22 with Manmohan Singh as Prime Minister. The UPA's victory was attributed to dissatisfaction among poorer rural voters that the prosperity of the cities had not filtered down to them, and rejection of the BJP's Hindu nationalist agenda.
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The Congress-led UPA government has continued many of the BJP's foreign policies, particularly improving relations with the U.S. Prime Minister Singh and President Bush concluded a landmark U.S.-India strategic partnership framework agreement on July 18, 2005. In March 2006, President Bush visited India to further the many initiatives that underlie the new agreement. The strategic partnership is anchored by a historic civil nuclear cooperation initiative and includes cooperation in the fields of space, high-technology commerce, health issues, democracy promotion, agriculture, and trade and investment.
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==Government and politics==
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The Constitution of India, came into force on January 26, 1950,<ref name=BRITANNICA/> defines India as a "sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic republic."<ref name=USSTATEDEPARTMENT>[http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/3454.htm  Background Note: India] [[United States Department of State]]</ref> India has a bicameral parliament consists of the Rajya Sabha (Council of States)<ref name=CIA>[https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/in.html India] ''The World Factbook''</ref> and the Lok Sabha (House of the People), which forms the legislative branch. The President of India is the head of state<ref name=INDIAGOV>[http://india.gov.in/knowindia/india_at_a_glance.php India at a Glance] Official Portal of the Indian Government</ref> elected indirectly by an electoral college for a five-year term.<ref name=USSTATEDEPARTMENT/> The Prime Minister of India is the head of government.<ref name=INDIAGOV/> The Rajya Sabha is the upper house with 12 appointed members and 233 members elected by state and union territory assemblies and the Lok Sabha is the lower house with 543 elected members and 2 members appointed by the president. Lok Sabha members serve five-year terms, and Rajya Sabha members serve six-year terms, with one-third of members up for election every two years. The two houses have the same powers, but the Rajya Sabha’s power in the legislative process is subordinate to the Lok Sabha.<ref name=LOC>[http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/India.pdf Country Profile: India] Country Studies, Library of Congress</ref>
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The government exercises its broad administrative powers in the name of the president, whose duties are largely ceremonial. Real national executive power is centered in the Council of Ministers (Cabinet), led by the prime minister.<ref name=USSTATEDEPARTMENT/> The president, vice-president and the Council of Ministers form the executive branch.<ref name=BRITANNICA/> The president appoints the prime minister, who is designated by legislators of the political party or coalition commanding a parliamentary majority in the Lok Sabha. The president then appoints subordinate ministers on the advice of the prime minister.<ref name=USSTATEDEPARTMENT/> The judicial branch consists of the Supreme Court of India<ref name=INDIAGOV/> which is the top legal entity,<ref name=LOC/> High Courts and subordinate Courts.<ref name=INDIAGOV/>
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Emerging as the nation's single largest party in the 2004 Lok Sabha election, the Indian National Congress (INC) currently leads a government with a coalition<ref name=USSTATEDEPARTMENT/> called the United Progressive Alliance (UPA), supported by the Left Front headed by the Communist Party of India (Marxist).<ref>Vinay Lal, [http://www.sscnet.ucla.edu/southasia/History/Independent/indep.html Independent India]</ref> The Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) holds the second-largest number of seats in the Lok Sabha and advocates construction of a temple on a disputed site in Ayodhya.<ref name=USSTATEDEPARTMENT/> The Communist Party of India (Marxist) leads governments in the states of West Bengal and Tripura with a coalition called Left Front<ref name=USSTATEDEPARTMENT/><ref>[http://www.hindu.com/2008/03/08/stories/2008030854971200.htm  CPI(M) attributes win to Left Front record] The Hindu</ref> and in the state of Kerala with a coalition called Left Democratic Front.<ref>[http://www.hindu.com/2005/10/25/stories/2005102510310100.htm  Congress alleges CPI(M) bid to sabotage byelection] The Hindu</ref> The Left Front's support provides the crucial seats necessary for the UPA to retain power in New Delhi; without its support, the UPA government would fall. Officially it advocates a secular and Marxist ideology and opposes many aspects of globalization.<ref name=USSTATEDEPARTMENT/> Lack of internal democracy within political parties, electoral fraud, money politics, criminalization of the political system and corruption is observed in Indian politics.<ref>[http://www.ipcs.org/India_articles2.jsp?action=showView&kValue=900&country=1016&status=article&mod=a Crisis of Governance in India] Institute of Peace & Conflict Studies</ref>
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==Economy==
 
==Economy==
Line 79: Line 57:
 
Although small, the Indian Coast Guard has been expanding rapidly in recent years. Indian Navy officers typically fill top Coast Guard positions to ensure coordination between the two services. India's Coast Guard is responsible for control of India's huge exclusive economic zone.
 
Although small, the Indian Coast Guard has been expanding rapidly in recent years. Indian Navy officers typically fill top Coast Guard positions to ensure coordination between the two services. India's Coast Guard is responsible for control of India's huge exclusive economic zone.
  
The Indian Air Force is becoming a 21st century force through modernization, new tactics and the acquisition of modern aircraft, such as the SU-30MKI, a new advanced jet trainer (BAE Hawk) and the indigenously produced advanced light helicopter (Dhruv). In June 2007, the Indian Government announced intentions to release a request for proposals for 126 multi-role combat aircraft for the Indian Air Force.  
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The Indian Air Force is becoming a 21st century force through modernization, new tactics and the acquisition of modern aircraft, such as the SU-30MKI, a new advanced jet trainer (BAE Hawk) and the indigenously produced advanced light helicopter (Dhruv). In June 2007, the Indian Government announced intentions to release a request for proposals for 126 multi-role combat aircraft for the Indian Air Force.
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==Demographics==
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With an estimated population of 1.14 billion,<ref name=CIA/> India is world's second most populous country accounting approximately 17% of world's population.<ref>[http://www.who.int/countryfocus/cooperation_strategy/ccsbrief_india_ind_06_en.pdf India] World Health Organization</ref> India's population growth rate is 1.578%; there are 22.22 births per 1,000 people per year.<ref name=CIA/> Major cities in India are New Delhi (population 12.8 million), Mumbai, formerly Bombay (16.4 million), Kolkata, formerly Calcutta (13.2 million), Chennai, formerly Madras (6.4 million), Bangalore (5.7 million), Hyderabad (5.5 million), Ahmedabad (5 million), Pune (4 million). <ref name=USSTATEDEPARTMENT/> India's literacy rate is 61% (73.4% for males and 47.8% for females).<ref name=CIA/> Kerala has the highest literacy rate (91%)<ref>[http://www.kerala.gov.in/education/ Kerala's literacy rate] Government of Kerala</ref> and Bihar has the lowest (47%).<ref>[http://www.censusindia.gov.in/Census_Data_2001/Census_data_finder/C_Series/Literacy_rate.htm Literacy rate]</ref>
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India is home to two major linguistic families: Indo-Aryan (spoken by approximately 75.27% of the population) and Dravidian (spoken by about 22.53%).<ref name=CIIL>[http://www.ciil.org/Main/Languages/map4.htm Indian Language Families] Central Institute of Indian Languages</ref> Twenty-two languages are legally recognized by the constitution for various political, educational, and other purposes: Assamese, Bengali, Bodo, Dogri, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Konkani, Maithali, Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Nepali, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Santhali, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu.<ref name=LOC/> Hindi, spoken by approximately 40.2% people (largest number of speakers),<ref name=CIIL/> is the official language of the union and is the lingua franca of the multilingual country.<ref>B. Mallikarjun, [http://www.languageinindia.com/nov2004/mallikarjunmalaysiapaper1.html Fifty Years of Language Planning for Modern Hindi–The Official Language of India] ''Language in India'', Volume 4, Number 11.</ref> English, which has the status of a 'subsidiary official language',<ref>[http://www.rajbhasha.gov.in/preseng.htm Notification No. 2/8/60-O.L., dated 27 April, 1960] Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India</ref> is the most important language for national, political, and commercial communication.<ref name=CIA/>
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Approximately 80.5% of the population is Hindu, 13.4% Muslim, 2.3% Christian, 1.9% Sikh, 0.8% Buddhist, and 0.4% Jain; another 0.6% belongs to other faiths, such as Zoroastrianism and numerous religions associated with Scheduled Tribes.<ref name=LOC/> The Constitution of India declares the nation to be a secular republic,<ref>[http://lawmin.nic.in/coi/coiason29july08.pdf Constitution of India]</ref> and prohibits religious discrimination,<ref name=LOC/> but in spite of this, there have been enduring tensions and conflict among religious communities.<ref name=LOC/> Large-scale religious violence have periodically occurred in India since independence. Throughout the history of post-Independence India, both Muslim and Christian communities have faced repeated attacks from Hindu activists.<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,318549,00.html Hindu Extremists Attack Indian Churches, Torch Home of Prominent Christian] FOXNews.com</ref> The [[United States Department of State]] in its annual human rights report for 2006 noted attacks against religious minorities in India.<ref>[http://www.expressindia.com/news/fullstory.php?newsid=82512 'India respects rights, but problems remain']</ref> State Department's annual report on religious freedom for 2007 expressed concern over organized societal attacks against religious minority. Some state governments in India have been accused of not effectively prosecuting those who attack religious minorities.<ref name=USREPORT2007>[http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2007/90228.htm International Religious Freedom Report 2007: India] United States Department of State</ref>
  
 
==References==
 
==References==

Latest revision as of 21:12, 19 November 2010

India, officially the Republic of India,[1] is a country in South Asia. India occupies 2.4% of the world's land area, and supports over 15% of the world's population. Only China has a larger population. India's median age is 25, one of the youngest among large economies. About 70% live in more than 550,000 villages, and the remainder in more than 300 towns and cities. Over the thousands of years of its history, India has been invaded from the Iranian plateau, Central Asia, Arabia, Afghanistan, and the West; Indian people and culture have absorbed and modified these influences to produce a remarkable racial and cultural synthesis.

History[edit]

A children's toy found in Mohenjo-daro, one of the largest city-settlements of the Indus Valley Civilization.

Whereas human settlement in India dates back to roughly 400,000 to 200,000 B.C., extensive urbanization and trade appear to have begun in the Indus River Valley around 3000 B.C. with the Harappan civilization.[2] This civilization declined around 1500 B.C., probably due to ecological changes.[3] The Aryans, who migrated from Persia to northwestern India around 2000 B.C.[2] and settled in the middle Ganges River valley,[3] brought a new pantheon of anthropomorphic gods, an early form of Sanskrit language, a tiered social system essentially based on ethnicity and occupation, and religious texts that are an important part of living Hindu traditions.[2] The political map of ancient and medieval India was made up of myriad kingdoms with fluctuating boundaries.[3] From 326 B.C. to around 200 B.C., the Mauryan Empire emerged as India’s first imperial power and ruled its areas with a highly centralized and hierarchical administration. For the next few hundred years, North and South India experienced a succession of ruling powers. From 320 A.D. to 550 A.D., most of North India was ruled by the Gupta Empire, which in contrast to the Mauryan Empire maintained a decentralized form of government, using numerous regional and local officials to govern vast territories with an array of local political, economic, and social arrangements.[2] During this period, known as India's Golden Age,[3] multiple components of Hindu culture became crystallized into a more unified system of thought.[2]

From the disintegration of the Gupta Empire to the mid-thirteenth century, various regional kingdoms emerged and no highly centralized government was formed in South India, and South Indian villages and districts enjoyed much greater local autonomy than those in North India. During this period, South India engaged in flourishing trade with Arabs and Southeast Asia, which facilitated the diffusion of Indian mathematical concepts to the Middle East and Indian art, literature, and social customs to Southeast Asia. Islamic influence in South Asia emerged around 711 as Arabs conquered part of Sindh (now in Pakistan),[2] and in the 10th and 11th centuries, Turks and Afghans invaded India and established sultanates in Delhi. Islam spread across the subcontinent over a period of 700 years. In the early 16th century, Babur established the Mughal Dynasty, which lasted for 200 years. South India followed an independent path, but by the 17th century large areas of South India came under the direct rule or influence of the expanding Mughal Empire.[3]

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi in a salt march. Gandhi promoted the concept of Satyagraha, a practice of nonviolent resistance and was a major figure in the Indian independence movement. According to George Woodcock, Gandhi was also an self-identified anarchist.[4] Gandhi said, "The state evil is not the cause but the effect of social evil, just as the sea-waves are the effect not the cause of the storm. The only way of curing the disease is by removing the cause itself." Anarchism in India finds its first well-known expression with this statement by Gandhi.[5]

The first British outpost in South Asia was established by the English East India Company in 1619 at Surat on the northwestern coast. Later in the century, the Company opened permanent trading stations at Madras (now Chennai), Bombay (now Mumbai), and Calcutta (now Kolkata), each under the protection of native rulers. The British expanded their influence from these footholds until, by the 1850s, they controlled most of present-day India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh. In 1857, a rebellion in north India led by Indian soldiers seeking the restoration of the Mughal Emperor failed and the British Parliament transfered political power from the East India Company to the Crown. Great Britain began administering most of India directly, while controlling the rest through treaties with local rulers. In the late 1800s, the first steps were taken toward self-government in British India with the appointment of Indian councilors to advise the British Viceroy and the establishment of Provincial Councils with Indian members; the British subsequently widened participation in Legislative Councils. Beginning in 1920, Indian leader Mohandas K. Gandhi transformed the Indian National Congress (INC) political party into a mass movement to campaign against British colonial rule. The party used both parliamentary and nonviolent resistance and non-cooperation to agitate for independence.[3] Rising civil disobedience and World War II eventually rendered India too costly and difficult to administer, and the British granted independence in 1947.[2]

After independence, Jawaharlal Nehru became the first prime minister. In 1966, Nehru's daughter Indira Gandhi became prime minister who in 1975, declared a state of emergency and suspended many civil liberties. In 1984, Gandhi was assassinated and Indian politics witnessed a series of turmoil for a period of time. In the early 1990s, under the leadership of P.V. Narasimha Rao, the Congress-led government initiated a process of privatization, which opened the Indian economy to global trade and investment. Hindu nationalists supportive of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) destroyed a 17th century mosque in Ayodhya in 1992, sparking widespread religious riots in which thousands, mostly Muslims, were killed. In May 1996 national elections, the Hindu nationalist BJP emerged as a major national political party.[3] In 1998, India conducted five[6] underground[3] nuclear tests, making India a nuclear state.[6] The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) - a coalition led by the BJP - won a majority to form the government in October 1999. In February 2002, 57 Hindu volunteers returning from Ayodhya were burnt alive when their train caught fire. Alleging that the fire was caused by Muslim attackers, anti-Muslim rioters throughout Gujarat killed over 900 people and left 100,000 homeless. This led to accusations that the Hindu nationalist BJP-led Gujarat state government had not done enough to contain the riots, or arrest and prosecute the rioters. The ruling BJP-led coalition was defeated in the 2004 election, and a Congress-led coalition, known as the United Progressive Alliance (UPA), took power on May 22.[3]

Government and politics[edit]

Sansad Bhavan

The Constitution of India, came into force on January 26, 1950,[1] defines India as a "sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic republic."[3] India has a bicameral parliament consists of the Rajya Sabha (Council of States)[7] and the Lok Sabha (House of the People), which forms the legislative branch. The President of India is the head of state[8] elected indirectly by an electoral college for a five-year term.[3] The Prime Minister of India is the head of government.[8] The Rajya Sabha is the upper house with 12 appointed members and 233 members elected by state and union territory assemblies and the Lok Sabha is the lower house with 543 elected members and 2 members appointed by the president. Lok Sabha members serve five-year terms, and Rajya Sabha members serve six-year terms, with one-third of members up for election every two years. The two houses have the same powers, but the Rajya Sabha’s power in the legislative process is subordinate to the Lok Sabha.[2]

The government exercises its broad administrative powers in the name of the president, whose duties are largely ceremonial. Real national executive power is centered in the Council of Ministers (Cabinet), led by the prime minister.[3] The president, vice-president and the Council of Ministers form the executive branch.[1] The president appoints the prime minister, who is designated by legislators of the political party or coalition commanding a parliamentary majority in the Lok Sabha. The president then appoints subordinate ministers on the advice of the prime minister.[3] The judicial branch consists of the Supreme Court of India[8] which is the top legal entity,[2] High Courts and subordinate Courts.[8]

Emerging as the nation's single largest party in the 2004 Lok Sabha election, the Indian National Congress (INC) currently leads a government with a coalition[3] called the United Progressive Alliance (UPA), supported by the Left Front headed by the Communist Party of India (Marxist).[9] The Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) holds the second-largest number of seats in the Lok Sabha[3] and leads governments without forming any coalition in the states of Himachal Pradesh,[10] Chattisgarh,[11] Gujarat,[12][13] Madhya Pradesh[14] and Karnataka.[15] The Communist Party of India (Marxist) leads governments in the states of West Bengal and Tripura with a coalition called Left Front[3][16] and in the state of Kerala with a coalition called Left Democratic Front.[17] The Left Front's support provides the crucial seats necessary for the UPA to retain power in New Delhi.[3] Lack of internal democracy within political parties, electoral fraud, money politics, criminalization of the political system and corruption is observed in Indian politics.[18]

Geography[edit]

India sits atop the northwestern portion of the Indian-Australian Plate. There are three main geographical regions in India: the Himalayas, the Indo-Gangetic Plain and the Deccan.[1] These and other portions of India can be classified into diverse physiological regions that include highlands, plains, deserts, and river valleys. The country’s lowest elevation is zero meters at the Indian Ocean, and the highest is 8,598 meters at Kanchenjunga, which is the third highest mountain in the world and located in the Himalayas.[2] The Himalayas, the highest mountain system in the world, is approximately 2,500 km long. The Indo-Gangetic Plain, also known as the North Indian Plain, is situated between the Hialayas and the Deccan. The main part of the Indo-Gangetic plain is the Ganges River basin. The western parts of the plain consists of the Indus River basin.[1] The Thar Desert or the Great Indian Desert, which is world's seventh largest desert,[19] also forms an important part of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. The Deccan is the plateau region situated in the south. The Western Ghats or the Sahyadri is a mountain range situated at the western edge of the Deccan plateau region and the Eastern Ghats, a discontinuous range of mountains, run northeast-southwest parallel to the coast of the Bay of Bengal.[1]

India’s total coastline is 7,516 kilometers in length, which comprises 5,422 kilometers for the mainland, 132 kilometers for the Lakshadweep Islands, and 1,962 kilometers for the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.[2]

India’s longest rivers are the Brahmaputra and Indus, which are both 2,896 kilometers long. However these two rivers are not entirely within India. Other major rivers are the Ganga (Ganges, 2,525 kilometers), Godavari (1,465), Kaveri (Cauvery, 800), Krishna (1,401), Mahanandi (851), Narmada (1,312), and Yamuna (1,370).[2]

Climate in India varies significantly from the permanently snow-capped Himalayas in the north to the tropics in the south. The country has four seasons. December to February is relatively dry and cool, March to May is dry and hot, from June to September predominating southwest maritime winds bring monsoon rains to most of the country, and in October and November there are retreating dry monsoons originating from the northeast. Average temperatures range from 12.5° C to 30° C in the northwest, 17.5° C to 30° C in the north and northeast, and 22.5° C to 30° C in the south. Average annual rainfall is around 1,000 to 1,500 millimeters for much of the country, but can be quite low in some parts of the northwest (150 to 300 millimeters annually) and very high in the northeast and along the west coast (1,500 to 2,500 millimeters annually).[2]

Economy[edit]

India's population is estimated at more than 1.1 billion and is growing at 1.3% a year. It has the world's 12th largest economy--and the third largest in Asia behind Japan and China--with total GDP of around $1 trillion ($1,000 billion). Services, industry, and agriculture account for 55%, 27%, and 18% of GDP respectively. Nearly two-thirds of the population depends on agriculture for its livelihood. 700 million Indians live on $2 per day or less, but there is a large and growing middle class of 325-350 million with disposable income for consumer goods.

India is continuing to move forward with market-oriented economic reforms that began in 1991. Recent reforms include liberalized foreign investment and exchange regimes, industrial decontrol, significant reductions in tariffs and other trade barriers, reform and modernization of the financial sector, significant adjustments in government monetary and fiscal policies, and safeguarding intellectual property rights.

Real GDP growth for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2007 was 9.4%, up from 9.0% growth in the previous year. Growth for the year ending March 31, 2008 was expected to be between 8.5-9.0%. Foreign portfolio and direct investment inflows have risen significantly in recent years. They contributed to $255 billion in foreign exchange reserves by June 2007. Government receipts from privatization were about $3 billion in fiscal year 2003-2004, but the privatization program has stalled since then.

Economic growth is constrained by inadequate infrastructure, a cumbersome bureaucracy, corruption, labor market rigidities, regulatory and foreign investment controls, the "reservation" of key products for small-scale industries, and high (although declining) fiscal deficits. The outlook for further trade liberalization is mixed. India eliminated quotas on 1,420 consumer imports in 2002 and has incrementally lowered non-agricultural customs duties in recent successive budgets. However, the tax structure is complex, with compounding effects of various taxes.

The United States is India's largest trading partner. Bilateral trade in 2006 was $32 billion. Principal U.S. exports are diagnostic or lab reagents, aircraft and parts, advanced machinery, cotton, fertilizers, ferrous waste/scrap metal, and computer hardware. Major U.S. imports from India include textiles and ready-made garments, Internet-enabled services, agricultural and related products, gems and jewelry, leather products, and chemicals.

The rapidly growing software sector is boosting service exports and modernizing India's economy. Software exports crossed $28 billion in FY 2006-2007, while business process outsourcing (BPO) revenues hit $8.3 billion in 2006-2007. Personal computer penetration is 14 per 1,000 persons. The cellular/mobile market surged to 140 million subscribers by November 2006. The country has 54 million cable TV customers.

The United States is India's largest investment partner, with a 13% share. India's total inflow of U.S. direct investment was estimated at more than $9 billion through 2006. Proposals for direct foreign investment are considered by the Foreign Investment Promotion Board and generally receive government approval. Automatic approvals are available for investments involving up to 100% foreign equity, depending on the kind of industry. Foreign investment is particularly sought after in power generation, telecommunications, ports, roads, petroleum exploration/processing, and mining.

India's external debt was $155 billion in 2006-2007, up from $126 billion in 2005-2006. Foreign assistance was approximately $3 billion in 2006-2007, with the United States providing about $126 million in development assistance. The World Bank plans to double aid to India to almost $3 billion a year, with focus on infrastructure, education, health, and rural livelihoods.

Defense[edit]

The supreme command of the Indian armed forces is vested in the President of India. Policies concerning India's defense, and the armed forces as a whole, are formulated and confirmed by the Cabinet.

The Indian Army numbers over 1.1 million strong and fields 34 divisions. Its primary task is to safeguard the territorial integrity of the country against external threats. The Army has been heavily committed in the recent past to counterterrorism operations in Jammu and Kashmir, as well as the in the Northeast. Its current modernization program focuses on obtaining equipment to be used in combating terror. The Army often provides aid to civil authorities and assists the government in organizing relief operations.

The Indian Navy is by far the most capable navy in the region. The Navy's primary missions are the defense of India and of India's vital sea lines of communication. India relies on the sea for 90% of its oil and natural gas and over 90% of its foreign trade. The Navy currently operates one aircraft carrier with two on order, 14 submarines, and 15 major surface combatants. It is capable of projecting power within the Indian Ocean basin and occasionally operates in the South China Sea, the Mediterranean Sea and the Arabian Gulf. Fleet introduction of the Brahmos cruise missile and the possible lease of nuclear submarines from Russia will add significantly to the Indian Navy's flexibility and striking power.

Although small, the Indian Coast Guard has been expanding rapidly in recent years. Indian Navy officers typically fill top Coast Guard positions to ensure coordination between the two services. India's Coast Guard is responsible for control of India's huge exclusive economic zone.

The Indian Air Force is becoming a 21st century force through modernization, new tactics and the acquisition of modern aircraft, such as the SU-30MKI, a new advanced jet trainer (BAE Hawk) and the indigenously produced advanced light helicopter (Dhruv). In June 2007, the Indian Government announced intentions to release a request for proposals for 126 multi-role combat aircraft for the Indian Air Force.

Demographics[edit]

With an estimated population of 1.14 billion,[7] India is world's second most populous country accounting approximately 17% of world's population.[20] India's population growth rate is 1.578%; there are 22.22 births per 1,000 people per year.[7] Major cities in India are New Delhi (population 12.8 million), Mumbai, formerly Bombay (16.4 million), Kolkata, formerly Calcutta (13.2 million), Chennai, formerly Madras (6.4 million), Bangalore (5.7 million), Hyderabad (5.5 million), Ahmedabad (5 million), Pune (4 million). [3] India's literacy rate is 61% (73.4% for males and 47.8% for females).[7] Kerala has the highest literacy rate (91%)[21] and Bihar has the lowest (47%).[22]

India is home to two major linguistic families: Indo-Aryan (spoken by approximately 75.27% of the population) and Dravidian (spoken by about 22.53%).[23] Twenty-two languages are legally recognized by the constitution for various political, educational, and other purposes: Assamese, Bengali, Bodo, Dogri, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Konkani, Maithali, Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Nepali, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Santhali, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu.[2] Hindi, spoken by approximately 40.2% people (largest number of speakers),[23] is the official language of the union and is the lingua franca of the multilingual country.[24] English, which has the status of a 'subsidiary official language',[25] is the most important language for national, political, and commercial communication.[7]

Approximately 80.5% of the population is Hindu, 13.4% Muslim, 2.3% Christian, 1.9% Sikh, 0.8% Buddhist, and 0.4% Jain; another 0.6% belongs to other faiths, such as Zoroastrianism and numerous religions associated with Scheduled Tribes.[2] The Constitution of India declares the nation to be a secular republic,[26] and prohibits religious discrimination,[2] but in spite of this, there have been enduring tensions and conflict among religious communities.[2] Large-scale religious violence have periodically occurred in India since independence. Throughout the history of post-Independence India, both Muslim and Christian communities have faced repeated attacks from Hindu activists.[27] The United States Department of State in its annual human rights report for 2006 noted attacks against religious minorities in India.[28] State Department's annual report on religious freedom for 2007 expressed concern over organized societal attacks against religious minority. Some state governments in India have been accused of not effectively prosecuting those who attack religious minorities.[29]

References[edit]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 India Britannica Online
  2. 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 Country Profile: India Country Studies, Library of Congress
  3. 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 3.12 3.13 3.14 3.15 3.16 3.17 Background Note: India United States Department of State
  4. George Woodcock, Anarchism: a History of Libertarian Ideas and Movements, Chapter: "Prologue", pp 21, Broadview Press, 2004, ISBN 1551116294
  5. Adams, Jason, Non-Western Anarchisms: Rethinking the Global Context, Zalabaza Books, Johannesburg, South Africa.
  6. 6.0 6.1 India Profile The Nuclear Threat Initiative
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 India The World Factbook
  8. 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 India at a Glance Official Portal of the Indian Government
  9. Vinay Lal, Independent India
  10. BJP sweeps Himachal Pradesh polls rediff NEWS
  11. BJP retains power in Chhattisgarh The Times of India
  12. Handful of industrialists can’t decide our next PM: Congress Expressindia.com
  13. Rahul takes on BJP while in Gujarat Headlinesindia.com
  14. Madhya Pradesh: Chouhan does it for BJP rediff NEWS
  15. Karnataka by-election crucial for ruling BJP Livemint.com
  16. CPI(M) attributes win to Left Front record The Hindu
  17. Congress alleges CPI(M) bid to sabotage byelection The Hindu
  18. Crisis of Governance in India Institute of Peace & Conflict Studies
  19. Thar desert World Wildlife Fund
  20. India World Health Organization
  21. Kerala's literacy rate Government of Kerala
  22. Literacy rate
  23. 23.0 23.1 Indian Language Families Central Institute of Indian Languages
  24. B. Mallikarjun, Fifty Years of Language Planning for Modern Hindi–The Official Language of India Language in India, Volume 4, Number 11.
  25. Notification No. 2/8/60-O.L., dated 27 April, 1960 Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India
  26. Constitution of India
  27. Hindu Extremists Attack Indian Churches, Torch Home of Prominent Christian FOXNews.com
  28. 'India respects rights, but problems remain'
  29. International Religious Freedom Report 2007: India United States Department of State

This article contains material from the background notes on the countries of the world pulished by the United States Department of State, which as a U.S. government publication, is in the public domain.