India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: हिन्दी or हिंदी, IAST: Hindī, IPA: [ɦɪnd̪iː] ) is the name given to an Indo-Aryan language, or a dialect continuum of languages, spoken in northern and central India (the "Hindi belt"): भारत गणराज्य Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages The following table lists the names of the Republic of India in each of the twenty-three constitutionally-recognised languages listed in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of India. Hindi and English are the languages used by the Union Government for official work. Kannada, Sanskrit, Tamil and Telugu are officially classical languages of), is a country in South Asia South Asia, also known as Southern Asia, is the southern region of the Asian continent, which comprises the sub-Himalayan countries and, for some authorities , also includes the adjoining countries on the west and the east. It is surrounded (clockwise, from west to east) by Western Asia, Central Asia, Eastern Asia, Southeastern Asia and the Indian. It is the seventh-largest This is a list of the sovereign states and dependent territories of the world, sorted by total area, including all entities on the ISO standard ISO 3166-1 country by geographical area, the second-most populous This is a list of countries ordered according to population. The list includes sovereign states and inhabited dependent territories based on the ISO standard ISO 3166-1 country, and the most populous democracy Liberal democracy is the dominant form of democracies in the 21st century. During the Cold War, liberal democracies were contrasted with the Communist People's Republics or "Popular Democracies", which claimed an alternative conception of democracy. Today, constitutional democracies are mostly contrasted with direct democracy and/or in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering about 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by Asia ; on the west by Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and Australia; and on the south by the Southern Ocean (or, traditionally, by Antarctica). One component of the all- on the south, the Arabian Sea The Arabian Sea is a region of the Indian Ocean bounded on the east by India, on the north by Pakistan and Iran, on the west by Arabian Peninsula, on the south, approximately, by a line between Cape Guardafui, the north-east point of Somalia, Socotra, Kanyakumari (Cape Comorin) in India, and the western coast of Sri Lanka on the west, and the Bay of Bengal The Bay of Bengal (Bangla: বঙ্গোপসাগর, IPA:ˈbɒŋɡopoʃɑːˈgoɽ) is a bay that forms the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean. It resembles a triangle in shape, and is bordered by India and Sri Lanka to the West, Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal to the North (where the name comes from), and Myanmar and the on the east, India has a coastline of 7,517 kilometres (4,700 mi).[14] It is bordered by Pakistan Pakistan (Urdu: پاکستان Pākistān pronunciation ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country located in South Asia. It has a 1,046 kilometre (650 mile) coastline along the Arabian Sea and Gulf of Oman in the south, and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, the Republic of India in the east and the People's to the west;[15] People's Republic of China b. ^ Information for mainland China only. The Special Administrative Regions of the PRC: Hong Kong, Macau are excluded. In addition, the territories under the jurisdiction of the Republic of China, commonly known as Taiwan, are also excluded (PRC), Nepal Nepal (Nepali: नेपाल [neˈpaːl] ), officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia and is the world's youngest republic. It is bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India. With an area of 147,181 square kilometers and a, and Bhutan The Kingdom of Bhutan is a landlocked nation in South Asia, located at the eastern end of the Himalaya Mountains and is bordered to the south, east and west by the Republic of India and to the north by People's Republic of China. Bhutan is separated from the nearby state of Nepal to the west by the Indian state of Sikkim, and from Bangladesh to to the north; and Bangladesh Bangladesh (Bengali: বাংলাদেশ, pronounced [ˈbaŋlad̪eʃ]; Bangladesh), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh (Bengali: গণপ্রজাতন্ত্রী বাংলাদেশ Gônoprojatontri Bangladesh) is a country in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma ( and Myanmar Burma, officially the Union of Myanmar, is the largest country by geographical area in mainland Southeast Asia, or Indochina. The country is bordered by the People's Republic of China on the northeast, Laos on the east, Thailand on the southeast, Bangladesh on the west, India on the northwest, and the Bay of Bengal to the southwest with the to the east. India is in the vicinity of Sri Lanka Sri Lanka , officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka (pronounced /ˌʃriːˈlæŋkə/, Sinhalese: ශ්‍රී ලංකාව, Tamil: இலங்கை; known as Ceylon (/sɪˈlɒn/) before 1972 and as Taprobane (/təˈprɒbəniː/) in ancient times), is an island country in South Asia, located about 31 kilometres (19.3 mi), the Maldives The Maldives ( /ˈmɒldaɪvz/ or /ˈmɒldiːvz/), (Dhivehi: ދިވެހިރާއްޖެ Dhivehi Raa’j) or Maldive Islands, officially the Republic of Maldives, is an island country consisting of a group of atolls stretching south of India's Lakshadweep islands between Minicoy Island and the Chagos Archipelago, and about seven hundred kilometres (435, and Indonesia The Republic of Indonesia (Indonesian: Republik Indonesia), is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia comprises 17,508 islands, and with an estimated population of around 237 million people, it is the world's fourth most populous country, and has the largest Muslim population in the world in the Indian Ocean.

Home to the Indus Valley Civilisation The Indus Valley Civilization , abbreviated IVC, was an ancient civilization in the Indian Subcontinent that flourished around the Indus River basin. Primarily centered along the Indus river, the civilization encompassed most of what is now Pakistan, mainly the provinces of Sindh, Punjab and Balochistan, as well as extending into modern day Indian and a region of historic trade routes and vast empires, the Indian subcontinent South Asia, also known as Southern Asia, is the southern region of the Asian continent, which comprises the sub-Himalayan countries and, for some authorities , also includes the adjoining countries on the west and the east. It is surrounded (clockwise, from west to east) by Western Asia, Central Asia, Eastern Asia, Southeastern Asia and the Indian was identified with its commercial and cultural wealth for much of its long history.[16] Four major religions, Hinduism Hinduism is the predominant religion of the Indian subcontinent. Hinduism is often referred to as Sanātana Dharma, a Sanskrit phrase meaning "the eternal law", by its adherents. Generic "types" of Hinduism that attempt to accommodate a variety of complex views span from folk and Vedic Hinduism to bhakti tradition, as in, Buddhism Buddhists recognize him as an awakened teacher who shared his insights to help sentient beings end their suffering by understanding the true nature of phenomena, thereby escaping the cycle of suffering and rebirth , that is, achieving Nirvana. Among the methods various schools of Buddhism apply towards this goal are: ethical conduct and altruistic, Jainism Jainism is an ancient dharmic religion from India that prescribes a path of non-violence for all forms of living beings in this world. Its philosophy and practice relies mainly on self effort in progressing the soul on the spiritual ladder to God consciousness. Any soul which has conquered its own inner enemies and achieved the state of supreme and Sikhism Sikhism, founded on the teachings of Guru Nanak Dev and ten successive Sikh Gurus in fifteenth century Punjab, is the fifth-largest organized religion in the world. This system of religious philosophy and expression has been traditionally known as the Gurmat or the Sikh Dharma. Sikhism originated from the word Sikh, which in turn comes from the originated there, while Zoroastrianism Zoroastrianism is the religion and philosophy based on the teachings ascribed to the prophet Zoroaster, after whom the religion is named. The term Zoroastrianism is, in general usage, essentially synonymous with Mazdaism, i.e. the worship of Ahura Mazda, exalted by Zoroaster as the supreme divine authority, Judaism Judaism is a set of beliefs and practices originating in the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh), as later further explored and explained in the Talmud and other texts. Judaism presents itself as the covenantal relationship between the Children of Israel (later, the Jewish nation) and God. It is considered either the first or one of the first monotheistic, Christianity Adherents of Christianity, known as Christians, believe that Jesus is the Messiah prophesied in the Hebrew Bible . Orthodox Christian theology claims that Jesus suffered, died, and was resurrected to open heaven to humans. They further maintain that Jesus ascended into heaven, and most denominations teach that Jesus will return to judge all humans, and Islam Islam (Arabic: الإسلام‎ al-’islām, pronounced [ʔislæːm] [note 1]) is a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the teachings contained in a religious book, the Qur'an, considered by its adherents to be the verbatim word of Allah (the sole divine entity in Islam) as revealed to the Islamic prophet Muhammad, a 7th century Arab arrived in the first millennium CE and shaped the region's diverse culture The culture of India has been shaped by the long history of India, its unique geography and the absorption of customs, traditions and ideas from some of its neighbors as well as by preserving its ancient heritages, which were formed during the Indus Valley Civilization and evolved further during the Vedic age, rise and decline of Buddhism, Golden. Gradually annexed by the British East India Company The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading with the Indian subcontinent and China. The oldest among several similarly formed European East India Companies, the Company was granted an English Royal Charter, under the name Governor and from the early eighteenth century and colonised Colonialism is the building and maintaining of colonies in one territory by people from another territory. Sovereignty over the colony is claimed by the metropole. Social structure, government and economics within the territory of the colony are changed by the colonists by the United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands. Northern Ireland is the only part of the UK with a land border, sharing it with from the mid-nineteenth century, India became an independent nation in 1947 after a struggle for independence The term Indian independence movement incorporates various national and regional campaigns, agitations and efforts of both Nonviolent and Militant philosophy. The term encompasses a wide spectrum of political organizations, philosophies, and movements which had the common aim of ending the British British Colonial Authority as well as other that was marked by widespread nonviolent resistance Nonviolent resistance is the practice of achieving socio-political goals through symbolic protests, civil disobedience, economic or political noncooperation, and other methods, without using violence.

India is a republic A republic is a form of government in which the head of state is not a hereditary monarch and the people have an impact on its government. The word 'republic' is derived from the Latin phrase res publica which can be translated as "public affairs" consisting of 28 states and seven union territories India is a federal union of states comprising twenty-eight states and seven union territories. The states and territories are further subdivided into districts and so on with a parliamentary system of democracy A parliamentary system is a system of government wherein the ministers of the executive branch are drawn from the legislature, and are accountable to that body, such that the executive and legislative branches are intertwined. In such a system, the head of government is both de facto chief executive and chief legislator. It has the world's twelfth largest economy This article includes a list of countries of the world sorted by their gross domestic product , the market value of all final goods and services from a nation in a given year. The GDP dollar estimates presented here are calculated at market or government official exchange rates at market exchange rates and the fourth largest There are three lists of countries of the world sorted by their gross domestic product (the value of all final goods and services produced within a nation in a given year). The GDP dollar estimates given on this page are derived from purchasing power parity (PPP) calculations. Using a PPP basis is arguably more useful when comparing generalized in purchasing power The purchasing power parity theory uses the long-term equilibrium exchange rate of two currencies to equalize their purchasing power. Developed by Gustav Cassel in 1918, it is based on the law of one price: the theory states that, in ideally efficient markets, identical goods should have only one price. Economic reforms since 1991 The economic liberalization in India refers to ongoing reforms in India. After Independence in 1947, India adhered to socialist policies. The extensive regulation was sarcastically dubbed as the "Licence Raj"; the slow growth rate was named the "Hindu rate of growth". In the 1980s, the Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi initiated some have transformed it into one of the fastest growing economies The list of countries of the world sorted by their gross domestic product growth rate shows the increase in value of all final goods and services produced within a nation in a given year -- not taking into account purchasing power parity and taking into account inflation;[17] however, it still suffers from high levels These are lists of countries of the world by percentage of population living in poverty. "Poverty" defined as an economic condition of lacking both money and basic necessities needed to successfully live, such as food, water, education, healthcare, and shelter. There are many working definitions of "poverty," with considerable of poverty The World Bank estimates that 456 million Indians now live under the global poverty line of $1.25 per day (PPP). This means that a third of the global poor now reside in India. However, this also represents a significant decline in poverty from 60 percent in 1981 to 42 percent in 2005, although the rupee has decreased in value since then, while,[18] illiteracy Education in India has a history stretching back to the ancient urban centres of learning at Taxila and Nalanda. Western education became ingrained into Indian society with the establishment of the British Raj. Education in the India falls under the control of both the central government and the states, with some responsibilities lying with the, and malnutrition The world Bank estimates that India is ranked 2nd with 47% after Bangladesh for the most number of children who suffer with malnutrition . The prevalence of underweight children in India is among the highest in the world, and is nearly double that of Sub-Saharan Africa with dire consequences for mobility, mortality, productivity and economic. A pluralistic Religious pluralism, to paraphrase the title of a recent academic work, goes beyond mere toleration. Chris Beneke, in Beyond Toleration: The Religious Origins of American Pluralism, explains the difference between religious tolerance and religious pluralism by pointing to the situation in the late 18th century United States. By the 1730s, in most, multilingual The languages of India belong to several major linguistic families, the two largest being the Indo-European languages—Indo-Aryan —and the Dravidian languages (spoken by 22% of Indians). Other languages spoken in India come mainly from the Austro-Asiatic and Tibeto-Burman linguistic families, in addition to a few language isolates, and multiethnic society Multiethnic societies, in contrast to ethnically homogenous societies, integrate different ethnic groups irrespective of differences in culture, race, and history under a common social identity larger than one "nation" in the conventional sense. All cities and most towns can be regarded as multiethnic societies, even ones where race, India is also home to a diversity of wildlife India has some of the world's most biodiverse regions. The political boundaries of India encompass a wide range of ecozones—desert, high mountains, highlands, tropical and temperate forests, swamplands, plains, grasslands, riverine areas as well as island archipelago. It hosts three biodiversity hotspots: the Western Ghats, the Eastern Himalayas, in a variety of protected habitats.

Contents

Etymology

Main article: Names of India

The name India (pronounced /ˈɪndiə/) is derived from Indus, which is derived from the Old Persian word Hindu, from Sanskrit Sindhu, the historic local appellation for the Indus River.[19] The ancient Greeks referred to the Indians as Indoi (Ινδοί), the people of the Indus.[20] The Constitution of India and common usage in various Indian languages also recognise Bharat (pronounced [bʰɑrət̪] ( listen)) as an official name of equal status.[21] Hindustan ( /hin̪d̪ust̪ɑːn/ ), which is the Persian word for “Land of the Hindus” and historically referred to northern India, is also occasionally used as a synonym for all of India.[22]

History

Main articles: History of India and History of the Republic of India

Stone Age rock shelters with paintings at the Bhimbetka rock shelters in Madhya Pradesh are the earliest known traces of human life in India. The first known permanent settlements appeared over 9,000 years ago and gradually developed into the Indus Valley Civilisation,[23] dating back to 3300 BCE in western India. It was followed by the Vedic period, which laid the foundations of Hinduism and other cultural aspects of early Indian society, and ended in the 500s BCE. From around 550 BCE, many independent kingdoms and republics known as the Mahajanapadas were established across the country.[24]

Paintings at the Ajanta Caves in Aurangabad, Maharashtra, sixth century

In the third century BCE, most of South Asia was united into the Maurya Empire by Chandragupta Maurya and flourished under Ashoka the Great.[25] From the third century CE, the Gupta dynasty oversaw the period referred to as ancient "India's Golden Age."[26][27] Empires in Southern India included those of the Chalukyas, the Cholas and the Vijayanagara Empire. Science, engineering, art, literature, astronomy, and philosophy flourished under the patronage of these kings.

Following invasions from Central Asia between the 10th and 12th centuries, much of North India came under the rule of the Delhi Sultanate and later the Mughal Empire. Under the rule of Akbar the Great, India enjoyed much cultural and economic progress as well as religious harmony.[28][29] Mughal emperors gradually expanded their empires to cover large parts of the subcontinent. However, in North-Eastern India, the dominant power was the Ahom kingdom of Assam, among the few kingdoms to have resisted Mughal subjugation. The first major threat to Mughal imperial power came from a Hindu Rajput king Maha Rana Pratap of Mewar in the 14th century and later from a hindu state known as the Maratha confederacy, that dominated much of India in the mid-18th century.[30]

From the 16th century, European powers such as Portugal, the Netherlands, France, and the United Kingdom established trading posts and later took advantage of internal conflicts to establish colonies in the country. By 1856, most of India was under the control of the British East India Company.[31] A year later, a nationwide insurrection of rebelling military units and kingdoms, known as India's First War of Independence or the Sepoy Mutiny, seriously challenged the Company's control but eventually failed. As a result of the instability, India was brought under the direct rule of the British Crown.

Mahatma Gandhi (right) with Jawaharlal Nehru, 1937. Nehru would go on to become India's first prime minister in 1947.

In the 20th century, a nationwide struggle for independence was launched by the Indian National Congress and other political organisations. Indian leader Mahatma Gandhi led millions of people in national campaigns of non-violent civil disobedience.[32] On 15 August 1947, India gained independence from British rule, but at the same time Muslim-majority areas were partitioned to form a separate state of Pakistan.[33] On 26 January 1950, India became a republic and a new constitution came into effect.[9]

Since independence, India has faced challenges from religious violence, casteism, naxalism, terrorism and regional separatist insurgencies, especially in Jammu and Kashmir and Northeast India. Since the 1990s have affected many Indian cities. India has unresolved territorial disputes with P. R. China, which in 1962 escalated into the Sino-Indian War; and with Pakistan, which resulted in wars in 1947, 1965, 1971 and 1999. India is a founding member of the United Nations (as British India) and the Non-Aligned Movement. In 1974, India conducted an underground nuclear test[34] and five more tests in 1998, making India a nuclear state.[34] Beginning in 1991, significant economic reforms[35] have transformed India into one of the fastest-growing economies in the world, increasing its global clout.[17]

Government

Main article: Government of India
National Symbols of India[36]
Flag Tricolour
Emblem Sarnath Lion Capital
Anthem Jana Gana Mana
Song Vande Mataram
Animal Royal Bengal Tiger
Bird Indian Peafowl
Flower Lotus
Tree Banyan
Fruit Mango
Sport Field hockey
Calendar Saka

The Constitution of India, the longest and the most exhaustive constitution of any independent nation in the world, came into force on 26 January, 1950.[37] The preamble of the constitution defines India as a sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic republic.[38] India has a bicameral parliament operating under a Westminster-style parliamentary system. Its form of government was traditionally described as being 'quasi-federal' with a strong centre and weaker states,[39] but it has grown increasingly federal since the late 1990s as a result of political, economic and social changes.[40]

The President of India is the head of state[41] elected indirectly by an electoral college[42] for a five-year term.[43][44] The Prime Minister is the head of government and exercises most executive powers.[41] Appointed by the President,[45] the Prime Minister is by convention supported by the party or political alliance holding the majority of seats in the lower house of Parliament.[41] The executive branch consists of the President, Vice-President, and the Council of Ministers (the Cabinet being its executive committee) headed by the Prime Minister. Any minister holding a portfolio must be a member of either house of parliament. In the Indian parliamentary system, the executive is subordinate to the legislature, with the Prime Minister and his Council being directly responsible to the lower house of the Parliament.[46]

The Legislature of India is the bicameral Parliament, which consists of the upper house called the Rajya Sabha (Council of States) and the lower house called the Lok Sabha (House of People).[47] The Rajya Sabha, a permanent body, has 245 members serving staggered six year terms.[48] Most are elected indirectly by the state and territorial legislatures in proportion to the state's population.[48] 543 of the Lok Sabha's 545 members are directly elected by popular vote to represent individual constituencies for five year terms.[48] The other two members are nominated by the President from the Anglo-Indian community if the President is of the opinion that the community is not adequately represented.[48]

India has a unitary three-tier judiciary, consisting of the Supreme Court, headed by the Chief Justice of India, twenty-one High Courts, and a large number of trial courts.[49] The Supreme Court has original jurisdiction over cases involving fundamental rights and over disputes between states and the Centre, and appellate jurisdiction over the High Courts.[50] It is judicially independent,[49] and has the power to declare the law and to strike down Union or State laws which contravene the Constitution.[51] The role as the ultimate interpreter of the Constitution is one of the most important functions of the Supreme Court.[52]

Administrative divisions

Main article: Administrative divisions of India

India consists of twenty-eight states and seven Union Territories.[53] All states, and the two union territories of Puducherry and the National Capital Territory of Delhi, have elected legislatures and governments patterned on the Westminster model. The other five union territories are directly ruled by the Centre through appointed administrators. In 1956, under the States Reorganisation Act, states were formed on a linguistic basis.[54] Since then, this structure has remained largely unchanged. Each state or union territory is further divided into administrative districts.[55] The districts in turn are further divided into tehsils and eventually into villages.

Administrative divisions of India, including 28 states and 7 union territories.

States:

  1. Andhra Pradesh
  2. Arunachal Pradesh
  3. Assam
  4. Bihar
  5. Chhattisgarh
  6. Goa
  7. Gujarat
  1. Haryana
  2. Himachal Pradesh
  3. Jammu and Kashmir
  4. Jharkhand
  5. Karnataka
  6. Kerala
  7. Madhya Pradesh
  1. Maharashtra
  2. Manipur
  3. Meghalaya
  4. Mizoram
  5. Nagaland
  6. Orissa
  7. Punjab
  1. Rajasthan
  2. Sikkim
  3. Tamil Nadu
  4. Tripura
  5. Uttar Pradesh
  6. Uttarakhand
  7. West Bengal

Union Territories:

  1. Andaman and Nicobar Islands
  2. Chandigarh
  3. Dadra and Nagar Haveli
  4. Daman and Diu
  5. Lakshadweep
  6. National Capital Territory of Delhi
  7. Puducherry

Politics

Main article: Politics of India The North Block, in New Delhi, houses key government offices.

India is the most populous democracy in the world.[56][57] For most of the years since independence, the federal government has been led by the Indian National Congress (INC).[53] Politics in the states have been dominated by several national parties including the INC, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI(M)) and various regional parties. From 1950 to 1990, barring two brief periods, the INC enjoyed a parliamentary majority. The INC was out of power between 1977 and 1980, when the Janata Party won the election owing to public discontent with the state of emergency declared by the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. In 1989, a Janata Dal-led National Front coalition in alliance with the Left Front coalition won the elections but managed to stay in power for only two years.[58] As the 1991 elections gave no political party a majority, the INC formed a minority government under Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao and was able to complete its five-year term.[59]

The years 1996–1998 were a period of turmoil in the federal government with several short-lived alliances holding sway. The BJP formed a government briefly in 1996, followed by the United Front coalition that excluded both the BJP and the INC. In 1998, the BJP formed the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) with several other parties and became the first non-Congress government to complete a full five-year term.[60] In the 2004 Indian elections, the INC won the largest number of Lok Sabha seats and formed a government with a coalition called the United Progressive Alliance (UPA), supported by various Left-leaning parties and members opposed to the BJP. The UPA again came into power in the 2009 general election; however, the representation of the Left leaning parties within the coalition has significantly reduced.[61]

Foreign relations and military

Main articles: Foreign relations of India and Indian Armed Forces The Sukhoi-30 MKI is the Indian Air Force's prime air superiority fighter and an enhanced version of Su-27.[62]

Since its independence in 1947, India has maintained cordial relationships with most nations. It took a leading role in the 1950s by advocating the independence of European colonies in Africa and Asia.[63] India was involved in two brief military interventions in neighboring countries – Indian Peace Keeping Force in Sri Lanka and Operation Cactus in Maldives. India is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations and a founding member of the Non-Aligned Movement.[64] After the Sino-Indian War and the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, India's relationship with the Soviet Union warmed and continued to remain so until the end of the Cold War. India has fought two wars with Pakistan over the Kashmir dispute. A third war between India and Pakistan in 1971 resulted in the creation of Bangladesh (then East Pakistan).[65] Additional skirmishes have taken place between the two nations over the Siachen Glacier. In 1999, India and Pakistan fought an undeclared war over Kargil.

India and Russia share an extensive economic, defence and technological relationship.[66] Shown here is PM Manmohan Singh with President Dmitry Medvedev at the 34th G8 Summit.

In recent years, India has played an influential role in the SAARC, and the WTO.[67] India has provided as many as 55,000 Indian military and police personnel to serve in thirty-five UN peace keeping operations across four continents.[68] Despite criticism and military sanctions, India has consistently refused to sign the CTBT and the NPT, preferring instead to maintain sovereignty over its nuclear program. Recent overtures by the Indian government have strengthened relations with the United States, China and Pakistan. In the economic sphere, India has close relationships with other developing nations in South America, Asia and Africa.

India maintains the third-largest military force in the world, which consists of the Indian Army, Navy, Air Force[9] and auxiliary forces such as the Paramilitary Forces, the Coast Guard, and the Strategic Forces Command. The President of India is the supreme commander of the Indian Armed Forces. India maintains close defence cooperation with Russia, Israel and France, who are the chief suppliers of arms. The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) oversees indigenous development of sophisticated arms and military equipment, including ballistic missiles, fighter aircraft and main battle tanks, to reduce India's dependence on foreign imports. India became a nuclear power in 1974 after conducting an initial nuclear test, Operation Smiling Buddha and further underground testing in 1998. India maintains a "no first use" nuclear policy.[69] On 10 October, 2008 Indo-US civilian nuclear agreement was signed, prior to which India received IAEA and NSG waivers, ending restrictions on nuclear technology commerce with which India became de facto sixth nuclear power in world.[70]

Geography

Main article: Geography of India See also: Geological history of India and Climate of India Topographic map of India.

India, the major portion of the Indian subcontinent, sits atop the Indian tectonic plate, a minor plate within the Indo-Australian Plate.[71]

India's defining geological processes commenced seventy-five million years ago, when the Indian subcontinent, then part of the southern supercontinent Gondwana, began a northeastwards drift—lasting fifty million years—across the then unformed Indian Ocean.[71] The subcontinent's subsequent collision with the Eurasian Plate and subduction under it, gave rise to the Himalayas, the planet's highest mountains, which now abut India in the north and the north-east.[71] In the former seabed immediately south of the emerging Himalayas, plate movement created a vast trough, which, having gradually been filled with river-borne sediment,[72] now forms the Indo-Gangetic Plain.[73] To the west of this plain, and cut off from it by the Aravalli Range, lies the Thar Desert.[74] The original Indian plate now survives as peninsular India, the oldest and geologically most stable part of India, and extending as far north as the Satpura and Vindhya ranges in central India. These parallel ranges run from the Arabian Sea coast in Gujarat in the west to the coal-rich Chota Nagpur Plateau in Jharkhand in the east.[75] To their south, the remaining peninsular landmass, the Deccan Plateau, is flanked on the left and right by the coastal ranges, Western Ghats and Eastern Ghats respectively;[76] the plateau contains the oldest rock formations in India, some over one billion years old. Constituted in such fashion, India lies to the north of the equator between 6°44' and 35°30' north latitude[77] and 68°7' and 97°25' east longitude.[78]

India's coast is 7,517 kilometres (4,700 mi) long; of this distance, 5,423 kilometres (3,400 mi) belong to peninsular India, and 2,094 kilometres (1,300 mi) to the Andaman, Nicobar, and Lakshadweep Islands.[14] According to the Indian naval hydrographic charts, the mainland coast consists of the following: 43% sandy beaches, 11% rocky coast including cliffs, and 46% mudflats or marshy coast.[14]

Tso Kiagar Lake at Ladakh on the Himalayas

Major Himalayan-origin rivers that substantially flow through India include the Ganges and the Brahmaputra, both of which drain into the Bay of Bengal.[79] Important tributaries of the Ganges include the Yamuna and the Kosi, whose extremely low gradient causes disastrous floods every year. Major peninsular rivers whose steeper gradients prevent their waters from flooding include the Godavari, the Mahanadi, the Kaveri, and the Krishna, which also drain into the Bay of Bengal;[80] and the Narmada and the Tapti, which drain into the Arabian Sea.[81] Among notable coastal features of India are the marshy Rann of Kutch in western India, and the alluvial Sundarbans delta, which India shares with Bangladesh.[82] India has two archipelagos: the Lakshadweep, coral atolls off India's south-western coast; and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, a volcanic chain in the Andaman Sea.[83]

India's climate is strongly influenced by the Himalayas and the Thar Desert, both of which drive the monsoons.[84] The Himalayas prevent cold Central Asian katabatic winds from blowing in, keeping the bulk of the Indian subcontinent warmer than most locations at similar latitudes.[85][86] The Thar Desert plays a crucial role in attracting the moisture-laden southwest summer monsoon winds that, between June and October, provide the majority of India's rainfall.[84] Four major climatic groupings predominate in India: tropical wet, tropical dry, subtropical humid, and montane.[87]

Flora and fauna

Main articles: Flora of India and Fauna of India The Indian peacock is India's national bird.

India, which lies within the Indomalaya ecozone, displays significant biodiversity. One of eighteen megadiverse countries, it is home to 7.6% of all mammalian, 12.6% of all avian, 6.2% of all reptilian, 4.4% of all amphibian, 11.7% of all fish, and 6.0% of all flowering plant species.[88] Many ecoregions, such as the shola forests, exhibit extremely high rates of endemism; overall, 33% of Indian plant species are endemic.[89][90] India's forest cover ranges from the tropical rainforest of the Andaman Islands, Western Ghats, and North-East India to the coniferous forest of the Himalaya. Between these extremes lie the sal-dominated moist deciduous forest of eastern India; the teak-dominated dry deciduous forest of central and southern India; and the babul-dominated thorn forest of the central Deccan and western Gangetic plain.[91] Important Indian trees include the medicinal neem, widely used in rural Indian herbal remedies. The pipal fig tree, shown on the seals of Mohenjo-daro, shaded Gautama Buddha as he sought enlightenment.

Many Indian species are descendants of taxa originating in Gondwana, to which India originally belonged. Peninsular India's subsequent movement towards, and collision with, the Laurasian landmass set off a mass exchange of species. However, volcanism and climatic changes 20 million years ago caused the extinction of many endemic Indian forms.[92] Soon thereafter, mammals entered India from Asia through two zoogeographical passes on either side of the emerging Himalaya.[91] Consequently, among Indian species, only 12.6% of mammals and 4.5% of birds are endemic, contrasting with 45.8% of reptiles and 55.8% of amphibians.[88] Notable endemics are the Nilgiri leaf monkey and the brown and carmine Beddome's toad of the Western Ghats. India contains 172, or 2.9%, of IUCN-designated threatened species.[93] These include the Asiatic Lion, the Bengal Tiger, and the Indian white-rumped vulture, which suffered a near-extinction from ingesting the carrion of diclofenac-treated cattle.

In recent decades, human encroachment has posed a threat to India's wildlife; in response, the system of national parks and protected areas, first established in 1935, was substantially expanded. In 1972, India enacted the Wildlife Protection Act[94] and Project Tiger to safeguard crucial habitat; in addition, the Forest Conservation Act[95] was enacted in 1980. Along with more than five hundred wildlife sanctuaries, India hosts thirteen biosphere reserves,[96] four of which are part of the World Network of Biosphere Reserves; twenty-five wetlands are registered under the Ramsar Convention.[97]

Economy

Main article: Economy of India See also: Economic history of India and Economic development in India The Bombay Stock Exchange, in Mumbai, is Asia's oldest and India's largest stock exchange.

For an entire generation from the 1950s until the 1980s, India followed socialist-inspired policies. The economy was shackled by extensive regulation, protectionism, and public ownership, leading to pervasive corruption and slow growth.[98][99][100][101] Since 1991, the nation has moved towards a market-based system.[99][100] The policy change in 1991 came after an acute balance of payments crisis, and the emphasis since then has been to use foreign trade and foreign investment as integral parts of India's economy.[102]

With an average annual GDP growth rate of 5.8% for the past two decades, the economy is among the fastest growing in the world.[103] It has the world's second largest labour force, with 516.3 million people. In terms of output, the agricultural sector accounts for 28% of GDP; the service and industrial sectors make up 54% and 18% respectively. Major agricultural products include rice, wheat, oilseed, cotton, jute, tea, sugarcane, potatoes; cattle, water buffalo, sheep, goats, poultry; fish.[53] Major industries include textiles, chemicals, food processing, steel, transport equipment, cement, mining, petroleum, machinery, software.[53] India's trade has reached a relatively moderate share 24% of GDP in 2006, up from 6% in 1985.[99] India's share of world trade has reached 1%. Major exports include petroleum products, textile goods, gems and jewelry, software, engineering goods, chemicals, leather manufactures.[53] Major imports include crude oil, machinery, gems, fertilizer, chemicals.[53]

India's GDP is US$1.089 trillion, which makes it the twelfth-largest economy in the world[104] or fourth largest by purchasing power adjusted exchange rates. India's nominal per capita income US$977 is ranked 128th in the world. In the late 2000s, India's economic growth has averaged 7½% a year, which will double the average income in a decade.[99]

Despite India's impressive economic growth over recent decades, it still contains the largest concentration of poor people in the world, and has a higher rate of malnutrition among children under the age of three (46% in year 2007) than any other country in the world.[105][106].

The percentage of people living below the new international poverty line $1.08 a day (PPP, in nominal terms Rs 21.6 a day in urban areas and Rs 14.3 in rural areas in 2005) decreased from 60% in 1981 to 42% in 2005 - the 3rd highest rate in South Asia after Nepal and Bangladesh, despite having a higher per capita income earning overall[107] 85.7% of the population was living on less than $2.50 (PPP) a day in 2005, compared with 80.5% for Sub-Saharan Africa.[108] Even though India has avoided famines in recent decades, half of children are underweight, one of the highest rates in the world and nearly double the rate of Sub-Saharan Africa.[109]

Ongoing reforms are watched closely as India could become potentially important for the global economy. A Goldman Sachs report predicts that "from 2007 to 2020, India’s GDP per capita will quadruple," and that the Indian economy will surpass the United States by 2043, but India "will remain a low-income country for several decades, with per capita incomes well below its other BRIC peers. But if it can fulfill its growth potential, it can become a motor for the world economy, and a key contributor to generating spending growth.".[101] Although the Indian economy has grown steadily over the last two decades; its growth has been uneven when comparing different social groups, economic groups, geographic regions, and rural and urban areas.[110] World Bank suggests that the most important priorities are public sector reform, infrastructure, agricultural and rural development, removal of labor regulations, reforms in lagging states, and HIV/AIDS.[111]

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of India See also: Religion in India, Languages of India, and Ethnic groups of South Asia Population density map of India.
Religion in India[112]
Religion Percent
Hinduism   80.5%
Islam   13.4%
Christianity   2.3%
Sikhism   1.9%
Buddhism   0.8%
Jainism   0.4%
Others   0.7%

With an estimated population of 1.17 billion,[9] representing 17% of the world population,[113] India is the world's second most populous country. The last 50 years have seen a rapid increase in population due to medical advances and massive increase in agricultural productivity made by the green revolution.[114][115] Almost 70% of Indians reside in rural areas, although in recent decades migration to larger cities has led to a dramatic increase in the country's urban population. India's largest cities are Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad.[53]

India is the world's most culturally, linguistically and genetically diverse geographical entity after the African continent.[53] India is home to two major linguistic families: Indo-Aryan (spoken by about 74% of the population) and Dravidian (spoken by about 24%). Other languages spoken in India come from the Austro-Asiatic and Tibeto-Burman linguistic families. Hindi, with the largest number of speakers,[116] is the official language of the union.[117] English is used extensively in business and administration and has the status of a 'subsidiary official language;'[118] it is also important in education, especially as a medium of higher education. In addition, every state and union territory has its own official languages, and the constitution also recognises in particular 21 other languages that are either abundantly spoken or have classical status. While Sanskrit and Tamil have been studied as classical languages for many years,[119] the Government of India has also accorded classical language status to Kannada and Telugu using its own criteria.[120] The number of dialects in India is as high as 1,652.[121]

India's literacy rate is 64.8% (53.7% for females and 75.3% for males).[9] The state of Kerala has the highest literacy rate at 91% while Bihar has the lowest at 47%.[122][123] The national human sex ratio is 944 females per 1,000 males. India's median age is 24.9, and the population growth rate of 1.38% per annum; there are 22.01 births per 1,000 people per year.[9]

Cities by population

Mumbai Delhi Bangalore
Rank Core City State Population Rank Core City State Population

Kolkata Chennai Hyderabad
1 Mumbai Maharashtra 13,922,125 11 Jaipur Rajasthan 2,997,114
2 Delhi Delhi 12,259,230 12 Lucknow Uttar Pradesh 2,621,063
3 Bangalore Karnataka 5,310,318 13 Nagpur Maharashtra 2,359,331
4 Kolkata West Bengal 5,080,519 14 Patna Bihar 1,814,012
5 Chennai Tamil Nadu 4,590,267 15 Indore Madhya Pradesh 1,811,513
6 Hyderabad Andhra Pradesh 4,025,339 16 Bhopal Madhya Pradesh 1,742,375
7 Ahmedabad Gujarat 3,913,793 17 Thane Maharashtra 1,673,465
8 Pune Maharashtra 3,337,481 18 Ludhiana Punjab 1,662,325
9 Surat Gujarat 3,233,988 19 Agra Uttar Pradesh 1,638,209
10 Kanpur Uttar Pradesh 3,144,267 20 Pimpri Chinchwad Maharashtra 1,553,538
2009 estimation[124]

Culture

Main article: Culture of India

India's culture is marked by a high degree of syncretism[125] and cultural pluralism.[126] It has managed to preserve established traditions while absorbing new customs, traditions, and ideas from invaders and immigrants and spreading its cultural influence to other parts of Asia, mainly South East and East Asia. Traditional Indian society is defined by relatively strict social hierarchy. The Indian caste system describes the social stratification and social restrictions in the Indian subcontinent, in which social classes are defined by thousands of endogamous hereditary groups, often termed as jātis or castes.

Traditional Indian family values are highly respected, and multi-generational patriarchal joint families have been the norm, although nuclear family are becoming common in urban areas.[98] An overwhelming majority of Indians have their marriages arranged by their parents and other respected family members, with the consent of the bride and groom.[127] Marriage is thought to be for life,[127] and the divorce rate is extremely low.[128] Child marriage is still a common practice, with half of women in India marrying before the legal age of 18.[129][130]

Indian cuisine is characterised by a wide variety of regional styles and sophisticated use of herbs and spices. The staple foods in the region are rice (especially in the south and the east) and wheat (predominantly in the north).[131] Spices originally native to the Indian subcontinent that are now consumed world wide include black pepper; in contrast, hot chili peppers, popular across India, were introduced by the Portuguese.[132]

Stone carving at Konark Sun Temple, UNESCO World Heritage site.[133] Carving represents one of the wheels of the chariot carrying Surya, the Sun God.

Traditional Indian dress varies across the regions in its colours and styles and depends on various factors, including climate. Popular styles of dress include draped garments such as sari for women and dhoti or lungi for men; in addition, stitched clothes such as salwar kameez for women and kurta-pyjama and European-style trousers and shirts for men, are also popular.

Many Indian festivals are religious in origin, although several are celebrated irrespective of caste and creed. Some popular festivals are Diwali, Ganesh Chaturthi, Ugadi, Thai Pongal, Holi, Onam, Vijayadasami, Durga Puja, Eid ul-Fitr, Bakr-Id, Christmas, Buddha Jayanti and Vaisakhi.[134] India has three national holidays. Other sets of holidays, varying between nine and twelve, are officially observed in individual states. Religious practices are an integral part of everyday life and are a very public affair.

Indian architecture is one area that represents the diversity of Indian culture. Much of it, including notable monuments such as the Taj Mahal and other examples of Mughal architecture and South Indian architecture, comprises a blend of ancient and varied local traditions from several parts of the country and abroad. Vernacular architecture also displays notable regional variation.

Indian music covers a wide range of traditions and regional styles. Classical music largely encompasses the two genres – North Indian Hindustani, South Indian Carnatic traditions and their various offshoots in the form of regional folk music. Regionalised forms of popular music include filmi and folk music; the syncretic tradition of the bauls is a well-known form of the latter.

Indian dance too has diverse folk and classical forms. Among the well-known folk dances are the bhangra of the Punjab, the bihu of Assam, the chhau of West Bengal, Jharkhand and sambalpuri of Orissa and the ghoomar of Rajasthan. Eight dance forms, many with narrative forms and mythological elements, have been accorded classical dance status by India's National Academy of Music, Dance, and Drama. These are: bharatanatyam of the state of Tamil Nadu, kathak of Uttar Pradesh, kathakali and mohiniyattam of Kerala, kuchipudi of Andhra Pradesh, manipuri of Manipur, odissi of Orissa and the sattriya of Assam.[135]

Theatre in India often incorporates music, dance, and improvised or written dialogue.[136] Often based on Hindu mythology, but also borrowing from medieval romances, and news of social and political events, Indian theatre includes the bhavai of state of Gujarat, the jatra of West Bengal, the nautanki and ramlila of North India, the tamasha of Maharashtra, the burrakatha of Andhra Pradesh, the terukkuttu of Tamil Nadu, and the yakshagana of Karnataka.[137]

The Indian film industry is the largest in the world.[138] Bollywood, based in Mumbai, makes commercial Hindi films and is the most prolific film industry in the world.[139] Established traditions also exist in Bengali, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Tamil, and Telugu language cinemas.[140]

The earliest works of Indian literature were transmitted orally and only later written down.[141] These included works of Sanskrit literature – such as the early Vedas, the epics Mahābhārata and Ramayana, the drama Abhijñānaśākuntalam (The Recognition of Śakuntalā), and poetry such as the Mahākāvya[142] – and the Tamil language Sangam literature.[143] Among Indian writers of the modern era active in Indian languages or English, Rabindranath Tagore won the Nobel Prize in 1913.

Sports

Main article: Sports of India A 2008 Indian Premier League Twenty20 cricket match being played between the Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders

India's official national sport is field hockey, administered by the Indian Hockey Federation. The Indian field hockey team won the 1975 Men's Hockey World Cup and 8 gold, 1 silver and 2 bronze medals at the Olympic games. However, cricket is the most popular sport; the India national cricket team won the 1983 Cricket World Cup and the 2007 ICC World Twenty20, and shared the 2002 ICC Champions Trophy with Sri Lanka. Cricket in India is administered by the Board of Control for Cricket in India, and domestic competitions include the Ranji Trophy, the Duleep Trophy, the Deodhar Trophy, the Irani Trophy and the Challenger Series. In addition Indian cricket league and Indian premier league organise Twenty20 competitions.

Tennis has become increasingly popular, owing to the victories of the India Davis Cup team. Association football is also a popular sport in northeast India, West Bengal, Goa and Kerala.[144] The Indian national football team has won the South Asian Football Federation Cup several times. Chess, commonly held to have originated in India, is also gaining popularity with the rise in the number of Indian Grandmasters.[145] Traditional sports include kabaddi, kho kho, and gilli-danda, which are played nationwide. India is also home to the ancient martial arts, Kalarippayattu and Varma Kalai.

The Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna and the Arjuna Award are India's highest awards for achievements in sports, while the Dronacharya Award is awarded for excellence in coaching. India hosted or co-hosted the 1951 and the 1982 Asian Games, the 1987 and 1996 Cricket World Cup. It is also scheduled to host the 2010 Commonwealth Games and the 2011 Cricket World Cup.

See also

India portal
Main article: Outline of India

Notes

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  67. ^ India's negotiation positions at the WTO.
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  75. ^ Dikshit & Schwartzberg 2007, p. 8.
  76. ^ Dikshit & Schwartzberg 2007, pp. 9-10.
  77. ^ India's northernmost point is the region of the disputed Siachen Glacier in Jammu and Kashmir; however, the Government of India regards the entire region of the former princely state of Jammu and Kashmir (including the Northern Areas currently administered by Pakistan) to be its territory, and therefore assigns the longitude 37° 6' to its northernmost point.
  78. ^ (Government of India 2007, p. 1.)
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  80. ^ Dikshit & Schwartzberg 2007, p. 16.
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  97. ^ "The List of Wetlands of International Importance" (PDF). The Secretariat of the Convention of on Wetlands. 4 June 2007. p. 18. http://www.ramsar.org/sitelist.pdf. Retrieved on 2007-06-20.
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  108. ^ "The developing world is poorer than we thought, but no less successful in the fight against poverty". World Bank. http://econ.worldbank.org/external/default/main?pagePK=64165259&piPK=64165421&theSitePK=469372&menuPK=64166093&entityID=000158349_20080826113239.
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  112. ^ Religious Composition
  113. ^ India Likely to Surpass China in Population by 2030, Matt Rosenberg.
  114. ^ The end of India's green revolution?, BBC News.
  115. ^ Food First/Institute for Food and Development Policy.
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  119. ^ Seaver, Sanford B. (1998), The Dravidian Languages, Taylor and Francis. p. 436, ISBN 0415100232, <http://books.google.com/books?id=CF5Qo4NDE64C&printsec=frontcover#PPA6,M1>. Quote: "Tamil ... It is therefore one of India's two classical languages, alongside the more widely known Indo-Aryan language Sanskrit." 2. Ramanujan, A. K. (1985), Poems of Love and War: From the Eight Anthologies and the Ten Long Poems of Classical Tamil, New York: Columbia University Press. p. 329, ISBN 0231051077, <http://books.google.com/books?id=nIybE0HRvdQC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_summary_r&cad=0#PPR9,M1> Quote: "Tamil, one of the two classical languages of India, is a Dravidian language spoken today by 50 million Indians, ..."
  120. ^ "Declaration of Telugu and Kannada as classical languages". Press Information Bureau. Ministry of Tourism and Culture, Government of India. http://pib.nic.in/release/release.asp?relid=44340. Retrieved on 2008-11-19.
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  123. ^ "Census Statistics of Bihar: Literacy Rates Literacy rate of Bihar". Government of Bihar. http://gov.bih.nic.in/Profile/CensusStats-03.htm Census Statistics of Bihar: Literacy Rates. Retrieved on 2007-12-13.
  124. ^ India: largest cities and towns and statistics of their population
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  126. ^ Baidyanath, Saraswati (2006). "Cultural Pluralism, National Identity and Development". Interface of Cultural Identity Development (1stEdition ed.). New Delhi: Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts. xxi+290 pp. ISBN 81-246-0054-6. http://ignca.nic.in/ls_03.htm. Retrieved on 2007-06-08.
  127. ^ a b Medora, Nilufer (2003). "Mate selection in contemporary India: Love marriages versus arranged marriages". in Hamon, Raeann R. and Ingoldsby, Bron B.. Mate Selection Across Cultures. SAGE. pp. 209–230. ISBN 0761925929.
  128. ^ "Divorce Rate In India". http://www.divorcerate.org/divorce-rate-in-india.html.
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  131. ^ Delphine, Roger, "The History and Culture of Food in Asia", in Kiple & Kriemhild 2000, pp. 1140–1151.
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  135. ^ 1. "South Asian arts: Techniques and Types of Classical Dance" From: Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 12 Oct. 2007. 2. Sangeet Natak Academi (National Academy of Music, Dance, and Drama, New Delhi, India). 2007. Dance Programmes. 3. Kothari, Sunil. 2007. Sattriya dance of the celibate monks of Assam, India. Royal Holloway College, University of London.
  136. ^ Lal 1998.
  137. ^ (Karanth 1997, p. 26). Quote: "The Yakṣagāna folk-theatre is no isolated theatrical form in India. We have a number of such theatrical traditions all around Karnataka... In far off Assam we have similar plays going on by the name of Ankia Nat, in neighouring Bengal we have the very popular Jatra plays. Maharashtra has Tamasa. (p. 26.)
  138. ^ "Country profile: India". BBC. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/country_profiles/1154019.stm. Retrieved on 2007.
  139. ^ Dissanayake & Gokulsing 2004.
  140. ^ Rajadhyaksha & Willemen (editors) 1999.
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  143. ^ 1. Encyclopaedia Britannica (2008), "Tamil Literature." Quote: "Apart from literature written in classical (Indo-Aryan) Sanskrit, Tamil is the oldest literature in India. Some inscriptions on stone have been dated to the 3rd century BC, but Tamil literature proper begins around the 1st century AD. Much early poetry was religious or epic; an exception was the secular court poetry written by members of the sangam, or literary academy (see Sangam literature)." 2. Ramanujan 1985, pp. ix-x. Quote: "These poems are 'classical,' i.e. early, ancient; they are also 'classics,' i.e. works that have stood the test of time, the founding works of a whole tradition. Not to know them is not to know a unique and major poetic achievement of Indian civilisation. Early classical Tamil literature (c. 100 BC–AD 250) consists of the Eight Anthologies (Eţţuttokai), the Ten Long Poems (Pattuppāţţu), and a grammar called the Tolkāppiyam or the 'Old Composition.' ... The literature of classical Tamil later came to be known as Cankam (pronounced Sangam) literature. (pp. ix-x.)"
  144. ^ Majumdar & Bandyopadhyay 2006, pp. 1-5.
  145. ^ "Anand crowned World champion". Rediff. 2008-10-29. http://www.rediff.com/sports/2008/oct/29anand.htm. Retrieved on 2008-10-29.

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1 Partly or significantly in Europe. 2 The Republic of China (Taiwan) is not officially recognized by the United Nations; see Political status of Taiwan. 3 Partly or significantly in Africa. 4 Partly or wholly reckoned in Oceania.
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United Kingdom

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Coordinates: 21°N 78°E / 21°N 78°E

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How has India become a capitalistic society?
Q. Just looking for some views of how India has changed from a country that was all about community and preserving nature to now has changed to capitalism. How has India changed to a capitalistic society?
Asked by bseballislife9 - Tue Mar 11 11:19:44 2008 - - 1 Answers - 0 Comments

A. Many Indians live in their own make believe worlds because of their attachment to political leaders' lectures and far-from-reality arm chair elite class intellectuals. India has never been a socialist country in practice. Theoretically, Indian Parliament announced that India is a socialist Democratic Republic. India was not even intended to be a socialist economy. The so-called Nehruvian socialism is essentially a rule of oppression by the political parties and the bureacracy: it was rather a State capitalism with worst form of inefficiencies, wastages, corruption. Since it was State capitalism, India became bankrupt within 45 years of Independence. Since it was not free market capitalism but State capitalism, India's economic growth rate… [cont.]
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