India is the seventh largest country in the world. It is the second largest
country in the world in population. The river valleys of northeastern India are
among the most densely populated places in the world. India occupies a strategic
position in Asia, looking across the seas to Arabia and Africa on the west and
Burma , Malaysia and the Indonesian archipelago on the east. Geographically, the
Himalayan range keeps India apart from the rest of Asia.
India has great varieties and differences in both its land and its people. The
land includes desert, jungles, and one of the world's rainiest areas. India also
has broad plains, mighty rivers, the tallest mountain system in the world, and
tropical lowlands. The people of India belong to many different ethnic groups
and religions. They speak 14 major languages and more than 1,000 minor languages
and dialects.
The capital of India is New Delhi, and the country’s largest cities are Mumbai
(formerly Bombay), Delhi, Kolkata (formerly Calcutta), Chennai(formerly Madras),
Bangalore and Hyderabad.
Location India lies to the north of the equator between
8 degree 4 minutes and 37 degree 6 minutes north latitude and 68 degree 7
minutes and 97 degree 25 minutes east longitude. It is bounded on the south-west
by the Arabian sea and on the south-east by the Bay of Bengal. On the north,
north-east and north-west lie the Himalayan ranges. Kanyakumari constitutes the
southern tip of the Indian peninsula where it gets narrower and narrower, loses
itself into the Indian Ocean.
Extent India measures 3214 Kms from north to south and 2933
Kms from east to west with a total land area of 3,287,263 sq kms. It has a land
frontier of 15,200 kms and a coast line of 7516.5 kms. Andaman and Nicobar
islands in the Bay of Bengal and Lakshadweep in the Arabian sea are parts of
India.
Neighbours
India shares its political borders with Pakistan and Afghanistan on the west and
Bangladesh and Burma on the east. The northern boundary is made up of the
Sinkiang province of China, Tibet, Nepal and Bhutan. India is separated from Sri
Lanka by a narrow channel of sea formed by the Palk Strait and the Gulf of
Mannar.
People
Although India occupies only 2.4% of the world's land area, it supports over 15%
of the world's population. Most Indians (72%) live in 600,000 villages in the
rural areas. Large cities include New Delhi (10 million), Mumbai (12 million),
Kolkata (5 million), Chennai (5 million), Bangalore (5 million), Hyderabad (5
million) and Ahmedabad (4 million). Most Indian cities comprise an old and a new
city.
Environment
India has a rich diversity of wild life and natural resources. The Himalayas,
the highest and the youngest mountain range on the earth, is home to a vast
diversity of flora and fauna. There are over 500 species of mammals including
the famous Royal Bengal Tiger, elephants, rhinoceros and antelopes, as well as
2000 species of birds. Population growth and poaching have created strong
environmental pressures. India has established a number of national parks and
wild life sanctuaries to conserve the wildlife.
Climate
India experiences three seasons: summer, rainy or monsoon and winter. Climatic
conditions vary from tropical monsoon in south India to cool temperate in the
north. Monsoon rains occur throughout the country between July and September and
severe hot weather with temperatures above 40°C persists for most of summer
months of May and June. Rainfall varies greatly from the massive 11,430 mm per
year at Cherrapunji in Assam to below 100 mm in the Thar Desert.
Physiographic regions The mainland comprises seven regions.
1.Northern mountains including the Himalayas and the north-eastern mountain
ranges,
2.The Indo-Gangetic plain,
3.The desert,
4.Central Highlands and Peninsular plateau,
5.East coast,
6.West coast,
7.Bordering seas and islands.
Mountain ranges They are seven :
1.The Himalayas,
2.The Patkai and other ranges bordering India in the north and north-east,
3.The Vindhyas which separates the Indo-Gangetic plain from the deccan plateau,
4.The Satpura,
5.The Arravali,
6.The Sahyadri which covers the eastern fringe of the west coast plains and
7.The Eastern Ghats, irregularly scattered on the east coast and forming the
boundary on the east coast plain.
History
One of the most fascinating aspect of India, is its exciting history. To provide
comprehensive information about Indian history, we have created a separate link
below. To fully comprehend and enjoy the new information, we suggest, not to
read many pages at once. Read few pages per day. Read them few times again, to
get familiar with Indian names.
If you attempt to read all at once, there is so much information in there, you
will lose interest.
To further facilitate the understanding of Indian history, it is subdivided into
broad historical periods based on the available historical resources.
