India

federal republicIndependence 15 August 1947 (from UK)

India as the 1991 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 71 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.

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CapitalNew Delhi
Area3,287,590 km2
1991

Every edition of India

Populationas each edition published it
866.35 million July 1991 · 849.75m in 1990
Population growth% a year
Not in this edition 1.86% in 1993
Median ageyears
Not in this edition 24.1 yrs in 2003
Life expectancyyears at birth
Not in this edition 58.12 yrs in 1993
Fertility ratechildren per woman
3.7 children per woman 1991 · 3.8 in 1990
Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births
87 deaths per 1,000 live births 1991 · 89 in 1990
GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars
Not in this edition $270 in 1993
GDP real growth% a year
Not in this edition 4% in 1993

Geography

11 fields
Total area
3,287,590km2
land area: 2,973,190 km2Comparative area: slightly more than one-third the size of the US
Land boundaries
14,103km total
Bangladesh 4,053 km, Bhutan 605 km, Burma 1,463 km, China 3,380, Nepal 1,690 km, Pakistan 2,912 km

Coastline

  • 7,000 km Contiguous zone: 24 nm;
  • Continental shelf: edge of continental margin or 200 nm;
  • Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm;
  • Territorial sea: 12 nm

Disputes

boundaries with Bangladesh, China, and Pakistan; water sharing problems with downstream riparians, Bangladesh over the Ganges and Pakistan over the Indus

Climate

varies from tropical monsoon in south to temperate in north

Terrain

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

Natural resources

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

Land use

  • arable land 55%;
  • permanent crops 1%;
  • meadows and pastures 4%;
  • forest and woodland 23%;
  • other 17%;
  • includes irrigated 13%

Environment

  • droughts, flash floods, severe thunderstorms common;
  • deforestation;
  • soil erosion;
  • overgrazing;
  • air and water pollution;
  • desertification

Note

dominates South Asian subcontinent; near important Indian Ocean trade routes

People

14 fields
Population
866,351,738
(July 1991), growth rate 1.9% (1991)

Per 1,000 population(1991)

Birth
29Death
10Net migration
0

Ethnic divisions

Indo-Aryan 72%Dravidian 25%Mongoloid and other 3%

Religion

Hindu 82.6%Muslim 11.4%Christian 2.4%Sikh 2.0%Buddhist 0.7%Jains 0.5%other 0.4%
Literacy
48%
(male 62%, female 34%) age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)

Infant mortality rate

87 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)

Life expectancy at birth

57 years male, 59 years female (1991)

Total fertility rate

3.7 children born/woman (1991)

Nationality

noun--Indian(s); adjective--Indian

Language

  • Hindi, English, and 14 other official languages--Bengali, Telugu, Marathi, Tamil, Urdu, Gujarati, Malayalam, Kannada, Oriya, Punjabi, Assamese, Kashmiri, Sindhi, and Sanskrit;
  • 24 languages spoken by a million or more persons each;
  • numerous other languages and dialects, for the most part mutually unintelligible;
  • Hindi is the national language and primary tongue of 30% of the people;
  • English enjoys associate status but is the most important language for national, political, and commercial communication;
  • Hindustani, a popular variant of Hindi/Urdu, is spoken widely throughout northern India

Labor force

284,400,000; 67% agriculture (FY85)

Organized labor

less than 5% of the labor force

Government

Federal republic

17 fields

People's Assembly, 545 seats, elected 21 May, 12 and 15 June 1991seats by party

509 elected--Congress (I) Party 225Bharatiya Janata Party 117Janata Dal Party 55Communist Party of India (Marxist) 35Communist Party of India 13Telugu Desam 12AIADMK 11Samajwadi Janata Party 5Shiv Sena 4RSP 4BSP 1Congress (S) Party 1other 26

Long-form name

Republic of India

Type

federal republic

Capital

New Delhi

Administrative divisions

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

Independence

15 August 1947 (from UK)

Constitution

26 January 1950

National holiday

Anniversary of the Proclamation of the Republic, 26 January (1950)

Executive branch

president, vice president, prime minister, Council of Ministers

Legislative branch

bicameral Parliament (Sansad) consists of an upper house or Council of States (Rajya Sabha) and a lower house or House of the People (Lok Sabha)

Judicial branch

  • Supreme Court Chief of State--President Ramaswamy Iyer VENKATARAMAN (since 25 July 1987);
  • Vice President Dr. Shankar Dayal SHARMA (since 3 September 1987);
  • Head of Government--Prime Minister P. V. Narasimha RAO (since 21 June 1991) Congress (I) Party, P. V. Narasimha RAO, president;
  • Bharatiya Janata Party, L. K. ADVANI;
  • Janata Dal Party, V. P. SINGH;
  • Communist Party of India/Marxist (CPI/M), E. M. S. NAMBOODIRIPAD;
  • Communist Party of India (CPI), C. Rajeswara RAO;
  • Telugu Desam (a regional party in Andhra Pradesh), N. T. Rama RAO;
  • All-India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazagham (AIADMK; a regional party in Tamil Nadu), JAYALALITHA;
  • Samajwadi Janata Party, CHANDRA SHEKHAR;
  • Shiv Sena, Bal THACKERAY;
  • Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP), Tridip CHOWDHURY;
  • Bahujana Samaj Party (BSP), Kanshi RAM;
  • Congress (S) Party, leader NA;
  • Communist Party of India/Marxist-Leninist (CPI/ML), Satyanarayan SINGH;
  • Dravida Munnetra Kazagham (a regional party in Tamil Nadu), M. KARUNANIDHI;
  • Akali Dal factions representing Sikh religious community in the Punjab;
  • National Conference (NC; a regional party in Jammu and Kashmir), Farooq ABDULLAH;
  • Asom Gana Parishad (a regional party in Assam), Prafulla MAHANTA

Suffrage

  • universal at age 18 People's Assembly--last held 21 May, 12 and 15 June 1991 (next to be held by November 1996);
  • results--percent of vote by party NA;
  • seats--(545 total), 509 elected--Congress (I) Party 225, Bharatiya Janata Party 117, Janata Dal Party 55, Communist Party of India (Marxist) 35, Communist Party of India 13, Telugu Desam 12, AIADMK 11, Samajwadi Janata Party 5, Shiv Sena 4, RSP 4, BSP 1, Congress (S) Party 1, other 26;
  • note--second and third rounds of voting were delayed because of the assassination of Congress President Rajiv GANDHI on 21 May 1991

Communists

466,000 members claimed by CPI, 361,000 members claimed by CPI/M; Communist extremist groups, about 15,000 members

Other political or pressure groups

  • various separatist groups seeking greater communal autonomy;
  • numerous religious or militant/chauvinistic organizations, including
    • Adam Sena,
    • Anand Marg,
    • Vishwa Hindu Parishad,
    • and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh

Member of

AfDB, AG (observer), AsDB, C, CCC, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G-6, G-19, G-24, G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ISO, ITU, LORCS, NAM, PCA, SAARC, UN, UNAVEM, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIIMOG, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation

  • Ambassador Abid HUSSEIN;
  • Chancery at 2107 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington DC 20008;
  • telephone (202) 939-7000;
  • there are Indian Consulates General in Chicago, New York, and San Francisco;
  • US--Ambassador William CLARK, Jr.;
  • Embassy at Shanti Path, Chanakyapuri 110021, New Delhi;
  • telephone [91] (11) 600651;
  • there are US Consulates General in Bombay, Calcutta, and Madras

Flag

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

Economy

India's economy is a mixture of traditional village farming and handicrafts, modern agriculture, old and new branches of industry, and a multitude of support services.

17 fields
Unemployment rate
20%
(1990 est.)
External debt
$69.8billion
(1990 est.)

Budget

Revenues
$34 billionExpenditures
$54 billion
expenditures, including capital expenditures of $13.3 billion (FY91)

Overview

India's economy is a mixture of traditional village farming and handicrafts, modern agriculture, old and new branches of industry, and a multitude of support services. It presents both the entrepreneurial skills and drives of the capitalist system and widespread government intervention of the socialist mold.

Growth of 4% to 5% annually in the 1980s has softened the impact of population growth on unemployment, social tranquility, and the environment. Agricultural output has continued to expand, reflecting the greater use of modern farming techniques and improved seed that have helped to make India self-sufficient in food grains and a net agricultural exporter.

However, tens of millions of villagers, particularly in the south, have not benefited from the green revolution and live in abject poverty. Industry has benefited from a partial liberalization of controls. The growth rate of the service sector has also been strong. India, however, has been challenged more recently by much lower foreign exchange reserves, higher inflation, and a large debt service burden.

GNP

$254 billion, per capita $300; real growth rate 4.5% (1990 est.)

Exports

  • $17.0 billion (f.o.b., FY90);
  • commodities--gems and jewelry, engineering goods, clothing, textiles, chemicals, tea, coffee, fish products;
  • partners--EC 25%, US 19%, USSR and Eastern Europe 17%, Japan 10%

Imports

  • $24.8 billion (c.i.f., FY90);
  • commodities--petroleum, capital goods, uncut gems and jewelry, chemicals, iron and steel, edible oils;
  • partners--EC 33%, Middle East 19%, Japan 10%, US 9%, USSR and Eastern Europe 8%

Industrial production

growth rate 8.4% (1990); accounts for about 25% of GDP

Electricity

70,000,000 kW capacity; 245,000 million kWh produced, 290 kWh per capita (1990)

Industries

textiles, food processing, steel, machinery, transportation equipment, cement, jute manufactures, mining, petroleum, power, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, electronics

Agriculture

  • accounts for about 30% of GNP and employs 67% of labor force;
  • self-sufficient in food grains;
  • principal crops--rice, wheat, oilseeds, cotton, jute, tea, sugarcane, potatoes;
  • livestock--cattle, buffaloes, sheep, goats and poultry;
  • fish catch of about 3 million metric tons ranks among the world's top 10 fishing nations

Illicit drugs

  • licit producer of opium poppy for the pharmaceutical trade, but some opium is diverted to illicit international drug markets;
  • major transit country for illicit narcotics produced in neighboring countries

Economic aid

  • US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $4.4 billion;
  • Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1980-88), $20.1 billion;
  • OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $315 million;
  • USSR (1970-89), $11.6 billion;
  • Eastern Europe (1970-89), $105 million

Currency

Indian rupee (plural--rupees); 1 Indian rupee (Re) = 100 paise

Exchange rates

Indian rupees (Rs) per US$1--18.329 (January 1990), 17.504 (1990), 16.226 (1989), 13.917 (1988), 12.962 (1987), 12.611 (1986), 12.369 (1985)

Fiscal year

1 April-31 March

Communications

9 fields

Merchant marine, 308 ships by type

short-sea passenger 1passenger-cargo 8cargo 100roll-on/roll-off cargo 1container 8petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker 54chemical tanker 10combination ore/oil 9bulk 115combination bulk 2308 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 6,087,451 GRT/10,150,460 DWT

Airports, 345 total, 288 usable

permanent-surface runways
198runways over 3,659 m
2runways 2,440-3,659 m
57runways 1,220-2,439 m
88

Networkskm

Highways
1,633,300Railroads
61,850Inland waterways
16,180
Highways: (1986); 515,300 km secondary and 1,118,000 km gravel, crushed stone, or earth · Railroads: (1986); 33,553 km 1.676-meter broad gauge, 24,051 km 1.000-meter gauge, 4,246 km narrow gauge (0.762 meter and 0.610 meter); 12,617 km is double track; 6,500 km is electrified · Inland waterways: ; 3,631 km navigable by large vessels

Railroads

  • 61,850 km total (1986);
  • 33,553 km 1.676-meter broad gauge, 24,051 km 1.000-meter gauge, 4,246 km narrow gauge (0.762 meter and 0.610 meter);
  • 12,617 km is double track;
  • 6,500 km is electrified

Highways

1,633,300 km total (1986); 515,300 km secondary and 1,118,000 km gravel, crushed stone, or earth

Inland waterways

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

Pipelines

crude oil, 3,497 km; refined products, 1,703 km; natural gas, 902 km (1989)

Ports

Bombay, Calcutta, Cochin, Kandla, Madras, New Mangalore, Port Blair (Andaman Islands)

Civil air

93 major transport aircraft

Telecommunications

  • poor domestic telephone service, international radio communications adequate;
  • 4,700,000 telephones;
  • stations--96 AM, 4 FM, 274 TV (government controlled);
  • domestic satellite system for communications and TV;
  • 3 Indian Ocean INTELSAT earth stations;
  • submarine cables to Malaysia and United Arab Emirates

Defense Forces

Army, Navy, Air Force, Police Force, Border Security Forces, Coast Guard, Assam Rifles

3 fields
Defense expenditures
$9.2billion
3.5% of GNP (FY91)

Branches

Army, Navy, Air Force, Police Force, Border Security Forces, Coast Guard, Assam Rifles

Manpower availability

  • males 15-49, 232,793,714;
  • 137,259,444 fit for military service;
  • about 9,431,908 reach military age (17) annually

Central Intelligence Agency. “India.” The World Factbook 1991. Archived by The Factbook, thefactbook.org/india/1991.

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