About India
India occupies a strategic position in Asia, looking across the seas to Arabia and Africa on the west and to Myanmar, Malaysia and the Indonesian archipelago on the east. Geographically, the Himalayan ranges keep India apart from the rest of Asia. India shares its political borders with Pakistan and Afghanistan on the west and Bangladesh and Myanmar on the east, Sinkiang provinces are on the north and Sri Lanka on south.
India is so vast that the climatic conditions are much varied. There are mainly three seasons a year: Rainy (June-September: s.w. monsoon; October –November: n.e. monsoon), Summer (April –July), Winter (mid October – February).
Indian population is polygenetic and is said to be the melting pot of various races. Hindi is the national language. Though foreign in its origin, English has been adopted in India as a language of education and literary expression, as well as being an important medium of communication on a vast scale. The population is around 1.05 billion, the second largest after China, and it has the eleventh largest economy in the world.
All the great religions of the world have their followers in India. Each one of these groups has its own body of beliefs, myths and legends. These are celebrated in different forms of worship and in festivals. India has rich cultural heritage in the field of dance, music and theatre. Two main schools of classical music – Hindustani and Carnatic continue to survive through oral tradition. Dance in India has an unbroken tradition of over 2000 years.
On Line Resources
- Government of India Websites
- Ministry of Tourism, government of India
- US Dept. of State, Consular Information Sheet
- Centers for Disease Control
- Library of Congress
