India

Internet country code

.in

Internet hosts

86,871 (2003)

Internet users

18.481 million (2003)

Radio broadcast stations

AM 153, FM 91, shortwave 68 (1998)

Telephone system

general assessment: recent deregulation and liberalization of telecommunications laws and policies have prompted rapid change; local and long distance service provided throughout all regions of the country, with services primarily concentrated in the urban areas; steady improvement is taking place with the recent admission of private and private-public investors, but telephone density remains low at about seven for each 100 persons nationwide but only one per 100 persons in rural areas and a national waiting list of over 1.7 million; fastest growth is in cellular service with modest growth in fixed lines domestic: expansion of domestic service, although still weak in rural areas, resulted from increased competition and dramatic reductions in price led in large part by wireless service; mobile cellular service (both CDMA and GSM) introduced in 1994 and organized nationwide into four metropolitan cities and 19 telecom circles each with about three private service providers and one state-owned service provider; in recent years significant trunk capacity added in the form of fiber-optic cable and one of the world's largest domestic satellite systems, the Indian National Satellite system (INSAT), with 5 satellites supporting 33,000 very small aperture terminals (VSAT) international: country code - 91; satellite earth stations - 8 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Inmarsat (Indian Ocean region); nine gateway exchanges operating from Mumbai (Bombay), New Delhi, Kolkata (Calcutta), Chennai (Madras), Jalandhar, Kanpur, Gandhinagar, Hyderabad, and Ernakulam; 5 submarine cables, including Sea-Me-We-3 with landing sites at Cochin and Mumbai (Bombay), Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe (FLAG) with landing site at Mumbai (Bombay), South Africa - Far East (SAFE) with landing site at Cochin, i2icn linking to Singapore with landing sites at Mumbai (Bombay) and Chennai (Madras), and Tata Indicom linking Singapore and Chennai (Madras), provide a significant increase in the bandwidth available for both voice and data traffic (2004)

Telephones - main lines in use

48.917 million (2003)

Telephones - mobile cellular

26,154,400 (2003)

Television broadcast stations

562 (of which 82 stations have 1 kW or greater power and 480 stations have less than 1 kW of power) (1997)

Agriculture - products

rice, wheat, oilseed, cotton, jute, tea, sugarcane, potatoes; cattle, water buffalo, sheep, goats, poultry; fish

Budget

revenues: $86.69 billion expenditures: $114.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $13.5 billion (2003)

Currency

Indian rupee (INR)

Currency code

INR

Current account balance

$3.41 billion (2003)

Debt - external

$101.7 billion (2003 est.)

Distribution of family income - Gini index

37.8 (1997)

Economic aid - recipient

$2.9 billion (FY98/99)

Economy - overview

India's economy encompasses traditional village farming, modern agriculture, handicrafts, a wide range of modern industries, and a multitude of support services. Government controls have been reduced on foreign trade and investment, and privatization of domestic output has proceeded slowly. The economy has posted an excellent average growth rate of 6% since 1990, reducing poverty by about 10 percentage points. India is capitalizing on its large numbers of well-educated people skilled in the English language to become a major exporter of software services and software workers. Despite strong growth, the World Bank and others worry about the continuing public-sector budget deficit, running at approximately 60% of GDP.

Electricity - consumption

497.2 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - exports

321 million kWh (2001)

Electricity - imports

1.54 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - production

533.3 billion kWh (2001)

Exchange rates

Indian rupees per US dollar - 46.5806 (2003), 48.6103 (2002), 47.1864 (2001), 44.9416 (2000), 43.0554 (1999)

Exports

$57.24 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Exports - commodities

textile goods, gems and jewelry, engineering goods, chemicals, leather manufactures

Exports - partners

US 20.6%, China 6.4%, UK 5.3%, Hong Kong 4.8%, Germany 4.4% (2003)

Fiscal year

1 April - 31 March

GDP

purchasing power parity - $3.033 trillion (2003 est.)

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture: 23.6% industry: 28.4% services: 48% (2002 est.)

GDP - per capita

purchasing power parity - $2,900 (2003 est.)

GDP - real growth rate

8.3% (2003 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share

lowest 10%: 3.5% highest 10%: 33.5% (1997)

Imports

$74.15 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Imports - commodities

crude oil, machinery, gems, fertilizer, chemicals

Imports - partners

US 6.4%, Belgium 5.6%, UK 4.8%, China 4.3%, Singapore 4% (2003)

Industrial production growth rate

6.5% (2003 est.)

Industries

textiles, chemicals, food processing, steel, transportation equipment, cement, mining, petroleum, machinery, software

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

3.8% (2003 est.)

Investment (gross fixed)

23.1% of GDP (2003)

Labor force

472 million (2003)

Labor force - by occupation

agriculture 60%, industry 17%, services 23% (1999)

Natural gas - consumption

22.75 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - exports

0 cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - imports

0 cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - production

22.75 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves

542.4 billion cu m (1 January 2002)

Oil - consumption

2.13 million bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports

NA (2001)

Oil - imports

NA (2001)

Oil - production

732,400 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - proved reserves

4.33 billion bbl (1 January 2002)

Population below poverty line

25% (2002 est.)

Public debt

59.7% of GDP (2003)

Reserves of foreign exchange & gold

$102.3 billion (2003)

Unemployment rate

9.5% (2003)

Area

total: 3,287,590 sq km land: 2,973,190 sq km water: 314,400 sq km

Area - comparative

slightly more than one-third the size of the US

Climate

varies from tropical monsoon in south to temperate in north

Coastline

7,000 km

Elevation extremes

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

Environment - current issues

deforestation; soil erosion; overgrazing; desertification; air pollution from industrial effluents and vehicle emissions; water pollution from raw sewage and runoff of agricultural pesticides; tap water is not potable throughout the country; huge and growing population is overstraining natural resources

Environment - international agreements

party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geographic coordinates

20 00 N, 77 00 E

Geography - note

dominates South Asian subcontinent; near important Indian Ocean trade routes

Irrigated land

590,000 sq km (1998 est.)

Land boundaries

total: 14,103 km border countries: Bangladesh 4,053 km, Bhutan 605 km, Burma 1,463 km, China 3,380 km, Nepal 1,690 km, Pakistan 2,912 km

Land use

arable land: 54.4% permanent crops: 2.74% other: 42.86% (2001)

Location

Southern Asia, bordering the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal, between Burma and Pakistan

Map references

Asia

Maritime claims

territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin

Natural hazards

droughts; flash floods, as well as widespread and destructive flooding from monsoonal rains; severe thunderstorms; earthquakes

Natural resources

coal (fourth-largest reserves in the world), iron ore, manganese, mica, bauxite, titanium ore, chromite, natural gas, diamonds, petroleum, limestone, arable land

Terrain

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

Administrative divisions

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

Capital

New Delhi

Constitution

26 January 1950

Country name

conventional long form: Republic of India conventional short form: India

Diplomatic representation from the US

chief of mission: Ambassador David C. MULFORD embassy: Shantipath, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi 110021 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [91] (11) 2419-8000 FAX: [91] (11) 2419-0017 consulate(s) general: Chennai (Madras), Kolkata (Calcutta), Mumbai (Bombay)

Diplomatic representation in the US

chief of mission: Ambassador Ranendra SEN chancery: 2107 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008; note - Consular Wing located at 2536 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 939-7000 FAX: [1] (202) 265-4351 consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, New York, and San Francisco

Executive branch

chief of state: President Abdul KALAM (since 26 July 2002); Vice President Bhairon Singh SHEKHAWAT (since 19 August 2002) head of government: Prime Minister Manmohan SINGH (since NA May 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister elections: president elected by an electoral college consisting of elected members of both houses of Parliament and the legislatures of the states for a five-year term; election last held NA July 2002 (next to be held 18 July 2007); vice president elected by both houses of Parliament for a five-year term; election last held 12 August 2002 (next to be held NA August 2007); prime minister chosen by parliamentary members of the majority party following legislative elections; election last held April - May 2004 (next to be held NA 2009) election results: Abdul KALAM elected president; percent of electoral college vote - 89.6%; Bhairon Singh SHEKHAWAT elected vice president; percent of Parliament vote - 59.8%

Flag description

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

Government type

federal republic

Independence

15 August 1947 (from UK)

International organization participation

AfDB, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), BIS, C, CERN (observer), CP, FAO, G- 6, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, OAS (observer), ONUB, OPCW, PCA, SAARC, SACEP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMOVIC, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO

Judicial branch

Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president and remain in office until they reach the age of 65)

Legal system

based on English common law; limited judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

Legislative branch

bicameral Parliament or Sansad consists of the Council of States or Rajya Sabha (a body consisting of not more than 250 members, up to 12 of which are appointed by the president, the remainder are chosen by the elected members of the state and territorial assemblies; members serve six-year terms) and the People's Assembly or Lok Sabha (545 seats; 543 elected by popular vote, 2 appointed by the president; members serve five-year terms) elections: People's Assembly - last held 20 April through 10 May 2004 (next to be held NA 2009) election results: People's Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - INC 145, BJP 138, CPI(M) 43, SP 36, RJD 21, BSP 19, DMK 16, SS 12, BJD 11, CPI 10, NCP 9, JDU 8, SAD 8, PMK 6, TDP 5, TRS 5, JMM 5, LJSP 4, MDMK 4, independents 5, other 30

National holiday

Republic Day, 26 January (1950)

Political parties and leaders

All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam or AIADMK [C. Jayalalitha JAYARAM]; All India Forward Bloc or AIFB, [D. BISWAS, general secretary]; Asom Gana Parishad [Brindaban GOSWAMI]; Bahujan Samaj Party or BSP [MAYAWATI]; Bharatiya Janata Party or BJP [Venkaiah NAIDU]; Biju Janata Dal or BJD [Naveen PATNAIK]; Communist Party of India or CPI [Ardhendu Bhushan BARDHAN]; Communist Party of India/Marxist-Leninist or CPI/ML [Dipankar BHATTACHARYA]; Congress (I) Party [Sonia GANDHI]; Dravida Munnetra Kazagham or DMK (a regional party in Tamil Nadu) [M. KARUNANIDHI]; Indian National Congress or INC [leader NA]; Indian National League [Suliaman SAITH]; Janata Dal (Secular) [H. D. Deve GOWDA]; Janata Dal (United) or JDU [Sharad YADAV]; Jharkhand Mukti Morcha or JMM [leader NA]; Kerala Congress (Mani faction) [K. M. MANI]; Lok Jan Shakti Party or LSP [leader NA]; Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam or MDMK [VAIKO]; Muslim League [G. M. BANATWALA]; Nationalist Congress Party or NCP [Sharad PAWAR]; Pattali Makkal Katchi or PMK [leader NA]; Rashtriya Janata Dal or RJD [Laloo Prasad YADAV]; Revolutionary Socialist Party or RSP [Abani ROY]; Samajwadi Party or SP [Mulayam Singh YADAV]; Shiromani Akali Dal or SAD [G. S. TOHRA]; Shiv Sena or SS [Bal THACKERAY]; Tamil Maanila Congress [G. K. VASAN]; Telangana Rashtra Samithi or TRS [leader NA]; Telugu Desam Party or TDP [Chandrababu NAIDU]; Trinamool Congress [Mamata BANERJEE]

Political pressure groups and leaders

numerous religious or militant/chauvinistic organizations, including Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Bajrang Dal, and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh; various separatist groups seeking greater communal and/or regional autonomy, including the All Parties Hurriyat Conference

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Background

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

Military branches

Army, Navy (including naval air arm), Air Force, Coast Guard, various security or paramilitary forces (including Border Security Force, Assam Rifles, National Security Guards, Indo-Tibetan Border Police, Special Frontier Force, Central Reserve Police Force, Central Industrial Security Force, Railway Protection Force, and Defense Security Corps)

Military expenditures - dollar figure

$14,018.8 million (2003)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP

2.4% (2003)

Military manpower - availability

males age 15-49: 293,677,117 (2004 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service

males age 15-49: 172,153,371 (2004 est.)

Military manpower - military age and obligation

16 years of age for voluntary military service (2001)

Military manpower - reaching military age annually

males: 11,174,415 (2004 est.)

Age structure

0-14 years: 31.7% (male 173,869,856; female 164,003,915) 15-64 years: 63.5% (male 349,785,804; female 326,289,402) 65 years and over: 4.8% (male 25,885,725; female 25,235,905) (2004 est.)

Birth rate

22.8 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Death rate

8.38 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Ethnic groups

Indo-Aryan 72%, Dravidian 25%, Mongoloid and other 3% (2000)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate

0.8% (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths

310,000 (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS

3.97 million (2001 est.)

Infant mortality rate

total: 57.92 deaths/1,000 live births male: 58.52 deaths/1,000 live births female: 57.29 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)

Languages

English enjoys associate status but is the most important language for national, political, and commercial communication; Hindi is the national language and primary tongue of 30% of the people; there are 14 other official languages: Bengali, Telugu, Marathi, Tamil, Urdu, Gujarati, Malayalam, Kannada, Oriya, Punjabi, Assamese, Kashmiri, Sindhi, and Sanskrit; Hindustani is a popular variant of Hindi/Urdu spoken widely throughout northern India but is not an official language

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 63.99 years male: 63.25 years female: 64.77 years (2004 est.)

Literacy

definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 59.5% male: 70.2% female: 48.3% (2003 est.)

Median age

total: 24.4 years male: 24.4 years female: 24.4 years (2004 est.)

Nationality

noun: Indian(s) adjective: Indian

Net migration rate

-0.07 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)

Population

1,065,070,607 (July 2004 est.)

Population growth rate

1.44% (2004 est.)

Religions

Hindu 81.3%, Muslim 12%, Christian 2.3%, Sikh 1.9%, other groups including Buddhist, Jain, Parsi 2.5% (2000)

Sex ratio

at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.03 male(s)/female total population: 1.07 male(s)/female (2004 est.)

Total fertility rate

2.85 children born/woman (2004 est.)

Disputes - international

Kashmir remains the world's most highly militarized territorial dispute with portions under the de facto administration of China (Aksai Chin), India (Jammu and Kashmir), and Pakistan (Azad Kashmir and Northern Areas), but recent discussions and confidence-building measures among parties are beginning to defuse tensions; India does not recognize Pakistan's ceding lands to China in the 1965 boundary agreement; disputes with Pakistan over Indus River water sharing and the terminus of the Sir Creek Estuary at the mouth of the Rann of Kutch, which prevents maritime boundary delimitation; Pakistani maps continue to show Junagadh claim in Indian Gujarat State; most of the rugged, militarized boundary with China is in dispute, but sides have committed to begin resolution with discussions on the least disputed Middle Sector; Joint Border Committee with Nepal continues to work on resolution of minor disputed boundary sections; discussions with Bangladesh remain stalled to delimit a small section of river boundary, to exchange 162 miniscule enclaves in both countries, to allocate divided villages, and to stop illegal cross-border trade, migration, and violence; Bangladesh protests India's attempts to fence off high-traffic sections of the porous boundary; dispute with Bangladesh over volcanic New Moore/South Talpatty/Purbasha Island in the Bay of Bengal deters maritime boundary delimitation; India seeks cooperation from Bhutan and Burma to keep out Indian Nagaland insurgents; joint border commission continues to work on small disputed sections of boundary with Nepal; India has instituted a stricter border regime to restrict transit of Maoist insurgents and illegal cross-border activities from Nepal

Illicit drugs

world's largest producer of licit opium for the pharmaceutical trade, but an undetermined quantity of opium is diverted to illicit international drug markets; transit point for illicit narcotics produced in neighboring countries; illicit producer of methaqualone; vulnerable to narcotics money laundering through the hawala system

Refugees and internally displaced persons

refugees (country of origin): 92,394 (China), 60,922 (Sri Lanka) IDPs: 650,000 (Jammu and Kashmir conflicts; most IDPs are Kashmiri Hindus) (2004)

Airports

333 (2003 est.)

Airports - with paved runways

total: 234 over 3,047 m: 14 2,438 to 3,047 m: 47 1,524 to 2,437 m: 78 914 to 1,523 m: 74 under 914 m: 21 (2004 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways

total: 99 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 9 914 to 1,523 m: 42 under 914 m: 45 (2004 est.)

Heliports

20 (2003 est.)

Highways

total: 3,319,644 km paved: 1,517,077 km unpaved: 1,802,567 km (1999 est.)

Merchant marine

total: 306 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 6,555,507 GRT/11,069,791 DWT by type: bulk 90, cargo 77, chemical tanker 14, combination bulk 1, combination ore/oil 2, container 10, liquefied gas 10, passenger/cargo 5, petroleum tanker 93, roll on/roll off 1, short-sea/passenger 2, specialized tanker 1 foreign-owned: China 2, Portugal 1 registered in other countries: 63 (2004 est.)

Pipelines

gas 6,171 km; liquid petroleum gas 1,195 km; oil 5,613 km; refined products 5,567 km (2004)

Ports and harbors

Chennai (Madras), Cochin, Jawaharal Nehru, Kandla, Kolkata (Calcutta), Mumbai (Bombay), Vishakhapatnam

Railways

total: 63,140 km (15,994 km electrified) broad gauge: 45,099 km 1.676-m gauge narrow gauge: 14,776 km 1.000-m gauge; 3,265 km 0.762-m gauge and 0.610-m gauge (2003)

Waterways

14,500 km note: 5,200 km on major rivers and 485 km on canals suitable for mechanized vessels (2004)