Background: The Indus Valley civilization one of the oldest in the world goes back at least 5,000 years. Aryan tribes from the northwest invaded about 1500 B.C.; their merger with the earlier inhabitants created classical Indian culture. Arab incursions starting in the 8th century and Turkish in 12th were followed by European traders beginning in the late 15th century. By the 19th century Britain had assumed political control of virtually all Indian lands. Nonviolent resistance to British colonialism under Mohandas GANDHI and Jawaharlal NEHRU led to independence in 1947. The subcontinent was divided into the secular state of India and the smaller Muslim state of Pakistan. A third war between the two countries in 1971 resulted in East Pakistan becoming the separate nation of Bangladesh. Fundamental concerns in India include the ongoing dispute with Pakistan over Kashmir massive overpopulation environmental degradation extensive poverty and ethnic strife all this despite impressive gains in economic investment and output.

Area
Total: 3,287,590 km²
Land: 2,973,190 km²
Comparative: slightly more than one-third the size of the U.S.

Land boundaries: Total 14,103 km, Bangladesh 4,053 km, Bhutan 605 km, Burma 1,463 km, China 3,380 km, Nepal 1,690 km, Pakistan 2,912 km

Coastline: 7,000 km

Maritime claims
Contiguous zone: 24 nm
Continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate: Varies from tropical monsoon in south to temperate in north

Terrain: Upland plain (Deccan Plateau) in south, flat to rolling plain along the Ganges, deserts in west, Himalayas in north

Elevation
Extremes lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
Extremes highest point: Kanchenjunga 8,598 m

Natural resources:

Land use
Arable land: 55%
Permanent crops: 1%
Permanent pastures: 4%
Forests and woodland: 23%
Other: 17%

Irrigated land: 430,390 km² (1989)

Population:
Growth rate:

Nationality
Noun: Indian(s)
Adjective: Indian

Ethnic groups:

Languages: English enjoys associate status but is the most important language for national, political, and commercial communication, Hindi the national language and primary tongue of 30% of the people, Bengali (official), Telugu (official), Marathi (official), Tamil (official), Urdu (official), Gujarati (official), Malayalam (official), Kannada (official), Oriya (official), Punjabi (official), Assamese (official), Kashmiri (official), Sindhi (official), Sanskrit (official), Hindustani a popular variant of Hindu/Urdu, is spoken widely throughout northern India
Note: 24 languages each spoken by a million or more persons; numerous other languages and dialects, for the most part mutually unintelligible

Religions:

Population growth rate:

Birth rate:

Death rate:

Net migration rate:

Environment
Current issues: deforestation; soil erosion; overgrazing; desertification; air pollution from industrial effluents and vehicle emissions; water pollution from raw sewage and runoff of agricultural pesticides; tap water is not potable throughout the country; huge and rapidly growing population is overstraining natural resources
Current issues Natural hazards: droughts, flash floods, severe thunderstorms common; earthquakes
International agreements: party to_Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber, Wetlands; signed, but not ratified_Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Desertification
International agreements note: Dominates South Asian subcontinent; near important Indian Ocean trade routes

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
Under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.08 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.98 male(s)/female
All ages:

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 59.71 years (1996 est.); 59.04 years (1995 est.)
Male: 59.12 years (1996 est.); 58.5 years (1995 est.)
Female: 60.32 years (1996 est.); 59.61 years (1995 est.)

Total fertility rate: 3.2 children born/woman (1996 est.) 3.4 children born/woman (1995 est.)

Literacy
Definition: age 7 and over that can read and write (1995 est.)
Total population: 52%
Male: 65.5%
Female: 37.7%

Country name
Conventional long form: Republic of India
Conventional short form: India

Government type: Federal republic

Capital: New Delhi

Administrative divisions: 25 states and 7 union territories*; Andaman and Nicobar Islands*, Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chandigarh*, Dadra and Nagar Haveli*, Daman and Diu*, Delhi*, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Kerala, Lakshadweep*, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Orissa, Pondicherry*, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal

Independence: 15 August 1947 (from U.K.)

National holiday: Anniversary of the Proclamation of the Republic, 26 January (1950)

Constitution: 26 January 1950

Legal system: Based on English common law; limited judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Shankar Dayal SHARMA (since 25 July 1992) was elected for a five-year term by an electoral college consisting of elected members of both houses of Parliament and the legislatures of the states; Vice President Kicheril Raman NARAYANAN (since 21 August 1992) was elected by both houses of Parliament
Head of government: Prime Minister Atal Bihari VAJPAYEE (since 28 March 1998); voted by the Parliament; 274 votes in favor; 261 against
Cabinet: Council of Ministers; appointed by the president on recommendation of the prime minister

Legislative branch: Bicameral Parliament Sansad Council of States Rajya Sabha (a body consisting of not more than 250 members, up to 12 appointed by the president, the remainder chosen by the elected members of the state and territorial assemblies People's Assembly (Lok Sabha)); elections last held 16, 22 and 28 February and 7 March 1998 (next to be held NA); results -
Elections: Last held 21 May 12 and 15 June 1991 next to be held 27 April through May 1996
Results: Percent of vote by party NA; seats 545 total 543 elected 2 appointed Congress I Party 245 BJP 119 Janata Dal Party 39 Janata Dal Ajit Singh 20 CPI/M 35 CPI 14 Telugu Desam 13 AIADMK 11 Samajwadi Janata Party 5 Shiv Sena 4 RSP 4 BSP 1 Congress S Party 1 other 23 vacant 9; note the distribution of seats as of 18 January 1995 is as follows: Congress (I) Party 260, BJP 117, CPI/M 36, Janata Dal Party 24, Samata Party 14, CPI 14, AIADMK 12, Janata Dal (Ajit) 7, Telugu Desam 7, RSP 4, Janata Dal (Ex-Ajit) 3, Samajwadi Party 3, BSP 3, AIFB 3, Shiv Sena 2, Congress (S) Party 1, Kerala Congress (Mani faction) 1, Bihar Peoples Party 1, India National League 1, other 14, vacant 16

Judicial branch: Supreme Court, judges are appointed by the president

International organization participation: AfDB, AG (observer), AsDB, C, CCC, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G- 6, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), PCA, SAARC, UN, UNAMIR, UNAVEM III, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMIH, UNOMIL, UNU, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO

Flag description: Three equal horizontal bands of orange (top), white, and green with a blue chakra (24-spoked wheel) centered in the white band; similar to the flag of Niger, which has a small orange disk centered in the white band

Economy overview: India's economy is a mixture of traditional village farming, modern agriculture, handicrafts, a wide range of modern industries, and a multitude of support services. Faster economic growth in the 1980s permitted a significant increase in real per capita private consumption. A large share of the population, perhaps as much as 40%, remains too poor to afford an adequate diet. Financial strains in 1990 and 1991 prompted government austerity measures that slowed industrial growth but permitted India to meet its international payment obligations without rescheduling its debt. Production, trade, and investment reforms since 1991 have provided new opportunities for Indian businessmen and an estimated 200 million plus middle class consumers. New Delhi has always paid its foreign debts on schedule and has stimulated exports, attracted foreign investment, and revived confidence in India's economic prospects. GDP growth in 1992-95 has averaged nearly 5%. Most of the country's external fundamentals_including the current account balance and reserves (now nearly $17 billion) are healthy. Party politics is increasingly shaping the debate over economic reforms. In addition, the 25 Indian states and several union territories, which are playing a more active role in determining economic policy, are further complicating the economic climate. The Indian Government will also have to watch closely rising government expenditures and higher debt servicing which could create a debt trap by the turn of the century. Nevertheless, India should achieve economic growth of 5.5%-6.5% annually through the next several years. Even if a weak coalition government comes to power in 1996 and is unable to push reforms aggressively, parts of the economy that have already benefited from deregulation will continue to grow. Moreover, the country can build on other strengths, including its diverse industrial base, large scientific and technical pool, well-developed legal system, and its large middle class to achieve higher growth.

Real gdp growth rate:

Real gdp per capita:

Agriculture products: Accounts for 34% of GDP; principal crops_rice, wheat, oilseeds, cotton, jute, tea, sugarcane, potatoes; livestock_cattle, buffaloes, sheep, goats, poultry; fish catch of about 3 million metric tons ranks India among the world's top 10 fishing nations

Industries:

Industrial production growth rate: Growth rate 10% (1995 est.), 7% (1994 est.), accounts for 28% of GDP

Labor force: 314.751 million (1990)
By occupation: Agriculture 65% (1993 est.)

Unemployment rate: NA

Budget
Revenues: $36.5 billion (FY94/95); $30.85 billion (FY93/94)
Expenditures: $54.9 billion, including capital expenditures of $11.4 billion (FY94/95); $48.35 billion, including capital expenditures of $10.5 billion (FY93/94)

Fiscal year: 1 April_31 March

Exports:
Commodities:
Partners:

Debt external:

Exchange rates: Indian rupees (Rs) per US$1_35.766 (January 1996), 32.427 (1995), 31.374 (1994), 30.493 (1993), 25.918 (1992), 22.742 (1991), 17.504 (1990)

Electricity
Capacity: 81,200,000 kW
Production: 314 billion kWh
Consumption per capita: 324 kWh (1993)

Telephone system: 9.8 million telephones (1995); probably the least adequate telephone system of any of the industrializing countries; three of every four villages have no telephone service; only 5% of India's villages have long-distance service; poor telephone service significantly impedes commercial and industrial growth and penalizes India in global markets; slow improvement is taking place with the recent admission of private and private-public investors, but demand for communication services is also growing rapidly
Domestic: local service is provided mostly by open wire and obsolete electromechanical and manual switchboard systems; within the last 10 years a substantial amount of digital switch gear has been introduced for local service; long-distance traffic is carried mostly by open wire, coaxial cable, and low-capacity microwave radio relay; since 1985, however, significant trunk capacity has been added in the form of fiber-optic cable and a domestic satellite system with over 100 earth stations
International: 8 INTELSAT (Indian Ocean) earth stations and submarine cables to Malaysia and the United Arab Emirates

Military expenditures
Dollar figure: $8.0 billion, 2.7% of GDP (FY95/96; $7.8 billion, 2.8% of GDP (FY94/95)

Airports: 288
With paved runways over 3047 m: 11
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 48
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 59
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 68
With paved runways under 914 m: 62
With unpaved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 2
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 2
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 36 (1995 est.)

Pipelines: Crude oil 3,005 km; petroleum products 2,687 km; natural gas 1,700 km (1995)

Waterways: 16,180 km; 3,631 km navigable by large vessels

Merchant marine
Total: 310 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 6,787,834 GRT/11,296,222 DWT
Ships by type: bulk 133, cargo 65, chemical tanker 10, combination bulk 2, combination ore/oil 3, container 11, liquefied gas tanker 6, oil tanker 73, passenger-cargo 5, roll-on/roll-off cargo 1, short-sea passenger 1 (1995 est.)

Illicit drugs: Licit producer of opium poppy for the pharmaceutical trade, but an undetermined quantity of opium is diverted to illicit international drug markets; major transit country for illicit narcotics produced in neighboring countries; illicit producer of hashish and methaqualone; produced 70 metric tons of illicit opium in 1995; 82 metric tons in 1994