About India

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

Data code IN

Government 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)

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

Constitution 26 January 1950

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

Suffrage 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch chief of state:President Kicheril Raman NARAYANAN (since 25 July 1997); Vice President Krishnan KANT (since 21 August 1997)
head of government:Prime Minister Atal Behari VAJPAYEE (since 19 March 1998)
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 14 July 1997 (next to be held NA July 2002); vice president elected by both houses of Parliament for a five-year term; election last held 16 August 1997 (next to be held NA August 2002); prime minister elected by parliamentary members of the majority party following legislative elections; election last held NA October 1999 (next to be held NA October 2004)
election results:Kicheril Raman NARAYANAN elected president; percent of electoral college vote - NA; Krishnan KANT elected vice president; percent of Parliament vote - NA; Atal Behari VAJPAYEE elected prime minister; percent of vote - NA

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 5 September through 3 October 1999 (next to be held NA 2004)
election results:People's Assembly - percent of vote by party - BJP alliance 40.8%, Congress alliance 33.8%, other 25.4%; seats by party - BJP alliance 304, Congress alliance 134, other 105

Judicial branch Supreme Court, judges are appointed by the president and remain in office until they reach the age of 65

Political parties and leaders Akali Dal (representing Sikh religious community in Punjab) [Prakash Singh BADAL]; All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam or AIADMK [J. JAYALALITHA]; All India Forward Bloc or AIFB [Prem Dutta PALIWAL (chairman), Chitta BASU (general secretary)]; Asom Gana Parishad [Prafulla Kumar MAHANTA]; Bahujan Samaj Party or BSP [Kanshi RAM]; Bharatiya Janata Party or BJP [Kushabhau THAKRE, president, L. K. ADVANI, A. B. VAJPAYEE]; Bihar Peoples Party [Anand Mohan SINGH]; Biju Janata Dal or BJD [Navin PATNAIK]; Communist Party of India or CPI [Indrajit GUPTA]; Communist Party of India/Marxist or CPI/M [Harkishan Singh SURJEET]; Communist Party of India/Marxist-Leninist or CPI/ML [Vinod MISHRA]; Congress (I) Party [Sonia GANDHI, president]; Dravida Munnetra Kazagham or DMK (a regional party in Tamil Nadu) [M. KARUNANIDHI]; Indian National League [Suliaman SAIT]; Janata Dal (Ajit) [Ajit SINGH]; Janata Dal United Party or JDU [Sharad YADAV, president, I. K. GUJRAL]; Kerala Congress (Mani faction) [K. M. MANI]; Muslim League [G. M. BANATWALA]; National Conference or NC (a regional party in Jammu and Kashmir) [Farooq ABDULLAH]; Rashtriya Janata Dal or RJD [Laloo Prasad YADAV]; Revolutionary Socialist Party or RSP [Tridip CHOWDHURY]; Samajwadi Party or SP [Mulayam Singh YADAV, president]; Samata Party or SAP (formerly Janata Dal members) [George FERNANDES]; Shiv Sena or SHS [Bal THACKERAY]; Tamil Maanila Congress [G. K. MOOPANAR]; Telugu Desam (a regional party in Andhra Pradesh) [Chandrababu NAIDU]; Trinamool Congress [Mamata BANNERJEE]

Political pressure groups and leaders numerous religious or militant/chauvinistic organizations, including Vishwa Hindu Parishad, and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh; various separatist groups seeking greater communal and/or regional autonomy

International organization participation AfDB, AsDB, BIS, C, CCC, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G- 6, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA (observer), IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MINURSO, MIPONUH, MONUC, NAM, OAS (observer), OPCW, PCA, SAARC, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNIKOM, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNU, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO

Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission:Ambassador Naresh CHANDRA
chancery:2107 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008; note - Embassy located at 2536 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone:[1] (202) 939-7000
FAX:[1] (202) 483-3972
consulate(s) general:Chicago, Houston, New York, and San Francisco

Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission:Ambassador Richard F. CELESTE
embassy:Shanti Path, Chanakyapuri 110021, New Delhi
mailing address:use embassy street address
telephone:[91] (11) 688-9033, 611-3033
FAX:[91] (11) 419-0017
consulate(s) general:Calcutta, Chennai (Madras), Mumbai (Bombay)

Flag description 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

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Economy - overview India's economy encompasses traditional village farming, modern agriculture, handicrafts, a wide range of modern industries, and a multitude of support services. More than a third of the population is too poor to be able to afford an adequate diet, and market surveys indicate that fewer than 5% of all households had an annual income equivalent to $2,300 or more in 1995-96. India's international payments position remained strong in 1999 with adequate foreign exchange reserves, reasonably stable exchange rates, and booming exports of software services. Lower production of some nonfoodgrain crops offset recovery in industrial production. Strong demand for India's high technology exports will bolster growth in 2000.

GDP purchasing power parity - $1.805 trillion (1999 est.)

GDP - real growth rate 5.5% (1999 est.)

GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $1,800 (1999 est.)

GDP - composition by sector agriculture:25%
industry:30%
services:45% (1997)

Population below poverty line 35% (1994 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%:4.1%
highest 10%:25% (1994)

Inflation rate (consumer prices) 6.7% (1999 est.)

Labor force NA

Labor force - by occupation agriculture 67%, services 18%, industry 15% (1995 est.)

Unemployment rate NA%

Budget revenues:$35.8 billion
expenditures:$66.3 billion, including capital expenditures of $15.9 billion (FY98/99 est.)

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

Industrial production growth rate 6% (1999 est.)

Electricity - production 448.6 billion kWh (FY98/99 est.)

Electricity - production by source fossil fuel:80.34%
hydro:17.08%
nuclear:2.38%
other:0.2% (1998)

Electricity - consumption 416.346 billion kWh (1998)

Electricity - exports 130 million kWh (1998)

Electricity - imports 1.575 billion kWh (1998)

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

Exports $36.3 billion (f.o.b., 1999 est.)

Exports - commodities textile goods, gems and jewelry, engineering goods, chemicals, leather manufactures

Exports - partners US 21%, UK 6%, Germany 6%, Hong Kong 5%, Japan 5%, UAE 4% (1998)

Imports $50.2 billion (f.o.b., 1999 est.)

Imports - commodities crude oil and petroleum products, machinery, gems, fertilizer, chemicals

Imports - partners US 10%, Belgium 7%, UK 6%, Germany 6%, Saudi Arabia 6%, Japan 6% (1998)

Debt - external $98 billion (March 1999)

Economic aid - recipient $2.9 billion (FY98/99)

Currency 1 Indian rupee (Re) = 100 paise

Exchange rates Indian rupees (Rs) per US$1 - 43.552 (January 2000), 43.055 (1999), 41.259 (1998), 36.313 (1997), 35.433 (1996), 32.427 (1995)

Fiscal year 1 April - 31 March

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Telephones - main lines in use 18.95 million (1999)

Telephones - mobile cellular 1.9 million (April 1998)

Telephone system mediocre service; local and long distance service provided throughout all regions of the country, with services primarily concentrated in the urban areas; major objective is to continue to expand and modernize long-distance network in order to keep pace with rapidly growing number of local subscriber lines; steady improvement is taking place with the recent admission of private and private-public investors, but demand for communication services is also growing rapidly
domestic:local service is provided by microwave radio relay and coaxial cable, with open wire and obsolete electromechanical and manual switchboard systems still in use in rural areas; starting in the 1980s, a substantial amount of digital switch gear has been introduced for local and long-distance service; long-distance traffic is carried mostly by coaxial cable and low-capacity microwave radio relay; since 1985 significant trunk capacity has been added in the form of fiber-optic cable and a domestic satellite system with 254 earth stations; mobile cellular service is provided in four metropolitan cities
international:satellite earth stations - 8 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Inmarsat (Indian Ocean region); nine gateway exchanges operating from Mumbai (Bombay), New Delhi, Calcutta, Chennai (Madras), Jalandhar, Kanpur, Gaidhinagar, Hyderabad, and Ernakulam; 4 submarine cables - LOCOM linking Chennai (Madras) to Penang; Indo-UAE-Gulf cable linking Mumbai (Bombay) to Al Fujayrah, UAE; India-SEA-ME-WE-3, SEA-ME-WE-2 with landing sites at Cochin and Mumbai (Bombay); Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe (FLAG) with landing site at Mumbai (Bombay)

Radio broadcast stations AM 153, FM 91, shortwave 68 (1998)

Radios 116 million (1997)

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)

Televisions 63 million (1997)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 3 (1999

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Railways total:62,915 km (12,307 km electrified; 12,617 km double track)
broad gauge:40,620 km 1.676-m gauge
narrow gauge:18,501 km 1.000-m gauge; 3,794 km 0.762-m and 0.610-m gauge (1998 est.)

Highways total:3,319,644 km
paved:1,517,077 km
unpaved:1,802,567 km (1996 est.)

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

Pipelines crude oil 3,005 km; petroleum products 2,687 km; natural gas 1,700 km (1995)

Ports and harbors Calcutta, Chennai (Madras), Cochin, Jawaharal Nehru, Kandla, Mumbai (Bombay), Vishakhapatnam

Airports 346 (1999 est.)

Airports - with paved runways total:238
over 3,047 m:12
2,438 to 3,047 m:49
1,524 to 2,437 m:84
914 to 1,523 m:74
under 914 m:19 (1999 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways total:108
2,438 to 3,047 m:2
1,524 to 2,437 m:4
914 to 1,523 m:47
under 914 m:55 (1999 est.)

Heliports 16 (1999 est.)

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Military branches Army, Navy (including naval air arm), Air Force, various security or paramilitary forces (includes Border Security Force, Assam Rifles, and Rashtriya Rifles)

Military manpower - military age 17 years of age

Military manpower - availability males age 15-49:274,679,455 (2000 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49:161,223,332 (2000 est.)

Military manpower - reaching military age annually males:10,759,607 (2000 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure $10.055 billion (FY00)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP 2.5% (FY00

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