Geographical Information of India

Full Name of Country : Republic of India

Area : 3.2 8million sq kilometers

Population : 1.3 billion

Capital of country : New Delhi

People : 72% Indo-Aryan , 25% Dravidian , 3% other

Language : 14 National language included Hindi,Urdu, English

Religion : 80%Hindu ,14%Muslim, 2.4 % Christian, 2% Buddhist, 0.5 Jains, 0.4 other

Head of Government : Prime Minister

Administration : 28 State and 7 Union Territories

Indian States & Union Territories :-

Andhra Pradesh , Arunachal Pardesh, Assam , Bihar , Chhattisgarh , Goa , Gujarat , Harayana , Himachal Pardesh ,Jammu & Kashmir , Jharkhand , Karnataka , Kerala , Madhya Pardesh ,Maharashtra , Manipur , Meghalaya , Mizoram , Nagaland , Orissa , Punjab,Rajasthan , Sikkim , Tamil Nadu , Tripura , Uttar Pardesh , Uttaranchal , WestBengal.

Union Territories:-

Andaman & Nicobar , Chandigarh , Dadra & Nagar Haveli , Daman & Diu , Delhi , Laksha dweep , Pondicherry.

Climate in India:-

Climate in India varies greatly according to latitude, altitude and season.

Temperatures:-

Average maximum winter temperatures range from the high 20 degree Celsius in the S to below freezing in parts of Kashmir, Leh and Ladakh,and the low 20 degree Celsius in the northern plains. The range of minimum winter temperatures between N and S is greater. In many parts of the N plains,especially in the NW, close to the foothills of the Himalayas, night temperatures fall close to freezing. In contrast, in the far S, minimum temperature never fall below 20 degree Celsius except in the hills. In summer the N is generally hotter than the S, with daytime temperature es usually over 40 degree Celsius and in parts of the NW up to nearly 50 degree Celsius from time to time. Night time temperatures also remain high. The end of Apr - May is the hottest time. Once the clouds of the monsoon season arrives,the temperature fall a few degrees, but the air gets much more humid, often making it intensely uncomfortable. In the S maximum temperatures never reach those experienced in the N, rarely rising above 40 degree Celsius for more than a day or at a time. May is also generally the hottest month.

Rainfall:-

India's seasonal rainfall pattern is dominated by the monsoon,which generally arrives at the SW coast in late May or June, covering most of the country by the beginning of July, and retreating in October. However, the popular image of the monsoon is misplaced. Even in the wettest areas - the west coast or the NE hills of the Shillong plateau - there are periods of days at a time when it does not rain. Elsewhere the rainy season is marked by prolonged very heavy showers, interspersed with cloudy, humid weather and occasional bright patches.

Environment of India:-

India is a large, triangular-shaped country in southern Asia,buttressed by the long sweep of the Himalaya in the north and protruding in to the Indian Ocean in the south. It's bordered by Pakistan to the north west,China, Nepal and Bhutan to the north, and Bangladesh and Myanmar to the east. Sri Lanka is the teardrop-shaped island hanging off its southern tip. India covers a land area of some 3,287,000 sq km (1,281,930sq mi), though disputed borders with Pakistan and China make this figure somewhat arbitrary. India is the seventh largest country in the world. Northern India contains the snow-bound peaks and deep valleys of the Himalaya, and the vast Gangetic Plain, which separates the Himalayan region from the southern peninsula and stretches from the Arabian Sea to the Bay of Bengal. South of the plains, the land rises up into a triangular-shaped plateau known as the Deccan, which ranges in altitude from 300m (985ft) to 900m (2950ft). The plateau is bordered by the Eastern and Western ghats, ranges of hills which run parallel to India's eastern and western coasts and separate the fertile coastal strips from the interior. Wildlife in India is often purported to have enjoyed a privileged and protected position thanks to the religious ideals and sentiments of Hindus, Jains and Buddhists, but much of this tradition has been lost.Extensive hunting by the British and the Indian rajahs, large-scale clearing off or sets for agriculture, poaching, pesticides and the ever-increasing population have had disastrous effects on India's environment. Only around 10per cent of the country still has forest cover and only 4 per cent is protected within national parks and reserves. In the past few decades the government has taken serious steps to improve environmental management and has established over 350 parks,sanctuaries and reserves.The highlights of India's fauna are its lions, tigers,leopards, panthers, elephants and rhinoceroses, but the country is also home toa rich variety of deer and antelope, wild buffaloes, massive Indian bison,shaggy sloth bears, striped hyenas, wild pigs, jackals and Indian wild dogs.Monkeys include rhesus macaques, bonnet macaques and long-tailed common languages. The reptilian world boasts magnificent king cobras, pythons,crocodiles, large freshwater tortoises and monitor lizards, while the diversification includes large horn bills, serpent eagles and fishing owls, as well as the elegant national bird, the peacock.

Culture of India :-

It has been said that India is less a country than a continent,and it holds as many variations in religion, language, customs, art and cuisines it does in topography. For the traveler, this cultural feast is India's great strength.

Art & Architecture of India :-

Indian art is basically religious in its themes and developments, and its appreciation requires at least some background knowledge of the country's faiths. The highlights include classical Indian dance, Hindu temple architecture and sculpture (where one begins and the other ends is often hard to define), the military and urban architecture of the Mughals, miniature painting, and mesmeric Indian music. Of course, India's creativity continues to thrive, its most lively contemporary expression being filmi culture. The latter is difficult for Western ears to immediately appreciate, but it doesn't take long to get a feel for it.

Clothes in India :-

The people of India have colorful & different attires. The silk saris, brightly mirrored cholis, colorful lehangas and the traditional salwar- kameez have fascinated many travellers, over time. Light cotton clothes are useful almost anywhere in India at anytime of year. It is a good idea to have some very lightweight long sleeve cotton and trousers for evenings, preferable light in colour, as they also give some protection against mosquitoes. Between Dec - Feb it can be cool at night even on the plains in N and E India, and at altitudes above 1,500m right across India some woolens are essential. Dress is rarely formal. In the large cities short sleeve shirt and ties are often worn for business. For traveling loose clothes are most comfortable.Indian dressing styles are marked by many variations, both religious and regional and one is likely to witness a plethora of colors, textures and styles in garments worn by the Indians.

People in India :-

Next to China, India is the country with the largest number of inhabitants in the world. Facing the fact that almost one thousand million people are living in India it is amazing that they occupy only 2.4 % of the earth's surface. The average population density is 298 inhabitants per square km. In some areas, population density reaches over 1000 inhabitants per km square for which two reasons can be mentioned. First, population remains concentrated in the big cities and around the fertile riverbeds of the Ganges and second huge parts of the country remain uninhabitable because they are covered either by desert or by high mountains. The average life expectancy is 58 years, the share of young people under the age of 18 is over 40%.Around ¾of Indians are living in the rural area, ¼ of the population lives in cities.The biggest cities are Kolkata (formerly Calcutta), Mumbai (formerly Bombay),Delhi and Chennai (formerly Madras). About 5 million Indians are living abroad,primarily in South and East Africa, in South-East-Asia, North America and around the Persian Gulf.

Religions in India :-

India's major religion, Hinduism, is practiced by approximately 80% of the population. In terms of the number of adherents, it's the largest religion in Asia and one of the world's oldest extant faiths. Hinduism has avast pantheon of gods, a number of holy books and postulates that everyone goes through a series of births or reincarnations that eventually lead to spiritual salvation. With each birth, you can move closer to or further from eventual enlightenment; the deciding factor is your karma. The Hindu religion has three basic practices. They are puja or worship, the cremation of the dead, and the rules and regulations of the caste system. Hinduism is not a proselytising religion since you cannot be converted: you're either born a Hindu or you're not. Buddhism was founded in northern India in about 500 BC and spread rapidly when emperor Ashoka embraced it but was gradually reabsorbed into Hinduism. Today Hindus regard the Buddha as another incarnation of the Hindu god Vishnu. There are now only 6.6 million Buddhists in India, but important Buddhist sites in northern India, such as Bodhgaya, Sarnath (near Varanasi) and Kushinagar (near Gorakhpur) remain important sites of pilgrimage.The Jain religion also began life as an attempt to reform Brahminical Hinduism.It emerged at the same time as Buddhism, and for many of the same reasons. The Jains now number only about 4.5 million and are found predominantly in the west and southwest of India. The religion has never found adherents outside India .Jains believe that the universe is infinite and was not created by a deity.They also believe in reincarnation and eventual spiritual salvation by following the path of the Jain prophets. There are more than 100 million Muslims in India, making it one of the largest Muslim nations on earth. Islam is the dominant religion in neighborliness countries of Pakistan and Bangladesh, and there is a Muslimmajority in Jammu & Kashmir. Muslim influence in India is particularlystrong in the fields of architecture, art and food. The Sikhs in India number18 million and are predominantly located in the Punjab. The religion was originally intended to bring together the best of Hinduism and Islam. Its basic tenets are similar to those of Hinduism with the important modification that the Sikhs are opposed to caste distinctions. The holiest shrine of the Sikhreligion is the Golden Temple in Amritsar.

Festivals in India :-

The Rajasthani's and all our Indian people love for color and joyous celebrations,music, dance and festivals makes the region one of the most colorful deserts in the world. Most holidays and festivals follow either the Indian lunar calendar or the Islamic calendar. Therefore they change annually relative to the Gregorian calendar. The following represents major national festivals:

Camel Festival in Bikaner: Essentially a cattle fair, it provides an opportunity to participate in some of the local sports.

Nagaur Fair in Nagaur: It a cattle fair and main attraction of this fail is Camel. Local people come here to buy and sale his animals.

Desert Festival in Jaisalmer: One of the most popular of all festivals it is a journey into the heart of the desert, the golden city of Jaisalmer that has a charm of its own. A true show on the sands which attracts even the much traveled visitor. Highly recommended. Be there.

Kite festival (in Delhi 15 August, in Rajasthan 14 January) A festival with a difference: as kites take to the sky all over Rajasthan. In the evening, kites with lights in them and fire works brighten the skies above. The main celebrations are in Jaipur and Jodhpur. If you like kite flying, you should be here.

Baneshwar Fair in Baneshwar: A religious festival with simple and traditional rituals. This fair is the center of attraction of a large number of tribal from the neighboring states of Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat who join their brethren from Rajasthan in offering prayers to Lord Shiva.

Gangaur Festival in Jaipur: A festival devoted to Goddess Parvati, the consort of Lord Shiva. It is time for young girls to dress up in their finery and pray for grooms of their choice while the married women pray for the well-being of their husbands. This 18-day festival is laced with various activities and culminates in a grand procession marking the arrival of Shiva to escort his bride home.

Mewar Festival in Udaipur: A festival to welcome the spring season. There is song, dance, processions, devotional music and fireworks where almost every body participates.

Elephant Festival in Jaipur: A festival to celebrate Holi, this is a great occasion for the visitor to watch several elephant sports and also play this festival of colors. A show is organized with the elephants turning out in their best finery.

Teej Festival in Jaipur: A festival to mark the advent of monsoon. Women dressed in bright colors and a lot of merriment prevails during Teej. Essentially a women's festival, it is interesting to watch them enjoying in groups and at various bazaars where they turn up to shop in all their finery.

Kajli Teej Festival in Bundi (July/August): Kajli Teej of Bundi is different in several ways,while Teej is celebrated on the third day of the month of Shravana, in Bundi itis celebrated on the third day of the month of Bhadra.

Dussehra Festival in Kota: Dussehra means the Tenth Day, being the 10th day of the bright half of Ashvin. This day is also known as Vijayadashmi, or the Victory Tenth, because of the victory of Ram over Ravana.

Marwar Festival in Jodhpur: A festival devoted mainly to the music and dance ofthe Marwar region. This is a festival that allows the visitor to understand and enjoy the folk traditions of this part of the state.

Pushkar Camel Fair in Pushkar: The well-known and marked with largest participation of all the festivals of Rajasthan, Pushkar is an important pilgrimage as well as the venue of a mammoth cattle fair. Bazaars, auctions, music and sports are highlight of this event. Recommended