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India From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search This article is about the Republic of India. For other uses, see India (disambiguation). Page semi-protected Republic of India भारत गणराज्य Bhārat Gaṇarājya Horizontal tricolour flag bearing, from top to bottom, deep saffron, white, and green horizontal bands. In the centre of the white band is a navy-blue wheel with 24 spokes. Three lions facing left, right, and toward viewer, atop a frieze containing a galloping horse, a 24-spoke wheel, and an elephant. Underneath is a motto: "सत्यमेव जयते". Flag 	Emblem Motto: "Satyameva Jayate" (Sanskrit) सत्यमेव जयते (Devanāgarī) "Truth Alone Triumphs"[1] Anthem: Jana Gana Mana instrumental.ogg

Jana Gana Mana "Thou Art the Ruler of the Minds of All People"[2] National song: Vande Mataram.ogg

Vande Mataram "I Bow to Thee, Mother"[a][1] Image of a globe centred on India, with India highlighted. Area controlled by India is in dark green. Claimed but uncontrolled regions are in light green. Capital 	New Delhi 28°36.8′N 77°12.5′E Largest city 	Mumbai Official language(s) Hindi, English[show] Recognised regional languages Eighth Schedule[show] National language(s) 	none[3] Demonym 	Indian Government 	federal parliamentary constitutional republic[1] - 	President 	Pratibha Patil - 	Vice President 	Mohammad Hamid Ansari - 	Prime Minister 	Manmohan Singh (INC) - 	Speaker of the House 	Meira Kumar (INC) - 	Chief Justice 	S. H. Kapadia Legislature 	Parliament of India - 	Upper house 	Rajya Sabha - 	Lower house 	Lok Sabha Independence 	from the United Kingdom - 	Declared 	15 August 1947 - 	Republic 	26 January 1950 Area - 	Total 	3,287,263 km2 [A](7th) 1,269,219 sq mi -  	Water (%) 	9.56 Population - 	2011 census 	1,210,193,422[4] (2nd) - 	Density 	367.7/km2 (31st) 952.3/sq mi GDP (PPP) 	2011 estimate - 	Total 	$4.469 trillion[5] (3rd) - 	Per capita 	$3,703[5] (129th) GDP (nominal) 	2011 estimate - 	Total 	$1.843 trillion[5] (10th) - 	Per capita 	$1,527[5] (133rd) Gini (2004) 	36.8[6] (79th) HDI (2011) 	increase0.547[7] (medium) (134th) Currency 	Indian rupee (INR) (INR) Time zone 	IST (UTC+05:30) - 	Summer (DST) 	not observed (UTC+05:30) Date formats 	dd-mm-yyyy (AD) Drives on the 	left ISO 3166 code 	IN Internet TLD 	.in other TLDs[show] Calling code 	91 Footnotes[show]

India (Listeni/ˈɪndiə/), officially the Republic of India (Hindi: भारत गणराज्य, Bhārat Gaṇarājya),[c] is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the south-west, and the Bay of Bengal on the south-east, it shares land borders with Pakistan to the west;[d] China, Nepal, and Bhutan to the north-east; and Burma and Bangladesh to the east. In the Indian Ocean, India is in the vicinity of Sri Lanka and the Maldives; in addition, India's Andaman and Nicobar Islands share a maritime border with Thailand and Indonesia.

Home to the ancient Indus Valley Civilisation and a region of historic trade routes and vast empires, the Indian subcontinent was identified with its commercial and cultural wealth for much of its long history.[8] Four of the world's major religions—Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism—originated here, whereas Zoroastrianism, Christianity, and Islam arrived in the 1st millennium CE and also helped shape the region's diverse culture. Gradually annexed by and brought under the administration of the British East India Company from the early 18th century and administered directly by the United Kingdom from the mid-19th century, India became an independent nation in 1947 after a struggle for independence that was marked by non-violent resistance and led by Mahatma Gandhi.

The Indian economy is the world's tenth-largest by nominal GDP and third-largest by purchasing power parity (PPP). Following market-based economic reforms in 1991, India became one of the fastest-growing major economies; it is considered a newly industrialised country. However, it continues to face the challenges of poverty, illiteracy, corruption, and inadequate public healthcare. A nuclear weapons state and a regional power, it has the third-largest standing army in the world and ranks ninth in military expenditure among nations. India is a federal constitutional republic governed under a parliamentary system consisting of 28 states and 7 union territories. It is one of the five BRICS nations. India is a pluralistic, multilingual, and multiethnic society. It is also home to a diversity of wildlife in a variety of protected habitats. Contents [hide]

1 Etymology 2 History 2.1 Ancient India 2.2 Medieval India 2.3 Early modern India 2.4 Modern India 3 Geography 4 Biodiversity 5 Politics 5.1 Government 5.2 Subdivisions 6 Foreign relations and military 7 Economy 8 Demographics 9 Culture 9.1 Art, architecture, and literature 9.2 Performing arts 9.3 Society 9.4 Sport 10 Notes 11 Citations 12 References 13 External links

Etymology Main article: Names of India

The name India is derived from Indus, which originates from the Old Persian word Hindu. The latter term stems from the Sanskrit word Sindhu (सिन्धु), which was the historical local appellation for the Indus River.[9] The ancient Greeks referred to the Indians as Indoi (Ινδοί), which translates as "the people of the Indus".[10] The geographical term Bharat (pronounced [ˈbʱaːrət̪] ( listen)), which is recognised by the Constitution of India as an official name for the country, is used by many Indian languages in various subtle guises.[11] The eponym of Bharat is Bharata, a mythological figure that Hindu scriptures describe as a legendary emperor of ancient India. Hindustan ([ɦɪnd̪ʊˈst̪aːn] ( listen)) was originally a Persian word that meant "Land of the Hindus"; prior to 1947, it referred to a region that encompassed northern India and Pakistan. It is occasionally used to solely denote India in its entirety.[12][13] History Main articles: History of India and History of the Republic of India Ancient India

The earliest anatomically modern human remains found in South Asia date from approximately 30,000 years ago.[14] Nearly contemporaneous Mesolithic rock art sites have been found in many parts of the Indian subcontinent, including at the Bhimbetka rock shelters in Madhya Pradesh.[15] Around 7000 BCE, the first known Neolithic settlements appeared on the subcontinent in Mehrgarh and other sites in western Pakistan.[16] These gradually developed into the Indus Valley Civilisation,[17] the first urban culture in South Asia;[18] it flourished during 2500–1900 BCE in Pakistan and western India.[19] Centred around cities such as Mohenjo-daro, Harappa, Dholavira, and Kalibangan, and relying on varied forms of subsistence, the civilisation engaged robustly in crafts production and wide-ranging trade.[18] Damaged brown painting of a reclining man and woman. Paintings at the Ajanta Caves in Aurangabad, Maharashtra, 6th century

During the period 2000–500 BCE, in terms of culture, many regions of the subcontinent transitioned from the Chalcolithic to the Iron Age.[20] The Vedas, the oldest scriptures of Hinduism,[21] were composed during this period, and historians have analysed these to posit a Vedic culture in the Punjab region and the upper Indo-Gangetic Plain.[20] Most historians also consider this period to have encompassed several waves of Indo-Aryan migration into the subcontinent from the north-west.[21] The caste system, which created a hierarchy of priests, warriors, and free peasants, but which excluded indigenous peoples by labeling their occupations impure, arose during this period.[22] On the Deccan Plateau, archaeological evidence from this period suggests the existence of a chiefdom stage of political organisation.[20] In southern India, a progression to sedentary life is indicated by the large number of megalithic monuments dating from this period,[23] as well as by nearby traces of agriculture, irrigation tanks, and craft traditions.[23]

In the late Vedic period, around the 5th century BCE, the small chiefdoms of the Ganges Plain and the north-western regions had consolidated into 16 major oligarchies and monarchies that were known as the mahajanapadas.[24][25] The emerging urbanisation and the orthodoxies of this age also created the religious reform movements of Buddhism and Jainism,[26] both of which became independent religions.[27] Buddhism, based on the teachings of India's first historical figure, Gautama Buddha, attracted followers from all social classes excepting the middle;[26][28] Jainism came into prominence around the same time during the life of its exemplar, Mahavira.[29] In an age of increasing urban wealth, both religions held up renunciation as an ideal,[30] and both established long-lasting monasteries.[24] Politically, by the 3rd century BCE, the kingdom of Magadha had annexed or reduced other states to emerge as the Mauryan Empire.[24] The empire was once thought to have controlled most of the subcontinent excepting the far south, but its core regions are now thought to have been separated by large autonomous areas.[31][32] The Mauryan kings are known as much for their empire-building and determined management of public life as for Ashoka's renunciation of militarism and far-flung advocacy of the Buddhist dhamma.[33][34]

The Sangam literature of the Tamil language reveals that, between 200 BCE and 200 CE, the southern peninsula was being ruled by the Cheras, the Cholas, and the Pandyas, dynasties that traded extensively with the Roman Empire and with West and South-East Asia.[35][36] In North India, Hinduism asserted patriarchal control within the family, leading to increased subordination of women.[37][24] By the 4th and 5th centuries, the Gupta Empire had created in the greater Ganges Plain a complex system of administration and taxation that became a model for later Indian kingdoms.[38][39] Under the Guptas, a renewed Hinduism based on devotion rather than the management of ritual began to assert itself.[40] The renewal was reflected in a flowering of sculpture and architecture, which found patrons among an urban elite.[39] Classical Sanskrit literature flowered as well, and Indian science, astronomy, medicine, and mathematics made significant advances.[39] Medieval India The granite tower of Brihadeeswarar Temple in Thanjavur was completed in 1010 CE by Raja Raja Chola I.

The Indian early medieval age, 600 CE to 1200 CE, is defined by regional kingdoms and cultural diversity.[41] When Harsha of Kannauj, who ruled much of the Indo-Gangetic Plain from 606 to 647 CE, attempted to expand southwards, he was defeated by the Chalukya ruler of the Deccan.[42] When his successor attempted to expand eastwards, he was defeated by the Pala king of Bengal.[42] When the Chalukyas attempted to expand southwards, they were defeated by the Pallavas from farther south, who in turn were opposed by the Pandyas and the Cholas from still farther south.[42] No ruler of this period was able to create an empire and consistently control lands much beyond his core region.[41] During this time, pastoral peoples whose land had been cleared to make way for the growing agricultural economy were accommodated within caste society, as were new non-traditional ruling classes.[43] The caste system consequently began to show regional differences.[43]

In the 6th and 7th centuries, the first devotional hymns were created in the Tamil language.[44] They were imitated all over India and led to both the resurgence of Hinduism and the development of all modern languages of the subcontinent.[44] Indian royalty, big and small, and the temples they patronised, drew citizens in great numbers to the capital cities, which became economic hubs as well.[45] Temple towns of various sizes began to appear everywhere as India underwent another urbanisation.[45] By the 8th and 9th centuries, the effects were felt in South-East Asia, as South Indian culture and political systems were exported to lands that became part of modern-day Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Java.[46] Indian merchants, scholars, and sometimes armies were involved in this transmission; South-East Asians took the initiative as well, with many sojourning in Indian seminaries and translating Buddhist and Hindu texts into their languages.[46]

After the 10th century, Muslim Central Asian nomadic clans, using swift-horse cavalry and raising vast armies united by ethnicity and religion, repeatedly overran South Asia's north-western plains, leading eventually to the establishment of the Islamic Delhi Sultanate in 1206.[47] The sultanate was to control much of North India, and to make many forays into South India. Although at first disruptive for the Indian elites, the sultanate largely left its vast non-Muslim subject population to its own laws and customs.[48][49] By repeatedly repulsing Mongol raiders in the 13th century, the sultanate saved India from the devastation visited on West and Central Asia, setting the scene for centuries of migration of fleeing soldiers, learned men, mystics, traders, artists, and artisans from that region into the subcontinent, thereby creating a syncretic Indo-Islamic culture in the north.[50][51] The sultanate's raiding and weakening of the regional kingdoms of South India paved the way for the indigenous Vijayanagara Empire.[52] Embracing a strong Shaivite tradition and building upon the military technology of the sultanate, the empire came to control much of peninsular India,[53] and was to influence South Indian society for long afterwards.[52] Early modern India Scribes and artists in the Mughal court, 1590–1595

In the early 16th century, northern India, being then under mainly Muslim rulers,[54] fell again to the superior mobility and firepower of a new generation of Central Asian warriors.[55] The resulting Mughal Empire did not stamp out the local societies it came to rule, but rather balanced and pacified them through new administrative practices[56][57] and diverse and inclusive ruling elites,[58] leading to more systematic, centralised, and uniform rule.[59] Eschewing tribal bonds and Islamic identity, especially under Akbar, the Mughals united their far-flung realms through loyalty, expressed through a Persianised culture, to an emperor who had near-divine status.[58] The Mughal state's economic policies, deriving most revenues from agriculture[60] and mandating that taxes be paid in the well-regulated silver currency,[61] caused peasants and artisans to enter larger markets.[59] The relative peace maintained by the empire during much of the 17th century was a factor in India's economic expansion,[59] resulting in greater patronage of painting, literary forms, textiles, and architecture.[62] Newly coherent social groups in northern and western India, such as the Marathas, the Rajputs, and the Sikhs, gained military and governing ambitions during Mughal rule, which, through collaboration or adversity, gave them both recognition and military experience.[63] Expanding commerce during Mughal rule gave rise to new Indian commercial and political elites along the coasts of southern and eastern India.[63] As the empire disintegrated, many among these elites were able to seek and control their own affairs.[64]

By the early 18th century, with the lines between commercial and political dominance being increasingly blurred, a number of European trading companies, including the English East India Company, had established coastal outposts.[65][66] The East India Company's control of the seas, greater resources, and more advanced military training and technology led it to increasingly flex its military muscle and caused it to become attractive to a portion of the Indian elite; both these factors were crucial in allowing the Company to gain control over the Bengal region by 1765 and sideline the other European companies.[67][65][68][69] Its further access to the riches of Bengal and the subsequent increased strength and size of its army enabled it to annex or subdue most of India by the 1820s.[70] India was now no longer exporting manufactured goods as it long had, but was instead supplying the British empire with raw materials, and many historians consider this to be the onset of India's colonial period.[65] By this time, with its economic power severely curtailed by the British parliament and itself effectively made an arm of British administration, the Company began to more consciously enter non-economic arenas such as education, social reform, and culture.[71] Modern India The British Indian Empire, from the 1909 edition of The Imperial Gazetteer of India. Areas directly governed by the British are shaded pink; nominally sovereign princely states are in yellow.

Historians consider India's modern age to have begun sometime between 1848 and 1885. The appointment in 1848 of Lord Dalhousie as Governor General of the East India Company rule in India set the stage for changes essential to a modern state. These included the consolidation and demarcation of sovereignty, the surveillance of the population, and the education of citizens. Technological changes—among them, railways, canals, and the telegraph—were introduced not long after their introduction in Europe.[72][73][74][75] However, disaffection with the Company also grew during this time, and set off the Indian Rebellion of 1857. Fed by diverse resentments and perceptions, including invasive British-style social reforms, harsh land taxes, and summary treatment of some rich landowners and princes, the rebellion rocked many regions of northern and central India and shook the foundations of Company rule.[76][77] Although the rebellion was suppressed by 1858, it led to the dissolution of the East India Company and to the direct administration of India by the British government. Proclaiming a unitary state and a gradual but limited British-style parliamentary system, the new rulers also protected princes and landed gentry as a feudal safeguard against future unrest.[78][79] In the decades following, public life gradually emerged all over India, leading eventually to the founding of the Indian National Congress in 1885.[80][81][82][83] Two smiling men in robes sitting on the ground with bodies facing the viewer and with heads turned toward each other. The younger wears a white Nehru cap; the elder is bald and wears glasses. A half-dozen other people are in the background. Jawaharlal Nehru (left) became India's first prime minister in 1947. Mahatma Gandhi (right) led the independence movement.

The rush of technology and the commercialisation of agriculture in the second half of the 19th century was marked by economic setbacks—many small farmers became dependent on the whims of far-away markets.[84] There was an increase in the number of large-scale famines,[85] and, despite the risks of infrastructure development borne by Indian taxpayers, little industrial employment was generated for Indians.[86] There were also salutary effects: commercial cropping, especially in the newly canalled Punjab, led to increased food production for internal consumption.[87] The railway network provided critical famine relief,[88] notably reduced the cost of moving goods,[88] and helped nascent Indian-owned industry.[87] After World War I, in which some one million Indians served,[89] a new period began. It was marked by British reforms but also repressive legislation, by more strident Indian calls for self-rule, and by the beginnings of a non-violent movement of non-cooperation, of which Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi would become the leader and enduring symbol.[90] During the 1930s, slow legislative reform was enacted by the British; the Indian National Congress won victories in the resulting elections.[91] The next decade was beset with crises: Indian participation in World War II, the Congress's final push for non-cooperation, and an upsurge of Muslim nationalism. All were capped by the advent of independence in 1947, but tempered by the bloody partition of the subcontinent into two states: India and Pakistan.[92]

Vital to India's self-image as an independent nation was its constitution, completed in 1950, which put in place a sovereign, secular, and democratic republic.[93] In the 60 years since, India has had a mixed bag of successes and failures.[94] It has remained a democracy with civil liberties, an activist Supreme Court, and a largely independent press.[94] Economic liberalisation, which was begun in the 1990s, has created a large urban middle class, transformed India into one of the world's fastest-growing economies,[95] and increased its geopolitical clout. Indian movies, music, and spiritual teachings play an increasing role in global culture.[94] Yet, India has also been weighed down by seemingly unyielding poverty, both rural and urban;[94] by religious and caste-related violence;[96] by Maoist-inspired Naxalite insurgencies;[97] and by separatism in Jammu and Kashmir.[98] It has unresolved territorial disputes with China, which escalated into the Sino-Indian War of 1962;[99] and with Pakistan, which flared into wars fought in 1947, 1965, 1971, and 1999.[99] The India–Pakistan nuclear rivalry came to a head in 1998.[100] India's sustained democratic freedoms are unique among the world's new nations; however, in spite of its recent economic successes, freedom from want for its disadvantaged population remains a goal yet to be achieved.[101] Geography Main article: Geography of India See also: Geology of India Map of India. Most of India is yellow (elevation 100–1000 m). Some areas in the south and mid-east are brown (above 1000 m). Major river valleys are green (below 100 m). A topographic map of India

India comprises the bulk of the Indian subcontinent and lies atop the minor Indian tectonic plate, which in turn belongs to the Indo-Australian Plate.[102] India's defining geological processes commenced 75 million years ago when the Indian subcontinent, then part of the southern supercontinent Gondwana, began a north-eastward drift across the then-unformed Indian Ocean that lasted fifty million years.[102] The subcontinent's subsequent collision with, and subduction under, the Eurasian Plate bore aloft the planet's highest mountains, the Himalayas. They abut India in the north and the north-east.[102] In the former seabed immediately south of the emerging Himalayas, plate movement created a vast trough that has gradually filled with river-borne sediment;[103] it now forms the Indo-Gangetic Plain.[104] To the west lies the Thar Desert, which is cut off by the Aravalli Range.[105]

The original Indian plate survives as peninsular India, which is the oldest and geologically most stable part of India; it extends as far north as the Satpura and Vindhya ranges in central India. These parallel chains run from the Arabian Sea coast in Gujarat in the west to the coal-rich Chota Nagpur Plateau in Jharkhand in the east.[106] To the south, the remaining peninsular landmass, the Deccan Plateau, is flanked on the west and east by coastal ranges known as the Western and Eastern Ghats;[107] the plateau contains the nation's oldest rock formations, some of them over one billion years old. Constituted in such fashion, India lies to the north of the equator between 6° 44' and 35° 30' north latitude[e] and 68° 7' and 97° 25' east longitude.[108] A shining white snow-clad range, framed against a turquoise sky. In the middle ground, a ridge descends from the right to form a saddle in the centre of the photograph, partly in shadow. In the near foreground, a loop of a road is seen. The Kedar Range of the Greater Himalayas rises behind Kedarnath Temple, which is one of the twelve jyotirlinga shrines.

India's coastline measures 7,517 kilometres (4,700 mi) in length; of this distance, 5,423 kilometres (3,400 mi) belong to peninsular India and 2,094 kilometres (1,300 mi) to the Andaman, Nicobar, and Lakshadweep island chains.[109] According to the Indian naval hydrographic charts, the mainland coastline consists of the following: 43% sandy beaches; 11% rocky shores, including cliffs; and 46% mudflats or marshy shores.[109]

Major Himalayan-origin rivers that substantially flow through India include the Ganges and the Brahmaputra, both of which drain into the Bay of Bengal.[110] Important tributaries of the Ganges include the Yamuna and the Kosi; the latter's extremely low gradient often leads to severe floods and course changes.[111] Major peninsular rivers, whose steeper gradients prevent their waters from flooding, include the Godavari, the Mahanadi, the Kaveri, and the Krishna, which also drain into the Bay of Bengal;[112] and the Narmada and the Tapti, which drain into the Arabian Sea.[113] Coastal features include the marshy Rann of Kutch of western India and the alluvial Sundarbans delta of eastern India; the latter is shared with Bangladesh.[114] India has two archipelagos: the Lakshadweep, coral atolls off India's south-western coast; and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, a volcanic chain in the Andaman Sea.[115]

The Indian climate is strongly influenced by the Himalayas and the Thar Desert, both of which drive the economically and culturally pivotal summer and winter monsoons.[116] The Himalayas prevent cold Central Asian katabatic winds from blowing in, keeping the bulk of the Indian subcontinent warmer than most locations at similar latitudes.[117][118] The Thar Desert plays a crucial role in attracting the moisture-laden south-west summer monsoon winds that, between June and October, provide the majority of India's rainfall.[116] Four major climatic groupings predominate in India: tropical wet, tropical dry, subtropical humid, and montane.[119] Biodiversity Main article: Wildlife of India The brahminy kite (Haliastur indus) is identified with Garuda, the mythical mount of Vishnu. It hunts for fish and other prey near the coasts and around inland wetlands.

India lies within the Indomalaya ecozone and contains three biodiversity hotspots.[120] One of 17 megadiverse countries, it hosts 7.6% of all mammalian, 12.6% of all avian, 6.2% of all reptilian, 4.4% of all amphibian, 11.7% of all piscine, and 6.0% of all flowering plant species.[121] Endemism is high among plants, 33%, and among ecoregions such as the shola forests.[122] Habitat ranges from the tropical rainforest of the Andaman Islands, Western Ghats, and North-East India to the coniferous forest of the Himalaya. Between these extremes lie the moist deciduous sal forest of eastern India; the dry deciduous teak forest of central and southern India; and the babul-dominated thorn forest of the central Deccan and western Gangetic plain.[123] Under 12% of India's landmass bears thick jungle.[124] The medicinal neem, widely used in rural Indian herbal remedies, is a key Indian tree. The luxuriant pipal fig tree, shown on the seals of Mohenjo-daro, shaded Gautama Buddha as he sought enlightenment. Shola highlands are found in Kudremukh National Park, which is part of the Western Ghats.

Many Indian species descend from taxa originating in Gondwana, from which the Indian plate separated more than 105 million years before present.[125] Peninsular India's subsequent movement towards and collision with the Laurasian landmass set off a mass exchange of species. Epochal volcanism and climatic changes 20 million years ago forced a mass extinction.[126] Mammals then entered India from Asia through two zoogeographical passes flanking the rising Himalaya.[123] Thus, while 45.8% of reptiles and 55.8% of amphibians are endemic, only 12.6% of mammals and 4.5% of birds are.[121] Among them are the Nilgiri leaf monkey and Beddome's toad of the Western Ghats. India contains 172 IUCN-designated threatened species, or 2.9% of endangered forms.[127] These include the Asiatic lion, the Bengal tiger, and the Indian white-rumped vulture, which, by ingesting the carrion of diclofenac-laced cattle, nearly went extinct.

The pervasive and ecologically devastating human encroachment of recent decades has critically endangered Indian wildlife. In response the system of national parks and protected areas, first established in 1935, was substantially expanded. In 1972, India enacted the Wildlife Protection Act[128] and Project Tiger to safeguard crucial wilderness; the Forest Conservation Act was enacted in 1980 and amendments added in 1988.[129] India hosts more than five hundred wildlife sanctuaries and thirteen biosphere reserves,[130] four of which are part of the World Network of Biosphere Reserves; twenty-five wetlands are registered under the Ramsar Convention.[131] Politics Main article: Politics of India A parliamentary joint session is held in the Sansad Bhavan.

India is the world's most populous democracy.[132] A parliamentary republic with a multi-party system,[133] it has six recognised national parties, including the Indian National Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and more than 40 regional parties.[134] The Congress is considered centre-left or "liberal" in Indian political culture, and the BJP centre-right or "conservative". For most of the period between 1950—when India first became a republic—and the late 1980s, the Congress held a majority in the parliament. Since then, however, it has increasingly shared the political stage with the BJP,[135] as well as with powerful regional parties which have often forced the creation of multi-party coalitions at the centre.[136]

In the Republic of India's first three general elections, in 1951, 1957, and 1962, the Jawaharlal Nehru-led Congress won easy victories. On Nehru's death in 1964, Lal Bahadur Shastri briefly became prime minister; he was succeeded, after his own unexpected death in 1966, by Indira Gandhi, who went on to lead the Congress to election victories in 1967 and 1971. Following public discontent with the state of emergency she declared in 1975, the Congress was voted out of power in 1977; the then-new Janata Party, which had opposed the emergency, was voted in. Its government lasted just over three years. Voted back into power in 1980, the Congress saw a change in leadership in 1984, when Indira Gandhi was assassinated; she was succeeded by her son Rajiv Gandhi, who won an easy victory in the general elections later that year. The Congress was voted out again in 1989 when a National Front coalition, led by the newly formed Janata Dal in alliance with the Left Front, won the elections; that government too proved relatively short-lived: it lasted just under two years.[137] Elections were held again in 1991; no party won an absolute majority. But the Congress, as the largest single party, was able to form a minority government led by P. V. Narasimha Rao.[138]

A two-year period of political turmoil followed the general election of 1996. Several short-lived alliances shared power at the centre. The BJP formed a government briefly in 1996; it was followed by two comparatively long-lasting United Front coalitions, which depended on external support. In 1998, the BJP was able to form a successful coalition, the National Democratic Alliance, or NDA. Led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the NDA became the first non-Congress government to complete a five-year term.[139] In the 2004 Indian general elections, again no party won an absolute majority, but the Congress emerged as the largest single party, forming another successful coalition: the United Progressive Alliance, or UPA. It had the support of left-leaning parties and MPs who opposed the BJP. The UPA returned to power in the 2009 general election with increased numbers, and it no longer required external support from India's communist parties.[140] That year, Manmohan Singh became the first prime minister since Jawaharlal Nehru in 1957 and 1962 to be re-elected to a consecutive five-year term.[141] Government Main article: Government of India See also: Elections in India The Rashtrapati Bhavan is the official residence of the President of India.

India is a federation with a parliamentary system governed under the Constitution of India, which serves as the country's supreme legal document. It is a constitutional republic and representative democracy, in which "majority rule is tempered by minority rights protected by law". Federalism in India defines the power distribution between the federal government and the states. The government abides by constitutional checks and balances. The Constitution of India, which came into effect on 26 January 1950,[142] states in its preamble that India is a sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic republic.[143] India's form of government, traditionally described as "quasi-federal" with a strong centre and weak states,[144] has grown increasingly federal since the late 1990s as a result of political, economic, and social changes.[145][146] National symbols[1] Flag 	Tricolour Emblem 	Sarnath Lion Capital Anthem 	Jana Gana Mana Song 	Vande Mataram Calendar 	Saka Game 	Hockey Flower 	Lotus Fruit 	Mango Tree 	Banyan Bird 	Indian Peafowl Land animal 	Royal Bengal Tiger Aquatic animal 	River Dolphin River 	Ganges

The federal government comprises three branches:

Executive: The President of India is the head of state[147] and is elected indirectly by a national electoral college[148] for a five-year term.[149] The Prime Minister of India is the head of government and exercises most executive power.[150] Appointed by the president,[151] the prime minister is by convention supported by the party or political alliance holding the majority of seats in the lower house of parliament.[150] The executive branch of the Indian government consists of the president, the vice-president, and the Council of Ministers—the cabinet being its executive committee—headed by the prime minister. Any minister holding a portfolio must be a member of one of the houses of parliament.[147] In the Indian parliamentary system, the executive is subordinate to the legislature; the prime minister and his council directly responsible to the lower house of the parliament.[152]

Legislative: The legislature of India is the bicameral parliament. It operates under a Westminster-style parliamentary system and comprises the upper house called the Rajya Sabha ("Council of States") and the lower called the Lok Sabha ("House of the People").[153] The Rajya Sabha is a permanent body that has 245 members who serve in staggered six-year terms.[154] Most are elected indirectly by the state and territorial legislatures in numbers proportional to their state's share of the national population.[151] All but two of the Lok Sabha's 545 members are directly elected by popular vote; they represent individual constituencies via five-year terms.[155] The remaining two members are nominated by the president from among the Anglo-Indian community, in case the president decides that they are not adequately represented.[156]

Judicial: India has a unitary three-tier judiciary, consisting of the Supreme Court, headed by the Chief Justice of India, 21 High Courts, and a large number of trial courts.[157] The Supreme Court has original jurisdiction over cases involving fundamental rights and over disputes between states and the centre; it has appellate jurisdiction over the High Courts.[158] It is judicially independent[157] and has the power both to declare the law and to strike down union or state laws which contravene the constitution.[159] The Supreme Court is also the ultimate interpreter of the constitution.[160]

Subdivisions Main article: Administrative divisions of India See also: Political integration of India

India is a federation composed of 28 states and 7 union territories.[161] All states, as well as the union territories of Pondicherry and the National Capital Territory of Delhi, have elected legislatures and governments, both patterned on the Westminster model. The remaining five union territories are directly ruled by the centre through appointed administrators. In 1956, under the States Reorganisation Act, states were reorganised on a linguistic basis.[162] Since then, their structure has remained largely unchanged. Each state or union territory is further divided into administrative districts. The districts in turn are further divided into tehsils and ultimately into villages.

States

Andhra Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh Assam Bihar Chhattisgarh Goa Gujarat

Haryana Himachal Pradesh Jammu and Kashmir Jharkhand Karnataka Kerala Madhya Pradesh

Maharashtra Manipur Meghalaya Mizoram Nagaland Orissa Punjab

Rajasthan Sikkim Tamil Nadu Tripura Uttar Pradesh Uttarakhand West Bengal

Union territories

Andaman and Nicobar Islands Chandigarh Dadra and Nagar Haveli Daman and Diu Lakshadweep National Capital Territory of Delhi Pondicherry

A clickable map of the 28 states and 7 union territories of India. A clickable map of Indian states and territories. About this image

Foreign relations and military Main articles: Foreign relations of India and Indian Armed Forces Two seated men converse. The first is dressed in Indian clothing and turban and sits before an Indian flag; the second is in a Western business suit and sits before a Russian flag. Manmohan Singh meets Dmitry Medvedev at the 34th G8 summit. India and Russia share extensive economic, defence, and technological ties.

Since its independence in 1947, India has maintained cordial relations with most nations. In the 1950s, it strongly supported decolonisation in Africa and Asia and played a lead role in the Non-Aligned Movement.[163] In the late 1980s, the Indian military twice intervened abroad at the invitation of neighbouring countries: a peace-keeping operation in Sri Lanka between 1987 and 1990; and an armed intervention to prevent a coup d'état attempt in Maldives. India has tense relations with neighbouring Pakistan; the two nations have gone to war four times: in 1947, 1965, 1971, and 1999. Three of these wars were fought over the disputed territory of Kashmir, while the fourth, the 1971 war, followed from India's support for the independence of Bangladesh.[164] After waging the 1962 Sino-Indian War and the 1965 war with Pakistan, India pursued close military and economic ties with the Soviet Union; by the late 1960s, the Soviet Union was its largest arms supplier.[165]

Aside from ongoing strategic relations with Russia, India has wide-ranging defence relations with Israel and France. In recent years, it has played key roles in the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation and the World Trade Organisation. The nation has provided 100,000 military and police personnel to serve in 35 UN peacekeeping operations across four continents. It participates in the East Asia Summit, the G8+5, and other multilateral forums.[166] India has close economic ties with South America, Asia, and Africa; it pursues a "Look East" policy that seeks to strengthen partnerships with the ASEAN nations, Japan, and South Korea that revolve around many issues, but especially those involving economic investment and regional security.[167][168] The HAL Tejas is a light supersonic fighter developed by the Aeronautical Development Agency and manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics in Bangalore.[169]

China's nuclear test of 1964, as well as its repeated threats to intervene in support of Pakistan in the 1965 war, convinced India to develop nuclear weapons.[170] India conducted its first nuclear weapons test in 1974 and carried out further underground testing in 1998. Despite criticism and military sanctions, India has signed neither the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty nor the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, considering both to be flawed and discriminatory.[171] India maintains a "no first use" nuclear policy and is developing a nuclear triad capability as a part of its "minimum credible deterrence" doctrine.[172][173] It is developing a ballistic missile defence shield and, in collaboration with Russia, a fifth-generation fighter jet.[174] Other indigenous military projects involve the design and implementation of Vikrant-class aircraft carriers and Arihant-class nuclear submarines.[174]

Since the end of the Cold War, India has increased its economic, strategic, and military cooperation with the United States and the European Union.[175] In 2008, a civilian nuclear agreement was signed between India and the United States. Although India possessed nuclear weapons at the time and was not party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, it received waivers from the International Atomic Energy Agency and the Nuclear Suppliers Group, ending earlier restrictions on India's nuclear technology and commerce. As a consequence, India became the sixth de facto nuclear weapons state.[176] India subsequently signed cooperation agreements involving civilian nuclear energy with Russia,[177] France,[178] the United Kingdom,[179] and Canada.[180]

The President of India is the supreme commander of the nation's armed forces; with 1.6 million active troops, they compose the world's third-largest military.[181] It comprises the Indian Army, the Indian Navy, and the Indian Air Force; auxiliary organisations include the Strategic Forces Command and three paramilitary groups: the Assam Rifles, the Special Frontier Force, and the Indian Coast Guard.[6] The official Indian defence budget for 2011 was US$36.03 billion, or 1.83% of GDP.[182] According to a 2008 SIPRI report, India's annual military expenditure in terms of purchasing power stood at US$72.7 billion,[183] In 2011, the annual defence budget increased by 11.6%,[184] although this does not include funds that reach the military through other branches of government.[185] As of 2012, India is the world's largest arms importer; in the period from 2006 to 2010, it accounted for 9% of money spent on international arms purchases.[186] Much of the military expenditure was focused on defence against Pakistan and countering growing Chinese influence in the Indian Ocean.[184] Economy Main article: Economy of India See also: Economic history of India, Economic development in India, and Transport in India Indian agriculture dates from the period 7,000–6,000 BCE,[187] employs most of the national workforce, and is second in farm output worldwide. Above, a farmer works an ox-drawn plow in Kadmati, West Bengal.

According to the International Monetary Fund, as of 2011, the Indian economy is nominally worth US$1.843 trillion; it is the tenth-largest economy by market exchange rates, and is, at US$4.469 trillion, the third-largest by purchasing power parity, or PPP.[5] With its average annual GDP growth rate of 5.8% over the past two decades, and reaching 10.4% during 2010,[188] India is one of the world's fastest-growing economies.[189] However, the country ranks 138th in the world in nominal GDP per capita and 129th in GDP per capita at PPP.[5] Until 1991, all Indian governments followed protectionist policies that were influenced by socialist economics. Widespread state intervention and regulation largely walled the economy off from the outside world. An acute balance of payments crisis in 1991 forced the nation to liberalise its economy;[190] since then it has slowly moved towards a free-market system[191][192] by emphasizing both foreign trade and direct investment inflows.[193] India's recent economic model is largely capitalist.[192]

The 467-million worker Indian labour force is the world's second-largest.[6] The service sector makes up 54% of GDP, the agricultural sector 28%, and the industrial sector 18%. Major agricultural products include rice, wheat, oilseed, cotton, jute, tea, sugarcane, and potatoes.[161] Major industries include textiles, telecommunications, chemicals, food processing, steel, transport equipment, cement, mining, petroleum, machinery, and software.[161] In 2006, the share of external trade in India's GDP stood at 24%, up from 6% in 1985.[191] In 2008, India's share of world trade was 1.68%;[194] India was the world's fifteenth-largest importer in 2009 and the eighteenth-largest exporter.[195] Major exports include petroleum products, textile goods, jewelry, software, engineering goods, chemicals, and leather manufactures.[161] Major imports include crude oil, machinery, gems, fertiliser, and chemicals.[161] Between 2001 and 2011, the contribution of petrochemical and engineering goods to total exports grew from 14% to 42%.[196] Street-level view looking up at a modern 30-story building. The Bombay Stock Exchange is Asia's oldest and India's largest bourse by market capitalisation.

Averaging an economic growth rate of 7.5% during the last few years,[191] India has more than doubled its hourly wage rates during the last decade.[197] Some 431 million Indians have left poverty since 1985; India's middle classes are projected to number around 580 million by 2030.[198] Though ranking 51st in global competitiveness, India ranks 17th in financial market sophistication, 24th in the banking sector, 44th in business sophistication, and 39th in innovation, ahead of several advanced economies.[199] With 7 of the world's top 15 information technology outsourcing companies based in India, the country is viewed as the second-most favourable outsourcing destination after the United States.[200] India's consumer market, currently the world's thirteenth-largest, is expected to become fifth-largest by 2030.[198] Its telecommunication industry, the world's fastest-growing, added 227 million subscribers during the period 2010–11.[201] Its automotive industry, the world's second fastest growing, increased domestic sales by 26% during 2009–10,[202] and exports by 36% during 2008–09.[203] Power capacity is 250 gigawatts, of which 8% is renewable.[204]

Despite impressive economic growth during recent decades, India continues to face socio-economic challenges. India contains the largest concentration of people living below the World Bank's international poverty line of US$1.25 per day,[205] the proportion having decreased from 60% in 1981 to 42% in 2005.[206] Half of the children in India are underweight,[207] and 46% of children under the age of three suffer from malnutrition.[205] The Mid-Day Meal Scheme attempts to lower these rates.[208] Since 1991, economic inequality between India's states has consistently grown: the per-capita net state domestic product of the richest states in 2007 was 3.2 times that of the poorest.[209] Corruption in India is perceived to have increased significantly,[210] with one report estimating the illegal capital flows since independence to be US$462 billion.[211] Driven by growth, India's nominal GDP per capita has steadily increased from US$329 in 1991, when economic liberalisation began, to US$1,265 in 2010, and is estimated to increase to US$2,110 by 2016; however, it has always remained lower than those of other Asian developing countries such as Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Thailand, and is expected to remain so in the near future.[212]

According to a 2011 PricewaterhouseCoopers report, India's GDP at purchasing power parity could overtake that of the United States by 2045.[213] During the next four decades, Indian GDP is expected to grow at an annualised average of 8%, making it potentially the world's fastest-growing major economy until 2050.[213] The report highlights key growth factors: a young and rapidly growing working-age population; growth in the manufacturing sector due to rising education and engineering skill levels; and sustained growth of the consumer market driven by a rapidly growing middle class.[213] The World Bank cautions that, for India to achieve its economic potential, it must continue to focus on public sector reform, transport infrastructure, agricultural and rural development, removal of labour regulations, education, energy security, and public health and nutrition.[214] Demographics Main article: Demographics of India Map of India. High population density areas (above 1000 persons per square kilometer) centre on Kolkata along with other parts of the Ganges River Basin, Mumbai, Bangalore, the south-west coast, and the Lakshadweep Islands. Low density areas (below 100) include the western desert, eastern Kashmir, and the eastern frontier. A population density and Indian Railways connectivity map. The already densely settled Indo-Gangetic Plain is the main driver of Indian population growth.

With 1,210,193,422 residents reported in the 2011 provisional census,[4] India is the world's second-most populous country. Its population grew at 1.76% per annum during 2001–2011,[4] down from 2.13% per annum in the previous decade (1991–2001).[215] The human sex ratio, according to the 2011 census, is 940 females per 1,000 males.[4] The median age was 24.9 in the 2001 census.[6] Medical advances made in the last 50 years as well as increased agricultural productivity brought about by the "Green Revolution" have caused India's population to grow rapidly.[216] India continues to face several public health-related challenges.[217][218] According to the World Health Organisation, 900,000 Indians die each year from drinking contaminated water or breathing polluted air.[219] There are around 50 physicians per 100,000 Indians.[220] The number of Indians living in urban areas has grown by 31.2% between 1991 and 2001.[221] Yet, in 2001, over 70% lived in rural areas.[222][223] According to the 2001 census, there are 27 million-plus cities in India,[221] with Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, and Chennai being the largest. The literacy rate in 2011 was 74.04%: 65.46% among females and 82.14% among males.[4] Kerala is the most literate state;[224] Bihar the least.[225] Children prepare for a traditional dance in Tripura.

India is home to two major language families: Indo-Aryan (spoken by about 74% of the population) and Dravidian (24%). Other languages spoken in India come from the Austro-Asiatic and Tibeto-Burman language families. India has no national language.[226] Hindi, with the largest number of speakers, is the official language of the government.[227][228] English is used extensively in business and administration and has the status of a "subsidiary official language";[229] it is important in education, especially as a medium of higher education. Each state and union territory has one or more official languages, and the constitution recognises in particular 21 "scheduled languages". The Constitution of India recognises 212 scheduled tribal groups which together constitute about 7.5% of the country's population.[230] The 2001 census reported that Hinduism, with over 800 million adherents (80.5% of the population), was the largest religion in India; it is followed by Islam (13.4%), Christianity (2.3%), Sikhism (1.9%), Buddhism (0.8%), Jainism (0.4%), Judaism, Zoroastrianism, and the Bahá'í Faith.[231] India has the world's largest Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Zoroastrian, and Bahá'í populations, and has the third-largest Muslim population and the largest Muslim population for a non-Muslim majority country. Culture Main article: Culture of India A sculpture fashioned in the Gandharan tradition depicting Gautama Buddha, founder of Buddhism, at the Tokyo National Museum

Indian cultural history spans more than 4,500 years.[232] During the Vedic period (c. 1700–500 BCE), the foundations of Hindu philosophy, mythology, and literature were laid, and many beliefs and practices which still exist today, such as dhárma, kárma, yóga, and mokṣa, were established.[10] India is notable for its religious diversity, with Hinduism, Sikhism, Islam, Christianity, and Jainism among the nation's major religions.[233] The predominant religion, Hinduism, has been shaped by various historical schools of thought, including those of the Upanishads,[234] the Yoga Sutras, the Bhakti movement,[233] and by Buddhist philosophy.[235] Art, architecture, and literature

Much of Indian architecture, including the Taj Mahal, other works of Mughal architecture, and South Indian architecture, blends ancient local traditions with imported styles.[236] Vernacular architecture is also highly regional in it flavours. Vastu shastra, literally "science of construction" or "architecture" and ascribed to Mamuni Mayan,[237] explores how the laws of nature affect human dwellings;[238] it employs precise geometry and directional alignments to reflect perceived cosmic constructs.[239] As applied in Hindu temple architecture, it is influenced by the Shilpa Shastras, a series of foundational texts whose basic mythological form is the Vastu-Purusha mandala, a square that embodied the "absolute".[240] The Taj Mahal, built in Agra between 1631 and 1648 by orders of Emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his wife, has been described in the UNESCO World Heritage List as "the jewel of Muslim art in India and one of the universally admired masterpieces of the world's heritage."[241] Indo-Saracenic Revival architecture, developed by the British in the late 19th century, drew on Indo-Islamic architecture.[242]

The earliest literary writings in India, composed between 1400 BCE and 1200 CE, were in the Sanskrit language.[243][244] Prominent works of this Sanskrit literature include epics such as the Mahābhārata and the Ramayana, the dramas of Kālidāsa such as the Abhijñānaśākuntalam (The Recognition of Śakuntalā), and poetry such as the Mahākāvya.[245][246][247] Developed between 600 BCE and 300 CE in South India, the Sangam literature, consisting of 2,381 poems, is regarded as a predecessor of Tamil literature.[248][249][250][251] From the 14th to the 18th centuries, India's literary traditions went through a period of drastic change because of the emergence of devotional poets such as Kabīr, Tulsīdās, and Guru Nānak. This period was characterised by a varied and wide spectrum of thought and expression; as a consequence, medieval Indian literary works differed significantly from classical traditions.[252] In the 19th century, Indian writers took a new interest in social questions and psychological descriptions. In the 20th century, Indian literature was influenced by the works of Bengali poet and novelist Rabindranath Tagore.[253] Performing arts Bihu dancers and drummers from Assam

Indian music ranges over various traditions and regional styles. Classical music encompasses two genres and their various folk offshoots: the northern Hindustani and southern Carnatic schools.[254] Regionalised popular forms include filmi and folk music; the syncretic tradition of the bauls is a well-known form of the latter. Indian dance also features diverse folk and classical forms. Among the better-known folk dances are the bhangra of the Punjab, the bihu of Assam, the chhau of West Bengal and Jharkhand, sambalpuri of Orissa, ghoomar of Rajasthan, and the lavani of Maharashtra. Eight dance forms, many with narrative forms and mythological elements, have been accorded classical dance status by India's National Academy of Music, Dance, and Drama. These are: bharatanatyam of the state of Tamil Nadu, kathak of Uttar Pradesh, kathakali and mohiniyattam of Kerala, kuchipudi of Andhra Pradesh, manipuri of Manipur, odissi of Orissa, and the sattriya of Assam.[255]

Theatre in India melds music, dance, and improvised or written dialogue.[256] Often based on Hindu mythology, but also borrowing from medieval romances or social and political events, Indian theatre includes the bhavai of Gujarat, the jatra of West Bengal, the nautanki and ramlila of North India, tamasha of Maharashtra, burrakatha of Andhra Pradesh, terukkuttu of Tamil Nadu, and the yakshagana of Karnataka.[257] The Indian film industry produces the world's most-watched cinema.[258] Established regional cinematic traditions exist in the Assamese, Bengali, Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Oriya, Tamil, and Telugu languages.[259] South Indian cinema attracts more than 75% of national film revenue.[260] Society A Rajput Hindu marriage ceremony

Traditional Indian society is defined by relatively strict social hierarchy. The Indian caste system embodies much of the social stratification and many of the social restrictions found in the Indian subcontinent. Social classes are defined by thousands of endogamous hereditary groups, often termed as jātis, or "castes".[261] Most Dalits ("Untouchables") and members of other lower-caste communities continue to live in segregation and often face persecution and discrimination.[262][263] Traditional Indian family values are highly valued, and multi-generational patriarchal joint families have been the norm in India, though nuclear families are becoming common in urban areas.[264] An overwhelming majority of Indians, with their consent, have their marriages arranged by their parents or other family members.[265] Marriage is thought to be for life,[265] and the divorce rate is extremely low.[266] Child marriages are common, especially in rural areas; more than half of Indian females wed before reaching 18, which is their legal marriageable age.[267]

Many Indian festivals are religious in origin; among them are Diwali, Ganesh Chaturthi, Thai Pongal, Navaratri, Holi, Durga Puja, Eid ul-Fitr, Bakr-Id, Christmas, and Vaisakhi. India has three national holidays which are observed in all states and union territories: Republic Day, Independence Day, and Gandhi Jayanti. Other sets of holidays, varying between nine and twelve, are officially observed in individual states. Traditional Indian dress varies in colour and style across regions and depends on various factors, including climate and faith. Popular styles of dress include draped garments such as the sari for women and the dhoti or lungi for men. Stitched clothes, such as the shalwar kameez for women and kurta–pyjama combinations or European-style trousers and shirts for men, are also popular.[268] Use of delicate jewellery, modelled on real flowers worn in ancient India, is part of a tradition dating back some 5,000 years; gemstones are also worn in India as talismans.[269]

Indian cuisine features an unsurpassed reliance on herbs and spices, with dishes often calling for the nuanced usage of a dozen or more condiments;[270] it is also known for its tandoori preparations. The tandoor, a clay oven used in India for almost 5,000 years, grills meats to an "uncommon succulence" and produces the puffy flatbread known as naan.[271] The staple foods are wheat (predominantly in the north),[272] rice (especially in the south and the east), and lentils.[273] Many spices that have worldwide appeal are native to the Indian subcontinent,[274] while chili pepper, native to the Americas and introduced by the Portuguese, is widely used by Indians.[275] Āyurveda, a system of traditional medicine, used six rasas and three guṇas to help describe comestibles.[276] Over time, as Vedic animal sacrifices were supplanted by the notion of sacred-cow inviolability, vegetarianism became associated with high religious status and grew increasingly popular,[277] a trend aided by the rise of Buddhism, Jainism, and the Hindu bhakti movement.[278] India has the world's highest concentration of vegetarians: a 2006 survey found that 31% of Indians were non-ovo vegetarian.[278] Common traditional eating customs include meals taken on or near the floor, caste- and gender-segregated dining,[279][280] and lack of cutlery in favour of the right hand or a piece of roti. Sport Main article: Sport in India Field hockey is the national sport of India. Pictured is the Indian team, captained by Dhyan Chand (standing second from left), after winning the finals at the 1936 Summer Olympics—their third of six consecutive Olympic golds.

In India, several traditional indigenous sports remain fairly popular, among them kabaddi, kho kho, pehlwani, and gilli-danda. Some of the earliest forms of Asian martial arts, such as kalarippayattu, musti yuddha, silambam, and marma adi, originated in India. The Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna and the Arjuna Award are the highest forms of government recognition for athletic achievement; the Dronacharya Award is awarded for excellence in coaching. Chess, commonly held to have originated in India as chaturaṅga, is regaining widespread popularity with the rise in the number of Indian grandmasters.[281][282] Pachisi, from which parcheesi derives, was played on a giant marble court by Akbar.[283] The improved results garnered by the Indian Davis Cup team and other Indian tennis players in the early 2010s have made tennis increasingly popular in the country.[284] India has a comparatively strong presence in shooting sports, and has won several medals at the Olympics, the World Shooting Championships, and the Commonwealth Games.[285][286] Other sports in which Indians have succeeded internationally include badminton,[287] boxing,[288] and wrestling.[289] Football is popular in West Bengal, Goa, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and the north-eastern states.[290]

India's official national sport is field hockey; it is administered by Hockey India. The Indian national hockey team won the 1975 Hockey World Cup and have, as of 2012, taken eight gold, one silver, and two bronze Olympic medals, making it the sport's most successful team. Cricket is by far the most popular sport; the Indian national cricket team won the 1983 and 2011 Cricket World Cup events, the 2007 ICC World Twenty20, and shared the 2002 ICC Champions Trophy with Sri Lanka. Cricket in India is administered by the Board of Control for Cricket in India, or BCCI; the Ranji Trophy, the Duleep Trophy, the Deodhar Trophy, the Irani Trophy, and the NKP Salve Challenger Trophy are domestic competitions. The BCCI conducts a Twenty20 competition known as the Indian Premier League. India has hosted or co-hosted several international sporting events: the 1951 and 1982 Asian Games; the 1987, 1996, and 2011 Cricket World Cup tournaments; the 2003 Afro-Asian Games; the 2006 ICC Champions Trophy; the 2010 Hockey World Cup; and the 2010 Commonwealth Games. Major international sporting events held annually in India include the Chennai Open, the Mumbai Marathon, the Delhi Half Marathon, and the Indian Masters. The first Indian Grand Prix featured in late 2011.[291] Notes

^ "[...] Jana Gana Mana is the National Anthem of India, subject to such alterations in the words as the Government may authorise as occasion arises; and the song Vande Mataram, which has played a historic part in the struggle for Indian freedom, shall be honoured equally with Jana Gana Mana and shall have equal status with it." (Constituent Assembly of India 1950). ^ "The country's exact size is subject to debate because some borders are disputed. The Indian government lists the total area as 3,287,260 km2 (1,269,220 sq mi) and the total land area as 3,060,500 km2 (1,181,700 sq mi); the United Nations lists the total area as 3,287,263 km2 (1,269,219 sq mi) and total land area as 2,973,190 km2 (1,147,960 sq mi)." (Library of Congress 2004). ^ See also: Official names of India. ^ The Government of India regards Afghanistan as a bordering country, as it considers all of Kashmir to be part of India. However, this is disputed, and the region bordering Afghanistan is administered by Pakistan. Source: "Ministry of Home Affairs (Department of Border Management)" (DOC). Retrieved 1 September 2008.. ^ The northernmost point under Indian control is the disputed Siachen Glacier in Jammu and Kashmir; however, the Government of India regards the entire region of the former princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, including the Northern Areas currently administered by Pakistan, to be its territory. It therefore assigns the longitude 37° 6' to its northernmost point.

Citations

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References

Overview

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Etymology

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History

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Geography

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Biodiversity

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Politics

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Foreign relations and military

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Economy

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Demographics

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Culture

Binmore, K. G. (27 March 2007), Playing for Real: A Text on Game Theory, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0195300574 Bladholm, L. (12 August 2000), The Indian Grocery Store Demystified (1st ed.), Macmillan Publishers, ISBN 978-1580631433 "Saina Nehwal: India's Badminton Star and "New Woman"", BBC News, 1 August 2010, retrieved 5 October 2010 "Commonwealth Games 2010: India Dominate Shooting Medals", BBC News, 7 October 2010, retrieved 3 June 2011 "UN Report Slams India for Caste Discrimination", CBC News Network (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation), 2 March 2007, retrieved 17 July 2007 Chopra, P. (18 March 2011), A Joint Enterprise: Indian Elites and the Making of British Bombay, University of Minnesota Press, ISBN 978-0816670376 Cullen-Dupont, K. (July 2009), Human Trafficking (1st ed.), Infobase Publishing, ISBN 978-0816075454 Das, S. K. (1 January 2005), A History of Indian Literature, 500–1399: From Courtly to the Popular, Sahitya Akademi, ISBN 978-8126021710 Datta, A. 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(August 1975), Poems of Ancient Tamil: Their Milieu and Their Sanskrit Counterparts (1st ed.), University of California Press, ISBN 978-0520026728 Heehs, P. (editor) (1 September 2002), Indian Religions: A Historical Reader of Spiritual Expression and Experience, New York University Press, ISBN 978-0814736500, retrieved 24 July 2011 Henderson, C. E. (2002), Culture and Customs of India, Greenwood Publishing Group, ISBN 978-0313305139 Hoiberg, D.; Ramchandani, I. (2000), Students' Britannica India: Select Essays, Popular Prakashan, ISBN 978-0852297629 Johnson, W. J. (editor, translator) (1 September 2008), The Sauptikaparvan of the Mahabharata: The Massacre at Night, Oxford World's Classics (2nd ed.), Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0192823618 Jones, G.; Ramdas, K. (2005), (Un)tying the Knot: Ideal and Reality in Asian Marriage, National University of Singapore Press, ISBN 978-9810514280 Kālidāsa; Johnson, W. J. (15 November 2001), The Recognition of Śakuntalā: A Play in Seven Acts, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0192839114 Karanth, S. K. (October 2002), Yakṣagāna, Abhinav Publications, ISBN 978-8170173571 Kiple, K. F. (editor); Ornelas, K. C. (editor) (2000), The Cambridge World History of Food, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, ISBN 978-0521402163 Kuiper, K. (editor) (1 July 2010), The Culture of India, Britannica Educational Publishing, ISBN 978-1615302031, retrieved 24 July 2011 Kumar, V. (January 2000), Vastushastra, All You Wanted to Know About Series (2nd ed.), Sterling Publishing, ISBN 978-8120721999 Lal, A. (2004), The Oxford Companion to Indian Theatre, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0195644463, retrieved 24 July 2011 Lang, J.; Moleski, W. (1 December 2010), Functionalism Revisited, Ashgate Publishing, ISBN 978-1409407010 MacDonell, A. A. (2004), A History of Sanskrit Literature, Kessinger Publishing, ISBN 978-1417906192 Majumdar, B.; Bandyopadhyay, K. (2006), A Social History of Indian Football: Striving To Score, Routledge, ISBN 978-0415348355 Makar, E. M. (2007), An American's Guide to Doing Business in India, Adams, ISBN 978-1598692112 Massey, R.; Massey, J. (1998), The Music of India, Abhinav Publications, ISBN 978-8170173328 Medora, N. (2003), "Mate Selection in Contemporary India: Love Marriages Versus Arranged Marriages", in Hamon, R. R.; Ingoldsby, B. B., Mate Selection Across Cultures, SAGE Publications, p. 209–230, ISBN 978-0761925927 Is Boxing the New Cricket?, Mint, 24 September 2010, retrieved 5 October 2010 Nakamura, H. (1 April 1999), Indian Buddhism: A Survey with Bibliographical Notes, Buddhist Tradition Series (12th ed.), Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 978-8120802728 Puskar-Pasewicz, M. (16 September 2010), Cultural Encyclopedia of Vegetarianism, Greenwood Publishing Group, ISBN 978-0313375569 Raghavan, S. (23 October 2006), Handbook of Spices, Seasonings, and Flavorings (2nd ed.), CRC Press, ISBN 978-0849328428 Raichlen, S. (10 May 2011), A Tandoor Oven Brings India's Heat to the Backyard, The New York Times, retrieved 14 June 2011 Rajadhyaksha, A. (editor); Willemen (editor), P. (22 January 1999), Encyclopaedia of Indian Cinema (2nd ed.), British Film Institute, ISBN 978-0851706696 Ramanujan, A. K. (translator) (15 October 1985), Poems of Love and War: From the Eight Anthologies and the Ten Long Poems of Classical Tamil, New York: Columbia University Press, pp. ix–x, ISBN 978-0231051071 Anand Crowned World Champion, Rediff, 29 October 2008, retrieved 29 October 2008 Roberts, N. W. (12 July 2004), Building Type Basics for Places of Worship (1st ed.), John Wiley & Sons, ISBN 978-0471225683 Sarma, S. (1 January 2009), A History of Indian Literature, 1 (2nd ed.), Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 978-8120802643 Schoenhals, M. (22 November 2003), Intimate Exclusion: Race and Caste Turned Inside Out, University Press of America, ISBN 978-0761826972 Schwartzberg, J. (2011), Caste, "India", Encyclopædia Britannica, retrieved 17 July 2011 Sen, A. (5 September 2006), The Argumentative Indian: Writings on Indian History, Culture, and Identity (1st ed.), Picador, ISBN 978-0312426026 Seymour, S. C. (28 January 1999), Women, Family, and Child Care in India: A World in Transition, Cambridge University Press, ISBN 978-0521598842 Silverman, S. (10 October 2007), Vastu: Transcendental Home Design in Harmony with Nature, Gibbs Smith, ISBN 978-1423601326 Tarlo, E. (1 September 1996), Clothing Matters: Dress and Identity in India (1st ed.), University of Chicago Press, ISBN 978-0226789767, retrieved 24 July 2011 Sawant Shoots Historic Gold at World Championships, The Times of India, 9 August 2010, retrieved 25 May 2011 Taj Mahal, United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation, retrieved 3 March 2012 India Aims for Center Court, The Wall Street Journal, 11 September 2009, retrieved 29 September 2010 Wengell, D. L.; Gabriel, N. (1 September 2008), Educational Opportunities in Integrative Medicine: The A-to-Z Healing Arts Guide and Professional Resource Directory (1st ed.), The Hunter Press, ISBN 978-0977655243 Xavier, L. (12 September 2010), Sushil Kumar Wins Gold in World Wrestling Championship, The Times of India, retrieved 5 October 2010 Yadav, S. S.; McNeil, D.; Stevenson, P. C. (23 October 2007), Lentil: An Ancient Crop for Modern Times, Springer, ISBN 978-1402063121 Zvelebil, K. V. (1 August 1997), Companion Studies to the History of Tamil Literature, Brill Publishers, ISBN 978-9004093652

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India From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search This article is about the Republic of India. For other uses, see India (disambiguation). Page semi-protected Republic of India भारत गणराज्य Bhārat Gaṇarājya Horizontal tricolour flag bearing, from top to bottom, deep saffron, white, and green horizontal bands. In the centre of the white band is a navy-blue wheel with 24 spokes. Three lions facing left, right, and toward viewer, atop a frieze containing a galloping horse, a 24-spoke wheel, and an elephant. Underneath is a motto: "सत्यमेव जयते". Flag 	Emblem Motto: "Satyameva Jayate" (Sanskrit) सत्यमेव जयते (Devanāgarī) "Truth Alone Triumphs"[1] Anthem: Jana Gana Mana instrumental.ogg

Jana Gana Mana "Thou Art the Ruler of the Minds of All People"[2] National song: Vande Mataram.ogg

Vande Mataram "I Bow to Thee, Mother"[a][1] Image of a globe centred on India, with India highlighted. Area controlled by India is in dark green. Claimed but uncontrolled regions are in light green. Capital 	New Delhi 28°36.8′N 77°12.5′E Largest city 	Mumbai Official language(s) Hindi, English[show] Recognised regional languages Eighth Schedule[show] National language(s) 	none[3] Demonym 	Indian Government 	federal parliamentary constitutional republic[1] - 	President 	Pratibha Patil - 	Vice President 	Mohammad Hamid Ansari - 	Prime Minister 	Manmohan Singh (INC) - 	Speaker of the House 	Meira Kumar (INC) - 	Chief Justice 	S. H. Kapadia Legislature 	Parliament of India - 	Upper house 	Rajya Sabha - 	Lower house 	Lok Sabha Independence 	from the United Kingdom - 	Declared 	15 August 1947 - 	Republic 	26 January 1950 Area - 	Total 	3,287,263 km2 [A](7th) 1,269,219 sq mi -  	Water (%) 	9.56 Population - 	2011 census 	1,210,193,422[4] (2nd) - 	Density 	367.7/km2 (31st) 952.3/sq mi GDP (PPP) 	2011 estimate - 	Total 	$4.469 trillion[5] (3rd) - 	Per capita 	$3,703[5] (129th) GDP (nominal) 	2011 estimate - 	Total 	$1.843 trillion[5] (10th) - 	Per capita 	$1,527[5] (133rd) Gini (2004) 	36.8[6] (79th) HDI (2011) 	increase0.547[7] (medium) (134th) Currency 	Indian rupee (INR) (INR) Time zone 	IST (UTC+05:30) - 	Summer (DST) 	not observed (UTC+05:30) Date formats 	dd-mm-yyyy (AD) Drives on the 	left ISO 3166 code 	IN Internet TLD 	.in other TLDs[show] Calling code 	91 Footnotes[show]

India (Listeni/ˈɪndiə/), officially the Republic of India (Hindi: भारत गणराज्य, Bhārat Gaṇarājya),[c] is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the south-west, and the Bay of Bengal on the south-east, it shares land borders with Pakistan to the west;[d] China, Nepal, and Bhutan to the north-east; and Burma and Bangladesh to the east. In the Indian Ocean, India is in the vicinity of Sri Lanka and the Maldives; in addition, India's Andaman and Nicobar Islands share a maritime border with Thailand and Indonesia.

Home to the ancient Indus Valley Civilisation and a region of historic trade routes and vast empires, the Indian subcontinent was identified with its commercial and cultural wealth for much of its long history.[8] Four of the world's major religions—Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism—originated here, whereas Zoroastrianism, Christianity, and Islam arrived in the 1st millennium CE and also helped shape the region's diverse culture. Gradually annexed by and brought under the administration of the British East India Company from the early 18th century and administered directly by the United Kingdom from the mid-19th century, India became an independent nation in 1947 after a struggle for independence that was marked by non-violent resistance and led by Mahatma Gandhi.

The Indian economy is the world's tenth-largest by nominal GDP and third-largest by purchasing power parity (PPP). Following market-based economic reforms in 1991, India became one of the fastest-growing major economies; it is considered a newly industrialised country. However, it continues to face the challenges of poverty, illiteracy, corruption, and inadequate public healthcare. A nuclear weapons state and a regional power, it has the third-largest standing army in the world and ranks ninth in military expenditure among nations. India is a federal constitutional republic governed under a parliamentary system consisting of 28 states and 7 union territories. It is one of the five BRICS nations. India is a pluralistic, multilingual, and multiethnic society. It is also home to a diversity of wildlife in a variety of protected habitats. Contents [hide]

1 Etymology 2 History 2.1 Ancient India 2.2 Medieval India 2.3 Early modern India 2.4 Modern India 3 Geography 4 Biodiversity 5 Politics 5.1 Government 5.2 Subdivisions 6 Foreign relations and military 7 Economy 8 Demographics 9 Culture 9.1 Art, architecture, and literature 9.2 Performing arts 9.3 Society 9.4 Sport 10 Notes 11 Citations 12 References 13 External links

Etymology Main article: Names of India

The name India is derived from Indus, which originates from the Old Persian word Hindu. The latter term stems from the Sanskrit word Sindhu (सिन्धु), which was the historical local appellation for the Indus River.[9] The ancient Greeks referred to the Indians as Indoi (Ινδοί), which translates as "the people of the Indus".[10] The geographical term Bharat (pronounced [ˈbʱaːrət̪] ( listen)), which is recognised by the Constitution of India as an official name for the country, is used by many Indian languages in various subtle guises.[11] The eponym of Bharat is Bharata, a mythological figure that Hindu scriptures describe as a legendary emperor of ancient India. Hindustan ([ɦɪnd̪ʊˈst̪aːn] ( listen)) was originally a Persian word that meant "Land of the Hindus"; prior to 1947, it referred to a region that encompassed northern India and Pakistan. It is occasionally used to solely denote India in its entirety.[12][13] History Main articles: History of India and History of the Republic of India Ancient India

The earliest anatomically modern human remains found in South Asia date from approximately 30,000 years ago.[14] Nearly contemporaneous Mesolithic rock art sites have been found in many parts of the Indian subcontinent, including at the Bhimbetka rock shelters in Madhya Pradesh.[15] Around 7000 BCE, the first known Neolithic settlements appeared on the subcontinent in Mehrgarh and other sites in western Pakistan.[16] These gradually developed into the Indus Valley Civilisation,[17] the first urban culture in South Asia;[18] it flourished during 2500–1900 BCE in Pakistan and western India.[19] Centred around cities such as Mohenjo-daro, Harappa, Dholavira, and Kalibangan, and relying on varied forms of subsistence, the civilisation engaged robustly in crafts production and wide-ranging trade.[18] Damaged brown painting of a reclining man and woman. Paintings at the Ajanta Caves in Aurangabad, Maharashtra, 6th century

During the period 2000–500 BCE, in terms of culture, many regions of the subcontinent transitioned from the Chalcolithic to the Iron Age.[20] The Vedas, the oldest scriptures of Hinduism,[21] were composed during this period, and historians have analysed these to posit a Vedic culture in the Punjab region and the upper Indo-Gangetic Plain.[20] Most historians also consider this period to have encompassed several waves of Indo-Aryan migration into the subcontinent from the north-west.[21] The caste system, which created a hierarchy of priests, warriors, and free peasants, but which excluded indigenous peoples by labeling their occupations impure, arose during this period.[22] On the Deccan Plateau, archaeological evidence from this period suggests the existence of a chiefdom stage of political organisation.[20] In southern India, a progression to sedentary life is indicated by the large number of megalithic monuments dating from this period,[23] as well as by nearby traces of agriculture, irrigation tanks, and craft traditions.[23]

In the late Vedic period, around the 5th century BCE, the small chiefdoms of the Ganges Plain and the north-western regions had consolidated into 16 major oligarchies and monarchies that were known as the mahajanapadas.[24][25] The emerging urbanisation and the orthodoxies of this age also created the religious reform movements of Buddhism and Jainism,[26] both of which became independent religions.[27] Buddhism, based on the teachings of India's first historical figure, Gautama Buddha, attracted followers from all social classes excepting the middle;[26][28] Jainism came into prominence around the same time during the life of its exemplar, Mahavira.[29] In an age of increasing urban wealth, both religions held up renunciation as an ideal,[30] and both established long-lasting monasteries.[24] Politically, by the 3rd century BCE, the kingdom of Magadha had annexed or reduced other states to emerge as the Mauryan Empire.[24] The empire was once thought to have controlled most of the subcontinent excepting the far south, but its core regions are now thought to have been separated by large autonomous areas.[31][32] The Mauryan kings are known as much for their empire-building and determined management of public life as for Ashoka's renunciation of militarism and far-flung advocacy of the Buddhist dhamma.[33][34]

The Sangam literature of the Tamil language reveals that, between 200 BCE and 200 CE, the southern peninsula was being ruled by the Cheras, the Cholas, and the Pandyas, dynasties that traded extensively with the Roman Empire and with West and South-East Asia.[35][36] In North India, Hinduism asserted patriarchal control within the family, leading to increased subordination of women.[37][24] By the 4th and 5th centuries, the Gupta Empire had created in the greater Ganges Plain a complex system of administration and taxation that became a model for later Indian kingdoms.[38][39] Under the Guptas, a renewed Hinduism based on devotion rather than the management of ritual began to assert itself.[40] The renewal was reflected in a flowering of sculpture and architecture, which found patrons among an urban elite.[39] Classical Sanskrit literature flowered as well, and Indian science, astronomy, medicine, and mathematics made significant advances.[39] Medieval India The granite tower of Brihadeeswarar Temple in Thanjavur was completed in 1010 CE by Raja Raja Chola I.

The Indian early medieval age, 600 CE to 1200 CE, is defined by regional kingdoms and cultural diversity.[41] When Harsha of Kannauj, who ruled much of the Indo-Gangetic Plain from 606 to 647 CE, attempted to expand southwards, he was defeated by the Chalukya ruler of the Deccan.[42] When his successor attempted to expand eastwards, he was defeated by the Pala king of Bengal.[42] When the Chalukyas attempted to expand southwards, they were defeated by the Pallavas from farther south, who in turn were opposed by the Pandyas and the Cholas from still farther south.[42] No ruler of this period was able to create an empire and consistently control lands much beyond his core region.[41] During this time, pastoral peoples whose land had been cleared to make way for the growing agricultural economy were accommodated within caste society, as were new non-traditional ruling classes.[43] The caste system consequently began to show regional differences.[43]

In the 6th and 7th centuries, the first devotional hymns were created in the Tamil language.[44] They were imitated all over India and led to both the resurgence of Hinduism and the development of all modern languages of the subcontinent.[44] Indian royalty, big and small, and the temples they patronised, drew citizens in great numbers to the capital cities, which became economic hubs as well.[45] Temple towns of various sizes began to appear everywhere as India underwent another urbanisation.[45] By the 8th and 9th centuries, the effects were felt in South-East Asia, as South Indian culture and political systems were exported to lands that became part of modern-day Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Java.[46] Indian merchants, scholars, and sometimes armies were involved in this transmission; South-East Asians took the initiative as well, with many sojourning in Indian seminaries and translating Buddhist and Hindu texts into their languages.[46]

After the 10th century, Muslim Central Asian nomadic clans, using swift-horse cavalry and raising vast armies united by ethnicity and religion, repeatedly overran South Asia's north-western plains, leading eventually to the establishment of the Islamic Delhi Sultanate in 1206.[47] The sultanate was to control much of North India, and to make many forays into South India. Although at first disruptive for the Indian elites, the sultanate largely left its vast non-Muslim subject population to its own laws and customs.[48][49] By repeatedly repulsing Mongol raiders in the 13th century, the sultanate saved India from the devastation visited on West and Central Asia, setting the scene for centuries of migration of fleeing soldiers, learned men, mystics, traders, artists, and artisans from that region into the subcontinent, thereby creating a syncretic Indo-Islamic culture in the north.[50][51] The sultanate's raiding and weakening of the regional kingdoms of South India paved the way for the indigenous Vijayanagara Empire.[52] Embracing a strong Shaivite tradition and building upon the military technology of the sultanate, the empire came to control much of peninsular India,[53] and was to influence South Indian society for long afterwards.[52] Early modern India Scribes and artists in the Mughal court, 1590–1595

In the early 16th century, northern India, being then under mainly Muslim rulers,[54] fell again to the superior mobility and firepower of a new generation of Central Asian warriors.[55] The resulting Mughal Empire did not stamp out the local societies it came to rule, but rather balanced and pacified them through new administrative practices[56][57] and diverse and inclusive ruling elites,[58] leading to more systematic, centralised, and uniform rule.[59] Eschewing tribal bonds and Islamic identity, especially under Akbar, the Mughals united their far-flung realms through loyalty, expressed through a Persianised culture, to an emperor who had near-divine status.[58] The Mughal state's economic policies, deriving most revenues from agriculture[60] and mandating that taxes be paid in the well-regulated silver currency,[61] caused peasants and artisans to enter larger markets.[59] The relative peace maintained by the empire during much of the 17th century was a factor in India's economic expansion,[59] resulting in greater patronage of painting, literary forms, textiles, and architecture.[62] Newly coherent social groups in northern and western India, such as the Marathas, the Rajputs, and the Sikhs, gained military and governing ambitions during Mughal rule, which, through collaboration or adversity, gave them both recognition and military experience.[63] Expanding commerce during Mughal rule gave rise to new Indian commercial and political elites along the coasts of southern and eastern India.[63] As the empire disintegrated, many among these elites were able to seek and control their own affairs.[64]

By the early 18th century, with the lines between commercial and political dominance being increasingly blurred, a number of European trading companies, including the English East India Company, had established coastal outposts.[65][66] The East India Company's control of the seas, greater resources, and more advanced military training and technology led it to increasingly flex its military muscle and caused it to become attractive to a portion of the Indian elite; both these factors were crucial in allowing the Company to gain control over the Bengal region by 1765 and sideline the other European companies.[67][65][68][69] Its further access to the riches of Bengal and the subsequent increased strength and size of its army enabled it to annex or subdue most of India by the 1820s.[70] India was now no longer exporting manufactured goods as it long had, but was instead supplying the British empire with raw materials, and many historians consider this to be the onset of India's colonial period.[65] By this time, with its economic power severely curtailed by the British parliament and itself effectively made an arm of British administration, the Company began to more consciously enter non-economic arenas such as education, social reform, and culture.[71] Modern India The British Indian Empire, from the 1909 edition of The Imperial Gazetteer of India. Areas directly governed by the British are shaded pink; nominally sovereign princely states are in yellow.

Historians consider India's modern age to have begun sometime between 1848 and 1885. The appointment in 1848 of Lord Dalhousie as Governor General of the East India Company rule in India set the stage for changes essential to a modern state. These included the consolidation and demarcation of sovereignty, the surveillance of the population, and the education of citizens. Technological changes—among them, railways, canals, and the telegraph—were introduced not long after their introduction in Europe.[72][73][74][75] However, disaffection with the Company also grew during this time, and set off the Indian Rebellion of 1857. Fed by diverse resentments and perceptions, including invasive British-style social reforms, harsh land taxes, and summary treatment of some rich landowners and princes, the rebellion rocked many regions of northern and central India and shook the foundations of Company rule.[76][77] Although the rebellion was suppressed by 1858, it led to the dissolution of the East India Company and to the direct administration of India by the British government. Proclaiming a unitary state and a gradual but limited British-style parliamentary system, the new rulers also protected princes and landed gentry as a feudal safeguard against future unrest.[78][79] In the decades following, public life gradually emerged all over India, leading eventually to the founding of the Indian National Congress in 1885.[80][81][82][83] Two smiling men in robes sitting on the ground with bodies facing the viewer and with heads turned toward each other. The younger wears a white Nehru cap; the elder is bald and wears glasses. A half-dozen other people are in the background. Jawaharlal Nehru (left) became India's first prime minister in 1947. Mahatma Gandhi (right) led the independence movement.

The rush of technology and the commercialisation of agriculture in the second half of the 19th century was marked by economic setbacks—many small farmers became dependent on the whims of far-away markets.[84] There was an increase in the number of large-scale famines,[85] and, despite the risks of infrastructure development borne by Indian taxpayers, little industrial employment was generated for Indians.[86] There were also salutary effects: commercial cropping, especially in the newly canalled Punjab, led to increased food production for internal consumption.[87] The railway network provided critical famine relief,[88] notably reduced the cost of moving goods,[88] and helped nascent Indian-owned industry.[87] After World War I, in which some one million Indians served,[89] a new period began. It was marked by British reforms but also repressive legislation, by more strident Indian calls for self-rule, and by the beginnings of a non-violent movement of non-cooperation, of which Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi would become the leader and enduring symbol.[90] During the 1930s, slow legislative reform was enacted by the British; the Indian National Congress won victories in the resulting elections.[91] The next decade was beset with crises: Indian participation in World War II, the Congress's final push for non-cooperation, and an upsurge of Muslim nationalism. All were capped by the advent of independence in 1947, but tempered by the bloody partition of the subcontinent into two states: India and Pakistan.[92]

Vital to India's self-image as an independent nation was its constitution, completed in 1950, which put in place a sovereign, secular, and democratic republic.[93] In the 60 years since, India has had a mixed bag of successes and failures.[94] It has remained a democracy with civil liberties, an activist Supreme Court, and a largely independent press.[94] Economic liberalisation, which was begun in the 1990s, has created a large urban middle class, transformed India into one of the world's fastest-growing economies,[95] and increased its geopolitical clout. Indian movies, music, and spiritual teachings play an increasing role in global culture.[94] Yet, India has also been weighed down by seemingly unyielding poverty, both rural and urban;[94] by religious and caste-related violence;[96] by Maoist-inspired Naxalite insurgencies;[97] and by separatism in Jammu and Kashmir.[98] It has unresolved territorial disputes with China, which escalated into the Sino-Indian War of 1962;[99] and with Pakistan, which flared into wars fought in 1947, 1965, 1971, and 1999.[99] The India–Pakistan nuclear rivalry came to a head in 1998.[100] India's sustained democratic freedoms are unique among the world's new nations; however, in spite of its recent economic successes, freedom from want for its disadvantaged population remains a goal yet to be achieved.[101] Geography Main article: Geography of India See also: Geology of India Map of India. Most of India is yellow (elevation 100–1000 m). Some areas in the south and mid-east are brown (above 1000 m). Major river valleys are green (below 100 m). A topographic map of India

India comprises the bulk of the Indian subcontinent and lies atop the minor Indian tectonic plate, which in turn belongs to the Indo-Australian Plate.[102] India's defining geological processes commenced 75 million years ago when the Indian subcontinent, then part of the southern supercontinent Gondwana, began a north-eastward drift across the then-unformed Indian Ocean that lasted fifty million years.[102] The subcontinent's subsequent collision with, and subduction under, the Eurasian Plate bore aloft the planet's highest mountains, the Himalayas. They abut India in the north and the north-east.[102] In the former seabed immediately south of the emerging Himalayas, plate movement created a vast trough that has gradually filled with river-borne sediment;[103] it now forms the Indo-Gangetic Plain.[104] To the west lies the Thar Desert, which is cut off by the Aravalli Range.[105]

The original Indian plate survives as peninsular India, which is the oldest and geologically most stable part of India; it extends as far north as the Satpura and Vindhya ranges in central India. These parallel chains run from the Arabian Sea coast in Gujarat in the west to the coal-rich Chota Nagpur Plateau in Jharkhand in the east.[106] To the south, the remaining peninsular landmass, the Deccan Plateau, is flanked on the west and east by coastal ranges known as the Western and Eastern Ghats;[107] the plateau contains the nation's oldest rock formations, some of them over one billion years old. Constituted in such fashion, India lies to the north of the equator between 6° 44' and 35° 30' north latitude[e] and 68° 7' and 97° 25' east longitude.[108] A shining white snow-clad range, framed against a turquoise sky. In the middle ground, a ridge descends from the right to form a saddle in the centre of the photograph, partly in shadow. In the near foreground, a loop of a road is seen. The Kedar Range of the Greater Himalayas rises behind Kedarnath Temple, which is one of the twelve jyotirlinga shrines.

India's coastline measures 7,517 kilometres (4,700 mi) in length; of this distance, 5,423 kilometres (3,400 mi) belong to peninsular India and 2,094 kilometres (1,300 mi) to the Andaman, Nicobar, and Lakshadweep island chains.[109] According to the Indian naval hydrographic charts, the mainland coastline consists of the following: 43% sandy beaches; 11% rocky shores, including cliffs; and 46% mudflats or marshy shores.[109]

Major Himalayan-origin rivers that substantially flow through India include the Ganges and the Brahmaputra, both of which drain into the Bay of Bengal.[110] Important tributaries of the Ganges include the Yamuna and the Kosi; the latter's extremely low gradient often leads to severe floods and course changes.[111] Major peninsular rivers, whose steeper gradients prevent their waters from flooding, include the Godavari, the Mahanadi, the Kaveri, and the Krishna, which also drain into the Bay of Bengal;[112] and the Narmada and the Tapti, which drain into the Arabian Sea.[113] Coastal features include the marshy Rann of Kutch of western India and the alluvial Sundarbans delta of eastern India; the latter is shared with Bangladesh.[114] India has two archipelagos: the Lakshadweep, coral atolls off India's south-western coast; and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, a volcanic chain in the Andaman Sea.[115]

The Indian climate is strongly influenced by the Himalayas and the Thar Desert, both of which drive the economically and culturally pivotal summer and winter monsoons.[116] The Himalayas prevent cold Central Asian katabatic winds from blowing in, keeping the bulk of the Indian subcontinent warmer than most locations at similar latitudes.[117][118] The Thar Desert plays a crucial role in attracting the moisture-laden south-west summer monsoon winds that, between June and October, provide the majority of India's rainfall.[116] Four major climatic groupings predominate in India: tropical wet, tropical dry, subtropical humid, and montane.[119] Biodiversity Main article: Wildlife of India The brahminy kite (Haliastur indus) is identified with Garuda, the mythical mount of Vishnu. It hunts for fish and other prey near the coasts and around inland wetlands.

India lies within the Indomalaya ecozone and contains three biodiversity hotspots.[120] One of 17 megadiverse countries, it hosts 7.6% of all mammalian, 12.6% of all avian, 6.2% of all reptilian, 4.4% of all amphibian, 11.7% of all piscine, and 6.0% of all flowering plant species.[121] Endemism is high among plants, 33%, and among ecoregions such as the shola forests.[122] Habitat ranges from the tropical rainforest of the Andaman Islands, Western Ghats, and North-East India to the coniferous forest of the Himalaya. Between these extremes lie the moist deciduous sal forest of eastern India; the dry deciduous teak forest of central and southern India; and the babul-dominated thorn forest of the central Deccan and western Gangetic plain.[123] Under 12% of India's landmass bears thick jungle.[124] The medicinal neem, widely used in rural Indian herbal remedies, is a key Indian tree. The luxuriant pipal fig tree, shown on the seals of Mohenjo-daro, shaded Gautama Buddha as he sought enlightenment. Shola highlands are found in Kudremukh National Park, which is part of the Western Ghats.

Many Indian species descend from taxa originating in Gondwana, from which the Indian plate separated more than 105 million years before present.[125] Peninsular India's subsequent movement towards and collision with the Laurasian landmass set off a mass exchange of species. Epochal volcanism and climatic changes 20 million years ago forced a mass extinction.[126] Mammals then entered India from Asia through two zoogeographical passes flanking the rising Himalaya.[123] Thus, while 45.8% of reptiles and 55.8% of amphibians are endemic, only 12.6% of mammals and 4.5% of birds are.[121] Among them are the Nilgiri leaf monkey and Beddome's toad of the Western Ghats. India contains 172 IUCN-designated threatened species, or 2.9% of endangered forms.[127] These include the Asiatic lion, the Bengal tiger, and the Indian white-rumped vulture, which, by ingesting the carrion of diclofenac-laced cattle, nearly went extinct.

The pervasive and ecologically devastating human encroachment of recent decades has critically endangered Indian wildlife. In response the system of national parks and protected areas, first established in 1935, was substantially expanded. In 1972, India enacted the Wildlife Protection Act[128] and Project Tiger to safeguard crucial wilderness; the Forest Conservation Act was enacted in 1980 and amendments added in 1988.[129] India hosts more than five hundred wildlife sanctuaries and thirteen biosphere reserves,[130] four of which are part of the World Network of Biosphere Reserves; twenty-five wetlands are registered under the Ramsar Convention.[131] Politics Main article: Politics of India A parliamentary joint session is held in the Sansad Bhavan.

India is the world's most populous democracy.[132] A parliamentary republic with a multi-party system,[133] it has six recognised national parties, including the Indian National Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and more than 40 regional parties.[134] The Congress is considered centre-left or "liberal" in Indian political culture, and the BJP centre-right or "conservative". For most of the period between 1950—when India first became a republic—and the late 1980s, the Congress held a majority in the parliament. Since then, however, it has increasingly shared the political stage with the BJP,[135] as well as with powerful regional parties which have often forced the creation of multi-party coalitions at the centre.[136]

In the Republic of India's first three general elections, in 1951, 1957, and 1962, the Jawaharlal Nehru-led Congress won easy victories. On Nehru's death in 1964, Lal Bahadur Shastri briefly became prime minister; he was succeeded, after his own unexpected death in 1966, by Indira Gandhi, who went on to lead the Congress to election victories in 1967 and 1971. Following public discontent with the state of emergency she declared in 1975, the Congress was voted out of power in 1977; the then-new Janata Party, which had opposed the emergency, was voted in. Its government lasted just over three years. Voted back into power in 1980, the Congress saw a change in leadership in 1984, when Indira Gandhi was assassinated; she was succeeded by her son Rajiv Gandhi, who won an easy victory in the general elections later that year. The Congress was voted out again in 1989 when a National Front coalition, led by the newly formed Janata Dal in alliance with the Left Front, won the elections; that government too proved relatively short-lived: it lasted just under two years.[137] Elections were held again in 1991; no party won an absolute majority. But the Congress, as the largest single party, was able to form a minority government led by P. V. Narasimha Rao.[138]

A two-year period of political turmoil followed the general election of 1996. Several short-lived alliances shared power at the centre. The BJP formed a government briefly in 1996; it was followed by two comparatively long-lasting United Front coalitions, which depended on external support. In 1998, the BJP was able to form a successful coalition, the National Democratic Alliance, or NDA. Led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the NDA became the first non-Congress government to complete a five-year term.[139] In the 2004 Indian general elections, again no party won an absolute majority, but the Congress emerged as the largest single party, forming another successful coalition: the United Progressive Alliance, or UPA. It had the support of left-leaning parties and MPs who opposed the BJP. The UPA returned to power in the 2009 general election with increased numbers, and it no longer required external support from India's communist parties.[140] That year, Manmohan Singh became the first prime minister since Jawaharlal Nehru in 1957 and 1962 to be re-elected to a consecutive five-year term.[141] Government Main article: Government of India See also: Elections in India The Rashtrapati Bhavan is the official residence of the President of India.

India is a federation with a parliamentary system governed under the Constitution of India, which serves as the country's supreme legal document. It is a constitutional republic and representative democracy, in which "majority rule is tempered by minority rights protected by law". Federalism in India defines the power distribution between the federal government and the states. The government abides by constitutional checks and balances. The Constitution of India, which came into effect on 26 January 1950,[142] states in its preamble that India is a sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic republic.[143] India's form of government, traditionally described as "quasi-federal" with a strong centre and weak states,[144] has grown increasingly federal since the late 1990s as a result of political, economic, and social changes.[145][146] National symbols[1] Flag 	Tricolour Emblem 	Sarnath Lion Capital Anthem 	Jana Gana Mana Song 	Vande Mataram Calendar 	Saka Game 	Hockey Flower 	Lotus Fruit 	Mango Tree 	Banyan Bird 	Indian Peafowl Land animal 	Royal Bengal Tiger Aquatic animal 	River Dolphin River 	Ganges

The federal government comprises three branches:

Executive: The President of India is the head of state[147] and is elected indirectly by a national electoral college[148] for a five-year term.[149] The Prime Minister of India is the head of government and exercises most executive power.[150] Appointed by the president,[151] the prime minister is by convention supported by the party or political alliance holding the majority of seats in the lower house of parliament.[150] The executive branch of the Indian government consists of the president, the vice-president, and the Council of Ministers—the cabinet being its executive committee—headed by the prime minister. Any minister holding a portfolio must be a member of one of the houses of parliament.[147] In the Indian parliamentary system, the executive is subordinate to the legislature; the prime minister and his council directly responsible to the lower house of the parliament.[152]

Legislative: The legislature of India is the bicameral parliament. It operates under a Westminster-style parliamentary system and comprises the upper house called the Rajya Sabha ("Council of States") and the lower called the Lok Sabha ("House of the People").[153] The Rajya Sabha is a permanent body that has 245 members who serve in staggered six-year terms.[154] Most are elected indirectly by the state and territorial legislatures in numbers proportional to their state's share of the national population.[151] All but two of the Lok Sabha's 545 members are directly elected by popular vote; they represent individual constituencies via five-year terms.[155] The remaining two members are nominated by the president from among the Anglo-Indian community, in case the president decides that they are not adequately represented.[156]

Judicial: India has a unitary three-tier judiciary, consisting of the Supreme Court, headed by the Chief Justice of India, 21 High Courts, and a large number of trial courts.[157] The Supreme Court has original jurisdiction over cases involving fundamental rights and over disputes between states and the centre; it has appellate jurisdiction over the High Courts.[158] It is judicially independent[157] and has the power both to declare the law and to strike down union or state laws which contravene the constitution.[159] The Supreme Court is also the ultimate interpreter of the constitution.[160]

Subdivisions Main article: Administrative divisions of India See also: Political integration of India

India is a federation composed of 28 states and 7 union territories.[161] All states, as well as the union territories of Pondicherry and the National Capital Territory of Delhi, have elected legislatures and governments, both patterned on the Westminster model. The remaining five union territories are directly ruled by the centre through appointed administrators. In 1956, under the States Reorganisation Act, states were reorganised on a linguistic basis.[162] Since then, their structure has remained largely unchanged. Each state or union territory is further divided into administrative districts. The districts in turn are further divided into tehsils and ultimately into villages.

States

Andhra Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh Assam Bihar Chhattisgarh Goa Gujarat

Haryana Himachal Pradesh Jammu and Kashmir Jharkhand Karnataka Kerala Madhya Pradesh

Maharashtra Manipur Meghalaya Mizoram Nagaland Orissa Punjab

Rajasthan Sikkim Tamil Nadu Tripura Uttar Pradesh Uttarakhand West Bengal

Union territories

Andaman and Nicobar Islands Chandigarh Dadra and Nagar Haveli Daman and Diu Lakshadweep National Capital Territory of Delhi Pondicherry

A clickable map of the 28 states and 7 union territories of India. A clickable map of Indian states and territories. About this image

Foreign relations and military Main articles: Foreign relations of India and Indian Armed Forces Two seated men converse. The first is dressed in Indian clothing and turban and sits before an Indian flag; the second is in a Western business suit and sits before a Russian flag. Manmohan Singh meets Dmitry Medvedev at the 34th G8 summit. India and Russia share extensive economic, defence, and technological ties.

Since its independence in 1947, India has maintained cordial relations with most nations. In the 1950s, it strongly supported decolonisation in Africa and Asia and played a lead role in the Non-Aligned Movement.[163] In the late 1980s, the Indian military twice intervened abroad at the invitation of neighbouring countries: a peace-keeping operation in Sri Lanka between 1987 and 1990; and an armed intervention to prevent a coup d'état attempt in Maldives. India has tense relations with neighbouring Pakistan; the two nations have gone to war four times: in 1947, 1965, 1971, and 1999. Three of these wars were fought over the disputed territory of Kashmir, while the fourth, the 1971 war, followed from India's support for the independence of Bangladesh.[164] After waging the 1962 Sino-Indian War and the 1965 war with Pakistan, India pursued close military and economic ties with the Soviet Union; by the late 1960s, the Soviet Union was its largest arms supplier.[165]

Aside from ongoing strategic relations with Russia, India has wide-ranging defence relations with Israel and France. In recent years, it has played key roles in the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation and the World Trade Organisation. The nation has provided 100,000 military and police personnel to serve in 35 UN peacekeeping operations across four continents. It participates in the East Asia Summit, the G8+5, and other multilateral forums.[166] India has close economic ties with South America, Asia, and Africa; it pursues a "Look East" policy that seeks to strengthen partnerships with the ASEAN nations, Japan, and South Korea that revolve around many issues, but especially those involving economic investment and regional security.[167][168] The HAL Tejas is a light supersonic fighter developed by the Aeronautical Development Agency and manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics in Bangalore.[169]

China's nuclear test of 1964, as well as its repeated threats to intervene in support of Pakistan in the 1965 war, convinced India to develop nuclear weapons.[170] India conducted its first nuclear weapons test in 1974 and carried out further underground testing in 1998. Despite criticism and military sanctions, India has signed neither the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty nor the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, considering both to be flawed and discriminatory.[171] India maintains a "no first use" nuclear policy and is developing a nuclear triad capability as a part of its "minimum credible deterrence" doctrine.[172][173] It is developing a ballistic missile defence shield and, in collaboration with Russia, a fifth-generation fighter jet.[174] Other indigenous military projects involve the design and implementation of Vikrant-class aircraft carriers and Arihant-class nuclear submarines.[174]

Since the end of the Cold War, India has increased its economic, strategic, and military cooperation with the United States and the European Union.[175] In 2008, a civilian nuclear agreement was signed between India and the United States. Although India possessed nuclear weapons at the time and was not party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, it received waivers from the International Atomic Energy Agency and the Nuclear Suppliers Group, ending earlier restrictions on India's nuclear technology and commerce. As a consequence, India became the sixth de facto nuclear weapons state.[176] India subsequently signed cooperation agreements involving civilian nuclear energy with Russia,[177] France,[178] the United Kingdom,[179] and Canada.[180]

The President of India is the supreme commander of the nation's armed forces; with 1.6 million active troops, they compose the world's third-largest military.[181] It comprises the Indian Army, the Indian Navy, and the Indian Air Force; auxiliary organisations include the Strategic Forces Command and three paramilitary groups: the Assam Rifles, the Special Frontier Force, and the Indian Coast Guard.[6] The official Indian defence budget for 2011 was US$36.03 billion, or 1.83% of GDP.[182] According to a 2008 SIPRI report, India's annual military expenditure in terms of purchasing power stood at US$72.7 billion,[183] In 2011, the annual defence budget increased by 11.6%,[184] although this does not include funds that reach the military through other branches of government.[185] As of 2012, India is the world's largest arms importer; in the period from 2006 to 2010, it accounted for 9% of money spent on international arms purchases.[186] Much of the military expenditure was focused on defence against Pakistan and countering growing Chinese influence in the Indian Ocean.[184] Economy Main article: Economy of India See also: Economic history of India, Economic development in India, and Transport in India Indian agriculture dates from the period 7,000–6,000 BCE,[187] employs most of the national workforce, and is second in farm output worldwide. Above, a farmer works an ox-drawn plow in Kadmati, West Bengal.

According to the International Monetary Fund, as of 2011, the Indian economy is nominally worth US$1.843 trillion; it is the tenth-largest economy by market exchange rates, and is, at US$4.469 trillion, the third-largest by purchasing power parity, or PPP.[5] With its average annual GDP growth rate of 5.8% over the past two decades, and reaching 10.4% during 2010,[188] India is one of the world's fastest-growing economies.[189] However, the country ranks 138th in the world in nominal GDP per capita and 129th in GDP per capita at PPP.[5] Until 1991, all Indian governments followed protectionist policies that were influenced by socialist economics. Widespread state intervention and regulation largely walled the economy off from the outside world. An acute balance of payments crisis in 1991 forced the nation to liberalise its economy;[190] since then it has slowly moved towards a free-market system[191][192] by emphasizing both foreign trade and direct investment inflows.[193] India's recent economic model is largely capitalist.[192]

The 467-million worker Indian labour force is the world's second-largest.[6] The service sector makes up 54% of GDP, the agricultural sector 28%, and the industrial sector 18%. Major agricultural products include rice, wheat, oilseed, cotton, jute, tea, sugarcane, and potatoes.[161] Major industries include textiles, telecommunications, chemicals, food processing, steel, transport equipment, cement, mining, petroleum, machinery, and software.[161] In 2006, the share of external trade in India's GDP stood at 24%, up from 6% in 1985.[191] In 2008, India's share of world trade was 1.68%;[194] India was the world's fifteenth-largest importer in 2009 and the eighteenth-largest exporter.[195] Major exports include petroleum products, textile goods, jewelry, software, engineering goods, chemicals, and leather manufactures.[161] Major imports include crude oil, machinery, gems, fertiliser, and chemicals.[161] Between 2001 and 2011, the contribution of petrochemical and engineering goods to total exports grew from 14% to 42%.[196] Street-level view looking up at a modern 30-story building. The Bombay Stock Exchange is Asia's oldest and India's largest bourse by market capitalisation.

Averaging an economic growth rate of 7.5% during the last few years,[191] India has more than doubled its hourly wage rates during the last decade.[197] Some 431 million Indians have left poverty since 1985; India's middle classes are projected to number around 580 million by 2030.[198] Though ranking 51st in global competitiveness, India ranks 17th in financial market sophistication, 24th in the banking sector, 44th in business sophistication, and 39th in innovation, ahead of several advanced economies.[199] With 7 of the world's top 15 information technology outsourcing companies based in India, the country is viewed as the second-most favourable outsourcing destination after the United States.[200] India's consumer market, currently the world's thirteenth-largest, is expected to become fifth-largest by 2030.[198] Its telecommunication industry, the world's fastest-growing, added 227 million subscribers during the period 2010–11.[201] Its automotive industry, the world's second fastest growing, increased domestic sales by 26% during 2009–10,[202] and exports by 36% during 2008–09.[203] Power capacity is 250 gigawatts, of which 8% is renewable.[204]

Despite impressive economic growth during recent decades, India continues to face socio-economic challenges. India contains the largest concentration of people living below the World Bank's international poverty line of US$1.25 per day,[205] the proportion having decreased from 60% in 1981 to 42% in 2005.[206] Half of the children in India are underweight,[207] and 46% of children under the age of three suffer from malnutrition.[205] The Mid-Day Meal Scheme attempts to lower these rates.[208] Since 1991, economic inequality between India's states has consistently grown: the per-capita net state domestic product of the richest states in 2007 was 3.2 times that of the poorest.[209] Corruption in India is perceived to have increased significantly,[210] with one report estimating the illegal capital flows since independence to be US$462 billion.[211] Driven by growth, India's nominal GDP per capita has steadily increased from US$329 in 1991, when economic liberalisation began, to US$1,265 in 2010, and is estimated to increase to US$2,110 by 2016; however, it has always remained lower than those of other Asian developing countries such as Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Thailand, and is expected to remain so in the near future.[212]

According to a 2011 PricewaterhouseCoopers report, India's GDP at purchasing power parity could overtake that of the United States by 2045.[213] During the next four decades, Indian GDP is expected to grow at an annualised average of 8%, making it potentially the world's fastest-growing major economy until 2050.[213] The report highlights key growth factors: a young and rapidly growing working-age population; growth in the manufacturing sector due to rising education and engineering skill levels; and sustained growth of the consumer market driven by a rapidly growing middle class.[213] The World Bank cautions that, for India to achieve its economic potential, it must continue to focus on public sector reform, transport infrastructure, agricultural and rural development, removal of labour regulations, education, energy security, and public health and nutrition.[214] Demographics Main article: Demographics of India Map of India. High population density areas (above 1000 persons per square kilometer) centre on Kolkata along with other parts of the Ganges River Basin, Mumbai, Bangalore, the south-west coast, and the Lakshadweep Islands. Low density areas (below 100) include the western desert, eastern Kashmir, and the eastern frontier. A population density and Indian Railways connectivity map. The already densely settled Indo-Gangetic Plain is the main driver of Indian population growth.

With 1,210,193,422 residents reported in the 2011 provisional census,[4] India is the world's second-most populous country. Its population grew at 1.76% per annum during 2001–2011,[4] down from 2.13% per annum in the previous decade (1991–2001).[215] The human sex ratio, according to the 2011 census, is 940 females per 1,000 males.[4] The median age was 24.9 in the 2001 census.[6] Medical advances made in the last 50 years as well as increased agricultural productivity brought about by the "Green Revolution" have caused India's population to grow rapidly.[216] India continues to face several public health-related challenges.[217][218] According to the World Health Organisation, 900,000 Indians die each year from drinking contaminated water or breathing polluted air.[219] There are around 50 physicians per 100,000 Indians.[220] The number of Indians living in urban areas has grown by 31.2% between 1991 and 2001.[221] Yet, in 2001, over 70% lived in rural areas.[222][223] According to the 2001 census, there are 27 million-plus cities in India,[221] with Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, and Chennai being the largest. The literacy rate in 2011 was 74.04%: 65.46% among females and 82.14% among males.[4] Kerala is the most literate state;[224] Bihar the least.[225] Children prepare for a traditional dance in Tripura.

India is home to two major language families: Indo-Aryan (spoken by about 74% of the population) and Dravidian (24%). Other languages spoken in India come from the Austro-Asiatic and Tibeto-Burman language families. India has no national language.[226] Hindi, with the largest number of speakers, is the official language of the government.[227][228] English is used extensively in business and administration and has the status of a "subsidiary official language";[229] it is important in education, especially as a medium of higher education. Each state and union territory has one or more official languages, and the constitution recognises in particular 21 "scheduled languages". The Constitution of India recognises 212 scheduled tribal groups which together constitute about 7.5% of the country's population.[230] The 2001 census reported that Hinduism, with over 800 million adherents (80.5% of the population), was the largest religion in India; it is followed by Islam (13.4%), Christianity (2.3%), Sikhism (1.9%), Buddhism (0.8%), Jainism (0.4%), Judaism, Zoroastrianism, and the Bahá'í Faith.[231] India has the world's largest Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Zoroastrian, and Bahá'í populations, and has the third-largest Muslim population and the largest Muslim population for a non-Muslim majority country. Culture Main article: Culture of India A sculpture fashioned in the Gandharan tradition depicting Gautama Buddha, founder of Buddhism, at the Tokyo National Museum

Indian cultural history spans more than 4,500 years.[232] During the Vedic period (c. 1700–500 BCE), the foundations of Hindu philosophy, mythology, and literature were laid, and many beliefs and practices which still exist today, such as dhárma, kárma, yóga, and mokṣa, were established.[10] India is notable for its religious diversity, with Hinduism, Sikhism, Islam, Christianity, and Jainism among the nation's major religions.[233] The predominant religion, Hinduism, has been shaped by various historical schools of thought, including those of the Upanishads,[234] the Yoga Sutras, the Bhakti movement,[233] and by Buddhist philosophy.[235] Art, architecture, and literature

Much of Indian architecture, including the Taj Mahal, other works of Mughal architecture, and South Indian architecture, blends ancient local traditions with imported styles.[236] Vernacular architecture is also highly regional in it flavours. Vastu shastra, literally "science of construction" or "architecture" and ascribed to Mamuni Mayan,[237] explores how the laws of nature affect human dwellings;[238] it employs precise geometry and directional alignments to reflect perceived cosmic constructs.[239] As applied in Hindu temple architecture, it is influenced by the Shilpa Shastras, a series of foundational texts whose basic mythological form is the Vastu-Purusha mandala, a square that embodied the "absolute".[240] The Taj Mahal, built in Agra between 1631 and 1648 by orders of Emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his wife, has been described in the UNESCO World Heritage List as "the jewel of Muslim art in India and one of the universally admired masterpieces of the world's heritage."[241] Indo-Saracenic Revival architecture, developed by the British in the late 19th century, drew on Indo-Islamic architecture.[242]

The earliest literary writings in India, composed between 1400 BCE and 1200 CE, were in the Sanskrit language.[243][244] Prominent works of this Sanskrit literature include epics such as the Mahābhārata and the Ramayana, the dramas of Kālidāsa such as the Abhijñānaśākuntalam (The Recognition of Śakuntalā), and poetry such as the Mahākāvya.[245][246][247] Developed between 600 BCE and 300 CE in South India, the Sangam literature, consisting of 2,381 poems, is regarded as a predecessor of Tamil literature.[248][249][250][251] From the 14th to the 18th centuries, India's literary traditions went through a period of drastic change because of the emergence of devotional poets such as Kabīr, Tulsīdās, and Guru Nānak. This period was characterised by a varied and wide spectrum of thought and expression; as a consequence, medieval Indian literary works differed significantly from classical traditions.[252] In the 19th century, Indian writers took a new interest in social questions and psychological descriptions. In the 20th century, Indian literature was influenced by the works of Bengali poet and novelist Rabindranath Tagore.[253] Performing arts Bihu dancers and drummers from Assam

Indian music ranges over various traditions and regional styles. Classical music encompasses two genres and their various folk offshoots: the northern Hindustani and southern Carnatic schools.[254] Regionalised popular forms include filmi and folk music; the syncretic tradition of the bauls is a well-known form of the latter. Indian dance also features diverse folk and classical forms. Among the better-known folk dances are the bhangra of the Punjab, the bihu of Assam, the chhau of West Bengal and Jharkhand, sambalpuri of Orissa, ghoomar of Rajasthan, and the lavani of Maharashtra. Eight dance forms, many with narrative forms and mythological elements, have been accorded classical dance status by India's National Academy of Music, Dance, and Drama. These are: bharatanatyam of the state of Tamil Nadu, kathak of Uttar Pradesh, kathakali and mohiniyattam of Kerala, kuchipudi of Andhra Pradesh, manipuri of Manipur, odissi of Orissa, and the sattriya of Assam.[255]

Theatre in India melds music, dance, and improvised or written dialogue.[256] Often based on Hindu mythology, but also borrowing from medieval romances or social and political events, Indian theatre includes the bhavai of Gujarat, the jatra of West Bengal, the nautanki and ramlila of North India, tamasha of Maharashtra, burrakatha of Andhra Pradesh, terukkuttu of Tamil Nadu, and the yakshagana of Karnataka.[257] The Indian film industry produces the world's most-watched cinema.[258] Established regional cinematic traditions exist in the Assamese, Bengali, Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Oriya, Tamil, and Telugu languages.[259] South Indian cinema attracts more than 75% of national film revenue.[260] Society A Rajput Hindu marriage ceremony

Traditional Indian society is defined by relatively strict social hierarchy. The Indian caste system embodies much of the social stratification and many of the social restrictions found in the Indian subcontinent. Social classes are defined by thousands of endogamous hereditary groups, often termed as jātis, or "castes".[261] Most Dalits ("Untouchables") and members of other lower-caste communities continue to live in segregation and often face persecution and discrimination.[262][263] Traditional Indian family values are highly valued, and multi-generational patriarchal joint families have been the norm in India, though nuclear families are becoming common in urban areas.[264] An overwhelming majority of Indians, with their consent, have their marriages arranged by their parents or other family members.[265] Marriage is thought to be for life,[265] and the divorce rate is extremely low.[266] Child marriages are common, especially in rural areas; more than half of Indian females wed before reaching 18, which is their legal marriageable age.[267]

Many Indian festivals are religious in origin; among them are Diwali, Ganesh Chaturthi, Thai Pongal, Navaratri, Holi, Durga Puja, Eid ul-Fitr, Bakr-Id, Christmas, and Vaisakhi. India has three national holidays which are observed in all states and union territories: Republic Day, Independence Day, and Gandhi Jayanti. Other sets of holidays, varying between nine and twelve, are officially observed in individual states. Traditional Indian dress varies in colour and style across regions and depends on various factors, including climate and faith. Popular styles of dress include draped garments such as the sari for women and the dhoti or lungi for men. Stitched clothes, such as the shalwar kameez for women and kurta–pyjama combinations or European-style trousers and shirts for men, are also popular.[268] Use of delicate jewellery, modelled on real flowers worn in ancient India, is part of a tradition dating back some 5,000 years; gemstones are also worn in India as talismans.[269]

Indian cuisine features an unsurpassed reliance on herbs and spices, with dishes often calling for the nuanced usage of a dozen or more condiments;[270] it is also known for its tandoori preparations. The tandoor, a clay oven used in India for almost 5,000 years, grills meats to an "uncommon succulence" and produces the puffy flatbread known as naan.[271] The staple foods are wheat (predominantly in the north),[272] rice (especially in the south and the east), and lentils.[273] Many spices that have worldwide appeal are native to the Indian subcontinent,[274] while chili pepper, native to the Americas and introduced by the Portuguese, is widely used by Indians.[275] Āyurveda, a system of traditional medicine, used six rasas and three guṇas to help describe comestibles.[276] Over time, as Vedic animal sacrifices were supplanted by the notion of sacred-cow inviolability, vegetarianism became associated with high religious status and grew increasingly popular,[277] a trend aided by the rise of Buddhism, Jainism, and the Hindu bhakti movement.[278] India has the world's highest concentration of vegetarians: a 2006 survey found that 31% of Indians were non-ovo vegetarian.[278] Common traditional eating customs include meals taken on or near the floor, caste- and gender-segregated dining,[279][280] and lack of cutlery in favour of the right hand or a piece of roti. Sport Main article: Sport in India Field hockey is the national sport of India. Pictured is the Indian team, captained by Dhyan Chand (standing second from left), after winning the finals at the 1936 Summer Olympics—their third of six consecutive Olympic golds.

In India, several traditional indigenous sports remain fairly popular, among them kabaddi, kho kho, pehlwani, and gilli-danda. Some of the earliest forms of Asian martial arts, such as kalarippayattu, musti yuddha, silambam, and marma adi, originated in India. The Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna and the Arjuna Award are the highest forms of government recognition for athletic achievement; the Dronacharya Award is awarded for excellence in coaching. Chess, commonly held to have originated in India as chaturaṅga, is regaining widespread popularity with the rise in the number of Indian grandmasters.[281][282] Pachisi, from which parcheesi derives, was played on a giant marble court by Akbar.[283] The improved results garnered by the Indian Davis Cup team and other Indian tennis players in the early 2010s have made tennis increasingly popular in the country.[284] India has a comparatively strong presence in shooting sports, and has won several medals at the Olympics, the World Shooting Championships, and the Commonwealth Games.[285][286] Other sports in which Indians have succeeded internationally include badminton,[287] boxing,[288] and wrestling.[289] Football is popular in West Bengal, Goa, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and the north-eastern states.[290]

India's official national sport is field hockey; it is administered by Hockey India. The Indian national hockey team won the 1975 Hockey World Cup and have, as of 2012, taken eight gold, one silver, and two bronze Olympic medals, making it the sport's most successful team. Cricket is by far the most popular sport; the Indian national cricket team won the 1983 and 2011 Cricket World Cup events, the 2007 ICC World Twenty20, and shared the 2002 ICC Champions Trophy with Sri Lanka. Cricket in India is administered by the Board of Control for Cricket in India, or BCCI; the Ranji Trophy, the Duleep Trophy, the Deodhar Trophy, the Irani Trophy, and the NKP Salve Challenger Trophy are domestic competitions. The BCCI conducts a Twenty20 competition known as the Indian Premier League. India has hosted or co-hosted several international sporting events: the 1951 and 1982 Asian Games; the 1987, 1996, and 2011 Cricket World Cup tournaments; the 2003 Afro-Asian Games; the 2006 ICC Champions Trophy; the 2010 Hockey World Cup; and the 2010 Commonwealth Games. Major international sporting events held annually in India include the Chennai Open, the Mumbai Marathon, the Delhi Half Marathon, and the Indian Masters. The first Indian Grand Prix featured in late 2011.[291] Notes

^ "[...] Jana Gana Mana is the National Anthem of India, subject to such alterations in the words as the Government may authorise as occasion arises; and the song Vande Mataram, which has played a historic part in the struggle for Indian freedom, shall be honoured equally with Jana Gana Mana and shall have equal status with it." (Constituent Assembly of India 1950). ^ "The country's exact size is subject to debate because some borders are disputed. The Indian government lists the total area as 3,287,260 km2 (1,269,220 sq mi) and the total land area as 3,060,500 km2 (1,181,700 sq mi); the United Nations lists the total area as 3,287,263 km2 (1,269,219 sq mi) and total land area as 2,973,190 km2 (1,147,960 sq mi)." (Library of Congress 2004). ^ See also: Official names of India. ^ The Government of India regards Afghanistan as a bordering country, as it considers all of Kashmir to be part of India. However, this is disputed, and the region bordering Afghanistan is administered by Pakistan. Source: "Ministry of Home Affairs (Department of Border Management)" (DOC). Retrieved 1 September 2008.. ^ The northernmost point under Indian control is the disputed Siachen Glacier in Jammu and Kashmir; however, the Government of India regards the entire region of the former princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, including the Northern Areas currently administered by Pakistan, to be its territory. It therefore assigns the longitude 37° 6' to its northernmost point.

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References

Overview

"India", The World Factbook (Central Intelligence Agency), retrieved 4 October 2011 "Country Profile: India" (PDF), Library of Congress Country Studies (Library of Congress Federal Research Division), December 2004, retrieved 30 September 2011 Heitzman, J.; Worden, R. L. (August 1996), India: A Country Study, Area Handbook Series, Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress, ISBN 978-0844408330 India, International Monetary Fund, retrieved 14 October 2011 "Provisional Population Totals – Census 2011", Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner (Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India), 2011, retrieved 29 March 2011 "Constituent Assembly of India—Volume XII", Constituent Assembly of India: Debates (National Informatics Centre, Government of India), 24 January 1950, retrieved 17 July 2011 There's No National Language in India: Gujarat High Court, The Times Of India, 6 January 2007, retrieved 17 July 2011 "Table 1: Human Development Index and its Components" (PDF), Human Development Report 2011, United Nations, 2011

Etymology

Hindustan, Encyclopædia Britannica, retrieved 17 July 2011 Kaye, A. S. (1 September 1997), Phonologies of Asia and Africa, Eisenbrauns, ISBN 978-1575060194 Kuiper, K., ed. (July 2010), Culture of India, Rosen Publishing Group, ISBN 978-1615302031 (PDF) Constitution of India, Ministry of Law and Justice, 29 July 2008, retrieved 3 March 2012, "Article 1(1): "India, that is Bharat, shall be a Union of States."" "India", Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford University Press, retrieved 17 July 2011

History

Asher, C. B.; Talbot, C. (1 January 2008), India Before Europe (1st ed.), Cambridge University Press, ISBN 978-0521517508 Bose, S.; Jalal, A. (11 March 2011), Modern South Asia: History, Culture, Political Economy (3rd ed.), Routledge, ISBN 978-0415779425 Brown, J. M. (26 May 1994), Modern India: The Origins of an Asian Democracy, The Short Oxford History of the Modern World (2nd ed.), Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0198731139 Copland, I. (8 October 2001), India 1885–1947: The Unmaking of an Empire (1st ed.), Longman, ISBN 978-0582381735 Kulke, H.; Rothermund, D. (1 August 2004), A History of India, 4th, Routledge, ISBN 978-0415329200 Ludden, D. (13 June 2002), India and South Asia: A Short History, One World, ISBN 978-1851682379 Metcalf, B.; Metcalf, T. R. (9 October 2006), A Concise History of Modern India (2nd ed.), Cambridge University Press, ISBN 978-0521682251 Peers, D. M. (3 August 2006), India under Colonial Rule 1700–1885 (1st ed.), Pearson Longman, ISBN 978-0582317383 Possehl, G. (January 2003), The Indus Civilization: A Contemporary Perspective, Rowman Altamira, ISBN 978-0759101722 Robb, P. (2001), A History of India, London: Palgrave, ISBN 978-0333691298 Sarkar, S. (1983), Modern India: 1885–1947, Delhi: Macmillan India, ISBN 978-0333904251 Singh, U. (2009), A History of Ancient and Medieval India: From the Stone Age to the 12th Century, Delhi: Longman, ISBN 978-8131716779 Sripati, V. (1998), "Toward Fifty Years of Constitutionalism and Fundamental Rights in India: Looking Back to See Ahead (1950–2000)", American University International Law Review 14 (2): 413–496 Stein, B. (15 June 1998), A History of India, Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, ISBN 978-0631205463 "Briefing Rooms: India", Economic Research Service (United States Department of Agriculture), 17 December 2009, retrieved 17 July 2011 Thapar, Romila (2003), Penguin history of early India: from the origins to A.D.1300, Penguin Books, retrieved 13 February 2012 Wolpert, S. (25 December 2003), A New History of India (7th ed.), Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0195166781

Geography

Ali, J. R.; Aitchison, J. C. (2005), "Greater India", Earth-Science Reviews 72 (3–4): 170–173, doi:10.1016/j.earscirev.2005.07.005 Chang, J. H. (1967), "The Indian Summer Monsoon", Geographical Review 57 (3): 373–396, doi:10.2307/212640 (PDF) Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 with Amendments Made in 1988, Department of Environment and Forests, Government of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, 1988, retrieved 25 July 2011 Dikshit, K. R.; Schwartzberg, Joseph E., Land, "India", Encyclopædia Britannica: pp. 1–29 Duff, D. (29 October 1993), Holmes Principles of Physical Geology (4th ed.), Routledge, ISBN 978-0748743810 Kumar, V. S.; Pathak, K. C.; Pednekar, P.; Raju, N. S. N. (2006), "Coastal processes along the Indian coastline" (PDF), Current Science 91 (4): 530–536 India Yearbook 2007, New Delhi: Publications Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India, 2007, ISBN 978-8123014234 Posey, C. A. (1 November 1994), The Living Earth Book of Wind and Weather, Reader's Digest, ISBN 978-0895776259 Prakash, B.; Kumar, S.; Rao, M. S.; Giri, S. C. (2000), "Holocene Tectonic Movements and Stress Field in the Western Gangetic Plains" (PDF), Current Science 79 (4): 438–449

Biodiversity

Ali, S. (author); Ripley, S. D. (author); Dick, J. H. (illustrator) (15 August 1996), A Pictorial Guide to the Birds of the Indian Subcontinent (2nd ed.), Mumbai: Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0195637328 Basak, R. K. (1983), Botanical Survey of India: Account of Its Establishment, Development, and Activities, retrieved 20 July 2011 "Hotspots by Region", Biodiversity Hotspots (Conservation International), 2007, retrieved 28 February 2011 Crame, J. A.; Owen, A. W. (1 August 2002), Palaeobiogeography and Biodiversity Change: The Ordovician and Mesozoic–Cenozoic Radiations, Geological Society Special Publication, Geological Society of London, ISBN 978-1862391062, retrieved 8 December 2011 Fisher, W. F. (January 1995), Toward Sustainable Development?: Struggling over India's Narmada River, Columbia University Seminars, M. E. Sharpe, ISBN 978-1563243417 Griffiths, M. (6 July 2010), The Lotus Quest: In Search of the Sacred Flower, St. Martin's Press, ISBN 978-0312641481 Karanth, K. P. (25 March 2006), "Out-of-India Gondwanan Origin of Some Tropical Asian Biota" (PDF), Current Science (Indian Academy of Sciences) 90 (6): 789–792, retrieved 18 May 2011 Mace, G. M. (March 1994), "1994 IUCN Red List of Threatened Animals", World Conservation Monitoring Centre (International Union for Conservation of Nature), ISBN 978-2831701943 "Biosphere Reserves of India", C. P. R. Environment Education Centre (Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India), retrieved 17 July 2011 Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, Ministry of Environments and Forests, Government of India, 9 September 1972, retrieved 25 July 2011 Puri, S. K., Biodiversity Profile of India, retrieved 20 June 2007 (PDF) The List of Wetlands of International Importance, The Secretariat of the Convention on Wetlands, 4 June 2007, p. 18, archived from the original on 21 June 2007, retrieved 20 June 2007 Tritsch, M. F. (3 September 2001), Wildlife of India, London: HarperCollins, ISBN 978-0007110629

Politics

Bhambhri, C. P. (1 May 1992), Politics in India, 1991–1992, Shipra, ISBN 978-8185402178, retrieved 20 July 2011 Burnell, P. J.; Calvert, P. (1 May 1999), The Resilience of Democracy: Persistent Practice, Durable Idea (1st ed.), Taylor & Francis, ISBN 978-0714680262, retrieved 20 July 2011 Second UPA Win, A Crowning Glory for Sonia's Ascendancy, Business Standard, 16 May 2009, retrieved 13 June 2009 Chander, N. J. (1 January 2004), Coalition Politics: The Indian Experience, Concept Publishing Company, ISBN 978-8180690921, retrieved 20 July 2011 Dunleavy, P.; Diwakar, R.; Dunleavy, C. (2007) (PDF), The Effective Space of Party Competition, London School of Economics and Political Science, retrieved 27 September 2011 Dutt, S. (1998), "Identities and the Indian State: An Overview", Third World Quarterly 19 (3): 411–434, doi:10.1080/01436599814325 Echeverri-Gent, J. (January 2002), "Politics in India's Decentred Polity", in Ayres, A.; Oldenburg, P., Quickening the Pace of Change, India Briefing, London: M. E. Sharpe, pp. 19–53, ISBN 978-0765608123 "Current Recognised Parties" (PDF), Election Commission of India, 14 March 2009, retrieved 5 July 2010 Gledhill, A. (30 March 1970), The Republic of India: The Development of its Laws and Constitution, Greenwood, ISBN 978-0837128139, retrieved 21 July 2011 Narasimha Rao Passes Away, The Hindu, 24 December 2004, retrieved 2 November 2008 Mathew, K. M. (1 January 2003), Manorama Yearbook, Malayala Manorama, ISBN 978-8190046183, retrieved 21 July 2011 "National Symbols of India", Know India (National Informatics Centre, Government of India), retrieved 27 September 2009 Neuborne, B. (2003), "The Supreme Court of India", International Journal of Constitutional Law 1 (1): 476–510, doi:10.1093/icon/1.3.476 Pylee, M. V. (2003), "The Longest Constitutional Document", Constitutional Government in India (2nd ed.), S. Chand, ISBN 978-8121922036 Pylee, M. V. (2003), "The Union Judiciary: The Supreme Court", Constitutional Government in India (2nd ed.), S. Chand, ISBN 978-8121922036, retrieved 2 November 2007 Sarkar, N. I. (1 January 2007), Sonia Gandhi: Tryst with India, Atlantic, ISBN 978-8126907441, retrieved 20 July 2011 Sharma, R. (1950), "Cabinet Government in India", Parliamentary Affairs 4 (1): 116–126 Sharma, B. K. (August 2007), Introduction to the Constitution of India (4th ed.), Prentice Hall, ISBN 978-8120332461 Sinha, A. (2004), "The Changing Political Economy of Federalism in India", India Review 3 (1): 25–63, doi:10.1080/14736480490443085 World's Largest Democracy to Reach One Billion Persons on Independence Day, United Nations Population Division, retrieved 5 October 2011 Wheare, K. C. (June 1980), Federal Government (4th ed.), Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0313227028

Foreign relations and military

Alford, P. (7 July 2008), G8 Plus 5 Equals Power Shift, The Australian, retrieved 21 November 2009 Behera, L. K. (7 March 2011), Budgeting for India's Defence: An Analysis of Defence Budget 2011–2012, Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, retrieved 4 April 2011 "Russia Agrees India Nuclear Deal", BBC News (British Broadcasting Corporation), 11 February 2009, retrieved 22 August 2010 Curry, B. (27 June 2010), Canada Signs Nuclear Deal with India, The Globe and Mail, retrieved 13 May 2011 "India, Europe Strategic Relations", Europa: Summaries of EU Legislation (European Union), 8 April 2008, retrieved 14 January 2011 Ghosh, A. (1 September 2009), India's Foreign Policy, Pearson, ISBN 978-8131710258 Gilbert, M. (17 December 2002), A History of the Twentieth Century, William Morrow, ISBN 978-0060505943, retrieved 22 July 2011 India, Russia Review Defence Ties, The Hindu, 5 October 2009, retrieved 8 October 2011 Kumar, A. V. (1 May 2010), "Reforming the NPT to Include India", Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, retrieved 1 Nov 2010 Miglani, S. (28 February 2011), With An Eye on China, India Steps Up Defence Spending, Reuters, retrieved 6 July 2011 Nair, V. K. (2007) (PDF), No More Ambiguity: India's Nuclear Policy, archived from the original on 27 September 2007, retrieved 7 June 2007 Pandit, R. (27 July 2009), N-Submarine to Give India Crucial Third Leg of Nuke Triad, The Times of India, retrieved 10 March 2010 Perkovich, G. (5 November 2001), India's Nuclear Bomb: The Impact on Global Proliferation, University of California Press, ISBN 978-0520232105, retrieved 22 July 2011 India, France Agree on Civil Nuclear Cooperation, Rediff, 25 January 2008, retrieved 22 August 2010 UK, India Sign Civil Nuclear Accord, Reuters, 13 February 2010, retrieved 22 August 2010 Ripsman, N. M.; Paul, T. V. (18 March 2010), Globalization and the National Security State, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0195393903, retrieved 22 July 2011 Rothermund, D. (17 October 2000), The Routledge Companion to Decolonization, Routledge Companions to History (1st ed.), Routledge, ISBN 978-0415356329 India Gets Its First Homegrown Fighter Jet, RIA Novosti, 10 January 2011, retrieved 1 April 2009 Sharma, S. R. (1 January 1999), India–USSR Relations 1947–1971: From Ambivalence to Steadfastness, 1, Discovery, ISBN 978-8171414864 Shukla, A. (5 March 2011), China Matches India's Expansion in Military Spending, Business Standard, retrieved 6 July 2011 Sisodia, N. S.; Naidu, G. V. C. (2005), Changing Security Dynamic in Eastern Asia: Focus on Japan, Promilla, ISBN 978-8186019528 "SIPRI Yearbook 2008: Armaments, Disarmament, and International Security", Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (Oxford University Press), 8 August 2008, ISBN 978-0199548958, retrieved 22 July 2011 "India World's Largest Arms Importer According to New SIPRI Data on International Arms Transfers", Stockholm International Peace Research Initiative, 14 March 2011, retrieved 4 April 2011 India, US Sign 123 Agreement, The Times of India, 11 October 2008, retrieved 21 July 2011

Economy

Alamgir, J. (24 December 2008), India's Open-Economy Policy: Globalism, Rivalry, Continuity, Taylor & Francis, ISBN 978-0415776844, retrieved 23 July 2011 Bonner, B (20 March 2010), Make Way, World. India Is on the Move, Christian Science Monitor, retrieved 23 July 2011 "India Lost $462bn in Illegal Capital Flows, Says Report", BBC News (British Broadcasting Corporation), 18 November 2010, retrieved 23 July 2011 "India Second Fastest Growing Auto Market After China", Business Line, 9 April 2010, retrieved 23 July 2011 India's Economy: Not Just Rubies and Polyester Shirts, The Economist, 8 October 2011, retrieved 9 October 2011 "Indian Car Exports Surge 36%", Express India, 13 October 2009, retrieved 23 July 2011 Report for Selected Countries and Subjects: India, Indonesia, Islamic Republic of Iran, Malaysia, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, International Monetary Fund, April 2011, retrieved 23 July 2011 Farrell, D.; Beinhocker, E. (19 May 2007), Next Big Spenders: India's Middle Class, McKinsey & Company, retrieved 17 September 2011 Gargan, E. A. (15 August 1992), India Stumbles in Rush to a Free Market Economy, The New York Times, retrieved 22 July 2011 (PDF) World Economic Outlook Update, International Monetary Fund, June 2011, retrieved 22 July 2011 Nayak, P. B.; Goldar, B.; Agrawal, P. (10 November 2010), India's Economy and Growth: Essays in Honour of V. K. R. V. Rao, SAGE Publications, ISBN 978-8132104520 Olson, R. G. (21 December 2009), "Technology and Science in Ancient Civilizations", Praeger Series on the Ancient World (Praeger), ISBN 978-0275989361, retrieved 27 September 2011 (PDF) Economic Survey of India 2007: Policy Brief, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, October 2007, retrieved 22 July 2011 Pal, P.; Ghosh, J. (July 2007), "Inequality in India: A Survey of Recent Trends" (PDF), Economic and Social Affairs: DESA Working Paper No. 45 (United Nations), retrieved 23 July 2011 (PDF) The World in 2050: The Accelerating Shift of Global Economic Power: Challenges and Opportunities, PricewaterhouseCoopers, January2011, retrieved 23 July 2011 Schwab, K. (2010) (PDF), The Global Competitiveness Report 2010–2011, World Economic Forum, retrieved 10 May 2011 Sheth, N. (28 May 2009), "Outlook for Outsourcing Spending Brightens", The Wall Street Journal, retrieved 3 October 2010 (PDF) Information Note to the Press (Press Release No.29 /2011), Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, 6 April 2011, retrieved 23 July 2011 Exporters Get Wider Market Reach, The Times of India, 28 August 2009, retrieved 23 July 2011 (PDF) Corruption Perception Index 2010—India Continues to be Corrupt, Transparency International, 26 October 2011, retrieved 23 July 2011 New Global Poverty Estimates—What It Means for India, World Bank, retrieved 23 July 2011 "India: Undernourished Children—A Call for Reform and Action", World Bank, retrieved 23 July 2011 (PDF) Inclusive Growth and Service Delivery: Building on India's Success, World Bank, 29 May 2006, retrieved 7 May 2009 India Country Overview September 2010, World Bank, September 2010, retrieved 23 July 2011 Trade to Expand by 9.5% in 2010 After a Dismal 2009, WTO Reports, World Trade Organisation, 26 March 2010, retrieved 23 July 2011 Yep, E. (27 September 2011), ReNew Wind Power Gets $201 Million Goldman Investment, The Wall Street Journal, retrieved 27 September 2011

Demographics

Bonner, A. (1990), Averting the Apocalypse: Social Movements in India Today, Duke University Press, ISBN 978-0822310488, retrieved 24 July 2011 (PDF) Healthcare in India: Report Highlights, Boston Analytics, January 2009, retrieved 23 July 2011 Dev, S. M.; Rao, N. C. (2009), India: Perspectives on Equitable Development, Academic Foundation, ISBN 978-8171886852 Dharwadker, A. (28 October 2010), "Representing India's Pasts: Time, Culture, and Problems of Performance Historiography", in Canning, C. M.; Postlewait, T., Representing the Past: Essays in Performance Historiography, University of Iowa Press, ISBN 978-1587299056, retrieved 24 July 2011 Drèze, J.; Goyal, A. (9 February 2009), "The Future of Mid-Day Meals", in Baru, R. V., School Health Services in India: The Social and Economic Contexts, SAGE Publications, ISBN 978-8178298733 Dyson, T.; Visaria, P. (7 July 2005), "Migration and Urbanisation: Retrospect and Prospects", in Dyson, T.; Casses, R.; Visaria, L., Twenty-First Century India: Population, Economy, Human Development, and the Environment, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0199283828 Garg, S. C. (19 April 2005) (PDF), Mobilizing Urban Infrastructure Finance in India, World Bank, retrieved 27 January 2010 Mallikarjun, B (November 2004), "Fifty Years of Language Planning for Modern Hindi—The Official Language of India", Language in India 4 (11), ISSN 19302940, retrieved 24 July 2011 Notification No. 2/8/60-O.L, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India, 27 April 1960, retrieved 13 May 2011 "Religious Composition", Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner (Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India), 2010–2011, retrieved 23 July 2011 "Census Data 2001", Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner (Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India), 2010–2011, retrieved 22 July 2011 Ottenheimer, H. J. (2008), The Anthropology of Language: An Introduction to Linguistic Anthropology, Cengage, ISBN 978-0495508847 Ratna, U. (2007), "Interface Between Urban and Rural Development in India", in Dutt, A. K.; Thakur, B., City, Society, and Planning, 1, Concept, ISBN 978-8180694592 Robinson, S. (1 May 2008), "India's Medical Emergency", Time, retrieved 23 July 2011 Rorabacher, J. A. (2010), Hunger and Poverty in South Asia, Gyan, ISBN 978-8121210270 Singh, S. (2004), Library and Literacy Movement for National Development, Concept, ISBN 978-8180690655 Skolnik, R. L. (2008), Essentials of Global Health, Jones & Bartlett Learning, ISBN 978-0763734213 (PDF) Country Cooperation Strategy: India, World Health Organisation, November 2006, retrieved 23 July 2011

Culture

Binmore, K. G. (27 March 2007), Playing for Real: A Text on Game Theory, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0195300574 Bladholm, L. (12 August 2000), The Indian Grocery Store Demystified (1st ed.), Macmillan Publishers, ISBN 978-1580631433 "Saina Nehwal: India's Badminton Star and "New Woman"", BBC News, 1 August 2010, retrieved 5 October 2010 "Commonwealth Games 2010: India Dominate Shooting Medals", BBC News, 7 October 2010, retrieved 3 June 2011 "UN Report Slams India for Caste Discrimination", CBC News Network (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation), 2 March 2007, retrieved 17 July 2007 Chopra, P. (18 March 2011), A Joint Enterprise: Indian Elites and the Making of British Bombay, University of Minnesota Press, ISBN 978-0816670376 Cullen-Dupont, K. (July 2009), Human Trafficking (1st ed.), Infobase Publishing, ISBN 978-0816075454 Das, S. K. (1 January 2005), A History of Indian Literature, 500–1399: From Courtly to the Popular, Sahitya Akademi, ISBN 978-8126021710 Datta, A. (2006), The Encyclopaedia of Indian Literature, 2, Sahitya Akademi, ISBN 978-8126011940 Dehejia, R. S. (7 November 2011), "Indian Grand Prix Vs. Encephalitis?", The Wall Street Journal, retrieved 20 December 2011 Deutsch, E. (30 April 1969), Advaita Vedānta: A Philosophical Reconstruction, University of Hawaii Press, ISBN 978-0824802714 Dissanayake, W. K.; Gokulsing, M. (May 2004), Indian Popular Cinema: A Narrative of Cultural Change (2nd ed.), Trentham Books, ISBN 978-1858563299 Southern Movies Account for over 75% of Film Revenues, The Economic Times, 18 November 2009, retrieved 18 June 2011 Indian Dance, "South Asian Arts", Encyclopædia Britannica, retrieved 17 July 2011 "Tamil Literature", Encyclopædia Britannica, 2008, retrieved 24 July 2011 Eraly, A. (2008), India, Penguin Books, ISBN 978-0756649524, retrieved 24 July 2011 Hart, G. L. (August 1975), Poems of Ancient Tamil: Their Milieu and Their Sanskrit Counterparts (1st ed.), University of California Press, ISBN 978-0520026728 Heehs, P. (editor) (1 September 2002), Indian Religions: A Historical Reader of Spiritual Expression and Experience, New York University Press, ISBN 978-0814736500, retrieved 24 July 2011 Henderson, C. E. (2002), Culture and Customs of India, Greenwood Publishing Group, ISBN 978-0313305139 Hoiberg, D.; Ramchandani, I. (2000), Students' Britannica India: Select Essays, Popular Prakashan, ISBN 978-0852297629 Johnson, W. J. (editor, translator) (1 September 2008), The Sauptikaparvan of the Mahabharata: The Massacre at Night, Oxford World's Classics (2nd ed.), Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0192823618 Jones, G.; Ramdas, K. (2005), (Un)tying the Knot: Ideal and Reality in Asian Marriage, National University of Singapore Press, ISBN 978-9810514280 Kālidāsa; Johnson, W. J. (15 November 2001), The Recognition of Śakuntalā: A Play in Seven Acts, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0192839114 Karanth, S. K. (October 2002), Yakṣagāna, Abhinav Publications, ISBN 978-8170173571 Kiple, K. F. (editor); Ornelas, K. C. (editor) (2000), The Cambridge World History of Food, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, ISBN 978-0521402163 Kuiper, K. (editor) (1 July 2010), The Culture of India, Britannica Educational Publishing, ISBN 978-1615302031, retrieved 24 July 2011 Kumar, V. (January 2000), Vastushastra, All You Wanted to Know About Series (2nd ed.), Sterling Publishing, ISBN 978-8120721999 Lal, A. (2004), The Oxford Companion to Indian Theatre, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0195644463, retrieved 24 July 2011 Lang, J.; Moleski, W. (1 December 2010), Functionalism Revisited, Ashgate Publishing, ISBN 978-1409407010 MacDonell, A. A. (2004), A History of Sanskrit Literature, Kessinger Publishing, ISBN 978-1417906192 Majumdar, B.; Bandyopadhyay, K. (2006), A Social History of Indian Football: Striving To Score, Routledge, ISBN 978-0415348355 Makar, E. M. (2007), An American's Guide to Doing Business in India, Adams, ISBN 978-1598692112 Massey, R.; Massey, J. (1998), The Music of India, Abhinav Publications, ISBN 978-8170173328 Medora, N. (2003), "Mate Selection in Contemporary India: Love Marriages Versus Arranged Marriages", in Hamon, R. R.; Ingoldsby, B. B., Mate Selection Across Cultures, SAGE Publications, p. 209–230, ISBN 978-0761925927 Is Boxing the New Cricket?, Mint, 24 September 2010, retrieved 5 October 2010 Nakamura, H. (1 April 1999), Indian Buddhism: A Survey with Bibliographical Notes, Buddhist Tradition Series (12th ed.), Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 978-8120802728 Puskar-Pasewicz, M. (16 September 2010), Cultural Encyclopedia of Vegetarianism, Greenwood Publishing Group, ISBN 978-0313375569 Raghavan, S. (23 October 2006), Handbook of Spices, Seasonings, and Flavorings (2nd ed.), CRC Press, ISBN 978-0849328428 Raichlen, S. (10 May 2011), A Tandoor Oven Brings India's Heat to the Backyard, The New York Times, retrieved 14 June 2011 Rajadhyaksha, A. (editor); Willemen (editor), P. (22 January 1999), Encyclopaedia of Indian Cinema (2nd ed.), British Film Institute, ISBN 978-0851706696 Ramanujan, A. K. (translator) (15 October 1985), Poems of Love and War: From the Eight Anthologies and the Ten Long Poems of Classical Tamil, New York: Columbia University Press, pp. ix–x, ISBN 978-0231051071 Anand Crowned World Champion, Rediff, 29 October 2008, retrieved 29 October 2008 Roberts, N. W. (12 July 2004), Building Type Basics for Places of Worship (1st ed.), John Wiley & Sons, ISBN 978-0471225683 Sarma, S. (1 January 2009), A History of Indian Literature, 1 (2nd ed.), Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 978-8120802643 Schoenhals, M. (22 November 2003), Intimate Exclusion: Race and Caste Turned Inside Out, University Press of America, ISBN 978-0761826972 Schwartzberg, J. (2011), Caste, "India", Encyclopædia Britannica, retrieved 17 July 2011 Sen, A. (5 September 2006), The Argumentative Indian: Writings on Indian History, Culture, and Identity (1st ed.), Picador, ISBN 978-0312426026 Seymour, S. C. (28 January 1999), Women, Family, and Child Care in India: A World in Transition, Cambridge University Press, ISBN 978-0521598842 Silverman, S. (10 October 2007), Vastu: Transcendental Home Design in Harmony with Nature, Gibbs Smith, ISBN 978-1423601326 Tarlo, E. (1 September 1996), Clothing Matters: Dress and Identity in India (1st ed.), University of Chicago Press, ISBN 978-0226789767, retrieved 24 July 2011 Sawant Shoots Historic Gold at World Championships, The Times of India, 9 August 2010, retrieved 25 May 2011 Taj Mahal, United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation, retrieved 3 March 2012 India Aims for Center Court, The Wall Street Journal, 11 September 2009, retrieved 29 September 2010 Wengell, D. L.; Gabriel, N. (1 September 2008), Educational Opportunities in Integrative Medicine: The A-to-Z Healing Arts Guide and Professional Resource Directory (1st ed.), The Hunter Press, ISBN 978-0977655243 Xavier, L. (12 September 2010), Sushil Kumar Wins Gold in World Wrestling Championship, The Times of India, retrieved 5 October 2010 Yadav, S. S.; McNeil, D.; Stevenson, P. C. (23 October 2007), Lentil: An Ancient Crop for Modern Times, Springer, ISBN 978-1402063121 Zvelebil, K. V. (1 August 1997), Companion Studies to the History of Tamil Literature, Brill Publishers, ISBN 978-9004093652

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India From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search This article is about the Republic of India. For other uses, see India (disambiguation). Page semi-protected Republic of India भारत गणराज्य Bhārat Gaṇarājya Horizontal tricolour flag bearing, from top to bottom, deep saffron, white, and green horizontal bands. In the centre of the white band is a navy-blue wheel with 24 spokes. Three lions facing left, right, and toward viewer, atop a frieze containing a galloping horse, a 24-spoke wheel, and an elephant. Underneath is a motto: "सत्यमेव जयते". Flag 	Emblem Motto: "Satyameva Jayate" (Sanskrit) सत्यमेव जयते (Devanāgarī) "Truth Alone Triumphs"[1] Anthem: Jana Gana Mana instrumental.ogg

Jana Gana Mana "Thou Art the Ruler of the Minds of All People"[2] National song: Vande Mataram.ogg

Vande Mataram "I Bow to Thee, Mother"[a][1] Image of a globe centred on India, with India highlighted. Area controlled by India is in dark green. Claimed but uncontrolled regions are in light green. Capital 	New Delhi 28°36.8′N 77°12.5′E Largest city 	Mumbai Official language(s) Hindi, English[show] Recognised regional languages Eighth Schedule[show] National language(s) 	none[3] Demonym 	Indian Government 	federal parliamentary constitutional republic[1] - 	President 	Pratibha Patil - 	Vice President 	Mohammad Hamid Ansari - 	Prime Minister 	Manmohan Singh (INC) - 	Speaker of the House 	Meira Kumar (INC) - 	Chief Justice 	S. H. Kapadia Legislature 	Parliament of India - 	Upper house 	Rajya Sabha - 	Lower house 	Lok Sabha Independence 	from the United Kingdom - 	Declared 	15 August 1947 - 	Republic 	26 January 1950 Area - 	Total 	3,287,263 km2 [A](7th) 1,269,219 sq mi -  	Water (%) 	9.56 Population - 	2011 census 	1,210,193,422[4] (2nd) - 	Density 	367.7/km2 (31st) 952.3/sq mi GDP (PPP) 	2011 estimate - 	Total 	$4.469 trillion[5] (3rd) - 	Per capita 	$3,703[5] (129th) GDP (nominal) 	2011 estimate - 	Total 	$1.843 trillion[5] (10th) - 	Per capita 	$1,527[5] (133rd) Gini (2004) 	36.8[6] (79th) HDI (2011) 	increase0.547[7] (medium) (134th) Currency 	Indian rupee (INR) (INR) Time zone 	IST (UTC+05:30) - 	Summer (DST) 	not observed (UTC+05:30) Date formats 	dd-mm-yyyy (AD) Drives on the 	left ISO 3166 code 	IN Internet TLD 	.in other TLDs[show] Calling code 	91 Footnotes[show]

India (Listeni/ˈɪndiə/), officially the Republic of India (Hindi: भारत गणराज्य, Bhārat Gaṇarājya),[c] is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the south-west, and the Bay of Bengal on the south-east, it shares land borders with Pakistan to the west;[d] China, Nepal, and Bhutan to the north-east; and Burma and Bangladesh to the east. In the Indian Ocean, India is in the vicinity of Sri Lanka and the Maldives; in addition, India's Andaman and Nicobar Islands share a maritime border with Thailand and Indonesia.

Home to the ancient Indus Valley Civilisation and a region of historic trade routes and vast empires, the Indian subcontinent was identified with its commercial and cultural wealth for much of its long history.[8] Four of the world's major religions—Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism—originated here, whereas Zoroastrianism, Christianity, and Islam arrived in the 1st millennium CE and also helped shape the region's diverse culture. Gradually annexed by and brought under the administration of the British East India Company from the early 18th century and administered directly by the United Kingdom from the mid-19th century, India became an independent nation in 1947 after a struggle for independence that was marked by non-violent resistance and led by Mahatma Gandhi.

The Indian economy is the world's tenth-largest by nominal GDP and third-largest by purchasing power parity (PPP). Following market-based economic reforms in 1991, India became one of the fastest-growing major economies; it is considered a newly industrialised country. However, it continues to face the challenges of poverty, illiteracy, corruption, and inadequate public healthcare. A nuclear weapons state and a regional power, it has the third-largest standing army in the world and ranks ninth in military expenditure among nations. India is a federal constitutional republic governed under a parliamentary system consisting of 28 states and 7 union territories. It is one of the five BRICS nations. India is a pluralistic, multilingual, and multiethnic society. It is also home to a diversity of wildlife in a variety of protected habitats. Contents [hide]

1 Etymology 2 History 2.1 Ancient India 2.2 Medieval India 2.3 Early modern India 2.4 Modern India 3 Geography 4 Biodiversity 5 Politics 5.1 Government 5.2 Subdivisions 6 Foreign relations and military 7 Economy 8 Demographics 9 Culture 9.1 Art, architecture, and literature 9.2 Performing arts 9.3 Society 9.4 Sport 10 Notes 11 Citations 12 References 13 External links

Etymology Main article: Names of India

The name India is derived from Indus, which originates from the Old Persian word Hindu. The latter term stems from the Sanskrit word Sindhu (सिन्धु), which was the historical local appellation for the Indus River.[9] The ancient Greeks referred to the Indians as Indoi (Ινδοί), which translates as "the people of the Indus".[10] The geographical term Bharat (pronounced [ˈbʱaːrət̪] ( listen)), which is recognised by the Constitution of India as an official name for the country, is used by many Indian languages in various subtle guises.[11] The eponym of Bharat is Bharata, a mythological figure that Hindu scriptures describe as a legendary emperor of ancient India. Hindustan ([ɦɪnd̪ʊˈst̪aːn] ( listen)) was originally a Persian word that meant "Land of the Hindus"; prior to 1947, it referred to a region that encompassed northern India and Pakistan. It is occasionally used to solely denote India in its entirety.[12][13] History Main articles: History of India and History of the Republic of India Ancient India

The earliest anatomically modern human remains found in South Asia date from approximately 30,000 years ago.[14] Nearly contemporaneous Mesolithic rock art sites have been found in many parts of the Indian subcontinent, including at the Bhimbetka rock shelters in Madhya Pradesh.[15] Around 7000 BCE, the first known Neolithic settlements appeared on the subcontinent in Mehrgarh and other sites in western Pakistan.[16] These gradually developed into the Indus Valley Civilisation,[17] the first urban culture in South Asia;[18] it flourished during 2500–1900 BCE in Pakistan and western India.[19] Centred around cities such as Mohenjo-daro, Harappa, Dholavira, and Kalibangan, and relying on varied forms of subsistence, the civilisation engaged robustly in crafts production and wide-ranging trade.[18] Damaged brown painting of a reclining man and woman. Paintings at the Ajanta Caves in Aurangabad, Maharashtra, 6th century

During the period 2000–500 BCE, in terms of culture, many regions of the subcontinent transitioned from the Chalcolithic to the Iron Age.[20] The Vedas, the oldest scriptures of Hinduism,[21] were composed during this period, and historians have analysed these to posit a Vedic culture in the Punjab region and the upper Indo-Gangetic Plain.[20] Most historians also consider this period to have encompassed several waves of Indo-Aryan migration into the subcontinent from the north-west.[21] The caste system, which created a hierarchy of priests, warriors, and free peasants, but which excluded indigenous peoples by labeling their occupations impure, arose during this period.[22] On the Deccan Plateau, archaeological evidence from this period suggests the existence of a chiefdom stage of political organisation.[20] In southern India, a progression to sedentary life is indicated by the large number of megalithic monuments dating from this period,[23] as well as by nearby traces of agriculture, irrigation tanks, and craft traditions.[23]

In the late Vedic period, around the 5th century BCE, the small chiefdoms of the Ganges Plain and the north-western regions had consolidated into 16 major oligarchies and monarchies that were known as the mahajanapadas.[24][25] The emerging urbanisation and the orthodoxies of this age also created the religious reform movements of Buddhism and Jainism,[26] both of which became independent religions.[27] Buddhism, based on the teachings of India's first historical figure, Gautama Buddha, attracted followers from all social classes excepting the middle;[26][28] Jainism came into prominence around the same time during the life of its exemplar, Mahavira.[29] In an age of increasing urban wealth, both religions held up renunciation as an ideal,[30] and both established long-lasting monasteries.[24] Politically, by the 3rd century BCE, the kingdom of Magadha had annexed or reduced other states to emerge as the Mauryan Empire.[24] The empire was once thought to have controlled most of the subcontinent excepting the far south, but its core regions are now thought to have been separated by large autonomous areas.[31][32] The Mauryan kings are known as much for their empire-building and determined management of public life as for Ashoka's renunciation of militarism and far-flung advocacy of the Buddhist dhamma.[33][34]

The Sangam literature of the Tamil language reveals that, between 200 BCE and 200 CE, the southern peninsula was being ruled by the Cheras, the Cholas, and the Pandyas, dynasties that traded extensively with the Roman Empire and with West and South-East Asia.[35][36] In North India, Hinduism asserted patriarchal control within the family, leading to increased subordination of women.[37][24] By the 4th and 5th centuries, the Gupta Empire had created in the greater Ganges Plain a complex system of administration and taxation that became a model for later Indian kingdoms.[38][39] Under the Guptas, a renewed Hinduism based on devotion rather than the management of ritual began to assert itself.[40] The renewal was reflected in a flowering of sculpture and architecture, which found patrons among an urban elite.[39] Classical Sanskrit literature flowered as well, and Indian science, astronomy, medicine, and mathematics made significant advances.[39] Medieval India The granite tower of Brihadeeswarar Temple in Thanjavur was completed in 1010 CE by Raja Raja Chola I.

The Indian early medieval age, 600 CE to 1200 CE, is defined by regional kingdoms and cultural diversity.[41] When Harsha of Kannauj, who ruled much of the Indo-Gangetic Plain from 606 to 647 CE, attempted to expand southwards, he was defeated by the Chalukya ruler of the Deccan.[42] When his successor attempted to expand eastwards, he was defeated by the Pala king of Bengal.[42] When the Chalukyas attempted to expand southwards, they were defeated by the Pallavas from farther south, who in turn were opposed by the Pandyas and the Cholas from still farther south.[42] No ruler of this period was able to create an empire and consistently control lands much beyond his core region.[41] During this time, pastoral peoples whose land had been cleared to make way for the growing agricultural economy were accommodated within caste society, as were new non-traditional ruling classes.[43] The caste system consequently began to show regional differences.[43]

In the 6th and 7th centuries, the first devotional hymns were created in the Tamil language.[44] They were imitated all over India and led to both the resurgence of Hinduism and the development of all modern languages of the subcontinent.[44] Indian royalty, big and small, and the temples they patronised, drew citizens in great numbers to the capital cities, which became economic hubs as well.[45] Temple towns of various sizes began to appear everywhere as India underwent another urbanisation.[45] By the 8th and 9th centuries, the effects were felt in South-East Asia, as South Indian culture and political systems were exported to lands that became part of modern-day Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Java.[46] Indian merchants, scholars, and sometimes armies were involved in this transmission; South-East Asians took the initiative as well, with many sojourning in Indian seminaries and translating Buddhist and Hindu texts into their languages.[46]

After the 10th century, Muslim Central Asian nomadic clans, using swift-horse cavalry and raising vast armies united by ethnicity and religion, repeatedly overran South Asia's north-western plains, leading eventually to the establishment of the Islamic Delhi Sultanate in 1206.[47] The sultanate was to control much of North India, and to make many forays into South India. Although at first disruptive for the Indian elites, the sultanate largely left its vast non-Muslim subject population to its own laws and customs.[48][49] By repeatedly repulsing Mongol raiders in the 13th century, the sultanate saved India from the devastation visited on West and Central Asia, setting the scene for centuries of migration of fleeing soldiers, learned men, mystics, traders, artists, and artisans from that region into the subcontinent, thereby creating a syncretic Indo-Islamic culture in the north.[50][51] The sultanate's raiding and weakening of the regional kingdoms of South India paved the way for the indigenous Vijayanagara Empire.[52] Embracing a strong Shaivite tradition and building upon the military technology of the sultanate, the empire came to control much of peninsular India,[53] and was to influence South Indian society for long afterwards.[52] Early modern India Scribes and artists in the Mughal court, 1590–1595

In the early 16th century, northern India, being then under mainly Muslim rulers,[54] fell again to the superior mobility and firepower of a new generation of Central Asian warriors.[55] The resulting Mughal Empire did not stamp out the local societies it came to rule, but rather balanced and pacified them through new administrative practices[56][57] and diverse and inclusive ruling elites,[58] leading to more systematic, centralised, and uniform rule.[59] Eschewing tribal bonds and Islamic identity, especially under Akbar, the Mughals united their far-flung realms through loyalty, expressed through a Persianised culture, to an emperor who had near-divine status.[58] The Mughal state's economic policies, deriving most revenues from agriculture[60] and mandating that taxes be paid in the well-regulated silver currency,[61] caused peasants and artisans to enter larger markets.[59] The relative peace maintained by the empire during much of the 17th century was a factor in India's economic expansion,[59] resulting in greater patronage of painting, literary forms, textiles, and architecture.[62] Newly coherent social groups in northern and western India, such as the Marathas, the Rajputs, and the Sikhs, gained military and governing ambitions during Mughal rule, which, through collaboration or adversity, gave them both recognition and military experience.[63] Expanding commerce during Mughal rule gave rise to new Indian commercial and political elites along the coasts of southern and eastern India.[63] As the empire disintegrated, many among these elites were able to seek and control their own affairs.[64]

By the early 18th century, with the lines between commercial and political dominance being increasingly blurred, a number of European trading companies, including the English East India Company, had established coastal outposts.[65][66] The East India Company's control of the seas, greater resources, and more advanced military training and technology led it to increasingly flex its military muscle and caused it to become attractive to a portion of the Indian elite; both these factors were crucial in allowing the Company to gain control over the Bengal region by 1765 and sideline the other European companies.[67][65][68][69] Its further access to the riches of Bengal and the subsequent increased strength and size of its army enabled it to annex or subdue most of India by the 1820s.[70] India was now no longer exporting manufactured goods as it long had, but was instead supplying the British empire with raw materials, and many historians consider this to be the onset of India's colonial period.[65] By this time, with its economic power severely curtailed by the British parliament and itself effectively made an arm of British administration, the Company began to more consciously enter non-economic arenas such as education, social reform, and culture.[71] Modern India The British Indian Empire, from the 1909 edition of The Imperial Gazetteer of India. Areas directly governed by the British are shaded pink; nominally sovereign princely states are in yellow.

Historians consider India's modern age to have begun sometime between 1848 and 1885. The appointment in 1848 of Lord Dalhousie as Governor General of the East India Company rule in India set the stage for changes essential to a modern state. These included the consolidation and demarcation of sovereignty, the surveillance of the population, and the education of citizens. Technological changes—among them, railways, canals, and the telegraph—were introduced not long after their introduction in Europe.[72][73][74][75] However, disaffection with the Company also grew during this time, and set off the Indian Rebellion of 1857. Fed by diverse resentments and perceptions, including invasive British-style social reforms, harsh land taxes, and summary treatment of some rich landowners and princes, the rebellion rocked many regions of northern and central India and shook the foundations of Company rule.[76][77] Although the rebellion was suppressed by 1858, it led to the dissolution of the East India Company and to the direct administration of India by the British government. Proclaiming a unitary state and a gradual but limited British-style parliamentary system, the new rulers also protected princes and landed gentry as a feudal safeguard against future unrest.[78][79] In the decades following, public life gradually emerged all over India, leading eventually to the founding of the Indian National Congress in 1885.[80][81][82][83] Two smiling men in robes sitting on the ground with bodies facing the viewer and with heads turned toward each other. The younger wears a white Nehru cap; the elder is bald and wears glasses. A half-dozen other people are in the background. Jawaharlal Nehru (left) became India's first prime minister in 1947. Mahatma Gandhi (right) led the independence movement.

The rush of technology and the commercialisation of agriculture in the second half of the 19th century was marked by economic setbacks—many small farmers became dependent on the whims of far-away markets.[84] There was an increase in the number of large-scale famines,[85] and, despite the risks of infrastructure development borne by Indian taxpayers, little industrial employment was generated for Indians.[86] There were also salutary effects: commercial cropping, especially in the newly canalled Punjab, led to increased food production for internal consumption.[87] The railway network provided critical famine relief,[88] notably reduced the cost of moving goods,[88] and helped nascent Indian-owned industry.[87] After World War I, in which some one million Indians served,[89] a new period began. It was marked by British reforms but also repressive legislation, by more strident Indian calls for self-rule, and by the beginnings of a non-violent movement of non-cooperation, of which Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi would become the leader and enduring symbol.[90] During the 1930s, slow legislative reform was enacted by the British; the Indian National Congress won victories in the resulting elections.[91] The next decade was beset with crises: Indian participation in World War II, the Congress's final push for non-cooperation, and an upsurge of Muslim nationalism. All were capped by the advent of independence in 1947, but tempered by the bloody partition of the subcontinent into two states: India and Pakistan.[92]

Vital to India's self-image as an independent nation was its constitution, completed in 1950, which put in place a sovereign, secular, and democratic republic.[93] In the 60 years since, India has had a mixed bag of successes and failures.[94] It has remained a democracy with civil liberties, an activist Supreme Court, and a largely independent press.[94] Economic liberalisation, which was begun in the 1990s, has created a large urban middle class, transformed India into one of the world's fastest-growing economies,[95] and increased its geopolitical clout. Indian movies, music, and spiritual teachings play an increasing role in global culture.[94] Yet, India has also been weighed down by seemingly unyielding poverty, both rural and urban;[94] by religious and caste-related violence;[96] by Maoist-inspired Naxalite insurgencies;[97] and by separatism in Jammu and Kashmir.[98] It has unresolved territorial disputes with China, which escalated into the Sino-Indian War of 1962;[99] and with Pakistan, which flared into wars fought in 1947, 1965, 1971, and 1999.[99] The India–Pakistan nuclear rivalry came to a head in 1998.[100] India's sustained democratic freedoms are unique among the world's new nations; however, in spite of its recent economic successes, freedom from want for its disadvantaged population remains a goal yet to be achieved.[101] Geography Main article: Geography of India See also: Geology of India Map of India. Most of India is yellow (elevation 100–1000 m). Some areas in the south and mid-east are brown (above 1000 m). Major river valleys are green (below 100 m). A topographic map of India

India comprises the bulk of the Indian subcontinent and lies atop the minor Indian tectonic plate, which in turn belongs to the Indo-Australian Plate.[102] India's defining geological processes commenced 75 million years ago when the Indian subcontinent, then part of the southern supercontinent Gondwana, began a north-eastward drift across the then-unformed Indian Ocean that lasted fifty million years.[102] The subcontinent's subsequent collision with, and subduction under, the Eurasian Plate bore aloft the planet's highest mountains, the Himalayas. They abut India in the north and the north-east.[102] In the former seabed immediately south of the emerging Himalayas, plate movement created a vast trough that has gradually filled with river-borne sediment;[103] it now forms the Indo-Gangetic Plain.[104] To the west lies the Thar Desert, which is cut off by the Aravalli Range.[105]

The original Indian plate survives as peninsular India, which is the oldest and geologically most stable part of India; it extends as far north as the Satpura and Vindhya ranges in central India. These parallel chains run from the Arabian Sea coast in Gujarat in the west to the coal-rich Chota Nagpur Plateau in Jharkhand in the east.[106] To the south, the remaining peninsular landmass, the Deccan Plateau, is flanked on the west and east by coastal ranges known as the Western and Eastern Ghats;[107] the plateau contains the nation's oldest rock formations, some of them over one billion years old. Constituted in such fashion, India lies to the north of the equator between 6° 44' and 35° 30' north latitude[e] and 68° 7' and 97° 25' east longitude.[108] A shining white snow-clad range, framed against a turquoise sky. In the middle ground, a ridge descends from the right to form a saddle in the centre of the photograph, partly in shadow. In the near foreground, a loop of a road is seen. The Kedar Range of the Greater Himalayas rises behind Kedarnath Temple, which is one of the twelve jyotirlinga shrines.

India's coastline measures 7,517 kilometres (4,700 mi) in length; of this distance, 5,423 kilometres (3,400 mi) belong to peninsular India and 2,094 kilometres (1,300 mi) to the Andaman, Nicobar, and Lakshadweep island chains.[109] According to the Indian naval hydrographic charts, the mainland coastline consists of the following: 43% sandy beaches; 11% rocky shores, including cliffs; and 46% mudflats or marshy shores.[109]

Major Himalayan-origin rivers that substantially flow through India include the Ganges and the Brahmaputra, both of which drain into the Bay of Bengal.[110] Important tributaries of the Ganges include the Yamuna and the Kosi; the latter's extremely low gradient often leads to severe floods and course changes.[111] Major peninsular rivers, whose steeper gradients prevent their waters from flooding, include the Godavari, the Mahanadi, the Kaveri, and the Krishna, which also drain into the Bay of Bengal;[112] and the Narmada and the Tapti, which drain into the Arabian Sea.[113] Coastal features include the marshy Rann of Kutch of western India and the alluvial Sundarbans delta of eastern India; the latter is shared with Bangladesh.[114] India has two archipelagos: the Lakshadweep, coral atolls off India's south-western coast; and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, a volcanic chain in the Andaman Sea.[115]

The Indian climate is strongly influenced by the Himalayas and the Thar Desert, both of which drive the economically and culturally pivotal summer and winter monsoons.[116] The Himalayas prevent cold Central Asian katabatic winds from blowing in, keeping the bulk of the Indian subcontinent warmer than most locations at similar latitudes.[117][118] The Thar Desert plays a crucial role in attracting the moisture-laden south-west summer monsoon winds that, between June and October, provide the majority of India's rainfall.[116] Four major climatic groupings predominate in India: tropical wet, tropical dry, subtropical humid, and montane.[119] Biodiversity Main article: Wildlife of India The brahminy kite (Haliastur indus) is identified with Garuda, the mythical mount of Vishnu. It hunts for fish and other prey near the coasts and around inland wetlands.

India lies within the Indomalaya ecozone and contains three biodiversity hotspots.[120] One of 17 megadiverse countries, it hosts 7.6% of all mammalian, 12.6% of all avian, 6.2% of all reptilian, 4.4% of all amphibian, 11.7% of all piscine, and 6.0% of all flowering plant species.[121] Endemism is high among plants, 33%, and among ecoregions such as the shola forests.[122] Habitat ranges from the tropical rainforest of the Andaman Islands, Western Ghats, and North-East India to the coniferous forest of the Himalaya. Between these extremes lie the moist deciduous sal forest of eastern India; the dry deciduous teak forest of central and southern India; and the babul-dominated thorn forest of the central Deccan and western Gangetic plain.[123] Under 12% of India's landmass bears thick jungle.[124] The medicinal neem, widely used in rural Indian herbal remedies, is a key Indian tree. The luxuriant pipal fig tree, shown on the seals of Mohenjo-daro, shaded Gautama Buddha as he sought enlightenment. Shola highlands are found in Kudremukh National Park, which is part of the Western Ghats.

Many Indian species descend from taxa originating in Gondwana, from which the Indian plate separated more than 105 million years before present.[125] Peninsular India's subsequent movement towards and collision with the Laurasian landmass set off a mass exchange of species. Epochal volcanism and climatic changes 20 million years ago forced a mass extinction.[126] Mammals then entered India from Asia through two zoogeographical passes flanking the rising Himalaya.[123] Thus, while 45.8% of reptiles and 55.8% of amphibians are endemic, only 12.6% of mammals and 4.5% of birds are.[121] Among them are the Nilgiri leaf monkey and Beddome's toad of the Western Ghats. India contains 172 IUCN-designated threatened species, or 2.9% of endangered forms.[127] These include the Asiatic lion, the Bengal tiger, and the Indian white-rumped vulture, which, by ingesting the carrion of diclofenac-laced cattle, nearly went extinct.

The pervasive and ecologically devastating human encroachment of recent decades has critically endangered Indian wildlife. In response the system of national parks and protected areas, first established in 1935, was substantially expanded. In 1972, India enacted the Wildlife Protection Act[128] and Project Tiger to safeguard crucial wilderness; the Forest Conservation Act was enacted in 1980 and amendments added in 1988.[129] India hosts more than five hundred wildlife sanctuaries and thirteen biosphere reserves,[130] four of which are part of the World Network of Biosphere Reserves; twenty-five wetlands are registered under the Ramsar Convention.[131] Politics Main article: Politics of India A parliamentary joint session is held in the Sansad Bhavan.

India is the world's most populous democracy.[132] A parliamentary republic with a multi-party system,[133] it has six recognised national parties, including the Indian National Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and more than 40 regional parties.[134] The Congress is considered centre-left or "liberal" in Indian political culture, and the BJP centre-right or "conservative". For most of the period between 1950—when India first became a republic—and the late 1980s, the Congress held a majority in the parliament. Since then, however, it has increasingly shared the political stage with the BJP,[135] as well as with powerful regional parties which have often forced the creation of multi-party coalitions at the centre.[136]

In the Republic of India's first three general elections, in 1951, 1957, and 1962, the Jawaharlal Nehru-led Congress won easy victories. On Nehru's death in 1964, Lal Bahadur Shastri briefly became prime minister; he was succeeded, after his own unexpected death in 1966, by Indira Gandhi, who went on to lead the Congress to election victories in 1967 and 1971. Following public discontent with the state of emergency she declared in 1975, the Congress was voted out of power in 1977; the then-new Janata Party, which had opposed the emergency, was voted in. Its government lasted just over three years. Voted back into power in 1980, the Congress saw a change in leadership in 1984, when Indira Gandhi was assassinated; she was succeeded by her son Rajiv Gandhi, who won an easy victory in the general elections later that year. The Congress was voted out again in 1989 when a National Front coalition, led by the newly formed Janata Dal in alliance with the Left Front, won the elections; that government too proved relatively short-lived: it lasted just under two years.[137] Elections were held again in 1991; no party won an absolute majority. But the Congress, as the largest single party, was able to form a minority government led by P. V. Narasimha Rao.[138]

A two-year period of political turmoil followed the general election of 1996. Several short-lived alliances shared power at the centre. The BJP formed a government briefly in 1996; it was followed by two comparatively long-lasting United Front coalitions, which depended on external support. In 1998, the BJP was able to form a successful coalition, the National Democratic Alliance, or NDA. Led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the NDA became the first non-Congress government to complete a five-year term.[139] In the 2004 Indian general elections, again no party won an absolute majority, but the Congress emerged as the largest single party, forming another successful coalition: the United Progressive Alliance, or UPA. It had the support of left-leaning parties and MPs who opposed the BJP. The UPA returned to power in the 2009 general election with increased numbers, and it no longer required external support from India's communist parties.[140] That year, Manmohan Singh became the first prime minister since Jawaharlal Nehru in 1957 and 1962 to be re-elected to a consecutive five-year term.[141] Government Main article: Government of India See also: Elections in India The Rashtrapati Bhavan is the official residence of the President of India.

India is a federation with a parliamentary system governed under the Constitution of India, which serves as the country's supreme legal document. It is a constitutional republic and representative democracy, in which "majority rule is tempered by minority rights protected by law". Federalism in India defines the power distribution between the federal government and the states. The government abides by constitutional checks and balances. The Constitution of India, which came into effect on 26 January 1950,[142] states in its preamble that India is a sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic republic.[143] India's form of government, traditionally described as "quasi-federal" with a strong centre and weak states,[144] has grown increasingly federal since the late 1990s as a result of political, economic, and social changes.[145][146] National symbols[1] Flag 	Tricolour Emblem 	Sarnath Lion Capital Anthem 	Jana Gana Mana Song 	Vande Mataram Calendar 	Saka Game 	Hockey Flower 	Lotus Fruit 	Mango Tree 	Banyan Bird 	Indian Peafowl Land animal 	Royal Bengal Tiger Aquatic animal 	River Dolphin River 	Ganges

The federal government comprises three branches:

Executive: The President of India is the head of state[147] and is elected indirectly by a national electoral college[148] for a five-year term.[149] The Prime Minister of India is the head of government and exercises most executive power.[150] Appointed by the president,[151] the prime minister is by convention supported by the party or political alliance holding the majority of seats in the lower house of parliament.[150] The executive branch of the Indian government consists of the president, the vice-president, and the Council of Ministers—the cabinet being its executive committee—headed by the prime minister. Any minister holding a portfolio must be a member of one of the houses of parliament.[147] In the Indian parliamentary system, the executive is subordinate to the legislature; the prime minister and his council directly responsible to the lower house of the parliament.[152]

Legislative: The legislature of India is the bicameral parliament. It operates under a Westminster-style parliamentary system and comprises the upper house called the Rajya Sabha ("Council of States") and the lower called the Lok Sabha ("House of the People").[153] The Rajya Sabha is a permanent body that has 245 members who serve in staggered six-year terms.[154] Most are elected indirectly by the state and territorial legislatures in numbers proportional to their state's share of the national population.[151] All but two of the Lok Sabha's 545 members are directly elected by popular vote; they represent individual constituencies via five-year terms.[155] The remaining two members are nominated by the president from among the Anglo-Indian community, in case the president decides that they are not adequately represented.[156]

Judicial: India has a unitary three-tier judiciary, consisting of the Supreme Court, headed by the Chief Justice of India, 21 High Courts, and a large number of trial courts.[157] The Supreme Court has original jurisdiction over cases involving fundamental rights and over disputes between states and the centre; it has appellate jurisdiction over the High Courts.[158] It is judicially independent[157] and has the power both to declare the law and to strike down union or state laws which contravene the constitution.[159] The Supreme Court is also the ultimate interpreter of the constitution.[160]

Subdivisions Main article: Administrative divisions of India See also: Political integration of India

India is a federation composed of 28 states and 7 union territories.[161] All states, as well as the union territories of Pondicherry and the National Capital Territory of Delhi, have elected legislatures and governments, both patterned on the Westminster model. The remaining five union territories are directly ruled by the centre through appointed administrators. In 1956, under the States Reorganisation Act, states were reorganised on a linguistic basis.[162] Since then, their structure has remained largely unchanged. Each state or union territory is further divided into administrative districts. The districts in turn are further divided into tehsils and ultimately into villages.

States

Andhra Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh Assam Bihar Chhattisgarh Goa Gujarat

Haryana Himachal Pradesh Jammu and Kashmir Jharkhand Karnataka Kerala Madhya Pradesh

Maharashtra Manipur Meghalaya Mizoram Nagaland Orissa Punjab

Rajasthan Sikkim Tamil Nadu Tripura Uttar Pradesh Uttarakhand West Bengal

Union territories

Andaman and Nicobar Islands Chandigarh Dadra and Nagar Haveli Daman and Diu Lakshadweep National Capital Territory of Delhi Pondicherry

A clickable map of the 28 states and 7 union territories of India. A clickable map of Indian states and territories. About this image

Foreign relations and military Main articles: Foreign relations of India and Indian Armed Forces Two seated men converse. The first is dressed in Indian clothing and turban and sits before an Indian flag; the second is in a Western business suit and sits before a Russian flag. Manmohan Singh meets Dmitry Medvedev at the 34th G8 summit. India and Russia share extensive economic, defence, and technological ties.

Since its independence in 1947, India has maintained cordial relations with most nations. In the 1950s, it strongly supported decolonisation in Africa and Asia and played a lead role in the Non-Aligned Movement.[163] In the late 1980s, the Indian military twice intervened abroad at the invitation of neighbouring countries: a peace-keeping operation in Sri Lanka between 1987 and 1990; and an armed intervention to prevent a coup d'état attempt in Maldives. India has tense relations with neighbouring Pakistan; the two nations have gone to war four times: in 1947, 1965, 1971, and 1999. Three of these wars were fought over the disputed territory of Kashmir, while the fourth, the 1971 war, followed from India's support for the independence of Bangladesh.[164] After waging the 1962 Sino-Indian War and the 1965 war with Pakistan, India pursued close military and economic ties with the Soviet Union; by the late 1960s, the Soviet Union was its largest arms supplier.[165]

Aside from ongoing strategic relations with Russia, India has wide-ranging defence relations with Israel and France. In recent years, it has played key roles in the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation and the World Trade Organisation. The nation has provided 100,000 military and police personnel to serve in 35 UN peacekeeping operations across four continents. It participates in the East Asia Summit, the G8+5, and other multilateral forums.[166] India has close economic ties with South America, Asia, and Africa; it pursues a "Look East" policy that seeks to strengthen partnerships with the ASEAN nations, Japan, and South Korea that revolve around many issues, but especially those involving economic investment and regional security.[167][168] The HAL Tejas is a light supersonic fighter developed by the Aeronautical Development Agency and manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics in Bangalore.[169]

China's nuclear test of 1964, as well as its repeated threats to intervene in support of Pakistan in the 1965 war, convinced India to develop nuclear weapons.[170] India conducted its first nuclear weapons test in 1974 and carried out further underground testing in 1998. Despite criticism and military sanctions, India has signed neither the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty nor the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, considering both to be flawed and discriminatory.[171] India maintains a "no first use" nuclear policy and is developing a nuclear triad capability as a part of its "minimum credible deterrence" doctrine.[172][173] It is developing a ballistic missile defence shield and, in collaboration with Russia, a fifth-generation fighter jet.[174] Other indigenous military projects involve the design and implementation of Vikrant-class aircraft carriers and Arihant-class nuclear submarines.[174]

Since the end of the Cold War, India has increased its economic, strategic, and military cooperation with the United States and the European Union.[175] In 2008, a civilian nuclear agreement was signed between India and the United States. Although India possessed nuclear weapons at the time and was not party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, it received waivers from the International Atomic Energy Agency and the Nuclear Suppliers Group, ending earlier restrictions on India's nuclear technology and commerce. As a consequence, India became the sixth de facto nuclear weapons state.[176] India subsequently signed cooperation agreements involving civilian nuclear energy with Russia,[177] France,[178] the United Kingdom,[179] and Canada.[180]

The President of India is the supreme commander of the nation's armed forces; with 1.6 million active troops, they compose the world's third-largest military.[181] It comprises the Indian Army, the Indian Navy, and the Indian Air Force; auxiliary organisations include the Strategic Forces Command and three paramilitary groups: the Assam Rifles, the Special Frontier Force, and the Indian Coast Guard.[6] The official Indian defence budget for 2011 was US$36.03 billion, or 1.83% of GDP.[182] According to a 2008 SIPRI report, India's annual military expenditure in terms of purchasing power stood at US$72.7 billion,[183] In 2011, the annual defence budget increased by 11.6%,[184] although this does not include funds that reach the military through other branches of government.[185] As of 2012, India is the world's largest arms importer; in the period from 2006 to 2010, it accounted for 9% of money spent on international arms purchases.[186] Much of the military expenditure was focused on defence against Pakistan and countering growing Chinese influence in the Indian Ocean.[184] Economy Main article: Economy of India See also: Economic history of India, Economic development in India, and Transport in India Indian agriculture dates from the period 7,000–6,000 BCE,[187] employs most of the national workforce, and is second in farm output worldwide. Above, a farmer works an ox-drawn plow in Kadmati, West Bengal.

According to the International Monetary Fund, as of 2011, the Indian economy is nominally worth US$1.843 trillion; it is the tenth-largest economy by market exchange rates, and is, at US$4.469 trillion, the third-largest by purchasing power parity, or PPP.[5] With its average annual GDP growth rate of 5.8% over the past two decades, and reaching 10.4% during 2010,[188] India is one of the world's fastest-growing economies.[189] However, the country ranks 138th in the world in nominal GDP per capita and 129th in GDP per capita at PPP.[5] Until 1991, all Indian governments followed protectionist policies that were influenced by socialist economics. Widespread state intervention and regulation largely walled the economy off from the outside world. An acute balance of payments crisis in 1991 forced the nation to liberalise its economy;[190] since then it has slowly moved towards a free-market system[191][192] by emphasizing both foreign trade and direct investment inflows.[193] India's recent economic model is largely capitalist.[192]

The 467-million worker Indian labour force is the world's second-largest.[6] The service sector makes up 54% of GDP, the agricultural sector 28%, and the industrial sector 18%. Major agricultural products include rice, wheat, oilseed, cotton, jute, tea, sugarcane, and potatoes.[161] Major industries include textiles, telecommunications, chemicals, food processing, steel, transport equipment, cement, mining, petroleum, machinery, and software.[161] In 2006, the share of external trade in India's GDP stood at 24%, up from 6% in 1985.[191] In 2008, India's share of world trade was 1.68%;[194] India was the world's fifteenth-largest importer in 2009 and the eighteenth-largest exporter.[195] Major exports include petroleum products, textile goods, jewelry, software, engineering goods, chemicals, and leather manufactures.[161] Major imports include crude oil, machinery, gems, fertiliser, and chemicals.[161] Between 2001 and 2011, the contribution of petrochemical and engineering goods to total exports grew from 14% to 42%.[196] Street-level view looking up at a modern 30-story building. The Bombay Stock Exchange is Asia's oldest and India's largest bourse by market capitalisation.

Averaging an economic growth rate of 7.5% during the last few years,[191] India has more than doubled its hourly wage rates during the last decade.[197] Some 431 million Indians have left poverty since 1985; India's middle classes are projected to number around 580 million by 2030.[198] Though ranking 51st in global competitiveness, India ranks 17th in financial market sophistication, 24th in the banking sector, 44th in business sophistication, and 39th in innovation, ahead of several advanced economies.[199] With 7 of the world's top 15 information technology outsourcing companies based in India, the country is viewed as the second-most favourable outsourcing destination after the United States.[200] India's consumer market, currently the world's thirteenth-largest, is expected to become fifth-largest by 2030.[198] Its telecommunication industry, the world's fastest-growing, added 227 million subscribers during the period 2010–11.[201] Its automotive industry, the world's second fastest growing, increased domestic sales by 26% during 2009–10,[202] and exports by 36% during 2008–09.[203] Power capacity is 250 gigawatts, of which 8% is renewable.[204]

Despite impressive economic growth during recent decades, India continues to face socio-economic challenges. India contains the largest concentration of people living below the World Bank's international poverty line of US$1.25 per day,[205] the proportion having decreased from 60% in 1981 to 42% in 2005.[206] Half of the children in India are underweight,[207] and 46% of children under the age of three suffer from malnutrition.[205] The Mid-Day Meal Scheme attempts to lower these rates.[208] Since 1991, economic inequality between India's states has consistently grown: the per-capita net state domestic product of the richest states in 2007 was 3.2 times that of the poorest.[209] Corruption in India is perceived to have increased significantly,[210] with one report estimating the illegal capital flows since independence to be US$462 billion.[211] Driven by growth, India's nominal GDP per capita has steadily increased from US$329 in 1991, when economic liberalisation began, to US$1,265 in 2010, and is estimated to increase to US$2,110 by 2016; however, it has always remained lower than those of other Asian developing countries such as Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Thailand, and is expected to remain so in the near future.[212]

According to a 2011 PricewaterhouseCoopers report, India's GDP at purchasing power parity could overtake that of the United States by 2045.[213] During the next four decades, Indian GDP is expected to grow at an annualised average of 8%, making it potentially the world's fastest-growing major economy until 2050.[213] The report highlights key growth factors: a young and rapidly growing working-age population; growth in the manufacturing sector due to rising education and engineering skill levels; and sustained growth of the consumer market driven by a rapidly growing middle class.[213] The World Bank cautions that, for India to achieve its economic potential, it must continue to focus on public sector reform, transport infrastructure, agricultural and rural development, removal of labour regulations, education, energy security, and public health and nutrition.[214] Demographics Main article: Demographics of India Map of India. High population density areas (above 1000 persons per square kilometer) centre on Kolkata along with other parts of the Ganges River Basin, Mumbai, Bangalore, the south-west coast, and the Lakshadweep Islands. Low density areas (below 100) include the western desert, eastern Kashmir, and the eastern frontier. A population density and Indian Railways connectivity map. The already densely settled Indo-Gangetic Plain is the main driver of Indian population growth.

With 1,210,193,422 residents reported in the 2011 provisional census,[4] India is the world's second-most populous country. Its population grew at 1.76% per annum during 2001–2011,[4] down from 2.13% per annum in the previous decade (1991–2001).[215] The human sex ratio, according to the 2011 census, is 940 females per 1,000 males.[4] The median age was 24.9 in the 2001 census.[6] Medical advances made in the last 50 years as well as increased agricultural productivity brought about by the "Green Revolution" have caused India's population to grow rapidly.[216] India continues to face several public health-related challenges.[217][218] According to the World Health Organisation, 900,000 Indians die each year from drinking contaminated water or breathing polluted air.[219] There are around 50 physicians per 100,000 Indians.[220] The number of Indians living in urban areas has grown by 31.2% between 1991 and 2001.[221] Yet, in 2001, over 70% lived in rural areas.[222][223] According to the 2001 census, there are 27 million-plus cities in India,[221] with Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, and Chennai being the largest. The literacy rate in 2011 was 74.04%: 65.46% among females and 82.14% among males.[4] Kerala is the most literate state;[224] Bihar the least.[225] Children prepare for a traditional dance in Tripura.

India is home to two major language families: Indo-Aryan (spoken by about 74% of the population) and Dravidian (24%). Other languages spoken in India come from the Austro-Asiatic and Tibeto-Burman language families. India has no national language.[226] Hindi, with the largest number of speakers, is the official language of the government.[227][228] English is used extensively in business and administration and has the status of a "subsidiary official language";[229] it is important in education, especially as a medium of higher education. Each state and union territory has one or more official languages, and the constitution recognises in particular 21 "scheduled languages". The Constitution of India recognises 212 scheduled tribal groups which together constitute about 7.5% of the country's population.[230] The 2001 census reported that Hinduism, with over 800 million adherents (80.5% of the population), was the largest religion in India; it is followed by Islam (13.4%), Christianity (2.3%), Sikhism (1.9%), Buddhism (0.8%), Jainism (0.4%), Judaism, Zoroastrianism, and the Bahá'í Faith.[231] India has the world's largest Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Zoroastrian, and Bahá'í populations, and has the third-largest Muslim population and the largest Muslim population for a non-Muslim majority country. Culture Main article: Culture of India A sculpture fashioned in the Gandharan tradition depicting Gautama Buddha, founder of Buddhism, at the Tokyo National Museum

Indian cultural history spans more than 4,500 years.[232] During the Vedic period (c. 1700–500 BCE), the foundations of Hindu philosophy, mythology, and literature were laid, and many beliefs and practices which still exist today, such as dhárma, kárma, yóga, and mokṣa, were established.[10] India is notable for its religious diversity, with Hinduism, Sikhism, Islam, Christianity, and Jainism among the nation's major religions.[233] The predominant religion, Hinduism, has been shaped by various historical schools of thought, including those of the Upanishads,[234] the Yoga Sutras, the Bhakti movement,[233] and by Buddhist philosophy.[235] Art, architecture, and literature

Much of Indian architecture, including the Taj Mahal, other works of Mughal architecture, and South Indian architecture, blends ancient local traditions with imported styles.[236] Vernacular architecture is also highly regional in it flavours. Vastu shastra, literally "science of construction" or "architecture" and ascribed to Mamuni Mayan,[237] explores how the laws of nature affect human dwellings;[238] it employs precise geometry and directional alignments to reflect perceived cosmic constructs.[239] As applied in Hindu temple architecture, it is influenced by the Shilpa Shastras, a series of foundational texts whose basic mythological form is the Vastu-Purusha mandala, a square that embodied the "absolute".[240] The Taj Mahal, built in Agra between 1631 and 1648 by orders of Emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his wife, has been described in the UNESCO World Heritage List as "the jewel of Muslim art in India and one of the universally admired masterpieces of the world's heritage."[241] Indo-Saracenic Revival architecture, developed by the British in the late 19th century, drew on Indo-Islamic architecture.[242]

The earliest literary writings in India, composed between 1400 BCE and 1200 CE, were in the Sanskrit language.[243][244] Prominent works of this Sanskrit literature include epics such as the Mahābhārata and the Ramayana, the dramas of Kālidāsa such as the Abhijñānaśākuntalam (The Recognition of Śakuntalā), and poetry such as the Mahākāvya.[245][246][247] Developed between 600 BCE and 300 CE in South India, the Sangam literature, consisting of 2,381 poems, is regarded as a predecessor of Tamil literature.[248][249][250][251] From the 14th to the 18th centuries, India's literary traditions went through a period of drastic change because of the emergence of devotional poets such as Kabīr, Tulsīdās, and Guru Nānak. This period was characterised by a varied and wide spectrum of thought and expression; as a consequence, medieval Indian literary works differed significantly from classical traditions.[252] In the 19th century, Indian writers took a new interest in social questions and psychological descriptions. In the 20th century, Indian literature was influenced by the works of Bengali poet and novelist Rabindranath Tagore.[253] Performing arts Bihu dancers and drummers from Assam

Indian music ranges over various traditions and regional styles. Classical music encompasses two genres and their various folk offshoots: the northern Hindustani and southern Carnatic schools.[254] Regionalised popular forms include filmi and folk music; the syncretic tradition of the bauls is a well-known form of the latter. Indian dance also features diverse folk and classical forms. Among the better-known folk dances are the bhangra of the Punjab, the bihu of Assam, the chhau of West Bengal and Jharkhand, sambalpuri of Orissa, ghoomar of Rajasthan, and the lavani of Maharashtra. Eight dance forms, many with narrative forms and mythological elements, have been accorded classical dance status by India's National Academy of Music, Dance, and Drama. These are: bharatanatyam of the state of Tamil Nadu, kathak of Uttar Pradesh, kathakali and mohiniyattam of Kerala, kuchipudi of Andhra Pradesh, manipuri of Manipur, odissi of Orissa, and the sattriya of Assam.[255]

Theatre in India melds music, dance, and improvised or written dialogue.[256] Often based on Hindu mythology, but also borrowing from medieval romances or social and political events, Indian theatre includes the bhavai of Gujarat, the jatra of West Bengal, the nautanki and ramlila of North India, tamasha of Maharashtra, burrakatha of Andhra Pradesh, terukkuttu of Tamil Nadu, and the yakshagana of Karnataka.[257] The Indian film industry produces the world's most-watched cinema.[258] Established regional cinematic traditions exist in the Assamese, Bengali, Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Oriya, Tamil, and Telugu languages.[259] South Indian cinema attracts more than 75% of national film revenue.[260] Society A Rajput Hindu marriage ceremony

Traditional Indian society is defined by relatively strict social hierarchy. The Indian caste system embodies much of the social stratification and many of the social restrictions found in the Indian subcontinent. Social classes are defined by thousands of endogamous hereditary groups, often termed as jātis, or "castes".[261] Most Dalits ("Untouchables") and members of other lower-caste communities continue to live in segregation and often face persecution and discrimination.[262][263] Traditional Indian family values are highly valued, and multi-generational patriarchal joint families have been the norm in India, though nuclear families are becoming common in urban areas.[264] An overwhelming majority of Indians, with their consent, have their marriages arranged by their parents or other family members.[265] Marriage is thought to be for life,[265] and the divorce rate is extremely low.[266] Child marriages are common, especially in rural areas; more than half of Indian females wed before reaching 18, which is their legal marriageable age.[267]

Many Indian festivals are religious in origin; among them are Diwali, Ganesh Chaturthi, Thai Pongal, Navaratri, Holi, Durga Puja, Eid ul-Fitr, Bakr-Id, Christmas, and Vaisakhi. India has three national holidays which are observed in all states and union territories: Republic Day, Independence Day, and Gandhi Jayanti. Other sets of holidays, varying between nine and twelve, are officially observed in individual states. Traditional Indian dress varies in colour and style across regions and depends on various factors, including climate and faith. Popular styles of dress include draped garments such as the sari for women and the dhoti or lungi for men. Stitched clothes, such as the shalwar kameez for women and kurta–pyjama combinations or European-style trousers and shirts for men, are also popular.[268] Use of delicate jewellery, modelled on real flowers worn in ancient India, is part of a tradition dating back some 5,000 years; gemstones are also worn in India as talismans.[269]

Indian cuisine features an unsurpassed reliance on herbs and spices, with dishes often calling for the nuanced usage of a dozen or more condiments;[270] it is also known for its tandoori preparations. The tandoor, a clay oven used in India for almost 5,000 years, grills meats to an "uncommon succulence" and produces the puffy flatbread known as naan.[271] The staple foods are wheat (predominantly in the north),[272] rice (especially in the south and the east), and lentils.[273] Many spices that have worldwide appeal are native to the Indian subcontinent,[274] while chili pepper, native to the Americas and introduced by the Portuguese, is widely used by Indians.[275] Āyurveda, a system of traditional medicine, used six rasas and three guṇas to help describe comestibles.[276] Over time, as Vedic animal sacrifices were supplanted by the notion of sacred-cow inviolability, vegetarianism became associated with high religious status and grew increasingly popular,[277] a trend aided by the rise of Buddhism, Jainism, and the Hindu bhakti movement.[278] India has the world's highest concentration of vegetarians: a 2006 survey found that 31% of Indians were non-ovo vegetarian.[278] Common traditional eating customs include meals taken on or near the floor, caste- and gender-segregated dining,[279][280] and lack of cutlery in favour of the right hand or a piece of roti. Sport Main article: Sport in India Field hockey is the national sport of India. Pictured is the Indian team, captained by Dhyan Chand (standing second from left), after winning the finals at the 1936 Summer Olympics—their third of six consecutive Olympic golds.

In India, several traditional indigenous sports remain fairly popular, among them kabaddi, kho kho, pehlwani, and gilli-danda. Some of the earliest forms of Asian martial arts, such as kalarippayattu, musti yuddha, silambam, and marma adi, originated in India. The Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna and the Arjuna Award are the highest forms of government recognition for athletic achievement; the Dronacharya Award is awarded for excellence in coaching. Chess, commonly held to have originated in India as chaturaṅga, is regaining widespread popularity with the rise in the number of Indian grandmasters.[281][282] Pachisi, from which parcheesi derives, was played on a giant marble court by Akbar.[283] The improved results garnered by the Indian Davis Cup team and other Indian tennis players in the early 2010s have made tennis increasingly popular in the country.[284] India has a comparatively strong presence in shooting sports, and has won several medals at the Olympics, the World Shooting Championships, and the Commonwealth Games.[285][286] Other sports in which Indians have succeeded internationally include badminton,[287] boxing,[288] and wrestling.[289] Football is popular in West Bengal, Goa, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and the north-eastern states.[290]

India's official national sport is field hockey; it is administered by Hockey India. The Indian national hockey team won the 1975 Hockey World Cup and have, as of 2012, taken eight gold, one silver, and two bronze Olympic medals, making it the sport's most successful team. Cricket is by far the most popular sport; the Indian national cricket team won the 1983 and 2011 Cricket World Cup events, the 2007 ICC World Twenty20, and shared the 2002 ICC Champions Trophy with Sri Lanka. Cricket in India is administered by the Board of Control for Cricket in India, or BCCI; the Ranji Trophy, the Duleep Trophy, the Deodhar Trophy, the Irani Trophy, and the NKP Salve Challenger Trophy are domestic competitions. The BCCI conducts a Twenty20 competition known as the Indian Premier League. India has hosted or co-hosted several international sporting events: the 1951 and 1982 Asian Games; the 1987, 1996, and 2011 Cricket World Cup tournaments; the 2003 Afro-Asian Games; the 2006 ICC Champions Trophy; the 2010 Hockey World Cup; and the 2010 Commonwealth Games. Major international sporting events held annually in India include the Chennai Open, the Mumbai Marathon, the Delhi Half Marathon, and the Indian Masters. The first Indian Grand Prix featured in late 2011.[291] Notes

^ "[...] Jana Gana Mana is the National Anthem of India, subject to such alterations in the words as the Government may authorise as occasion arises; and the song Vande Mataram, which has played a historic part in the struggle for Indian freedom, shall be honoured equally with Jana Gana Mana and shall have equal status with it." (Constituent Assembly of India 1950). ^ "The country's exact size is subject to debate because some borders are disputed. The Indian government lists the total area as 3,287,260 km2 (1,269,220 sq mi) and the total land area as 3,060,500 km2 (1,181,700 sq mi); the United Nations lists the total area as 3,287,263 km2 (1,269,219 sq mi) and total land area as 2,973,190 km2 (1,147,960 sq mi)." (Library of Congress 2004). ^ See also: Official names of India. ^ The Government of India regards Afghanistan as a bordering country, as it considers all of Kashmir to be part of India. However, this is disputed, and the region bordering Afghanistan is administered by Pakistan. Source: "Ministry of Home Affairs (Department of Border Management)" (DOC). Retrieved 1 September 2008.. ^ The northernmost point under Indian control is the disputed Siachen Glacier in Jammu and Kashmir; however, the Government of India regards the entire region of the former princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, including the Northern Areas currently administered by Pakistan, to be its territory. It therefore assigns the longitude 37° 6' to its northernmost point.

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References

Overview

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Politics

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Economy

Alamgir, J. (24 December 2008), India's Open-Economy Policy: Globalism, Rivalry, Continuity, Taylor & Francis, ISBN 978-0415776844, retrieved 23 July 2011 Bonner, B (20 March 2010), Make Way, World. India Is on the Move, Christian Science Monitor, retrieved 23 July 2011 "India Lost $462bn in Illegal Capital Flows, Says Report", BBC News (British Broadcasting Corporation), 18 November 2010, retrieved 23 July 2011 "India Second Fastest Growing Auto Market After China", Business Line, 9 April 2010, retrieved 23 July 2011 India's Economy: Not Just Rubies and Polyester Shirts, The Economist, 8 October 2011, retrieved 9 October 2011 "Indian Car Exports Surge 36%", Express India, 13 October 2009, retrieved 23 July 2011 Report for Selected Countries and Subjects: India, Indonesia, Islamic Republic of Iran, Malaysia, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, International Monetary Fund, April 2011, retrieved 23 July 2011 Farrell, D.; Beinhocker, E. (19 May 2007), Next Big Spenders: India's Middle Class, McKinsey & Company, retrieved 17 September 2011 Gargan, E. A. (15 August 1992), India Stumbles in Rush to a Free Market Economy, The New York Times, retrieved 22 July 2011 (PDF) World Economic Outlook Update, International Monetary Fund, June 2011, retrieved 22 July 2011 Nayak, P. B.; Goldar, B.; Agrawal, P. (10 November 2010), India's Economy and Growth: Essays in Honour of V. K. R. V. Rao, SAGE Publications, ISBN 978-8132104520 Olson, R. G. (21 December 2009), "Technology and Science in Ancient Civilizations", Praeger Series on the Ancient World (Praeger), ISBN 978-0275989361, retrieved 27 September 2011 (PDF) Economic Survey of India 2007: Policy Brief, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, October 2007, retrieved 22 July 2011 Pal, P.; Ghosh, J. (July 2007), "Inequality in India: A Survey of Recent Trends" (PDF), Economic and Social Affairs: DESA Working Paper No. 45 (United Nations), retrieved 23 July 2011 (PDF) The World in 2050: The Accelerating Shift of Global Economic Power: Challenges and Opportunities, PricewaterhouseCoopers, January2011, retrieved 23 July 2011 Schwab, K. (2010) (PDF), The Global Competitiveness Report 2010–2011, World Economic Forum, retrieved 10 May 2011 Sheth, N. (28 May 2009), "Outlook for Outsourcing Spending Brightens", The Wall Street Journal, retrieved 3 October 2010 (PDF) Information Note to the Press (Press Release No.29 /2011), Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, 6 April 2011, retrieved 23 July 2011 Exporters Get Wider Market Reach, The Times of India, 28 August 2009, retrieved 23 July 2011 (PDF) Corruption Perception Index 2010—India Continues to be Corrupt, Transparency International, 26 October 2011, retrieved 23 July 2011 New Global Poverty Estimates—What It Means for India, World Bank, retrieved 23 July 2011 "India: Undernourished Children—A Call for Reform and Action", World Bank, retrieved 23 July 2011 (PDF) Inclusive Growth and Service Delivery: Building on India's Success, World Bank, 29 May 2006, retrieved 7 May 2009 India Country Overview September 2010, World Bank, September 2010, retrieved 23 July 2011 Trade to Expand by 9.5% in 2010 After a Dismal 2009, WTO Reports, World Trade Organisation, 26 March 2010, retrieved 23 July 2011 Yep, E. (27 September 2011), ReNew Wind Power Gets $201 Million Goldman Investment, The Wall Street Journal, retrieved 27 September 2011

Demographics

Bonner, A. (1990), Averting the Apocalypse: Social Movements in India Today, Duke University Press, ISBN 978-0822310488, retrieved 24 July 2011 (PDF) Healthcare in India: Report Highlights, Boston Analytics, January 2009, retrieved 23 July 2011 Dev, S. M.; Rao, N. C. (2009), India: Perspectives on Equitable Development, Academic Foundation, ISBN 978-8171886852 Dharwadker, A. (28 October 2010), "Representing India's Pasts: Time, Culture, and Problems of Performance Historiography", in Canning, C. M.; Postlewait, T., Representing the Past: Essays in Performance Historiography, University of Iowa Press, ISBN 978-1587299056, retrieved 24 July 2011 Drèze, J.; Goyal, A. (9 February 2009), "The Future of Mid-Day Meals", in Baru, R. V., School Health Services in India: The Social and Economic Contexts, SAGE Publications, ISBN 978-8178298733 Dyson, T.; Visaria, P. (7 July 2005), "Migration and Urbanisation: Retrospect and Prospects", in Dyson, T.; Casses, R.; Visaria, L., Twenty-First Century India: Population, Economy, Human Development, and the Environment, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0199283828 Garg, S. C. (19 April 2005) (PDF), Mobilizing Urban Infrastructure Finance in India, World Bank, retrieved 27 January 2010 Mallikarjun, B (November 2004), "Fifty Years of Language Planning for Modern Hindi—The Official Language of India", Language in India 4 (11), ISSN 19302940, retrieved 24 July 2011 Notification No. 2/8/60-O.L, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India, 27 April 1960, retrieved 13 May 2011 "Religious Composition", Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner (Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India), 2010–2011, retrieved 23 July 2011 "Census Data 2001", Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner (Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India), 2010–2011, retrieved 22 July 2011 Ottenheimer, H. J. (2008), The Anthropology of Language: An Introduction to Linguistic Anthropology, Cengage, ISBN 978-0495508847 Ratna, U. (2007), "Interface Between Urban and Rural Development in India", in Dutt, A. K.; Thakur, B., City, Society, and Planning, 1, Concept, ISBN 978-8180694592 Robinson, S. (1 May 2008), "India's Medical Emergency", Time, retrieved 23 July 2011 Rorabacher, J. A. (2010), Hunger and Poverty in South Asia, Gyan, ISBN 978-8121210270 Singh, S. (2004), Library and Literacy Movement for National Development, Concept, ISBN 978-8180690655 Skolnik, R. L. (2008), Essentials of Global Health, Jones & Bartlett Learning, ISBN 978-0763734213 (PDF) Country Cooperation Strategy: India, World Health Organisation, November 2006, retrieved 23 July 2011

Culture

Binmore, K. G. (27 March 2007), Playing for Real: A Text on Game Theory, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0195300574 Bladholm, L. (12 August 2000), The Indian Grocery Store Demystified (1st ed.), Macmillan Publishers, ISBN 978-1580631433 "Saina Nehwal: India's Badminton Star and "New Woman"", BBC News, 1 August 2010, retrieved 5 October 2010 "Commonwealth Games 2010: India Dominate Shooting Medals", BBC News, 7 October 2010, retrieved 3 June 2011 "UN Report Slams India for Caste Discrimination", CBC News Network (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation), 2 March 2007, retrieved 17 July 2007 Chopra, P. (18 March 2011), A Joint Enterprise: Indian Elites and the Making of British Bombay, University of Minnesota Press, ISBN 978-0816670376 Cullen-Dupont, K. (July 2009), Human Trafficking (1st ed.), Infobase Publishing, ISBN 978-0816075454 Das, S. K. (1 January 2005), A History of Indian Literature, 500–1399: From Courtly to the Popular, Sahitya Akademi, ISBN 978-8126021710 Datta, A. (2006), The Encyclopaedia of Indian Literature, 2, Sahitya Akademi, ISBN 978-8126011940 Dehejia, R. S. (7 November 2011), "Indian Grand Prix Vs. Encephalitis?", The Wall Street Journal, retrieved 20 December 2011 Deutsch, E. (30 April 1969), Advaita Vedānta: A Philosophical Reconstruction, University of Hawaii Press, ISBN 978-0824802714 Dissanayake, W. K.; Gokulsing, M. (May 2004), Indian Popular Cinema: A Narrative of Cultural Change (2nd ed.), Trentham Books, ISBN 978-1858563299 Southern Movies Account for over 75% of Film Revenues, The Economic Times, 18 November 2009, retrieved 18 June 2011 Indian Dance, "South Asian Arts", Encyclopædia Britannica, retrieved 17 July 2011 "Tamil Literature", Encyclopædia Britannica, 2008, retrieved 24 July 2011 Eraly, A. (2008), India, Penguin Books, ISBN 978-0756649524, retrieved 24 July 2011 Hart, G. L. (August 1975), Poems of Ancient Tamil: Their Milieu and Their Sanskrit Counterparts (1st ed.), University of California Press, ISBN 978-0520026728 Heehs, P. (editor) (1 September 2002), Indian Religions: A Historical Reader of Spiritual Expression and Experience, New York University Press, ISBN 978-0814736500, retrieved 24 July 2011 Henderson, C. E. (2002), Culture and Customs of India, Greenwood Publishing Group, ISBN 978-0313305139 Hoiberg, D.; Ramchandani, I. (2000), Students' Britannica India: Select Essays, Popular Prakashan, ISBN 978-0852297629 Johnson, W. J. (editor, translator) (1 September 2008), The Sauptikaparvan of the Mahabharata: The Massacre at Night, Oxford World's Classics (2nd ed.), Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0192823618 Jones, G.; Ramdas, K. (2005), (Un)tying the Knot: Ideal and Reality in Asian Marriage, National University of Singapore Press, ISBN 978-9810514280 Kālidāsa; Johnson, W. J. (15 November 2001), The Recognition of Śakuntalā: A Play in Seven Acts, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0192839114 Karanth, S. K. (October 2002), Yakṣagāna, Abhinav Publications, ISBN 978-8170173571 Kiple, K. F. (editor); Ornelas, K. C. (editor) (2000), The Cambridge World History of Food, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, ISBN 978-0521402163 Kuiper, K. (editor) (1 July 2010), The Culture of India, Britannica Educational Publishing, ISBN 978-1615302031, retrieved 24 July 2011 Kumar, V. (January 2000), Vastushastra, All You Wanted to Know About Series (2nd ed.), Sterling Publishing, ISBN 978-8120721999 Lal, A. (2004), The Oxford Companion to Indian Theatre, Oxford University Press, ISBN 978-0195644463, retrieved 24 July 2011 Lang, J.; Moleski, W. (1 December 2010), Functionalism Revisited, Ashgate Publishing, ISBN 978-1409407010 MacDonell, A. A. (2004), A History of Sanskrit Literature, Kessinger Publishing, ISBN 978-1417906192 Majumdar, B.; Bandyopadhyay, K. (2006), A Social History of Indian Football: Striving To Score, Routledge, ISBN 978-0415348355 Makar, E. M. (2007), An American's Guide to Doing Business in India, Adams, ISBN 978-1598692112 Massey, R.; Massey, J. (1998), The Music of India, Abhinav Publications, ISBN 978-8170173328 Medora, N. (2003), "Mate Selection in Contemporary India: Love Marriages Versus Arranged Marriages", in Hamon, R. R.; Ingoldsby, B. B., Mate Selection Across Cultures, SAGE Publications, p. 209–230, ISBN 978-0761925927 Is Boxing the New Cricket?, Mint, 24 September 2010, retrieved 5 October 2010 Nakamura, H. (1 April 1999), Indian Buddhism: A Survey with Bibliographical Notes, Buddhist Tradition Series (12th ed.), Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 978-8120802728 Puskar-Pasewicz, M. (16 September 2010), Cultural Encyclopedia of Vegetarianism, Greenwood Publishing Group, ISBN 978-0313375569 Raghavan, S. (23 October 2006), Handbook of Spices, Seasonings, and Flavorings (2nd ed.), CRC Press, ISBN 978-0849328428 Raichlen, S. (10 May 2011), A Tandoor Oven Brings India's Heat to the Backyard, The New York Times, retrieved 14 June 2011 Rajadhyaksha, A. (editor); Willemen (editor), P. (22 January 1999), Encyclopaedia of Indian Cinema (2nd ed.), British Film Institute, ISBN 978-0851706696 Ramanujan, A. K. (translator) (15 October 1985), Poems of Love and War: From the Eight Anthologies and the Ten Long Poems of Classical Tamil, New York: Columbia University Press, pp. ix–x, ISBN 978-0231051071 Anand Crowned World Champion, Rediff, 29 October 2008, retrieved 29 October 2008 Roberts, N. W. (12 July 2004), Building Type Basics for Places of Worship (1st ed.), John Wiley & Sons, ISBN 978-0471225683 Sarma, S. (1 January 2009), A History of Indian Literature, 1 (2nd ed.), Motilal Banarsidass, ISBN 978-8120802643 Schoenhals, M. (22 November 2003), Intimate Exclusion: Race and Caste Turned Inside Out, University Press of America, ISBN 978-0761826972 Schwartzberg, J. (2011), Caste, "India", Encyclopædia Britannica, retrieved 17 July 2011 Sen, A. (5 September 2006), The Argumentative Indian: Writings on Indian History, Culture, and Identity (1st ed.), Picador, ISBN 978-0312426026 Seymour, S. C. (28 January 1999), Women, Family, and Child Care in India: A World in Transition, Cambridge University Press, ISBN 978-0521598842 Silverman, S. (10 October 2007), Vastu: Transcendental Home Design in Harmony with Nature, Gibbs Smith, ISBN 978-1423601326 Tarlo, E. (1 September 1996), Clothing Matters: Dress and Identity in India (1st ed.), University of Chicago Press, ISBN 978-0226789767, retrieved 24 July 2011 Sawant Shoots Historic Gold at World Championships, The Times of India, 9 August 2010, retrieved 25 May 2011 Taj Mahal, United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation, retrieved 3 March 2012 India Aims for Center Court, The Wall Street Journal, 11 September 2009, retrieved 29 September 2010 Wengell, D. L.; Gabriel, N. (1 September 2008), Educational Opportunities in Integrative Medicine: The A-to-Z Healing Arts Guide and Professional Resource Directory (1st ed.), The Hunter Press, ISBN 978-0977655243 Xavier, L. (12 September 2010), Sushil Kumar Wins Gold in World Wrestling Championship, The Times of India, retrieved 5 October 2010 Yadav, S. S.; McNeil, D.; Stevenson, P. C. (23 October 2007), Lentil: An Ancient Crop for Modern Times, Springer, ISBN 978-1402063121 Zvelebil, K. V. (1 August 1997), Companion Studies to the History of Tamil Literature, Brill Publishers, ISBN 978-9004093652

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India From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search This article is about the Republic of India. For other uses, see India (disambiguation). Page semi-protected Republic of India भारत गणराज्य Bhārat Gaṇarājya Horizontal tricolour flag bearing, from top to bottom, deep saffron, white, and green horizontal bands. In the centre of the white band is a navy-blue wheel with 24 spokes. Three lions facing left, right, and toward viewer, atop a frieze containing a galloping horse, a 24-spoke wheel, and an elephant. Underneath is a motto: "सत्यमेव जयते". Flag 	Emblem Motto: "Satyameva Jayate" (Sanskrit) सत्यमेव जयते (Devanāgarī) "Truth Alone Triumphs"[1] Anthem: Jana Gana Mana instrumental.ogg

Jana Gana Mana "Thou Art the Ruler of the Minds of All People"[2] National song: Vande Mataram.ogg

Vande Mataram "I Bow to Thee, Mother"[a][1] Image of a globe centred on India, with India highlighted. Area controlled by India is in dark green. Claimed but uncontrolled regions are in light green. Capital 	New Delhi 28°36.8′N 77°12.5′E Largest city 	Mumbai Official language(s) Hindi, English[show] Recognised regional languages Eighth Schedule[show] National language(s) 	none[3] Demonym 	Indian Government 	federal parliamentary constitutional republic[1] - 	President 	Pratibha Patil - 	Vice President 	Mohammad Hamid Ansari - 	Prime Minister 	Manmohan Singh (INC) - 	Speaker of the House 	Meira Kumar (INC) - 	Chief Justice 	S. H. Kapadia Legislature 	Parliament of India - 	Upper house 	Rajya Sabha - 	Lower house 	Lok Sabha Independence 	from the United Kingdom - 	Declared 	15 August 1947 - 	Republic 	26 January 1950 Area - 	Total 	3,287,263 km2 [A](7th) 1,269,219 sq mi -  	Water (%) 	9.56 Population - 	2011 census 	1,210,193,422[4] (2nd) - 	Density 	367.7/km2 (31st) 952.3/sq mi GDP (PPP) 	2011 estimate - 	Total 	$4.469 trillion[5] (3rd) - 	Per capita 	$3,703[5] (129th) GDP (nominal) 	2011 estimate - 	Total 	$1.843 trillion[5] (10th) - 	Per capita 	$1,527[5] (133rd) Gini (2004) 	36.8[6] (79th) HDI (2011) 	increase0.547[7] (medium) (134th) Currency 	Indian rupee (INR) (INR) Time zone 	IST (UTC+05:30) - 	Summer (DST) 	not observed (UTC+05:30) Date formats 	dd-mm-yyyy (AD) Drives on the 	left ISO 3166 code 	IN Internet TLD 	.in other TLDs[show] Calling code 	91 Footnotes[show]

India (Listeni/ˈɪndiə/), officially the Republic of India (Hindi: भारत गणराज्य, Bhārat Gaṇarājya),[c] is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the south-west, and the Bay of Bengal on the south-east, it shares land borders with Pakistan to the west;[d] China, Nepal, and Bhutan to the north-east; and Burma and Bangladesh to the east. In the Indian Ocean, India is in the vicinity of Sri Lanka and the Maldives; in addition, India's Andaman and Nicobar Islands share a maritime border with Thailand and Indonesia.

Home to the ancient Indus Valley Civilisation and a region of historic trade routes and vast empires, the Indian subcontinent was identified with its commercial and cultural wealth for much of its long history.[8] Four of the world's major religions—Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism—originated here, whereas Zoroastrianism, Christianity, and Islam arrived in the 1st millennium CE and also helped shape the region's diverse culture. Gradually annexed by and brought under the administration of the British East India Company from the early 18th century and administered directly by the United Kingdom from the mid-19th century, India became an independent nation in 1947 after a struggle for independence that was marked by non-violent resistance and led by Mahatma Gandhi.

The Indian economy is the world's tenth-largest by nominal GDP and third-largest by purchasing power parity (PPP). Following market-based economic reforms in 1991, India became one of the fastest-growing major economies; it is considered a newly industrialised country. However, it continues to face the challenges of poverty, illiteracy, corruption, and inadequate public healthcare. A nuclear weapons state and a regional power, it has the third-largest standing army in the world and ranks ninth in military expenditure among nations. India is a federal constitutional republic governed under a parliamentary system consisting of 28 states and 7 union territories. It is one of the five BRICS nations. India is a pluralistic, multilingual, and multiethnic society. It is also home to a diversity of wildlife in a variety of protected habitats. Contents [hide]

1 Etymology 2 History 2.1 Ancient India 2.2 Medieval India 2.3 Early modern India 2.4 Modern India 3 Geography 4 Biodiversity 5 Politics 5.1 Government 5.2 Subdivisions 6 Foreign relations and military 7 Economy 8 Demographics 9 Culture 9.1 Art, architecture, and literature 9.2 Performing arts 9.3 Society 9.4 Sport 10 Notes 11 Citations 12 References 13 External links

Etymology Main article: Names of India

The name India is derived from Indus, which originates from the Old Persian word Hindu. The latter term stems from the Sanskrit word Sindhu (सिन्धु), which was the historical local appellation for the Indus River.[9] The ancient Greeks referred to the Indians as Indoi (Ινδοί), which translates as "the people of the Indus".[10] The geographical term Bharat (pronounced [ˈbʱaːrət̪] ( listen)), which is recognised by the Constitution of India as an official name for the country, is used by many Indian languages in various subtle guises.[11] The eponym of Bharat is Bharata, a mythological figure that Hindu scriptures describe as a legendary emperor of ancient India. Hindustan ([ɦɪnd̪ʊˈst̪aːn] ( listen)) was originally a Persian word that meant "Land of the Hindus"; prior to 1947, it referred to a region that encompassed northern India and Pakistan. It is occasionally used to solely denote India in its entirety.[12][13] History Main articles: History of India and History of the Republic of India Ancient India

The earliest anatomically modern human remains found in South Asia date from approximately 30,000 years ago.[14] Nearly contemporaneous Mesolithic rock art sites have been found in many parts of the Indian subcontinent, including at the Bhimbetka rock shelters in Madhya Pradesh.[15] Around 7000 BCE, the first known Neolithic settlements appeared on the subcontinent in Mehrgarh and other sites in western Pakistan.[16] These gradually developed into the Indus Valley Civilisation,[17] the first urban culture in South Asia;[18] it flourished during 2500–1900 BCE in Pakistan and western India.[19] Centred around cities such as Mohenjo-daro, Harappa, Dholavira, and Kalibangan, and relying on varied forms of subsistence, the civilisation engaged robustly in crafts production and wide-ranging trade.[18] Damaged brown painting of a reclining man and woman. Paintings at the Ajanta Caves in Aurangabad, Maharashtra, 6th century

During the period 2000–500 BCE, in terms of culture, many regions of the subcontinent transitioned from the Chalcolithic to the Iron Age.[20] The Vedas, the oldest scriptures of Hinduism,[21] were composed during this period, and historians have analysed these to posit a Vedic culture in the Punjab region and the upper Indo-Gangetic Plain.[20] Most historians also consider this period to have encompassed several waves of Indo-Aryan migration into the subcontinent from the north-west.[21] The caste system, which created a hierarchy of priests, warriors, and free peasants, but which excluded indigenous peoples by labeling their occupations impure, arose during this period.[22] On the Deccan Plateau, archaeological evidence from this period suggests the existence of a chiefdom stage of political organisation.[20] In southern India, a progression to sedentary life is indicated by the large number of megalithic monuments dating from this period,[23] as well as by nearby traces of agriculture, irrigation tanks, and craft traditions.[23]

In the late Vedic period, around the 5th century BCE, the small chiefdoms of the Ganges Plain and the north-western regions had consolidated into 16 major oligarchies and monarchies that were known as the mahajanapadas.[24][25] The emerging urbanisation and the orthodoxies of this age also created the religious reform movements of Buddhism and Jainism,[26] both of which became independent religions.[27] Buddhism, based on the teachings of India's first historical figure, Gautama Buddha, attracted followers from all social classes excepting the middle;[26][28] Jainism came into prominence around the same time during the life of its exemplar, Mahavira.[29] In an age of increasing urban wealth, both religions held up renunciation as an ideal,[30] and both established long-lasting monasteries.[24] Politically, by the 3rd century BCE, the kingdom of Magadha had annexed or reduced other states to emerge as the Mauryan Empire.[24] The empire was once thought to have controlled most of the subcontinent excepting the far south, but its core regions are now thought to have been separated by large autonomous areas.[31][32] The Mauryan kings are known as much for their empire-building and determined management of public life as for Ashoka's renunciation of militarism and far-flung advocacy of the Buddhist dhamma.[33][34]

The Sangam literature of the Tamil language reveals that, between 200 BCE and 200 CE, the southern peninsula was being ruled by the Cheras, the Cholas, and the Pandyas, dynasties that traded extensively with the Roman Empire and with West and South-East Asia.[35][36] In North India, Hinduism asserted patriarchal control within the family, leading to increased subordination of women.[37][24] By the 4th and 5th centuries, the Gupta Empire had created in the greater Ganges Plain a complex system of administration and taxation that became a model for later Indian kingdoms.[38][39] Under the Guptas, a renewed Hinduism based on devotion rather than the management of ritual began to assert itself.[40] The renewal was reflected in a flowering of sculpture and architecture, which found patrons among an urban elite.[39] Classical Sanskrit literature flowered as well, and Indian science, astronomy, medicine, and mathematics made significant advances.[39] Medieval India The granite tower of Brihadeeswarar Temple in Thanjavur was completed in 1010 CE by Raja Raja Chola I.

The Indian early medieval age, 600 CE to 1200 CE, is defined by regional kingdoms and cultural diversity.[41] When Harsha of Kannauj, who ruled much of the Indo-Gangetic Plain from 606 to 647 CE, attempted to expand southwards, he was defeated by the Chalukya ruler of the Deccan.[42] When his successor attempted to expand eastwards, he was defeated by the Pala king of Bengal.[42] When the Chalukyas attempted to expand southwards, they were defeated by the Pallavas from farther south, who in turn were opposed by the Pandyas and the Cholas from still farther south.[42] No ruler of this period was able to create an empire and consistently control lands much beyond his core region.[41] During this time, pastoral peoples whose land had been cleared to make way for the growing agricultural economy were accommodated within caste society, as were new non-traditional ruling classes.[43] The caste system consequently began to show regional differences.[43]

In the 6th and 7th centuries, the first devotional hymns were created in the Tamil language.[44] They were imitated all over India and led to both the resurgence of Hinduism and the development of all modern languages of the subcontinent.[44] Indian royalty, big and small, and the temples they patronised, drew citizens in great numbers to the capital cities, which became economic hubs as well.[45] Temple towns of various sizes began to appear everywhere as India underwent another urbanisation.[45] By the 8th and 9th centuries, the effects were felt in South-East Asia, as South Indian culture and political systems were exported to lands that became part of modern-day Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Java.[46] Indian merchants, scholars, and sometimes armies were involved in this transmission; South-East Asians took the initiative as well, with many sojourning in Indian seminaries and translating Buddhist and Hindu texts into their languages.[46]

After the 10th century, Muslim Central Asian nomadic clans, using swift-horse cavalry and raising vast armies united by ethnicity and religion, repeatedly overran South Asia's north-western plains, leading eventually to the establishment of the Islamic Delhi Sultanate in 1206.[47] The sultanate was to control much of North India, and to make many forays into South India. Although at first disruptive for the Indian elites, the sultanate largely left its vast non-Muslim subject population to its own laws and customs.[48][49] By repeatedly repulsing Mongol raiders in the 13th century, the sultanate saved India from the devastation visited on West and Central Asia, setting the scene for centuries of migration of fleeing soldiers, learned men, mystics, traders, artists, and artisans from that region into the subcontinent, thereby creating a syncretic Indo-Islamic culture in the north.[50][51] The sultanate's raiding and weakening of the regional kingdoms of South India paved the way for the indigenous Vijayanagara Empire.[52] Embracing a strong Shaivite tradition and building upon the military technology of the sultanate, the empire came to control much of peninsular India,[53] and was to influence South Indian society for long afterwards.[52] Early modern India Scribes and artists in the Mughal court, 1590–1595

In the early 16th century, northern India, being then under mainly Muslim rulers,[54] fell again to the superior mobility and firepower of a new generation of Central Asian warriors.[55] The resulting Mughal Empire did not stamp out the local societies it came to rule, but rather balanced and pacified them through new administrative practices[56][57] and diverse and inclusive ruling elites,[58] leading to more systematic, centralised, and uniform rule.[59] Eschewing tribal bonds and Islamic identity, especially under Akbar, the Mughals united their far-flung realms through loyalty, expressed through a Persianised culture, to an emperor who had near-divine status.[58] The Mughal state's economic policies, deriving most revenues from agriculture[60] and mandating that taxes be paid in the well-regulated silver currency,[61] caused peasants and artisans to enter larger markets.[59] The relative peace maintained by the empire during much of the 17th century was a factor in India's economic expansion,[59] resulting in greater patronage of painting, literary forms, textiles, and architecture.[62] Newly coherent social groups in northern and western India, such as the Marathas, the Rajputs, and the Sikhs, gained military and governing ambitions during Mughal rule, which, through collaboration or adversity, gave them both recognition and military experience.[63] Expanding commerce during Mughal rule gave rise to new Indian commercial and political elites along the coasts of southern and eastern India.[63] As the empire disintegrated, many among these elites were able to seek and control their own affairs.[64]

By the early 18th century, with the lines between commercial and political dominance being increasingly blurred, a number of European trading companies, including the English East India Company, had established coastal outposts.[65][66] The East India Company's control of the seas, greater resources, and more advanced military training and technology led it to increasingly flex its military muscle and caused it to become attractive to a portion of the Indian elite; both these factors were crucial in allowing the Company to gain control over the Bengal region by 1765 and sideline the other European companies.[67][65][68][69] Its further access to the riches of Bengal and the subsequent increased strength and size of its army enabled it to annex or subdue most of India by the 1820s.[70] India was now no longer exporting manufactured goods as it long had, but was instead supplying the British empire with raw materials, and many historians consider this to be the onset of India's colonial period.[65] By this time, with its economic power severely curtailed by the British parliament and itself effectively made an arm of British administration, the Company began to more consciously enter non-economic arenas such as education, social reform, and culture.[71] Modern India The British Indian Empire, from the 1909 edition of The Imperial Gazetteer of India. Areas directly governed by the British are shaded pink; nominally sovereign princely states are in yellow.

Historians consider India's modern age to have begun sometime between 1848 and 1885. The appointment in 1848 of Lord Dalhousie as Governor General of the East India Company rule in India set the stage for changes essential to a modern state. These included the consolidation and demarcation of sovereignty, the surveillance of the population, and the education of citizens. Technological changes—among them, railways, canals, and the telegraph—were introduced not long after their introduction in Europe.[72][73][74][75] However, disaffection with the Company also grew during this time, and set off the Indian Rebellion of 1857. Fed by diverse resentments and perceptions, including invasive British-style social reforms, harsh land taxes, and summary treatment of some rich landowners and princes, the rebellion rocked many regions of northern and central India and shook the foundations of Company rule.[76][77] Although the rebellion was suppressed by 1858, it led to the dissolution of the East India Company and to the direct administration of India by the British government. Proclaiming a unitary state and a gradual but limited British-style parliamentary system, the new rulers also protected princes and landed gentry as a feudal safeguard against future unrest.[78][79] In the decades following, public life gradually emerged all over India, leading eventually to the founding of the Indian National Congress in 1885.[80][81][82][83] Two smiling men in robes sitting on the ground with bodies facing the viewer and with heads turned toward each other. The younger wears a white Nehru cap; the elder is bald and wears glasses. A half-dozen other people are in the background. Jawaharlal Nehru (left) became India's first prime minister in 1947. Mahatma Gandhi (right) led the independence movement.

The rush of technology and the commercialisation of agriculture in the second half of the 19th century was marked by economic setbacks—many small farmers became dependent on the whims of far-away markets.[84] There was an increase in the number of large-scale famines,[85] and, despite the risks of infrastructure development borne by Indian taxpayers, little industrial employment was generated for Indians.[86] There were also salutary effects: commercial cropping, especially in the newly canalled Punjab, led to increased food production for internal consumption.[87] The railway network provided critical famine relief,[88] notably reduced the cost of moving goods,[88] and helped nascent Indian-owned industry.[87] After World War I, in which some one million Indians served,[89] a new period began. It was marked by British reforms but also repressive legislation, by more strident Indian calls for self-rule, and by the beginnings of a non-violent movement of non-cooperation, of which Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi would become the leader and enduring symbol.[90] During the 1930s, slow legislative reform was enacted by the British; the Indian National Congress won victories in the resulting elections.[91] The next decade was beset with crises: Indian participation in World War II, the Congress's final push for non-cooperation, and an upsurge of Muslim nationalism. All were capped by the advent of independence in 1947, but tempered by the bloody partition of the subcontinent into two states: India and Pakistan.[92]

Vital to India's self-image as an independent nation was its constitution, completed in 1950, which put in place a sovereign, secular, and democratic republic.[93] In the 60 years since, India has had a mixed bag of successes and failures.[94] It has remained a democracy with civil liberties, an activist Supreme Court, and a largely independent press.[94] Economic liberalisation, which was begun in the 1990s, has created a large urban middle class, transformed India into one of the world's fastest-growing economies,[95] and increased its geopolitical clout. Indian movies, music, and spiritual teachings play an increasing role in global culture.[94] Yet, India has also been weighed down by seemingly unyielding poverty, both rural and urban;[94] by religious and caste-related violence;[96] by Maoist-inspired Naxalite insurgencies;[97] and by separatism in Jammu and Kashmir.[98] It has unresolved territorial disputes with China, which escalated into the Sino-Indian War of 1962;[99] and with Pakistan, which flared into wars fought in 1947, 1965, 1971, and 1999.[99] The India–Pakistan nuclear rivalry came to a head in 1998.[100] India's sustained democratic freedoms are unique among the world's new nations; however, in spite of its recent economic successes, freedom from want for its disadvantaged population remains a goal yet to be achieved.[101] Geography Main article: Geography of India See also: Geology of India Map of India. Most of India is yellow (elevation 100–1000 m). Some areas in the south and mid-east are brown (above 1000 m). Major river valleys are green (below 100 m). A topographic map of India

India comprises the bulk of the Indian subcontinent and lies atop the minor Indian tectonic plate, which in turn belongs to the Indo-Australian Plate.[102] India's defining geological processes commenced 75 million years ago when the Indian subcontinent, then part of the southern supercontinent Gondwana, began a north-eastward drift across the then-unformed Indian Ocean that lasted fifty million years.[102] The subcontinent's subsequent collision with, and subduction under, the Eurasian Plate bore aloft the planet's highest mountains, the Himalayas. They abut India in the north and the north-east.[102] In the former seabed immediately south of the emerging Himalayas, plate movement created a vast trough that has gradually filled with river-borne sediment;[103] it now forms the Indo-Gangetic Plain.[104] To the west lies the Thar Desert, which is cut off by the Aravalli Range.[105]

The original Indian plate survives as peninsular India, which is the oldest and geologically most stable part of India; it extends as far north as the Satpura and Vindhya ranges in central India. These parallel chains run from the Arabian Sea coast in Gujarat in the west to the coal-rich Chota Nagpur Plateau in Jharkhand in the east.[106] To the south, the remaining peninsular landmass, the Deccan Plateau, is flanked on the west and east by coastal ranges known as the Western and Eastern Ghats;[107] the plateau contains the nation's oldest rock formations, some of them over one billion years old. Constituted in such fashion, India lies to the north of the equator between 6° 44' and 35° 30' north latitude[e] and 68° 7' and 97° 25' east longitude.[108] A shining white snow-clad range, framed against a turquoise sky. In the middle ground, a ridge descends from the right to form a saddle in the centre of the photograph, partly in shadow. In the near foreground, a loop of a road is seen. The Kedar Range of the Greater Himalayas rises behind Kedarnath Temple, which is one of the twelve jyotirlinga shrines.

India's coastline measures 7,517 kilometres (4,700 mi) in length; of this distance, 5,423 kilometres (3,400 mi) belong to peninsular India and 2,094 kilometres (1,300 mi) to the Andaman, Nicobar, and Lakshadweep island chains.[109] According to the Indian naval hydrographic charts, the mainland coastline consists of the following: 43% sandy beaches; 11% rocky shores, including cliffs; and 46% mudflats or marshy shores.[109]

Major Himalayan-origin rivers that substantially flow through India include the Ganges and the Brahmaputra, both of which drain into the Bay of Bengal.[110] Important tributaries of the Ganges include the Yamuna and the Kosi; the latter's extremely low gradient often leads to severe floods and course changes.[111] Major peninsular rivers, whose steeper gradients prevent their waters from flooding, include the Godavari, the Mahanadi, the Kaveri, and the Krishna, which also drain into the Bay of Bengal;[112] and the Narmada and the Tapti, which drain into the Arabian Sea.[113] Coastal features include the marshy Rann of Kutch of western India and the alluvial Sundarbans delta of eastern India; the latter is shared with Bangladesh.[114] India has two archipelagos: the Lakshadweep, coral atolls off India's south-western coast; and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, a volcanic chain in the Andaman Sea.[115]

The Indian climate is strongly influenced by the Himalayas and the Thar Desert, both of which drive the economically and culturally pivotal summer and winter monsoons.[116] The Himalayas prevent cold Central Asian katabatic winds from blowing in, keeping the bulk of the Indian subcontinent warmer than most locations at similar latitudes.[117][118] The Thar Desert plays a crucial role in attracting the moisture-laden south-west summer monsoon winds that, between June and October, provide the majority of India's rainfall.[116] Four major climatic groupings predominate in India: tropical wet, tropical dry, subtropical humid, and montane.[119] Biodiversity Main article: Wildlife of India The brahminy kite (Haliastur indus) is identified with Garuda, the mythical mount of Vishnu. It hunts for fish and other prey near the coasts and around inland wetlands.

India lies within the Indomalaya ecozone and contains three biodiversity hotspots.[120] One of 17 megadiverse countries, it hosts 7.6% of all mammalian, 12.6% of all avian, 6.2% of all reptilian, 4.4% of all amphibian, 11.7% of all piscine, and 6.0% of all flowering plant species.[121] Endemism is high among plants, 33%, and among ecoregions such as the shola forests.[122] Habitat ranges from the tropical rainforest of the Andaman Islands, Western Ghats, and North-East India to the coniferous forest of the Himalaya. Between these extremes lie the moist deciduous sal forest of eastern India; the dry deciduous teak forest of central and southern India; and the babul-dominated thorn forest of the central Deccan and western Gangetic plain.[123] Under 12% of India's landmass bears thick jungle.[124] The medicinal neem, widely used in rural Indian herbal remedies, is a key Indian tree. The luxuriant pipal fig tree, shown on the seals of Mohenjo-daro, shaded Gautama Buddha as he sought enlightenment. Shola highlands are found in Kudremukh National Park, which is part of the Western Ghats.

Many Indian species descend from taxa originating in Gondwana, from which the Indian plate separated more than 105 million years before present.[125] Peninsular India's subsequent movement towards and collision with the Laurasian landmass set off a mass exchange of species. Epochal volcanism and climatic changes 20 million years ago forced a mass extinction.[126] Mammals then entered India from Asia through two zoogeographical passes flanking the rising Himalaya.[123] Thus, while 45.8% of reptiles and 55.8% of amphibians are endemic, only 12.6% of mammals and 4.5% of birds are.[121] Among them are the Nilgiri leaf monkey and Beddome's toad of the Western Ghats. India contains 172 IUCN-designated threatened species, or 2.9% of endangered forms.[127] These include the Asiatic lion, the Bengal tiger, and the Indian white-rumped vulture, which, by ingesting the carrion of diclofenac-laced cattle, nearly went extinct.

The pervasive and ecologically devastating human encroachment of recent decades has critically endangered Indian wildlife. In response the system of national parks and protected areas, first established in 1935, was substantially expanded. In 1972, India enacted the Wildlife Protection Act[128] and Project Tiger to safeguard crucial wilderness; the Forest Conservation Act was enacted in 1980 and amendments added in 1988.[129] India hosts more than five hundred wildlife sanctuaries and thirteen biosphere reserves,[130] four of which are part of the World Network of Biosphere Reserves; twenty-five wetlands are registered under the Ramsar Convention.[131] Politics Main article: Politics of India A parliamentary joint session is held in the Sansad Bhavan.

India is the world's most populous democracy.[132] A parliamentary republic with a multi-party system,[133] it has six recognised national parties, including the Indian National Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and more than 40 regional parties.[134] The Congress is considered centre-left or "liberal" in Indian political culture, and the BJP centre-right or "conservative". For most of the period between 1950—when India first became a republic—and the late 1980s, the Congress held a majority in the parliament. Since then, however, it has increasingly shared the political stage with the BJP,[135] as well as with powerful regional parties which have often forced the creation of multi-party coalitions at the centre.[136]

In the Republic of India's first three general elections, in 1951, 1957, and 1962, the Jawaharlal Nehru-led Congress won easy victories. On Nehru's death in 1964, Lal Bahadur Shastri briefly became prime minister; he was succeeded, after his own unexpected death in 1966, by Indira Gandhi, who went on to lead the Congress to election victories in 1967 and 1971. Following public discontent with the state of emergency she declared in 1975, the Congress was voted out of power in 1977; the then-new Janata Party, which had opposed the emergency, was voted in. Its government lasted just over three years. Voted back into power in 1980, the Congress saw a change in leadership in 1984, when Indira Gandhi was assassinated; she was succeeded by her son Rajiv Gandhi, who won an easy victory in the general elections later that year. The Congress was voted out again in 1989 when a National Front coalition, led by the newly formed Janata Dal in alliance with the Left Front, won the elections; that government too proved relatively short-lived: it lasted just under two years.[137] Elections were held again in 1991; no party won an absolute majority. But the Congress, as the largest single party, was able to form a minority government led by P. V. Narasimha Rao.[138]

A two-year period of political turmoil followed the general election of 1996. Several short-lived alliances shared power at the centre. The BJP formed a government briefly in 1996; it was followed by two comparatively long-lasting United Front coalitions, which depended on external support. In 1998, the BJP was able to form a successful coalition, the National Democratic Alliance, or NDA. Led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the NDA became the first non-Congress government to complete a five-year term.[139] In the 2004 Indian general elections, again no party won an absolute majority, but the Congress emerged as the largest single party, forming another successful coalition: the United Progressive Alliance, or UPA. It had the support of left-leaning parties and MPs who opposed the BJP. The UPA returned to power in the 2009 general election with increased numbers, and it no longer required external support from India's communist parties.[140] That year, Manmohan Singh became the first prime minister since Jawaharlal Nehru in 1957 and 1962 to be re-elected to a consecutive five-year term.[141] Government Main article: Government of India See also: Elections in India The Rashtrapati Bhavan is the official residence of the President of India.

India is a federation with a parliamentary system governed under the Constitution of India, which serves as the country's supreme legal document. It is a constitutional republic and representative democracy, in which "majority rule is tempered by minority rights protected by law". Federalism in India defines the power distribution between the federal government and the states. The government abides by constitutional checks and balances. The Constitution of India, which came into effect on 26 January 1950,[142] states in its preamble that India is a sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic republic.[143] India's form of government, traditionally described as "quasi-federal" with a strong centre and weak states,[144] has grown increasingly federal since the late 1990s as a result of political, economic, and social changes.[145][146] National symbols[1] Flag 	Tricolour Emblem 	Sarnath Lion Capital Anthem 	Jana Gana Mana Song 	Vande Mataram Calendar 	Saka Game 	Hockey Flower 	Lotus Fruit 	Mango Tree 	Banyan Bird 	Indian Peafowl Land animal 	Royal Bengal Tiger Aquatic animal 	River Dolphin River 	Ganges

The federal government comprises three branches:

Executive: The President of India is the head of state[147] and is elected indirectly by a national electoral college[148] for a five-year term.[149] The Prime Minister of India is the head of government and exercises most executive power.[150] Appointed by the president,[151] the prime minister is by convention supported by the party or political alliance holding the majority of seats in the lower house of parliament.[150] The executive branch of the Indian government consists of the president, the vice-president, and the Council of Ministers—the cabinet being its executive committee—headed by the prime minister. Any minister holding a portfolio must be a member of one of the houses of parliament.[147] In the Indian parliamentary system, the executive is subordinate to the legislature; the prime minister and his council directly responsible to the lower house of the parliament.[152]

Legislative: The legislature of India is the bicameral parliament. It operates under a Westminster-style parliamentary system and comprises the upper house called the Rajya Sabha ("Council of States") and the lower called the Lok Sabha ("House of the People").[153] The Rajya Sabha is a permanent body that has 245 members who serve in staggered six-year terms.[154] Most are elected indirectly by the state and territorial legislatures in numbers proportional to their state's share of the national population.[151] All but two of the Lok Sabha's 545 members are directly elected by popular vote; they represent individual constituencies via five-year terms.[155] The remaining two members are nominated by the president from among the Anglo-Indian community, in case the president decides that they are not adequately represented.[156]

Judicial: India has a unitary three-tier judiciary, consisting of the Supreme Court, headed by the Chief Justice of India, 21 High Courts, and a large number of trial courts.[157] The Supreme Court has original jurisdiction over cases involving fundamental rights and over disputes between states and the centre; it has appellate jurisdiction over the High Courts.[158] It is judicially independent[157] and has the power both to declare the law and to strike down union or state laws which contravene the constitution.[159] The Supreme Court is also the ultimate interpreter of the constitution.[160]

Subdivisions Main article: Administrative divisions of India See also: Political integration of India

India is a federation composed of 28 states and 7 union territories.[161] All states, as well as the union territories of Pondicherry and the National Capital Territory of Delhi, have elected legislatures and governments, both patterned on the Westminster model. The remaining five union territories are directly ruled by the centre through appointed administrators. In 1956, under the States Reorganisation Act, states were reorganised on a linguistic basis.[162] Since then, their structure has remained largely unchanged. Each state or union territory is further divided into administrative districts. The districts in turn are further divided into tehsils and ultimately into villages.

States

Andhra Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh Assam Bihar Chhattisgarh Goa Gujarat

Haryana Himachal Pradesh Jammu and Kashmir Jharkhand Karnataka Kerala Madhya Pradesh

Maharashtra Manipur Meghalaya Mizoram Nagaland Orissa Punjab

Rajasthan Sikkim Tamil Nadu Tripura Uttar Pradesh Uttarakhand West Bengal

Union territories

Andaman and Nicobar Islands Chandigarh Dadra and Nagar Haveli Daman and Diu Lakshadweep National Capital Territory of Delhi Pondicherry

A clickable map of the 28 states and 7 union territories of India. A clickable map of Indian states and territories. About this image

Foreign relations and military Main articles: Foreign relations of India and Indian Armed Forces Two seated men converse. The first is dressed in Indian clothing and turban and sits before an Indian flag; the second is in a Western business suit and sits before a Russian flag. Manmohan Singh meets Dmitry Medvedev at the 34th G8 summit. India and Russia share extensive economic, defence, and technological ties.

Since its independence in 1947, India has maintained cordial relations with most nations. In the 1950s, it strongly supported decolonisation in Africa and Asia and played a lead role in the Non-Aligned Movement.[163] In the late 1980s, the Indian military twice intervened abroad at the invitation of neighbouring countries: a peace-keeping operation in Sri Lanka between 1987 and 1990; and an armed intervention to prevent a coup d'état attempt in Maldives. India has tense relations with neighbouring Pakistan; the two nations have gone to war four times: in 1947, 1965, 1971, and 1999. Three of these wars were fought over the disputed territory of Kashmir, while the fourth, the 1971 war, followed from India's support for the independence of Bangladesh.[164] After waging the 1962 Sino-Indian War and the 1965 war with Pakistan, India pursued close military and economic ties with the Soviet Union; by the late 1960s, the Soviet Union was its largest arms supplier.[165]

Aside from ongoing strategic relations with Russia, India has wide-ranging defence relations with Israel and France. In recent years, it has played key roles in the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation and the World Trade Organisation. The nation has provided 100,000 military and police personnel to serve in 35 UN peacekeeping operations across four continents. It participates in the East Asia Summit, the G8+5, and other multilateral forums.[166] India has close economic ties with South America, Asia, and Africa; it pursues a "Look East" policy that seeks to strengthen partnerships with the ASEAN nations, Japan, and South Korea that revolve around many issues, but especially those involving economic investment and regional security.[167][168] The HAL Tejas is a light supersonic fighter developed by the Aeronautical Development Agency and manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics in Bangalore.[169]

China's nuclear test of 1964, as well as its repeated threats to intervene in support of Pakistan in the 1965 war, convinced India to develop nuclear weapons.[170] India conducted its first nuclear weapons test in 1974 and carried out further underground testing in 1998. Despite criticism and military sanctions, India has signed neither the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty nor the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, considering both to be flawed and discriminatory.[171] India maintains a "no first use" nuclear policy and is developing a nuclear triad capability as a part of its "minimum credible deterrence" doctrine.[172][173] It is developing a ballistic missile defence shield and, in collaboration with Russia, a fifth-generation fighter jet.[174] Other indigenous military projects involve the design and implementation of Vikrant-class aircraft carriers and Arihant-class nuclear submarines.[174]

Since the end of the Cold War, India has increased its economic, strategic, and military cooperation with the United States and the European Union.[175] In 2008, a civilian nuclear agreement was signed between India and the United States. Although India possessed nuclear weapons at the time and was not party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, it received waivers from the International Atomic Energy Agency and the Nuclear Suppliers Group, ending earlier restrictions on India's nuclear technology and commerce. As a consequence, India became the sixth de facto nuclear weapons state.[176] India subsequently signed cooperation agreements involving civilian nuclear energy with Russia,[177] France,[178] the United Kingdom,[179] and Canada.[180]

The President of India is the supreme commander of the nation's armed forces; with 1.6 million active troops, they compose the world's third-largest military.[181] It comprises the Indian Army, the Indian Navy, and the Indian Air Force; auxiliary organisations include the Strategic Forces Command and three paramilitary groups: the Assam Rifles, the Special Frontier Force, and the Indian Coast Guard.[6] The official Indian defence budget for 2011 was US$36.03 billion, or 1.83% of GDP.[182] According to a 2008 SIPRI report, India's annual military expenditure in terms of purchasing power stood at US$72.7 billion,[183] In 2011, the annual defence budget increased by 11.6%,[184] although this does not include funds that reach the military through other branches of government.[185] As of 2012, India is the world's largest arms importer; in the period from 2006 to 2010, it accounted for 9% of money spent on international arms purchases.[186] Much of the military expenditure was focused on defence against Pakistan and countering growing Chinese influence in the Indian Ocean.[184] Economy Main article: Economy of India See also: Economic history of India, Economic development in India, and Transport in India Indian agriculture dates from the period 7,000–6,000 BCE,[187] employs most of the national workforce, and is second in farm output worldwide. Above, a farmer works an ox-drawn plow in Kadmati, West Bengal.

According to the International Monetary Fund, as of 2011, the Indian economy is nominally worth US$1.843 trillion; it is the tenth-largest economy by market exchange rates, and is, at US$4.469 trillion, the third-largest by purchasing power parity, or PPP.[5] With its average annual GDP growth rate of 5.8% over the past two decades, and reaching 10.4% during 2010,[188] India is one of the world's fastest-growing economies.[189] However, the country ranks 138th in the world in nominal GDP per capita and 129th in GDP per capita at PPP.[5] Until 1991, all Indian governments followed protectionist policies that were influenced by socialist economics. Widespread state intervention and regulation largely walled the economy off from the outside world. An acute balance of payments crisis in 1991 forced the nation to liberalise its economy;[190] since then it has slowly moved towards a free-market system[191][192] by emphasizing both foreign trade and direct investment inflows.[193] India's recent economic model is largely capitalist.[192]

The 467-million worker Indian labour force is the world's second-largest.[6] The service sector makes up 54% of GDP, the agricultural sector 28%, and the industrial sector 18%. Major agricultural products include rice, wheat, oilseed, cotton, jute, tea, sugarcane, and potatoes.[161] Major industries include textiles, telecommunications, chemicals, food processing, steel, transport equipment, cement, mining, petroleum, machinery, and software.[161] In 2006, the share of external trade in India's GDP stood at 24%, up from 6% in 1985.[191] In 2008, India's share of world trade was 1.68%;[194] India was the world's fifteenth-largest importer in 2009 and the eighteenth-largest exporter.[195] Major exports include petroleum products, textile goods, jewelry, software, engineering goods, chemicals, and leather manufactures.[161] Major imports include crude oil, machinery, gems, fertiliser, and chemicals.[161] Between 2001 and 2011, the contribution of petrochemical and engineering goods to total exports grew from 14% to 42%.[196] Street-level view looking up at a modern 30-story building. The Bombay Stock Exchange is Asia's oldest and India's largest bourse by market capitalisation.

Averaging an economic growth rate of 7.5% during the last few years,[191] India has more than doubled its hourly wage rates during the last decade.[197] Some 431 million Indians have left poverty since 1985; India's middle classes are projected to number around 580 million by 2030.[198] Though ranking 51st in global competitiveness, India ranks 17th in financial market sophistication, 24th in the banking sector, 44th in business sophistication, and 39th in innovation, ahead of several advanced economies.[199] With 7 of the world's top 15 information technology outsourcing companies based in India, the country is viewed as the second-most favourable outsourcing destination after the United States.[200] India's consumer market, currently the world's thirteenth-largest, is expected to become fifth-largest by 2030.[198] Its telecommunication industry, the world's fastest-growing, added 227 million subscribers during the period 2010–11.[201] Its automotive industry, the world's second fastest growing, increased domestic sales by 26% during 2009–10,[202] and exports by 36% during 2008–09.[203] Power capacity is 250 gigawatts, of which 8% is renewable.[204]

Despite impressive economic growth during recent decades, India continues to face socio-economic challenges. India contains the largest concentration of people living below the World Bank's international poverty line of US$1.25 per day,[205] the proportion having decreased from 60% in 1981 to 42% in 2005.[206] Half of the children in India are underweight,[207] and 46% of children under the age of three suffer from malnutrition.[205] The Mid-Day Meal Scheme attempts to lower these rates.[208] Since 1991, economic inequality between India's states has consistently grown: the per-capita net state domestic product of the richest states in 2007 was 3.2 times that of the poorest.[209] Corruption in India is perceived to have increased significantly,[210] with one report estimating the illegal capital flows since independence to be US$462 billion.[211] Driven by growth, India's nominal GDP per capita has steadily increased from US$329 in 1991, when economic liberalisation began, to US$1,265 in 2010, and is estimated to increase to US$2,110 by 2016; however, it has always remained lower than those of other Asian developing countries such as Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Thailand, and is expected to remain so in the near future.[212]

According to a 2011 PricewaterhouseCoopers report, India's GDP at purchasing power parity could overtake that of the United States by 2045.[213] During the next four decades, Indian GDP is expected to grow at an annualised average of 8%, making it potentially the world's fastest-growing major economy until 2050.[213] The report highlights key growth factors: a young and rapidly growing working-age population; growth in the manufacturing sector due to rising education and engineering skill levels; and sustained growth of the consumer market driven by a rapidly growing middle class.[213] The World Bank cautions that, for India to achieve its economic potential, it must continue to focus on public sector reform, transport infrastructure, agricultural and rural development, removal of labour regulations, education, energy security, and public health and nutrition.[214] Demographics Main article: Demographics of India Map of India. High population density areas (above 1000 persons per square kilometer) centre on Kolkata along with other parts of the Ganges River Basin, Mumbai, Bangalore, the south-west coast, and the Lakshadweep Islands. Low density areas (below 100) include the western desert, eastern Kashmir, and the eastern frontier. A population density and Indian Railways connectivity map. The already densely settled Indo-Gangetic Plain is the main driver of Indian population growth.

With 1,210,193,422 residents reported in the 2011 provisional census,[4] India is the world's second-most populous country. Its population grew at 1.76% per annum during 2001–2011,[4] down from 2.13% per annum in the previous decade (1991–2001).[215] The human sex ratio, according to the 2011 census, is 940 females per 1,000 males.[4] The median age was 24.9 in the 2001 census.[6] Medical advances made in the last 50 years as well as increased agricultural productivity brought about by the "Green Revolution" have caused India's population to grow rapidly.[216] India continues to face several public health-related challenges.[217][218] According to the World Health Organisation, 900,000 Indians die each year from drinking contaminated water or breathing polluted air.[219] There are around 50 physicians per 100,000 Indians.[220] The number of Indians living in urban areas has grown by 31.2% between 1991 and 2001.[221] Yet, in 2001, over 70% lived in rural areas.[222][223] According to the 2001 census, there are 27 million-plus cities in India,[221] with Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, and Chennai being the largest. The literacy rate in 2011 was 74.04%: 65.46% among females and 82.14% among males.[4] Kerala is the most literate state;[224] Bihar the least.[225] Children prepare for a traditional dance in Tripura.

India is home to two major language families: Indo-Aryan (spoken by about 74% of the population) and Dravidian (24%). Other languages spoken in India come from the Austro-Asiatic and Tibeto-Burman language families. India has no national language.[226] Hindi, with the largest number of speakers, is the official language of the government.[227][228] English is used extensively in business and administration and has the status of a "subsidiary official language";[229] it is important in education, especially as a medium of higher education. Each state and union territory has one or more official languages, and the constitution recognises in particular 21 "scheduled languages". The Constitution of India recognises 212 scheduled tribal groups which together constitute about 7.5% of the country's population.[230] The 2001 census reported that Hinduism, with over 800 million adherents (80.5% of the population), was the largest religion in India; it is followed by Islam (13.4%), Christianity (2.3%), Sikhism (1.9%), Buddhism (0.8%), Jainism (0.4%), Judaism, Zoroastrianism, and the Bahá'í Faith.[231] India has the world's largest Hindu, Sikh, Jain, Zoroastrian, and Bahá'í populations, and has the third-largest Muslim population and the largest Muslim population for a non-Muslim majority country. Culture Main article: Culture of India A sculpture fashioned in the Gandharan tradition depicting Gautama Buddha, founder of Buddhism, at the Tokyo National Museum

Indian cultural history spans more than 4,500 years.[232] During the Vedic period (c. 1700–500 BCE), the foundations of Hindu philosophy, mythology, and literature were laid, and many beliefs and practices which still exist today, such as dhárma, kárma, yóga, and mokṣa, were established.[10] India is notable for its religious diversity, with Hinduism, Sikhism, Islam, Christianity, and Jainism among the nation's major religions.[233] The predominant religion, Hinduism, has been shaped by various historical schools of thought, including those of the Upanishads,[234] the Yoga Sutras, the Bhakti movement,[233] and by Buddhist philosophy.[235] Art, architecture, and literature

Much of Indian architecture, including the Taj Mahal, other works of Mughal architecture, and South Indian architecture, blends ancient local traditions with imported styles.[236] Vernacular architecture is also highly regional in it flavours. Vastu shastra, literally "science of construction" or "architecture" and ascribed to Mamuni Mayan,[237] explores how the laws of nature affect human dwellings;[238] it employs precise geometry and directional alignments to reflect perceived cosmic constructs.[239] As applied in Hindu temple architecture, it is influenced by the Shilpa Shastras, a series of foundational texts whose basic mythological form is the Vastu-Purusha mandala, a square that embodied the "absolute".[240] The Taj Mahal, built in Agra between 1631 and 1648 by orders of Emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his wife, has been described in the UNESCO World Heritage List as "the jewel of Muslim art in India and one of the universally admired masterpieces of the world's heritage."[241] Indo-Saracenic Revival architecture, developed by the British in the late 19th century, drew on Indo-Islamic architecture.[242]

The earliest literary writings in India, composed between 1400 BCE and 1200 CE, were in the Sanskrit language.[243][244] Prominent works of this Sanskrit literature include epics such as the Mahābhārata and the Ramayana, the dramas of Kālidāsa such as the Abhijñānaśākuntalam (The Recognition of Śakuntalā), and poetry such as the Mahākāvya.[245][246][247] Developed between 600 BCE and 300 CE in South India, the Sangam literature, consisting of 2,381 poems, is regarded as a predecessor of Tamil literature.[248][249][250][251] From the 14th to the 18th centuries, India's literary traditions went through a period of drastic change because of the emergence of devotional poets such as Kabīr, Tulsīdās, and Guru Nānak. This period was characterised by a varied and wide spectrum of thought and expression; as a consequence, medieval Indian literary works differed significantly from classical traditions.[252] In the 19th century, Indian writers took a new interest in social questions and psychological descriptions. In the 20th century, Indian literature was influenced by the works of Bengali poet and novelist Rabindranath Tagore.[253] Performing arts Bihu dancers and drummers from Assam

Indian music ranges over various traditions and regional styles. Classical music encompasses two genres and their various folk offshoots: the northern Hindustani and southern Carnatic schools.[254] Regionalised popular forms include filmi and folk music; the syncretic tradition of the bauls is a well-known form of the latter. Indian dance also features diverse folk and classical forms. Among the better-known folk dances are the bhangra of the Punjab, the bihu of Assam, the chhau of West Bengal and Jharkhand, sambalpuri of Orissa, ghoomar of Rajasthan, and the lavani of Maharashtra. Eight dance forms, many with narrative forms and mythological elements, have been accorded classical dance status by India's National Academy of Music, Dance, and Drama. These are: bharatanatyam of the state of Tamil Nadu, kathak of Uttar Pradesh, kathakali and mohiniyattam of Kerala, kuchipudi of Andhra Pradesh, manipuri of Manipur, odissi of Orissa, and the sattriya of Assam.[255]

Theatre in India melds music, dance, and improvised or written dialogue.[256] Often based on Hindu mythology, but also borrowing from medieval romances or social and political events, Indian theatre includes the bhavai of Gujarat, the jatra of West Bengal, the nautanki and ramlila of North India, tamasha of Maharashtra, burrakatha of Andhra Pradesh, terukkuttu of Tamil Nadu, and the yakshagana of Karnataka.[257] The Indian film industry produces the world's most-watched cinema.[258] Established regional cinematic traditions exist in the Assamese, Bengali, Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Oriya, Tamil, and Telugu languages.[259] South Indian cinema attracts more than 75% of national film revenue.[260] Society A Rajput Hindu marriage ceremony

Traditional Indian society is defined by relatively strict social hierarchy. The Indian caste system embodies much of the social stratification and many of the social restrictions found in the Indian subcontinent. Social classes are defined by thousands of endogamous hereditary groups, often termed as jātis, or "castes".[261] Most Dalits ("Untouchables") and members of other lower-caste communities continue to live in segregation and often face persecution and discrimination.[262][263] Traditional Indian family values are highly valued, and multi-generational patriarchal joint families have been the norm in India, though nuclear families are becoming common in urban areas.[264] An overwhelming majority of Indians, with their consent, have their marriages arranged by their parents or other family members.[265] Marriage is thought to be for life,[265] and the divorce rate is extremely low.[266] Child marriages are common, especially in rural areas; more than half of Indian females wed before reaching 18, which is their legal marriageable age.[267]

Many Indian festivals are religious in origin; among them are Diwali, Ganesh Chaturthi, Thai Pongal, Navaratri, Holi, Durga Puja, Eid ul-Fitr, Bakr-Id, Christmas, and Vaisakhi. India has three national holidays which are observed in all states and union territories: Republic Day, Independence Day, and Gandhi Jayanti. Other sets of holidays, varying between nine and twelve, are officially observed in individual states. Traditional Indian dress varies in colour and style across regions and depends on various factors, including climate and faith. Popular styles of dress include draped garments such as the sari for women and the dhoti or lungi for men. Stitched clothes, such as the shalwar kameez for women and kurta–pyjama combinations or European-style trousers and shirts for men, are also popular.[268] Use of delicate jewellery, modelled on real flowers worn in ancient India, is part of a tradition dating back some 5,000 years; gemstones are also worn in India as talismans.[269]

Indian cuisine features an unsurpassed reliance on herbs and spices, with dishes often calling for the nuanced usage of a dozen or more condiments;[270] it is also known for its tandoori preparations. The tandoor, a clay oven used in India for almost 5,000 years, grills meats to an "uncommon succulence" and produces the puffy flatbread known as naan.[271] The staple foods are wheat (predominantly in the north),[272] rice (especially in the south and the east), and lentils.[273] Many spices that have worldwide appeal are native to the Indian subcontinent,[274] while chili pepper, native to the Americas and introduced by the Portuguese, is widely used by Indians.[275] Āyurveda, a system of traditional medicine, used six rasas and three guṇas to help describe comestibles.[276] Over time, as Vedic animal sacrifices were supplanted by the notion of sacred-cow inviolability, vegetarianism became associated with high religious status and grew increasingly popular,[277] a trend aided by the rise of Buddhism, Jainism, and the Hindu bhakti movement.[278] India has the world's highest concentration of vegetarians: a 2006 survey found that 31% of Indians were non-ovo vegetarian.[278] Common traditional eating customs include meals taken on or near the floor, caste- and gender-segregated dining,[279][280] and lack of cutlery in favour of the right hand or a piece of roti. Sport Main article: Sport in India Field hockey is the national sport of India. Pictured is the Indian team, captained by Dhyan Chand (standing second from left), after winning the finals at the 1936 Summer Olympics—their third of six consecutive Olympic golds.

In India, several traditional indigenous sports remain fairly popular, among them kabaddi, kho kho, pehlwani, and gilli-danda. Some of the earliest forms of Asian martial arts, such as kalarippayattu, musti yuddha, silambam, and marma adi, originated in India. The Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna and the Arjuna Award are the highest forms of government recognition for athletic achievement; the Dronacharya Award is awarded for excellence in coaching. Chess, commonly held to have originated in India as chaturaṅga, is regaining widespread popularity with the rise in the number of Indian grandmasters.[281][282] Pachisi, from which parcheesi derives, was played on a giant marble court by Akbar.[283] The improved results garnered by the Indian Davis Cup team and other Indian tennis players in the early 2010s have made tennis increasingly popular in the country.[284] India has a comparatively strong presence in shooting sports, and has won several medals at the Olympics, the World Shooting Championships, and the Commonwealth Games.[285][286] Other sports in which Indians have succeeded internationally include badminton,[287] boxing,[288] and wrestling.[289] Football is popular in West Bengal, Goa, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and the north-eastern states.[290]

India's official national sport is field hockey; it is administered by Hockey India. The Indian national hockey team won the 1975 Hockey World Cup and have, as of 2012, taken eight gold, one silver, and two bronze Olympic medals, making it the sport's most successful team. Cricket is by far the most popular sport; the Indian national cricket team won the 1983 and 2011 Cricket World Cup events, the 2007 ICC World Twenty20, and shared the 2002 ICC Champions Trophy with Sri Lanka. Cricket in India is administered by the Board of Control for Cricket in India, or BCCI; the Ranji Trophy, the Duleep Trophy, the Deodhar Trophy, the Irani Trophy, and the NKP Salve Challenger Trophy are domestic competitions. The BCCI conducts a Twenty20 competition known as the Indian Premier League. India has hosted or co-hosted several international sporting events: the 1951 and 1982 Asian Games; the 1987, 1996, and 2011 Cricket World Cup tournaments; the 2003 Afro-Asian Games; the 2006 ICC Champions Trophy; the 2010 Hockey World Cup; and the 2010 Commonwealth Games. Major international sporting events held annually in India include the Chennai Open, the Mumbai Marathon, the Delhi Half Marathon, and the Indian Masters. The first Indian Grand Prix featured in late 2011.[291] Notes

^ "[...] Jana Gana Mana is the National Anthem of India, subject to such alterations in the words as the Government may authorise as occasion arises; and the song Vande Mataram, which has played a historic part in the struggle for Indian freedom, shall be honoured equally with Jana Gana Mana and shall have equal status with it." (Constituent Assembly of India 1950). ^ "The country's exact size is subject to debate because some borders are disputed. The Indian government lists the total area as 3,287,260 km2 (1,269,220 sq mi) and the total land area as 3,060,500 km2 (1,181,700 sq mi); the United Nations lists the total area as 3,287,263 km2 (1,269,219 sq mi) and total land area as 2,973,190 km2 (1,147,960 sq mi)." (Library of Congress 2004). ^ See also: Official names of India. ^ The Government of India regards Afghanistan as a bordering country, as it considers all of Kashmir to be part of India. However, this is disputed, and the region bordering Afghanistan is administered by Pakistan. Source: "Ministry of Home Affairs (Department of Border Management)" (DOC). Retrieved 1 September 2008.. ^ The northernmost point under Indian control is the disputed Siachen Glacier in Jammu and Kashmir; however, the Government of India regards the entire region of the former princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, including the Northern Areas currently administered by Pakistan, to be its territory. It therefore assigns the longitude 37° 6' to its northernmost point.

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References

Overview

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Etymology

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History

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Geography

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Biodiversity

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Politics

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Foreign relations and military

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Economy

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Demographics

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Culture

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