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Geography of India

India is situated north of the equator between 8°4' north (the mainland) to 37°6' north latitude and 68°7' east to 97°25' east longitude. It is the seventh-largest country in the world, with a total area of 3287263 km2. India measures 3214 km from north to south and 2933 km from east to west. It has a land frontier of 15200 km and a coastline of 7516.6 km.

On the south, India projects into and is bounded by the Indian Ocean—in particular, by the Arabian Sea on the west, the Lakshadweep Sea to the southwest, the Bay of Bengal on the east, and the Indian Ocean proper to the south. The Palk Strait and Gulf of Mannar separate India from Sri Lanka to its immediate southeast, and the Maldives are some 125 km to the south of India's Lakshadweep Islands across the Eight Degree Channel. India's Andaman and Nicobar Islands, some 1200 km southeast of the mainland, share maritime borders with Myanmar, Thailand and Indonesia. The southernmost tip of the Indian mainland (8°4′38″N, 77°31′56″E) is just south of Kanyakumari, while the southernmost point in India is Indira Point on Great Nicobar Island. The northernmost point which is under Indian administration is Indira Col, Siachen Glacier. India's territorial waters extend into the sea to a distance of 12 nmi from the coast baseline. India has the 18th largest Exclusive Economic Zone of 2305143 km2.

The northern frontiers of India are defined largely by the Himalayan mountain range, where the country borders China, Bhutan, and Nepal. Its western border with Pakistan lies in the Karakoram and Western Himalayan ranges, Punjab Plains, the Thar Desert and the Rann of Kutch salt marshes. In the far northeast, the Chin Hills and Kachin Hills, deeply forested mountainous regions, separate India from Burma. On the east, its border with Bangladesh is largely defined by the Khasi Hills and Mizo Hills, and the watershed region of the Indo-Gangetic Plain.

The Ganges is the longest river originating in India. The Ganges–Brahmaputra system occupies most of northern, central, and eastern India, while the Deccan Plateau occupies most of southern India. Kangchenjunga, in the Indian state of Sikkim, is the highest point in India at 8586 m and the world's third highest peak. The climate across India ranges from equatorial in the far south, to alpine and tundra in the upper regions of the Himalayas. Geologically, India lies on the Indian Plate, the northern part of the Indo-Australian Plate.

Geological development

India is situated entirely on the Indian Plate, a major tectonic plate that was formed when it split off from the ancient continent Gondwanaland (ancient landmass, consisting of the southern part of the supercontinent of Pangea). The Indo-Australian plate is subdivided into the Indian and Australian plates. About 90 million years ago, during the late Cretaceous Period, the Indian Plate began moving north at about 15 cm/year (6 in/yr). About 50 to 55 million years ago, in the Eocene Epoch of the Cenozoic Era, the plate collided with Asia after covering a distance of 2000 to 3000 km, having moved faster than any other known plate. In 2007, German geologists determined that the Indian Plate was able to move so quickly because it is only half as thick as the other plates which formerly constituted Gondwanaland. The collision with the Eurasian Plate along the modern border between India and Nepal formed the orogenic belt that created the Tibetan Plateau and the Himalayas. , the Indian Plate is moving northeast at 5 cm/yr (2 in/yr), while the Eurasian Plate is moving north at only 2 cm/yr (0.8 in/yr). India is thus referred to as the "fastest continent". This is causing the Eurasian Plate to deform, and the Indian Plate to compress at a rate of 4 cm/yr (1.6 in/yr).

Political geography
India is divided into 28 States (further subdivided into districts) and 8 union territories including the National capital territory (i.e., Delhi). India's borders run a total length of 15200 km.

Its borders with Pakistan and Bangladesh were delineated according to the Radcliffe Line, which was created in 1947 during Partition of India. Its western border with Pakistan extends up to 3323 km, dividing the Punjab region and running along the boundaries of the Thar Desert and the Rann of Kutch. This border runs along the Indian states and union territories of Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan, and Gujarat. Both nations delineated a Line of Control (LoC) to serve as the informal boundary between the Indian and Pakistan-administered areas of the Kashmir region. India claims the whole of the former princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, which includes areas now administered by Pakistan and China, which according to India are illegally occupied areas.

India's border with Bangladesh runs 4096.70 km. West Bengal, Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram are the states which share the border with Bangladesh. Before 2015, there were 92 enclaves of Bangladesh on Indian soil and 106 enclaves of India were on Bangladeshi soil. These enclaves were eventually exchanged in order to simplify the border. After the exchange, India lost roughly 40 km2 to Bangladesh.

The Line of Actual Control (LAC) is the effective border between India and the People's Republic of China. It traverses 4,057 km along the Indian states and union territories of Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh. The border with Burma (Myanmar) extends up to 1643 km along the eastern borders of India's northeastern states viz. Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur and Mizoram. Located amidst the Himalayan range, India's border with Bhutan runs 699 km. Sikkim, West Bengal, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh are the states which share the border with Bhutan. The border with Nepal runs 1751 km along the foothills of the Himalayas in northern India. Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal and Sikkim are the states which share the border with Nepal. The Siliguri Corridor, narrowed sharply by the borders of Bhutan, Nepal and Bangladesh, connects peninsular India with the northeastern states.

Cratons

Cratons are a specific kind of continental crust made up of a top layer called platform and an older layer called basement. A shield is the part of a craton where basement rock crops out of the ground, and it is relatively the older and more stable section, unaffected by plate tectonics.

The Indian Craton can be divided into five major cratons as such:
 * Aravalli Craton (Marwar-Mewar Craton or Western Indian Craton): Covers Rajasthan as well as western and southern Haryana. It comprises Mewar Craton in the east and Marwar Craton in the west. It is limited by the Great Boundary Fault in the east, sandy Thar Desert in the Thar desert in the west, Indo-ganetic alluvium in the north, Son-Narmada-Tapti in the south. It mainly has quartzite, marble, pelite, greywacke and extinct volcanos exposed in Aravalli-Delhi Orogen. Malani Igneous Suite is the largest in India and third largest igneous suite in the world.
 * Bundelkand Craton, covers 26,00 km2 in the Bundelkhand region of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh and forms the basis of the Malwa Plateau. It is limited by the Aravalli in the west, Narmada river and Satpura range in the south, and Indo-Gantetic alluvium in the north. It is similar to the Aravali Craton, which used to be a single craton before being divided into two with the evolution of Hindoli and Mahakoshal belts at the margins of two cratons.
 * Dharwar Craton (Karnataka Craton), 3.4 - 2.6 Ga, granite-greenstone terrain covers the state of Karnataka and parts of eastern and southern Maharashtra state, and forms the basis of the southern end of the Deccan Plateau. In 1886 it was divided into two tectonic blocks, namely Eastern Dharwar Craton (EDC) and Western Dharwar Craton (WDC).
 * Singhbhum Craton, 4,000 km2 area which primarily covers Jharkhand as well as parts of Odisha, northern Andhra Pradesh, northern Telangana and eastern Maharashtra. It is limited by the Chhota Nagpur Plateau to the north, Eastern Ghats to the southeast, Bastar Craton to southwest and alluvium plain to the east.
 * Bastar Craton (Bastar-Bhandara Craton), primarily covers Chhattisgarh and forms the basis of the Chhota Nagpur Plateau. It is a remnant of 3.4-3.0 Ga old TTG gneisses of five types. It is subdivided into Kotri-Dongagarh Orogen and the Rest of Bastar Craton. It is limited by three rifts, Godavari rift in southwest, Narmada rift in northwest and Mahanadi rift in northeast.

Regions
India can be divided into six physiographic regions. They are:
 * Northern Mountains: Himalayas
 * Peninsular Plateau: contains mountain ranges (Aravalli, Vindhayachal and Satpura ranges), ghats (Eastern Ghats and Western Ghats) and plateaus (Malwa Plateau, Chhota Nagpur Plateau, Southern Garanulite terrain, Deccan Plateau and Kutch Kathiawar plateau).
 * Indo-Gangetic Plain or The Northern Plains
 * Thar Desert
 * Coastal Plains: Eastern Ghat folds and Western Ghats folds
 * Islands- The Andaman and Nicobar islands and the Lakshadweep islands.

The Himalayas
An arc of mountains consisting of the Himalayas, Hindu Kush, and Patkai ranges define the northern frontiers of the Indian subcontinent. These were formed by the ongoing tectonic plates collision of the Indian and Eurasian plates. The mountains in these ranges include some of the world's tallest mountains which act as a barrier to cold polar winds. They also facilitate the monsoon winds which in turn influence the climate in India. Rivers originating in these mountains flow through the fertile Indo–Gangetic plains. These mountains form the boundary between two biogeographic realms: the temperate Palearctic realm that covers most of Eurasia, and the tropical and subtropical Indomalayan realm which includes South Asia, Southeast Asia and Indonesia.

The Himalayas in India extend from Ladakh in the north to the state of Arunachal Pradesh in the east. Several Himalayan peaks in India rise above 7000 m, including Kanchenjunga (8598 m) on the Sikkim–Nepal border, and Nanda Devi (7,816 m) in the Garhwal Himalayas of Uttarakhand. The snow line ranges between 6000 m in Sikkim to around 3000 m in Ladakh. The Himalayas act as a barrier to the frigid katabatic winds flowing down from Central Asia. Thus, northern India is kept warm or only mildly cooled during winter; in summer, the same phenomenon makes India relatively hot.

 * The Karakoram range runs through Ladakh. The range is about 500 km in length and the most heavily glaciated part of the world outside of the polar regions. The Siachen Glacier at 76 km ranks as the world's second longest glacier outside the polar regions. The southern boundary of the Karakoram is formed by the Indus and Shyok rivers, which separate the range from the northwestern end of the Himalayas.
 * The Patkai, or Purvanchal, are situated near India's eastern border with Burma. They were created by the same tectonic processes which led to the formation of the Himalayas. The physical features of the Patkai mountains are conical peaks, steep slopes and deep valleys. The Patkai ranges are not as rugged or tall as the Himalayas. There are three hill ranges that come under the Patkai: the Patkai–Bum, the Garo–Khasi–Jaintia and the Lushai hills. The Garo–Khasi range lies in Meghalaya. Mawsynram, a village near Cherrapunji lying on the windward side of these hills, has the distinction of being the wettest place in the world, receiving the highest annual rainfall.

The Peninsular Plateau
The main features of Indian Craton are:

 * Mountain ranges (clockwise from top-left)
 * Aravali Range is the oldest mountain range in India, running across Rajasthan from northeast to southwest direction, extending approximately 800 km. The northern end of the range continues as isolated hills and rocky ridges into Haryana, ending near Delhi. The highest peak in this range is Guru Shikhar at Mount Abu, rising to 1722 m, lying near the border with Gujarat. The Aravali Range is the eroded stub of an ancient fold mountain system. The range rose in a Precambrian event called the Aravali–Delhi orogen. The range joins two of the ancient segments that make up the Indian craton, the Marwar segment to the northwest of the range, and the Bundelkhand segment to the southeast.
 * Vindhya range, lies north of Satpura range and east of Aravali range, runs across most of central India, extending 1050 km. The average elevation of these hills is from 300 to 600 m and rarely goes above 700 m. They are believed to have been formed by the wastes created by the weathering of the ancient Aravali mountains. Geographically, it separates Northern India from Southern India. The western end of the range lies in eastern Gujarat, near its border with Madhya Pradesh, and runs east and north, almost meeting the Ganges at Mirzapur. Dry deciduous Jungles at Ramatheertham 03.jpg
 * Satpura Range, lies south of Vindhya range and east of Aravali range, begins in eastern Gujarat near the Arabian Sea coast and runs east across Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. It extends 900 km with many peaks rising above 1000 m. It is triangular in shape, with its apex at Ratnapuri and the two sides being parallel to the Tapti and Narmada rivers. It runs parallel to the Vindhya Range, which lies to the north, and these two east–west ranges divide the Indo–Gangetic plain from the Deccan Plateau located north of River Narmada.
 * Plateaus (clockwise from top-left)
 * Malwa Plateau is spread across Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat. The average elevation of the Malwa plateau is 500 metres, and the landscape generally slopes towards the north. Most of the region is drained by the Chambal River and its tributaries; the western part is drained by the upper reaches of the Mahi River.
 * Chhota Nagpur Plateau is situated in eastern India, covering much of Jharkhand and adjacent parts of Odisha, Bihar and Chhattisgarh. Its total area is approximately 65000 km2 and is made up of three smaller plateaus—the Ranchi, Hazaribagh, and Kodarma plateaus. The Ranchi plateau is the largest, with an average elevation of 700 m. Much of the plateau is forested, covered by the Chhota Nagpur dry deciduous forests. Vast reserves of metal ores and coal have been found in the Chota Nagpur plateau. Southern Garanulite terrain: Covers South India especially Tamil Nadu excluding western and eastern ghats.
 * Deccan Plateau, also called Deccan Trapps, is a large triangular plateau, bounded by the Vindhyas to the north and flanked by the Eastern and Western Ghats. The Deccan covers a total area of 1.9 e6km2. It is mostly flat, with elevations ranging from 300 to 600 m. The average elevation of the plateau is 2000 ft above sea level. The surface slopes from 3000 ft in the west to 1500 ft in the east. It slopes gently from west to east and gives rise to several peninsular rivers such as the Godavari, the Krishna, the Kaveri and the Mahanadi which drain into the Bay of Bengal. This region is mostly semi-arid as it lies on the leeward side of both Ghats. Much of the Deccan is covered by thorn scrub forest scattered with small regions of deciduous broadleaf forest. Climate in the Deccan ranges from hot summers to mild winters.
 * Kutch Kathiawar plateau is located in Gujarat state. The Kathiawar peninsula in western Gujarat is bounded by the Gulf of Kutch and the Gulf of Khambat. The natural vegetation in most of the peninsula is xeric scrub, part of the Northwestern thorn scrub forests ecoregion.

 * Ghats
 * Western Ghats or Sahyadri mountains run along the western edge of India's Deccan Plateau and separate it from a narrow coastal plain along the Arabian Sea. The range runs approximately 1600 km from south of the Tapti River near the Gujarat–Maharashtra border and across Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu to the southern tip of the Deccan peninsula. The average elevation is around 1000 m. Anai Mudi in the Anaimalai Hills 2695 m in Kerala is the highest peak in the Western Ghats.
 * Eastern Ghats are a discontinuous range of mountains, which have been eroded and quadrisected by the four major rivers of southern India, the Godavari, Mahanadi, Krishna, and Kaveri. These mountains extend from West Bengal to Odisha, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, along the coast and parallel to the Bay of Bengal. Though not as tall as the Western Ghats, some of its peaks are over 1000 m in height. The Nilgiri hills in Tamil Nadu lies at the junction of the Eastern and Western Ghats. Arma Konda (1690 m) in Andhra Pradesh is the tallest peak in Eastern Ghats.

Indo-Gangetic plain

The Indo-Gangetic plains, also known as the Great Plains are large alluvial plains dominated by three main rivers, the Indus, Ganges, and Brahmaputra. They run parallel to the Himalayas, from Jammu and Kashmir in the west to Assam in the east, and drain most of northern and eastern India. The plains encompass an area of 700000 km2. The major rivers in this region are the Ganges, Indus, and Brahmaputra along with their main tributaries—Yamuna, Chambal, Gomti, Ghaghara, Kosi, Sutlej, Ravi, Beas, Chenab, and Tista—as well as the rivers of the Ganges Delta, such as the Meghna.

The great plains are sometimes classified into four divisions:
 * The Bhabar belt is adjacent to the foothills of the Himalayas and consists of boulders and pebbles which have been carried down by streams. As the porosity of this belt is very high, the streams flow underground. The Bhabar is generally narrow with its width varying between 6 and 15 km.
 * The Tarai belt lies south of the adjacent Bhabar region and is composed of newer alluvium. The underground streams reappear in this region. The region is excessively moist and thickly forested. It also receives heavy rainfall throughout the year and is populated with a variety of wildlife.
 * The Bangar belt consists of older alluvium and forms the alluvial terrace of the flood plains. In the Gangetic plains, it has a low upland covered by laterite deposits.
 * The Khadar belt lies in lowland areas after the Bangar belt. It is made up of fresh newer alluvium which is deposited by the rivers flowing down the plain.

The Indo-Gangetic belt is the world's most extensive expanse of uninterrupted alluvium formed by the deposition of silt by the numerous rivers. The plains are flat making it conducive for irrigation through canals. The area is also rich in ground water sources. The plains are one of the world's most intensely farmed areas. The main crops grown are rice and wheat, which are grown in rotation. Other important crops grown in the region include maize, sugarcane and cotton. The Indo-Gangetic plains rank among the world's most densely populated areas.

Thar Desert

The Thar Desert (also known as the deserts) is by some calculations the world's seventh largest desert, by some others the tenth. It forms a significant portion of western India and covers an area of 200000 to 238700 km2. The desert continues into Pakistan as the Cholistan Desert. Most of the Thar Desert is situated in Rajasthan, covering 61% of its geographic area.

About 10 percent of this region consists of sand dunes, and the remaining 90 percent consist of craggy rock forms, compacted salt-lake bottoms, and interdunal and fixed dune areas. Annual temperatures can range from 0 C in the winter to over 50 C during the summer. Most of the rainfall received in this region is associated with the short July–September southwest monsoon that brings 100 to 500 mm of precipitation. Water is scarce and occurs at great depths, ranging from 30 to 120 m below the ground level. Rainfall is precarious and erratic, ranging from below 120 mm in the extreme west to 375 mm eastward. The only river in this region is Luni. The soils of the arid region are generally sandy to sandy-loam in texture. The consistency and depth vary as per the topographical features. The low-lying loams are heavier may have a hard pan of clay, calcium carbonate or gypsum.

In western India, the Kutch region in Gujarat and Koyna in Maharashtra are classified as a Zone IV region (high risk) for earthquakes. The Kutch city of Bhuj was the epicentre of the 2001 Gujarat earthquake, which claimed the lives of more than 1,337 people and injured 166,836 while destroying or damaging near a million homes. The 1993 Latur earthquake in Maharashtra killed 7,928 people and injured 30,000. Other areas have a moderate to low risk of an earthquake occurring.

Coastal plains
The Eastern Coastal Plain is a wide stretch of land lying between the Eastern Ghats and the oceanic boundary of India. It stretches from Tamil Nadu in the south to West Bengal in the east. The Mahanadi, Godavari, Kaveri, and Krishna rivers drain these plains. The temperature in the coastal regions often exceeds 30 °C, and is coupled with high levels of humidity. The region receives both the northeast monsoon and southwest monsoon rains. The southwest monsoon splits into two branches, the Bay of Bengal branch and the Arabian Sea branch. The Bay of Bengal branch moves northwards crossing northeast India in early June. The Arabian Sea branch moves northwards and discharges much of its rain on the windward side of Western Ghats. Annual rainfall in this region averages between 1000 and 3000 mm. The width of the plains varies between 100 and 130 km. The plains are divided into six regions—the Mahanadi delta, the southern Andhra Pradesh plain, the Krishna-Godavari deltas, the Kanyakumari coast, the Coromandel Coast, and sandy coastal.

The Western Coastal Plain is a narrow strip of land sandwiched between the Western Ghats and the Arabian Sea, ranging from 50 to 100 km in width. It extends from Gujarat in the north and extends through Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, and Kerala. Numerous rivers and backwaters inundate the region. Mostly originating in the Western Ghats, the rivers are fast-flowing, usually perennial, and empty into estuaries. Major rivers flowing into the sea are the Tapti, Narmada, Mandovi and Zuari. Vegetation is mostly deciduous, but the Malabar Coast moist forests constitute a unique ecoregion. The Western Coastal Plain can be divided into two parts, the Konkan and the Malabar Coast.

Ghats
The word ghati (घाटी) means valley. In Marathi, Hindi, Gujarati and Kannada, ghat is a term used to identify a difficult passage over a mountain. One such passage is the Bhor Ghat that connects the towns Khopoli and Khandala, on NH 4 about 80 km north of Mumbai. Charmadi Ghat of Karnataka is also notable. In many cases, the term is used to refer to a mountain range itself, as in the Western Ghats and Eastern Ghats. 'Ghattam' in Malayalam also refers to mountain ranges when used with the name of the ranges being addressed (e.g., paschima ghattam for Western Ghats), while the passage road would be called a 'churam'. Eastern Ghats on the east coast of India and Western Ghats on the west coast of India are the largest ghats in pensular India.

Western Ghats, also known as Sahyadri (Benevolent Mountains), is a mountain range covers an area of 140,000 km2 in a stretch of 1,600 km parallel to the western coast of the Indian peninsula, traverse the States of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Goa, Maharashtra and Gujarat. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is one of the eight "hottest hot-spots" of biological diversity in the world. It is sometimes called the Great Escarpment of India. It is a biodiversity hotspot that contains a large proportion of the country's flora and fauna; many of which are only found here and nowhere else in the world. According to UNESCO, Western Ghats are older than Himalayan mountains. It also influences Indian monsoon weather patterns by intercepting the rain-laden monsoon winds that sweep in from the south-west during late summer. The range runs north to south along the western edge of the Deccan Plateau, and separates the plateau from a narrow coastal plain, called Konkan, along the Arabian Sea. A total of thirty-nine properties including national parks, wildlife sanctuaries and reserve forests were designated as world heritage sites - twenty in Kerala, ten in Karnataka, five in Tamil Nadu and four in Maharashtra. Ghati people, literally means the people of hills or ghats (valleys), is an exonym used for the marathi people specially those from the villages in Western Ghats, often in pejorative terms.

The Eastern Ghats are a discontinuous range of mountains along India's eastern coast. The Eastern Ghats run from the northern Odisha through Andhra Pradesh to Tamil Nadu in the south passing some parts of Karnataka and in the Wayanad region of Kerala. They are eroded and cut through by four major rivers of peninsular India, viz. Godavari, Mahanadi, Krishna, and Kaveri. The mountain ranges run parallel to the Bay of Bengal. The Deccan Plateau lies to the west of the range, between the Eastern Ghats and the Western Ghats. The coastal plains, including the Coromandel Coast region, lie between the Eastern Ghats and the Bay of Bengal. The Eastern Ghats are not as high as the Western Ghats. The Eastern Ghats are older than the Western Ghats, and have a complex geologic history related to the assembly and breakup of the ancient supercontinent of Rodinia and the assembly of the Gondwana supercontinent. The Eastern Ghats are made up of charnockites, granite gneiss, khondalites, metamorphic gneisses and quartzite rock formations. The structure of the Eastern Ghats includes thrusts and strike-slip faults all along its range. Limestone, bauxite and iron ore are found in the Eastern Ghats hill ranges.

Islands

The Lakshadweep and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands are India's two major island formations and are classified as union territories.

The Lakshadweep Islands lie 200 to 440 km off the coast of Kerala in the Arabian sea with an area of 32 km2. They consist of twelve atolls, three reefs, and five submerged banks, with a total of about 35 islands and islets.

The Andaman and Nicobar Islands are located between 6° and 14° north latitude and 92° and 94° east longitude. They consist of 572 islands, lying in the Bay of Bengal near the Myanmar coast running in a north–south axis for approximately 910 km. They are located 1255 km from Kolkata (Calcutta) and 193 km from Cape Negrais in Burma. The territory consists of two island groups, the Andaman Islands and the Nicobar Islands. The Andaman and Nicobar Islands consist of 572 islands which run in a north–south axis for around 910 km. The Andaman group has 325 islands which cover an area of 6,170 km2 while the Nicobar group has only 247 islands with an area of 1,765 km2. India's only active volcano, Barren Island is situated here. It last erupted in 2017. The Narcondum is a dormant volcano and there is a mud volcano at Baratang. Indira Point, India's southernmost land point, is situated in the Nicobar islands at 6°45’10″N and 93°49’36″E, and lies just 189 km from the Indonesian island of Sumatra, to the southeast. The highest point is Mount Thullier at 642 m.

Other significant islands in India include Diu, a former Portuguese colony; Majuli, a river island of the Brahmaputra; Elephanta in Bombay Harbour; and Sriharikota, a barrier island in Andhra Pradesh. Salsette Island is India's most populous island on which the city of Mumbai (Bombay) is located. Forty-two islands in the Gulf of Kutch constitute the Marine National Park.

Water bodies
India has around 14,500 km of inland navigable waterways. There are twelve rivers which are classified as major rivers, with the total catchment area exceeding 2528000 km2. All major rivers of India originate from one of the three main watersheds:
 * The Himalaya and the Karakoram ranges
 * Vindhya and Satpura range in central India
 * Sahyadri or Western Ghats in western India

The Himalayan river networks are snow-fed and have a perennial supply throughout the year. The other two river systems are dependent on the monsoons and shrink into rivulets during the dry season. The Himalayan rivers that flow westward into Punjab are the Indus, Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej.

The Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghana system has the largest catchment area of about 1600000 km2. The Ganges Basin alone has a catchment of about 1100000 km2. The Ganges originates from the Gangotri Glacier in Uttarakhand. It flows southeast, draining into the Bay of Bengal. (The Yamuna and Gomti rivers also arise in the western Himalayas and join the Ganges in the plains. The Brahmaputra originates in Tibet, China, where it is known as the Yarlung Tsangpo River) (or "Tsangpo"). It enters India in the far-eastern state of Arunachal Pradesh, then flows west through Assam. The Brahmaputra merges with the Ganges in Bangladesh, where it is known as the Jamuna River.

The Chambal, another tributary of the Ganges, via the Yamuna, originates from the Vindhya-Satpura watershed. The river flows eastward. Westward-flowing rivers from this watershed are the Narmada and Tapi, which drain into the Arabian Sea in Gujarat. The river network that flows from east to west constitutes 10% of the total outflow.

(The Western Ghats are the source of all Deccan rivers, which include the through Godavari River, Krishna River and Kaveri River, all draining into the Bay of Bengal. These rivers constitute 20% of India's total outflow).

The heavy southwest monsoon rains cause the Brahmaputra and other rivers to distend their banks, often flooding surrounding areas. Though they provide rice paddy farmers with a largely dependable source of natural irrigation and fertilisation, such floods have killed thousands of people and tend to cause displacements of people in such areas.

Major gulfs include the Gulf of Cambay, Gulf of Kutch, and the Gulf of Mannar. Straits include the Palk Strait, which separates India from Sri Lanka; the Ten Degree Channel, which separates the Andamans from the Nicobar Islands; and the Eight Degree Channel, which separates the Laccadive and Amindivi Islands from the Minicoy Island to the south. Important capes include the Kanyakumari (formerly called Cape Comorin), the southern tip of mainland India; Indira Point, the southernmost point in India (on Great Nicobar Island); Rama's Bridge, and Point Calimere. The Arabian Sea lies to the west of India, the Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean lie to the east and south, respectively. Smaller seas include the Laccadive Sea and the Andaman Sea. There are four coral reefs in India, located in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the Gulf of Mannar, Lakshadweep, and the Gulf of Kutch. Important lakes include Sambhar Lake, the country's largest saltwater lake in Rajasthan, Vembanad Lake in Kerala, Kolleru Lake in Andhra Pradesh, Loktak Lake in Manipur, Dal Lake in Kashmir, Chilka Lake (lagoon lake) in Odisha, and Sasthamkotta Lake in Kerala.

Wetlands
India's wetland ecosystem is widely distributed from the cold and arid located in the Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir, and those with the wet and humid climate of peninsular India. Most of the wetlands are directly or indirectly linked to river networks. The Indian government has identified a total of 71 wetlands for conservation and are part of sanctuaries and national parks. Mangrove forests are present all along the Indian coastline in sheltered estuaries, creeks, backwaters, salt marshes and mudflats. The mangrove area covers a total of 4461 km2, which comprises 7% of the world's total mangrove cover. Prominent mangrove covers are located in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the Sundarbans delta, the Gulf of Kutch and the deltas of the Mahanadi, Godavari and Krishna rivers. Parts of Maharashtra, Karnataka and Kerala also have large mangrove covers.

The Sundarbans delta is home to the largest mangrove forest in the world. It lies at the mouth of the Ganges and spreads across areas of Bangladesh and West Bengal. The Sundarbans is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, but is identified separately as the Sundarbans (Bangladesh) and the Sundarbans National Park (India). The Sundarbans are intersected by a complex network of tidal waterways, mudflats and small islands of salt-tolerant mangrove forests. The area is known for its diverse fauna, being home to a large variety of species of birds, spotted deer, crocodiles and snakes. Its most famous inhabitant is the Bengal tiger. It is estimated that there are now 400 Bengal tigers and about 30,000 spotted deer in the area.

The Rann of Kutch is a marshy region located in northwestern Gujarat and the bordering Sindh province of Pakistan. It occupies a total area of 27900 km2. The region was originally a part of the Arabian Sea. Geologic forces such as earthquakes resulted in the damming up of the region, turning it into a large saltwater lagoon. This area gradually filled with silt thus turning it into a seasonal salt marsh. During the monsoons, the area turn into a shallow marsh, often flooding to knee-depth. After the monsoons, the region turns dry and becomes parched.

Renewable water resources
India's total renewable water resources are estimated at 1,907.8 km3 a year. Its annual supply of usable and replenshable groundwater amounts to 350 billion cubic metres. Only 35% of groundwater resources are being utilised. About 44 million tonnes of cargo is moved annually through the country's major rivers and waterways. Groundwater supplies 40% of water in India's irrigation canals. 56% of the land is arable and used for agriculture. Black soils are moisture-retentive and are preferred for dry farming and growing cotton, linseed, etc. Forest soils are used for tea and coffee plantations. Red soils have a wide diffusion of iron content.

Mineral oil
Most of India's estimated 5.4 Goilbbl in oil reserves are located in the Mumbai High, upper Assam, Cambay, the Krishna-Godavari and Cauvery basins. India possesses about seventeen trillion cubic feet of natural gas in Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat and Odisha. Uranium is mined in Andhra Pradesh. India has 400 medium-to-high enthalpy thermal springs for producing geothermal energy in seven "provinces"—the Himalayas, Sohana, Cambay, the Narmada-Tapti delta, the Godavari delta and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands (specifically the volcanic Barren Island.)

Minerals and ores
India is the world's biggest producer of mica blocks and mica splittings. India ranks second amongst the world's largest producers of barite and chromite. The Pleistocene system is rich in minerals. India is the third-largest coal producer in the world and ranks fourth in the production of iron ore. It is the fifth-largest producer of bauxite, second largest of crude steel as of February 2018 replacing Japan, the seventh-largest of manganese ore and the eighth-largest of aluminium. India has significant sources of titanium ore, diamonds and limestone. India possesses 24% of the world's known and economically viable thorium, which is mined along shores of Kerala. Gold had been mined in the now-defunct Kolar Gold Fields in Karnataka.

Climate

Based on the Köppen system, India hosts six major climatic subtypes, ranging from arid desert in the west, alpine tundra and glaciers in the north, and humid tropical regions supporting rainforests in the southwest and the island territories. The nation has four seasons: winter (January–February), summer (March–May), a monsoon (rainy) season (June–September) and a post-monsoon period (October–December).

The Himalayas act as a barrier to the frigid katabatic winds flowing down from Central Asia. Thus, northern India is kept warm or only mildly cooled during winter; in summer, the same phenomenon makes India relatively hot. Although the Tropic of Cancer—the boundary between the tropics and subtropics—passes through the middle of India, the whole country is considered to be tropical.

Summer lasts between March and June in most parts of India. Temperatures can exceed 40 °C during the day. The coastal regions exceed 30 °C coupled with high levels of humidity. In the Thar desert area temperatures can exceed 45 °C. The rain-bearing monsoon clouds are attracted to the low-pressure system created by the Thar Desert. The southwest monsoon splits into two arms, the Bay of Bengal arm and the Arabian Sea arm. The Bay of Bengal arm moves northwards crossing northeast India in early June. The Arabian Sea arm moves northwards and deposits much of its rain on the windward side of Western Ghats. Winters in peninsula India see mild to warm days and cool nights. Further north the temperature is cooler. Temperatures in some parts of the Indian plains sometimes fall below freezing. Most of northern India is plagued by fog during this season. The highest temperature recorded in India was 51 °C in Phalodi, Rajasthan. And the lowest was -60 °C in Dras, Jammu and Kashmir.

Geology
India's geological features are classified based on their era of formation. The Precambrian formations of Cudappah and Vindhyan systems are spread out over the eastern and southern states. A small part of this period is spread over western and central India. The Paleozoic formations from the Cambrian, Ordovician, Silurian and Devonian system are found in the Western Himalaya region in Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh. The Mesozoic Deccan Traps formation is seen over most of the northern Deccan; they are believed to be the result of sub-aerial volcanic activity. The Trap soil is black in colour and conducive to agriculture. The Carboniferous system, Permian System and Triassic systems are seen in the western Himalayas. The Jurassic system is seen in the western Himalayas and Rajasthan. Tertiary imprints are seen in parts of Manipur, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh and along the Himalayan belt. The Cretaceous system is seen in central India in the Vindhyas and part of the Indo-Gangetic plains. The Gondwana system is seen in the Narmada River area in the Vindhyas and Satpuras. The Eocene system is seen in the western Himalayas and Assam. Oligocene formations are seen in Kutch and Assam. The Pleistocene system is found over central India. The Andaman and Nicobar Island are thought to have been formed in this era by volcanoes. The Himalayas were formed by the convergence and deformation of the Indo-Australian and Eurasian Plates. Their continued convergence raises the height of the Himalayas by one centimetre each year.

Soils in India can be classified into eight categories: alluvial, black, red, laterite, forest, arid and desert, saline and alkaline and peaty and organic soils. Alluvial soil constitute the largest soil group in India, constituting 80% of the total land surface. It is derived from the deposition of silt carried by rivers and are found in the Great Northern plains from Punjab to the Assam valley. Alluvial soil are generally fertile but they lack nitrogen and tend to be phosphoric. National Disaster Management Authority says that 60% of Indian landmass is prone to earthquakes and 8% susceptible to cyclone risks.

Black soil are well developed in the Deccan lava region of Maharashtra, Gujarat, and Madhya Pradesh. These contain high percentage of clay and are moisture retentive. Red soils are found in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka plateau, Andhra plateau, Chota Nagpur plateau and the Aravallis. These are deficient in nitrogen, phosphorus and humus. Laterite soils are formed in tropical regions with heavy rainfall. Heavy rainfall results in leaching out all soluble material of top layer of soil. These are generally found in Western ghats, Eastern ghats and hilly areas of northeastern states that receive heavy rainfall. Forest soils occur on the slopes of mountains and hills in Himalayas, Western Ghats and Eastern Ghats. These generally consist of large amounts of dead leaves and other organic matter called humus.

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title: Geography of India


text:
Demographics of India

India is the most populous country in the world with one-sixth of the world's population. According to estimates from the United Nations (UN), India has overtaken China as the country with the largest population in the world, with a population of 1,425,775,850 at the end of April 2023.

Between 1975 and 2010, the population doubled to 1.2 billion, reaching the billion mark in 2000. According to the UN's World Population dashboard, India's population now stands at slightly over 1.428 billion, edging past China's population of 1.425 billion people, as reported by the news agency Bloomberg. Its population is set to reach 1.7 billion by 2050. In 2017 its population growth rate was 0.98%, ranking 112th in the world; in contrast, from 1972 to 1983, India's population grew by an annual rate of 2.3%.

In 2022, the median age of an Indian was 28.7 years, compared to 38.4 for China and 48.6 for Japan; and, by 2030; India's dependency ratio will be just over 0.4. However, the number of children in India peaked more than a decade ago and is now falling. The number of children under the age of five peaked in 2007, and since then the number has been falling. The number of Indians under 15 years old peaked slightly later (in 2011) and is now also declining.

India has many ethnic groups, and every major religion is represented, as are four major families of languages (Indo-European, Dravidian, Austroasiatic and Sino-Tibetan languages) as well as two language isolates: the Nihali language, spoken in parts of Maharashtra, and the Burushaski language, spoken in parts of Jammu and Kashmir. 1,000,000 people in India are Anglo-Indians and 700,000 United States citizens are living in India. They represent over 0.1% of the total population of India. Overall, only the continent of Africa exceeds the linguistic, genetic and cultural diversity of the nation of India.

The sex ratio was 944 females for 1000 males in 2016, and 940 per 1000 in 2011. This ratio has been showing an upwards trend for the last two decades after a continuous decline in the 20th century.

Prehistory to early 19th century
The following table lists estimates for the population of India (including what are now Pakistan and Bangladesh) from prehistory up until 1820. It includes estimates and growth rates according to five economic historians, along with interpolated estimates and overall aggregate averages derived from their estimates.

The population grew from the South Asian Stone Age in 10,000 BC to the Maurya Empire in 200 BC at a steadily increasing growth rate, before population growth slowed down in the classical era up to 500 AD, and then became largely stagnant during the early medieval era era up to 1000 AD. The population growth rate then increased in the late medieval era (during the Delhi Sultanate) from 1000 to 1500.

Under the Mughal Empire, India experienced a high economic and demographic upsurge, due to Mughal agrarian reforms that intensified agricultural production. 15% of the population lived in urban centres, higher than the percentage of the population in 19th-century British India and contemporary Europe up until the 19th century. These estimates by Abraham Eraly and Paolo Malanima have been criticised by Tim Dyson, who considers them exaggerations and estimates urbanisation of the Mughal Empire to be less than 9% of the population.

Under the reign of Akbar (reigned 1556–1605) in 1600, the Mughal Empire's urban population was up to 17 million people, larger than the urban population in Europe. By 1700, Mughal India had an urban population of 23 million people, larger than British India's urban population of 22.3 million in 1871. Nizamuddin Ahmad (1551–1621) reported that, under Akbar's reign, Mughal India had 120 large cities and 3,200 townships. A number of cities in India had a population between a quarter-million and half-million people, with larger cities including Agra (in Agra Subah) with up to 800,000 people and Dhaka (in Bengal Subah) with over 1 million people. Mughal India also had a large number of villages, with 455,698 villages by the time of Aurangzeb (reigned 1658–1707).

Late 19th century to early 20th century
The total fertility rate is the number of children born per woman. It is based on fairly good data for the entire years. Sources: Our World in Data and Gapminder Foundation.

Life expectancy from 1881 to 1950

The population of India under the British Raj (including what are now Pakistan and Bangladesh) according to censuses:

Studies of India's population since 1881 have focused on such topics as total population, birth and death rates, geographic distribution, literacy, the rural and urban divide, cities of a million, and the three cities with populations over eight million: Delhi, Greater Mumbai (Bombay), and Kolkata (Calcutta).

Mortality rates fell in the period 1920–45, primarily due to biological immunisation. Suggestions that it was the benefits of colonialism are refuted by academic thinking: "There can be no serious, informed belief… that… late colonial era mortality diminished and population grew rapidly because of improvements in income, living standards, nutrition, environmental standards, sanitation or health policies, nor was there a cultural transformation…".

Salient features

India occupies 2.41% of the world's land area but supports over 18% of the world's population. At the 2001 census 72.2% of the population lived in about 638,000 villages and the remaining 27.8% lived in more than 5,100 towns and over 380 urban agglomerations.

India's population exceeded that of the entire continent of Africa by 200 million people in 2010. However, because Africa's population growth is extremely high compared to the rest of the world, it is expected to surpass both China and India by the early 2030s.

Religious demographics
The table below summarises India's demographics (excluding the Mao-Maram, Paomata and Purul subdivisions of Senapati district of Manipur state due to cancellation of census results) according to religion at the 2011 census in per cent. The data are "unadjusted" (without excluding Assam and Jammu and Kashmir); the 1981 census was not conducted in Assam and the 1991 census was not conducted in Jammu and Kashmir. Missing citing/reference for "Changes in religious demagraphics over time" table below.

Neonatal and infant demographics
The table below represents the infant mortality rate trends in India, based on sex, over the last 15 years. In the urban areas of India, average male infant mortality rates are slightly higher than average female infant mortality rates.

India's 2011 census shows a serious decline in the number of girls under the age of seven – activists posit that eight million female fetuses may have been aborted between 2001 and 2011.

Linguistic demographics
According to the 2001 census, 41.03% of the Indians spoke Hindi natively, while the rest spoke Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Maithili, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Odia, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu and a variety of other languages. There are a total of 122 languages and 234 mother tongues spoken in India. Of these, 22 languages are specified in the Eighth Schedule of Indian Constitution, while 100 are non-specified.

The table below excludes Mao-Maram, Paomata and Purul subdivisions of Senapati District of Manipur state due to cancellation of census results.

Life expectancy

Source 1: UN World Population Prospects

Source 2: Our World in Data

Structure of the population
Structure of the population (Census 9.II.2011)

Population Estimates by Sex and Age Group (03.III.2016) (Data are projections based on the 2011 Population Census.):

Population Estimates by Sex and Age Group (01.III.2021) (Includes data for the Indian-held part of Jammu and Kashmir, the final status of which has not yet been determined. Data are projections based on the 2011 Population Census.):

Fertility rate
From the Demographic Health Survey:

CIA World Factbook demographic statistics

The following demographic statistics are from the CIA World Factbook, unless otherwise indicated.

 * Total population

 * 1,166,079,217 (July 2009 est. CIA),
 * 1,210 million (2011 census),
 * 1,389,637,446 (May 2022 est.)

 * Rural population:

 * 62.2%
 * male: 381,668,992
 * female: 360,948,755

 * Age structure:

 * 0–14 years: 27.34% (male 186,087,665/female 164,398,204)
 * 15–24 years: 17.9% (male 121,879,786/female 107,583,437)
 * 25–54 years: 41.08% (male 271,744,709/female 254,834,569)
 * 55–64 years: 7.45% (male 47,846,122/female 47,632,532)
 * 65+ years: 6.24% (male 37,837,801/female 42,091,086) (2017 est.)

 * Median age:

 * Total: 28.7 years
 * Male: 28 years
 * Female: 29.5 years (2020 est.)

 * Population growth rate :

 * 0.67% (2022 est)

 * Literacy rate:

 * 74% (age 7 and above, in 2011)
 * 81.4% (total population, age 15–25, in 2006)

 * Per cent of population below poverty line:

 * 22% (2006 est.)

 * Unemployment rate:

 * 7.8%

 * Net migration rate:

 * 0.00 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2020 est.)

 * Sex ratio:

 * At birth: 1.12 male(s)/female
 * Under 10 years: 1.13 male(s)/female
 * 15–24 years: 1.13 male(s)/female
 * 24–64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
 * 65 years and over: 0.9 male(s)/female
 * Total population: 1.08 male(s)/female (2017 est.)

 * Life expectancy at birth:

 * Total population: 69.7 years
 * Male: 68.4 years
 * Female: 71.2 years (2020 est.)

 * Total fertility rate:

 * 2.35 (2020 est.)

The TFR (total number of children born per women) by religion in 2005–2006 was:
 * Hindus, 2.7
 * Muslims, 3.1
 * Christians, 2.4
 * Sikhs, 2.0

 * Religious Composition:

 * Hindus 79.5%
 * Muslims 15%
 * Christian 2.3%
 * Sikh 1.7%
 * other and unspecified 2% (2011 est.)

 * Scheduled castes and tribes:

 * Scheduled castes: 16.6% (2011 census)
 * scheduled tribes: 8.6% (2011 census)

 * Languages

See Languages of India and List of languages by number of native speakers in India. There are 216 languages with more than 10,000 native speakers in India. The largest of these is Hindi with some 337 million, and the second largest is Bengali with 238 million. 22 languages are recognised as official languages. In India, there are 1,652 languages and dialects in total.

Caste/Tribe
Caste and community statistics as recorded from "Socially and Educationally Backward Classes Commission" (SEBC) or Mandal Commission of 1979. This was completed in 1983.

India has chosen not to officially count caste population since then.

The following data are from the Mandal report:

Ethnic groups
Sources: 1. **1951 Census of India:** – *Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India.* (1951). *1951 Census of India: Volume I – India (Part II-C) – Languages.* New Delhi: Government of India. Available at.
 * Census of India. New Delhi: Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India.

2. **1961 Census of India:** – *Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India.* (1961). *1961 Census of India: Volume I – India (Part II-C) – Languages.* New Delhi: Government of India. Available at.

3. **1971 Census of India:** – *Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India.* (1971). *1971 Census of India: Volume I – India (Part II-C) – Languages.* New Delhi: Government of India. Available at.

4. **1981 Census of India:** – *Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India.* (1981). *1981 Census of India: Volume II – India (Part II-C) – Languages.* New Delhi: Government of India. Available at.

5. **1991 Census of India:** – *Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India.* (1991). *1991 Census of India: Volume II – India (Part II-C) – Languages.* New Delhi: Government of India. Available at.

6. **2001 Census of India:** – *Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India.* (2001). *2001 Census of India: Volume II – India (Part II-C) – Languages.* New Delhi: Government of India. Available at.

7. **2011 Census of India:** – *Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India.* (2011). *2011 Census of India: Volume II – India (Part II-C) – Languages.* New Delhi: Government of India. Available at.

2. Ludden, David. (2013). India and South Asia: A Short History. Oneworld Publications. ISBN 1780741086.
 * Singh, K. S. (1992). *People of India: An Introduction*. Anthropological Survey of India. ISBN 8126012215.

3. Bhagat, R. B. (2004). "Census Enumeration in India, 1991 and 2001: Issues and Concerns." Economic and Political Weekly.

Race and ethnicity
The national Census of India does not recognise racial or ethnic groups within India, but recognises many of the tribal groups as Scheduled Castes and Tribes (see list of Scheduled Tribes in India). For a list of ethnic groups in the Republic of India (as well as neighbouring countries), see South Asian ethnic groups.

According to a 2009 study published by Reich et al.., the modern Indian population is composed of two genetically divergent and heterogeneous populations which mixed in ancient times (about 1,200–3,500 BP), known as Ancestral North Indians (ANI) and Ancestral South Indians (ASI). ASI corresponds to the Dravidian-speaking population of southern India, whereas ANI corresponds to the Indo-Aryan-speaking population of northern India. 700,000 people from the United States of any race live in India. Between 300,000 and 1 million Anglo-Indians live in India.

India is a country with a vast diversity of ethnic groups, each with its own distinct culture, language, and traditions. The major ethnic groups in India include the Indo-Aryans, Dravidians, Sino-Tibetans, Austroasiatic peoples, and various indigenous tribes. These groups are spread across different regions of India, each contributing to the country's rich cultural mosaic.

Indo-Aryans and Aryanized People
Geographical Distribution: Predominantly in North India, including states like Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Bihar, and parts of Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra.

General Phenotype: Indo-Aryans typically have light to medium skin tones, with a range of hair colors from black to brown. Facial features can include prominent noses and well-defined bone structures.

Sources:
 * C. Majumdar, R. Mukherjee, "The History and Culture of the Indian People," Bhāratīya Itihāsa Samiti, 1951.
 * S. B. Singh, "The Indo-Aryans of Ancient South Asia," Cambridge University Press, 1995. ISBN 052141739X.

Dravidian People
Geographical Distribution: Predominantly in South India, including states like Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Kerala.

General Phenotype: Dravidians generally have darker skin tones, curly to wavy hair, and distinct facial features such as broader noses and fuller lips.

Sources:
 * K. R. Subramanian, "The Dravidian Contribution to Indian Culture," Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, 1966.
 * M. A. Rao, "History of South India," S. Chand & Company, 1976.

Sino-Tibetan People
Geographical Distribution: Predominantly in Northeast India, including states like Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, and parts of Sikkim.

General Phenotype: Sino-Tibetan people often have lighter skin tones, straight black hair, and epicanthic folds in their eyelids, which are characteristic of East Asian phenotypes.

Sources:
 * H. Risley, "The Tribes and Castes of Bengal," Calcutta, 1891.
 * R. B. Singh, "Ethnic Groups of North-East India," Concept Publishing Company, 1994. ISBN 8170224974.

Austroasiatic Peoples
Geographical Distribution: Scattered across central and eastern India, with significant populations in Jharkhand, Odisha, West Bengal, and Chhattisgarh.

General Phenotype: Austroasiatic people generally have medium to dark skin tones, wavy to curly hair, and facial features that are somewhat intermediate between Dravidian and Sino-Tibetan populations.

Sources:
 * D. Balakrishnan, "Austroasiatic and Other Languages of Eastern India," Calcutta University Press, 1961.
 * N. Chakrabarti, "The Austroasiatic Peoples of India," Anthropological Survey of India, 2003.

Negrito
Geographical Distribution: Primarily in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

General Phenotype: Negrito people typically have very dark skin, tightly curled hair, and small statures.

Sources:
 * L. A. Waddell, "The Tribes of the Andaman Islands," Cambridge University Press, 1901.
 * V. Ball, "Jungle Life in India," Dehli, 1972.

Y-chromosome DNA
Y-Chromosome DNA Y-DNA represents the male lineage, The Indian Y-chromosome pool may be summarised as follows where haplogroups R-M420, H, R2, L and NOP comprise generally more than 80% of the total chromosomes.

Mitochondrial DNA
Mitochondrial DNA mtDNA represents the female lineage. The Indian mitochondrial DNA is primarily made up of Haplogroup M

Autosomal DNA
Numerous genomic studies have been conducted in the last 15 years to seek insights into India's demographic and cultural diversity. These studies paint a complex and conflicting picture.
 * In a 2003 study, Basu, Majumder et al. have concluded on the basis of results obtained from mtDNA, Y-chromosome and autosomal markers that "(1) there is an underlying unity of female lineages in India, indicating that the initial number of female settlers may have been small; (2) the tribal and the caste populations are highly differentiated; (3) the Austroasiatic tribals are the earliest settlers in India, providing support to one anthropological hypothesis while refuting some others; (4) a major wave of humans entered India through the northeast; (5) the Tibeto-Burman tribals share considerable genetic commonalities with the Austroasiatic tribals, supporting the hypothesis that they may have shared a common habitat in southern China, but the two groups of tribals can be differentiated on the basis of Y-chromosomal haplotypes; (6) the Dravidian speaking populations were possibly widespread throughout India but are regulated to South India now; (7) formation of populations by fission that resulted in founder and drift effects have left their imprints on the genetic structures of contemporary populations; (8) the upper castes show closer genetic affinities with Central Asian populations, although those of southern India are more distant than those of northern India; (9) historical gene flow into India has contributed to a considerable obliteration of genetic histories of contemporary populations so that there is at present no clear congruence of genetic and geographical or sociocultural affinities."
 * In a later 2010 review article, Majumder affirms some of these conclusions, introduces and revises some other. The ongoing studies, concludes Majumder, suggest India has served as the major early corridor for geographical dispersal of modern humans from out-of-Africa. The archaeological and genetic traces of the earliest settlers in India has not provided any conclusive evidence. The tribal populations of India are older than the non-tribal populations. The autosomal differentiation and genetic diversity within India's caste populations at 0.04 is significantly lower than 0.14 for continental populations and 0.09 for 31 world population sets studied by Watkins et al., suggesting that while tribal populations were differentiated, the differentiation effects within India's caste population was less than previously thought. Majumder also concludes that recent studies suggest India has been a major contributor to the gene pool of southeast Asia.
 * Another study covering a large sample of Indian populations allowed Watkins et al. to examine eight Indian caste groups and four endogamous south Indian tribal populations. The Indian castes data show low between-group differences, while the tribal Indian groups show relatively high between-group differentiation. This suggests that people between Indian castes were not reproductively isolated, while Indian tribal populations experienced reproductive isolation and drift. Furthermore, the genetic fixation index data show historical genetic differentiation and segregation between Indian castes population is much smaller than those found in east Asia, Africa and other continental populations; while being similar to the genetic differentiation and segregation observed in European populations.
 * In 2006, Sahoo et al. reported their analysis of genomic data on 936 Y-chromosomes representing 32 tribal and 45 caste groups from different regions of India. These scientists find that the haplogroup frequency distribution across the country, between different caste groups, was found to be predominantly driven by geographical, rather than cultural determinants. They conclude there is clear evidence for both large-scale immigration into ancient India of Sino-Tibetan speakers and language change of former Austroasiatic speakers, in the northeast Indian region.
 * The genome studies conducted up until 2010 have been on relatively small population sets. Many are from just one southeastern state of Andhra Pradesh (including Telangana, which was part of the state until June 2014). Thus, any conclusions on demographic history of India must be interpreted with caution. A larger national genome study with demographic growth and sex ratio balances may offer further insights on the extent of genetic differentiation and segregation in India over the millenniums.

Government

 * 2011 Census of India
 * National Commission on Population

Lists

 * List of states and union territories of India by population
 * List of states and union territories of India by fertility rate
 * List of Indian states by life expectancy at birth
 * List of cities in India by population
 * List of metropolitan areas in India
 * List of million-plus urban agglomerations in India

title: Demographics of India


text:
Politics of India

Politics of India works within the framework of the country's Constitution. India is a parliamentary secular democratic republic in which the president of India is the head of state & first citizen of India and the Prime Minister of India is the head of government. It is based on the federal structure of government, although the word is not used in the Constitution itself. India follows the dual polity system, i.e. federal in nature, that consists of the central authority at the centre and states at the periphery. The Constitution defines the organizational powers and limitations of both central and state governments; it is well recognised, fluid (Preamble of the Constitution being rigid and to dictate further amendments to the Constitution) and considered supreme, i.e. the laws of the nation must conform to it. India is officially declared a secular and socialist state as per the Constitution.

There is a provision for a bicameral legislature consisting of an upper house, the Rajya Sabha (Council of States), which represents the states of the Indian federation, and a lower house, the Lok Sabha (House of the People), which represents the people of India as a whole. The Constitution provides for an independent judiciary, which is headed by the Supreme Court. The court's mandate is to protect the Constitution, to settle disputes between the central government and the states, to settle inter-state disputes, to nullify any central or state laws that go against the Constitution and to protect the fundamental rights of citizens, issuing writs for their enforcement in cases of violation.

There are 543 members in the Lok Sabha, who are elected using plurality voting (first past the post) system from 543 Single-member district. There are 245 members in the Rajya Sabha, out of which 233 are elected through indirect elections by single transferable vote by the members of the state legislative assemblies; 12 other members are elected/nominated by the President of India. Governments are formed through elections held every five years (unless otherwise specified), by parties that secure a majority of members in their respective lower houses (Lok Sabha in the central government and Vidhan Sabha in states). India had its first general election in 1951, which was won by the Indian National Congress, a political party that went on to dominate subsequent elections until 1977, when a non-Congress government was formed for the first time in independent India. The 1990s saw the end of single-party domination and the rise of coalition governments. The latest 18th Lok Sabha elections was conducted in seven phases from 19 April 2024 to 1 June 2024 by the Election commission of India. The results bought in the NDA (National Democratic Alliance) to form in the next government

In recent decades, Indian politics has become a dynastic affair. Possible reasons for this could be the party stability, absence of party organisations, independent civil society associations that mobilise support for the parties and centralised financing of elections. According to the V-Dem Democracy indices India in 2023 was the 19th most electoral democratic country in Asia.

Union Government
The Government of India is modelled after the Westminster system. The Union government (also called as the Central government) is mainly composed of the executive, the legislature, and the judiciary, and powers are vested by the constitution in the prime minister, parliament, and the supreme court, respectively. The president of India is the head of state and the commander-in-chief of the Indian Armed Forces, while the elected prime minister acts as the head of the executive and is responsible for running the Union government. The parliament is bicameral in nature, with the Lok Sabha being the lower house, and the Rajya Sabha the upper house. The judiciary systematically contains an apex supreme court, 25 high courts, and 688 district courts, all inferior to the supreme court.

The basic civil and criminal laws governing the citizens of India are set down in major parliamentary legislation, such as the civil procedure code, the penal code, and the criminal procedure code. Similar to the Union government, individual state governments each consist of executive, legislative and judiciary branches. The legal system as applicable to the Union and individual state governments is based on the English common and Statutory Law. The term New Delhi is commonly used as a metonym for the Union government, as the seat of the central government is in New Delhi.

Lok Sabha
The Lok Sabha, constitutionally the House of the People, is the lower house of India's bicameral Parliament. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by an adult universal suffrage and a first-past-the-post system to represent their respective constituencies, and they hold their seats for five years or until the body is dissolved by the President on the advice of the council of ministers. The house meets in the Lok Sabha Chambers of the Parliament House, New Delhi.

The maximum membership of the House allotted by the Constitution of India is 552 (Initially, in 1950, it was 500.) Currently, the house has 543 seats which are filed by the election of up to 543 elected members. The new parliament has a seating capacity of 888 for Lok Sabha. A total of 131 seats (24.03%) are reserved for representatives of Scheduled Castes (84) and Scheduled Tribes (47). The quorum for the House is 10% of the total membership.

The Lok Sabha, unless sooner dissolved, continues to operate for five years from the date appointed for its first meeting. However, while a proclamation of emergency is in operation, this period may be extended by Parliament by law or decree.

Members of Lok Sabha (House of the People) or the lower house of India's Parliament are elected by being voted upon by all adult citizens of India, who crossed 18 years from a set of candidates who stand in their respective constituencies. Every adult citizen of India can vote only in their constituency.

Office of the Prime Minister
The Prime Minister of India is the head of government of the Republic of India. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and his chosen Council of Ministers, despite the president of India being the nominal head of the executive. The prime minister has to be a member of one of the houses of bicameral Parliament of India, alongside heading the respective house. The prime minister and their cabinet are at all times responsible to the Lok Sabha.

The prime minister is appointed by the president of India; however, the prime minister has to enjoy the confidence of the majority of Lok Sabha members, who are directly elected every five years, lest the prime minister shall resign. The prime minister can be a member of the Lok Sabha or of the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the parliament. The prime minister controls the selection and dismissal of members of the Union Council of Ministers; and allocation of posts to members within the government.

Office of the Council of Ministers
The Union Council of Ministers is the principal executive organ of the Government of India, which functions as the senior decision-making body of the executive branch. It is chaired by the prime minister and consists of the heads of each of the executive government ministries.

A smaller executive body called the Union Cabinet is the supreme decision-making body in India; it is a subset of the Union Council of Ministers who hold important portfolios and ministries of the government.

Pursuant to Article 75, a minister who works at the pleasure of the President, is appointed by the President on the advice of the Prime Minister. There are five categories of the council of ministers as given below, in descending order of rank:

 * Prime Minister: Leader of the Union Council of Ministers.
 * Deputy Prime Minister (if any): Presides as prime minister in his absence or as the senior most cabinet minister.
 * Cabinet Minister: A member of the Union cabinet; leads a ministry.
 * Minister of State (Independent charge): Junior minister not reporting to a Cabinet Minister.
 * Minister of State (MoS): Deputy Minister reporting to a Cabinet Minister, usually tasked with a specific responsibility in that ministry.

Rajya Sabha
The Rajya Sabha, constitutionally the Council of States, is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of India. It has a maximum membership of 250, of which 238 are elected by the legislatures of the states and union territories using single transferable votes through open ballots, while the president can appoint 12 members for their contributions to art, literature, science, and social service. The total allowed capacity is 250 (238 elected, 12 appointed) according to article 80 of the Indian Constitution. The current potential seating capacity of the Rajya Sabha is 245 (233 elected, 12 appointed).

Members sit for staggered terms lasting six years, with about a third of the 238 designates up for election every two years, in even-numbered years. Unlike the Lok Sabha, the Rajya Sabha is a continuing chamber and hence not subject to dissolution. However, the Rajya Sabha, like the Lok Sabha, can be prorogued by the president.

The Rajya Sabha has equal footing in legislation with the Lok Sabha, except in the area of supply, where the latter has overriding powers. In the case of conflicting legislation, a joint sitting of the two houses can be held, where the Lok Sabha would hold a greater influence because of its larger membership. The vice president of India is the ex-officio chairman of the Rajya Sabha, who presides over its sessions. The deputy chairman, who is elected from amongst the house's members, takes care of the day-to-day matters of the house in the absence of the chairman.

Office of the President of India
The President of India is the head of state of the Republic of India. The president is the nominal head of the executive, the first citizen of the country, as well as the supreme commander of the Indian Armed Forces.

The new president is chosen by an electoral college consisting of the elected members of both houses of parliament (MPs), the elected members of the State Legislative Assemblies (Vidhan Sabha) of all States and the elected members of the legislative assemblies (MLAs) of union territories with legislatures, i.e., National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir and Puducherry.

The election process of the president is a more extensive process than of the prime minister who is also elected indirectly (elected by the members of the majority party (or union) in the Lok Sabha). Whereas President being the constitutional head with duties to protect, defend and preserve the constitution and rule of law in a constitutional democracy with constitutional supremacy, is elected in an extensive manner by the members of Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha and state legislative assemblies in a secret ballot procedure.

Office of the Vice-President of India
The Vice President of India is the deputy to the head of state of the Republic of India, i.e. the president of India. The office of vice president is the second-highest constitutional office after the president and ranks second in the order of precedence and first in the line of succession to the presidency. The vice president is also the ex officio chairman of the Rajya Sabha.

Article 66 of the Constitution of India states the manner of election of the vice president. The vice president is elected indirectly by members of an electoral college consisting of the members of both Houses of Parliament and not the members of state legislative assembly by the system of proportional representation using single transferable votes and the voting is conducted by Election Commission of India via secret ballot. The vice president also acts as the chancellor of the Panjab University and Delhi University.

State Governments
State governments in India are the governments ruling over 28 states and 8 union territories of India and the head of the Council of Ministers in a state is the Chief Minister. Each state has a legislative assembly. A state legislature that has one house – the State Legislative Assembly (Vidhan Sabha) – is a unicameral legislature. A state legislature that has two houses – the State Legislative Assembly and State Legislative Council (Vidhan Parishad) – is a bicameral legislature. The Vidhan Sabha is the lower house and corresponds to the Lok Sabha while the Vidhan Parishad is the upper house and corresponds to the Rajya Sabha of the Parliament of India

Vidhan Sabha
Vidhan Sabha, also known as State Legislative Assembly, is a legislative body in each of the states and certain union territories of India. In 22 states and 3 union territories, there is a unicameral legislature which is the sole legislative body. Vidhan Sabha is present in all the states and 3 union territories.

Each Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) is directly elected to serve 5-year terms by single-member constituencies. The Constitution of India states that a State Legislative Assembly must have no less than 60 and no more than 500 members however an exception may be granted via an Act of Parliament as is the case in the states of Goa, Sikkim, Mizoram and the union territory of Puducherry which have fewer than 60 members.

A State Legislative Assembly may be dissolved in a state of emergency, by the Governor on request of the Chief Minister, or if a motion of no confidence is passed against the ruling majority party or coalition.

Vidhan Parishad
Vidhan Parishad, also called as the State Legislative Council, is the upper house in those states of India that have a bicameral state legislature; the lower house being the State Legislative Assembly. Its establishment is defined in Article 169 of the Constitution of India.

Only 6 out of 28 states have a Legislative Council. These are Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Telangana, Maharashtra, Bihar, and Uttar Pradesh. No union territory has a legislative council.

The size of the State Legislative Council cannot be more than one third of the membership of the State Legislative Assembly. However, its size cannot be less than 40 members. These members elect the chairman and Deputy Chairman of the State Legislative Council.

Local Governments
Local government in India is governmental jurisdiction below the level of the state. Local self-government means that residents in towns, villages and rural settlements are the people who elect local councils and their heads authorising them to solve the important issues. The 73rd and 74th constitutional amendments give recognition and protection to local governments and in addition each state has its own local government legislation.

Since 1992, local government in India takes place in two very distinct forms. Urban localities, covered in the 74th amendment to the Constitution, have Municipality but derive their powers from the individual state governments, while the powers of rural localities have been formalized under the panchayati raj system, under the 73rd amendment to the Constitution.

Urban Local Governing Bodies
The following 3 types of democratically elected urban local governance bodies in India are called municipalities and abbreviated as the "MC". These are classified based on the size of the population of the urban settlement.

 * Municipal Corporation, also called the "Nagar Nigam" or "City Corporation", of cities with more than 1 million population.
 * Municipal Councils, also called the "Nagar Palika" or "Nagar Palika Parishad", of cities with more than 25,000 and less than 1 million population.
 * Municipal Committee, also called the "Town Council" or "Nagar Panchayat" or "Town Panchayat" or "Notified Area Council" or "Notified Area Committee" depending on the state within which they lie, these are in the town with more than 10,000 and less than 25,000 population.

Rural Local Governing Bodies
The Constitutional (73rd Amendment) Act, 1992 aims to provide a three-tier system of Panchayati Raj for all States having a population of over 2 million, to hold Panchayat elections regularly every five years, to provide reservation of seats for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Women, to appoint State Finance Commission to make recommendations as regards the financial powers of the Panchayats and to constitute District Planning Committee to prepare a draft development plan for the district. The following 3 hierarchies of PRI panchayats exist in states or Union Territories with more than two million inhabitants:

 * Gram Panchayats at village level
 * Panchayat Samiti or Mandal Parishad or Block Panchayat or Taluk Panchayat at Community Development Block or Mandal or Taluk level and
 * Zila Parishad/District Panchayat at district level.

Elections In India
Elections in the Republic of India include elections for

 * President of India,
 * Vice President of India,
 * Members of the Parliament in Rajya Sabha (Upper house) and Lok Sabha (Lower house),
 * Members of State Legislative Councils,
 * Members of State Legislative Assemblies (includes legislative assemblies of three union territories - Jammu and Kashmir, National Capital Territory of Delhi and Puducherry)
 * Members of local governance bodies (Municipal bodies and Panchayats),
 * By-election is held when a seat-holder of a particular constituent dies, resigns, or is disqualified.

Election Commission of India
The Election Commission of India (ECI) is a constitutional body established by the Constitution of India empowered to conduct free and fair elections in India. The Election commission is headed by a Chief Election Commissioner and consists of two other Election Commissioners.

At the states and union territories, the Election Commission is assisted by the Chief Electoral Officer of the state or union territory (CEO), who leads the election machinery in the states and union territories. At the district and constituency levels, the District Magistrates/District Collectors (in their capacity as District Election Officers), Electoral Registration Officers and Returning Officers perform election work.

The Election Commission operates under the powers granted by Article 324 of the Constitution and subsequently enacted Representation of the People Act. The state election commissions are responsible for conducting local body elections in the respective states. The election commission decides the dates for the filing of nominations, voting, counting and announcement of results.

A law for the registration process for political parties was enacted in 1989. The registration ensures that the political parties are recognized as national, state and regional parties. The election commission has the right to allot symbols to the political parties depending on the status. The same symbol cannot be allocated to two political parties even if they do not contest in the region.

The commission prepares electoral rolls and updates the voter list. To prevent electoral fraud, Electors Photo Identity Cards (EPIC) were introduced in 1993. However certain legal documents such as ration cards have been allowed for voting in certain situations.

One Nation, One Election
"One Nation, One Election" is an initiative proposed in India to synchronize the schedules of the Lok Sabha (House of the People) and state legislative assembly elections. The concept aims to conduct simultaneous elections for both central and state governments, a practice that was prevalent until 1967. Advocates argue that this approach would significantly reduce the burden on the public exchequer, minimize the disruption caused by frequent elections, and ensure more consistent policy implementation. However, it faces challenges, such as the logistical complexities of conducting elections on such a large scale and concerns over the potential impact on the federal structure of governance. The proposal continues to spark significant debate among political parties, constitutional experts, and the general public in India.

Simultaneous elections were common in India until 1967, but the practice ended due to the premature dissolution of some state assemblies and the Lok Sabha in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The idea has been periodically revisited, with significant push in recent years from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party.

Political Parties in India
When compared to other democracies, India has had a large number of political parties during its history under democratic governance. It has been estimated that over 200 parties were formed after India became independent in 1947.As per latest publications dated 23 March 2024 from Election Commission of India, and subsequent notifications, there are 6 national parties, 57 state parties, and 2,764 registered unrecognized parties. All registered parties contesting elections need to choose a symbol from a list of available symbols offered by the EC.

Types of political parties
Every political party in India, whether a national or regional/state party, must have a symbol and must be registered with the Election Commission of India. Symbols are used in the Indian political system to identify political parties in part so that illiterate people can vote by recognizing the party symbols.

In the current amendment to the Symbols Order, the commission has asserted the following five principles:
 * 1) A party, national or state, must have a legislative presence.
 * 2) A national party's legislative presence must be in the Lok Sabha. A state party's legislative presence must be in the State Assembly.
 * 3) A party can set up a candidate only from amongst its own members.
 * 4) A party that loses its recognition shall not lose its symbol immediately but shall be allowed to use that symbol for some time to try and retrieve its status. However, the grant of such facility to the party will not mean the extension of other facilities to it, as are available to recognized parties, such as free time on Doordarshan or AIR, free supply of copies of electoral rolls, etc.
 * 5) Recognition should be given to a party only on the basis of its own performance in elections and not because it is a splinter group of some other recognized party.

National Political Party
A political party shall be eligible to be recognized as a national party if: Six national political parties are - Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Indian National Congress (INC), Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Communist Party of lndia (Marxist) (CPI-M), Aam Aadrni Party (AAP) and National People's Party (NPP).
 * 1) it secures at least six percent (6%) of the valid votes polled in any four or more states, at a general election to the Lok Sabha or, to the State Legislative Assembly; and.
 * 2) in addition, it wins at least four seats in the House of the People from any State or States.
 * 3) or it wins at least two percent (2%) seats in the House of the People (i.e. 11 seats in the existing House having 543 members), and these members are elected from at least three different states.

State Political Party
A political party shall be entitled to be recognized as a state party, if:
 * 1) it secures at least six percent (6%) of the valid votes polled in the state at a general election, either to the Lok Sabha or to the Legislative Assembly of the State concerned; and
 * 2) in addition, it wins at least two seats in the Legislative Assembly of the state concerned.
 * 3) or it wins at least three percent (3%) of the total number of seats in the Legislative Assembly of the state, or at least three seats in the Assembly, whichever is more.

Registered Unrecognized Political Party (RUPP)
Registered unrecognized political parties are those parties which are either newly registered or which have not secured enough percentage of votes in the assembly or general elections to become a state party or those which have never contested elections since being registered. Registered but unrecognized political parties don’t enjoy all the benefits extended to the recognized parties.

Party proliferation
Although a strict anti-defection law had been passed in 1984, there has been a continued tendency amongst politicians to float their own parties rather than join a broad based party such as the Congress or the BJP. Between the 1984 and 1989 elections, the number of parties contesting elections increased from 33 to 113. In the decades since, this fragmentation has continued.

Political Families
Since the 1980s, Indian politics has become dynastic, possibly due to the absence of a party organization, independent civil society associations that mobilize support for the party, and centralized financing of elections. One example of dynastic politics has been the Nehru–Gandhi family which produced three Indian prime ministers. Family members have also led the Congress party for most of the period since 1978 when Indira Gandhi floated the then Congress(I) faction of the party. The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party also features several senior leaders who are dynasts. Dynastic politics is prevalent also in a number of political parties with regional presence such as All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), All India Trinamool Congress (AITC), Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam (DMDK), Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), Indian National Lok Dal (INLD), Jammu & Kashmir National Conference (JKNC), Jammu and Kashmir People's Democratic Party (JKPDP), Janata Dal (Secular) (JD(S)), Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), National People's Party (NPP), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK), Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD), Samajwadi Party (SP), Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), Shiv Sena (SS), Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and YSR Congress Party (YSRCP).

Political Alliances
A coalition government is a form of government in which political parties cooperate to form a government. The usual reason for such an arrangement is that no single party has achieved an absolute majority after an election. Political parties of such a coalition government forms an alliance for contesting election together usually for better prospects. Alliance usually revolves around the BJP and INC, being the two largest political parties in India without whose support, it would be difficult to form a majority government.

National Democratic Alliance (NDA)
National Democratic Alliance (NDA), a centre-right to right-wing coalition led by BJP was formed in 1998 after the elections. NDA formed a government, although the government did not last long as AIADMK withdrew support from it resulting in 1999 general elections, in which NDA won and resumed power. The coalition government went on to complete the full five-years term, becoming the first non-Congress government to do so.

After securing a defeating in 2004 General Election and 2009 General Elections against the United Progressive Alliance (UPA), the NDA once again returned to power in the 2014 General Elections, for the second time, with a historic mandate of 336 out of 543 Lok Sabha seats. BJP itself won 282 seats, thereby electing Narendra Modi as the head of the government. In a historic win, the NDA stormed to power for the third term in 2019 with a combined strength of 353 seats, with the BJP itself winning an absolute majority with 303 seats.

In the 2024 Indian general election the NDA, though lost a couple of seats succeeded to form the government by winning 292 seats with a major support from allies like Janata Dal (United) and Telugu Desam Party.

United Progressive Alliance (UPA)
The United Progressive Alliance was a political alliance in India led by the Indian National Congress. It was formed after the 2004 general election with support from left-leaning political parties when no single party got the majority.

The UPA subsequently governed India from 2004 until 2014 for 2 terms before losing power to their main rivals, the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance. With strong corruption history within the alliance and becoming increasingly unpopular among the masses, the UPA was dissolved to form the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance on 18 July 2023 ahead of the 2024 general election. The UPA used to rule 7 States and union territories of India before it was dissolved.

Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (I.N.D.I.A)
Unable to defeat the NDA in 2014 General Election and 2019 General Election, and with Congress performing its poorest in same, many political leaders understood the need for a grand alliance of almost all major political parties to stand against the BJP led NDA in the 2024 General Elections which resulted in the formation of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (I.N.D.I.A). It was formed by merger of United Progressive Alliance (UPA), Left Front and other smaller alliances, Centre-left to left-wing coalition led by Indian National Congress (INC). The alliance, comprising 26 opposition parties, include many political parties that are at loggerhead with the INC in their respective states and territories but are in alliance for the 2024 General Elections.

Law and order
Terrorism, Naxalism, religious violence and caste-related violence are important issues that affect the political environment of the Indian nation. Stringent anti-terror legislation such as TADA, POTA and MCOCA have received much political attention, both in favour and against, and some of these laws were disbanded eventually due to human rights violations. However, UAPA was amended in 2019 to negative effect vis-á-vis human rights.

Terrorism has affected politics in India since its conception, be it the terrorism supported from Pakistan or the internal guerrilla groups such as Naxalites. In 1991 the former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated during an election campaign. The suicide bomber was later linked to the Sri Lankan terrorist group Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, as it was later revealed the killing was an act of vengeance for Rajiv Gandhi sending troops in Sri Lanka against them in 1987.

Hindutva terror activities such as Godhra train killings and the Babri Masjid demolition on 6 December 1992 resulted in nationwide communal riots in two months, with the worst occurring in Mumbai with at least 900 dead. The riots were followed by 1993 Bombay bombings, which resulted in more deaths.

Law and order issues, such as action against organised crime are issues which do not affect the outcomes of elections. On the other hand, there is a criminal–politician nexus. Many elected legislators have criminal cases against them. In July 2008, The Washington Post reported that nearly a fourth of the 540 Indian Parliament members faced criminal charges, "including human trafficking, child prostitution, immigration rackets, embezzlement, rape and even murder".

State of democracy
From 2006 to 2023 the situation of Indian democracy worsened. Indians lost state identity caused by the naxalite rebellion, little state presence in tribal areas and tensions between Hindus and minorities. The rebellions are a sign of the governments loss of power. Interreligious riots where observed. Political freedoms are limited since funding of NGOs, such as amnesty international, got more difficult due to the "Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act", though the constitution guarantees freedom of association. Hindu-nationalist groups created a climate of intimidation over the country. Freedom of press is through the intimidation of journalists by police, criminals and politicians.

In 2023, according to the Freedom in the World report by Freedom House, India was classified as a "partly free" country for the third consecutive year. The V-Dem Democracy Indices by V-Dem Institute classify India as an 'electoral autocracy'. In 2023, it referred to India as "one of the worst autocracies in the last 10 years". According to the Democracy Index of the Economist Intelligence Unit, India is a Defective democracy.

title: Politics of India


text:
User:Pamri/Economy of India old

India has had robust economic growth since 1991 when the government reversed its socialist-inspired policy of a large public sector with extensive controls on the private sector and began to liberalize the economy. Liberalization has proceeded in fits and starts since then, mainly due to political pressures, but the economy has responded well by posting strong growth in many sectors. A certain amount of dissatisfaction is expressed in the face of these changes in the Indian economy- some of which are that a quarter of the population is still too poor to be able to afford an adequate diet, electricity shortages still continue in many regions and the manufacturing sector has slowed down at the expense of soft skills.

With a GDP of 568 billion (B$) ($3.096 trillion (T$) at PPP) India has the world's 12th largest economy (and the 4th largest when adjusted for PPP). However, the large population means that per capita income is quite low. In 2003 the World Bank ranked India 143rd in PPP per capita income and 160th in real terms, among 208 countries and territories.

Composition
About 60% of the population depends directly on agriculture. Industry and services sectors are growing in importance and account for 25% and 51% of GDP, respectively, while agriculture contributes about 25.6% of GDP. More than 25% of the population live below the poverty line, but a large and growing middle class of 300 million has disposable income for consumer goods.

Economic Reforms
India embarked on a series of economic reforms in 1991 in reaction to a severe foreign exchange crisis. Those reforms have included liberalized foreign investment and exchange regimes, significant reductions in tariffs and other trade barriers, reform and modernization of the financial sector, and significant adjustments in government monetary and fiscal policies.

The reform process has had some very beneficial effects on the Indian economy, including higher growth rates, lower inflation, and significant increases in foreign investment. Foreign portfolio and direct investment flows have risen significantly since reforms began in 1991 and have contributed to healthy foreign currency reserves (140 B$ in March 2005) and a moderate current account deficit of about 1% (2002-03). India's economic growth is constrained, however, by inadequate infrastructure, cumbersome bureaucratic procedures, and high real interest rates. India will have to address these constraints in formulating its economic policies and by pursuing the second generation reforms to maintain recent trends in economic growth.

Liberalization
Significant liberalization of her investment regime since 1991 has made India an attractive place for foreign direct and portfolio investment. The U.S. is India's largest investment partner.

Since 1991, Indian economy has gone from strength to strength. It has recorded a growth rate of above 5%. India's economy grew at an unexpectedly robust 8.4 percent in the year through the third quarter of 2004, making it one of the fastest growing in the world.

Taxation
Figures in crore rupees for April-Sep 04. Note: 1 crore=10 million. 43 rupees=1 $ as of January 5, 2004.

 * Excise duty: 36,622
 * Customs: 25,205
 * Income tax: 25,175
 * Corporation tax: 20,337

Other Statistics
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
 * lowest 10%: 3.5%
 * highest 10%: 33.5% (1997)

Electricity:
 * production: 547.2 TWh (2002)
 * consumption: 510.1 TWh (2002)
 * exports: 0.35 TWh (2002)
 * imports: 1.54 TWh (2002)

Electricity - production by source:
 * fossil fuels: 81.7%
 * hydro: 14.5%
 * other: 0.3% (2001)
 * nuclear: 3.4%

Information

 * Associations, Centers, Councils, Institutes
 * NCAER
 * ICRIER
 * Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE)
 * IGIDR
 * Economist.com | Country Briefings: India

Business magazines and newspapers in India

 * Business Line
 * IndScan Reports
 * Financial Express
 * Economic Times
 * Business Standard
 * Business Today
 * Business World
 * Outlook Money

Stock Exhanges

 * Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE)
 * National Stock Exchange of India (NSE)

title: User:Pamri/Economy of India old