Geography

Physical geography

With an area covering almost three million square kilometres, India is the seventh largest country in the world. The broad geographic features of India are the Himalayas in the north, the upland plain (Deccan Plateau) in the south, flat to rolling plains along the Ganges and the great deserts in the north-west.

Climate

India experiences three seasons: summer, rainy or monsoon season, and winter. Climatic conditions vary from tropical monsoon in south India to cool temperate in the north. Monsoon rains occur throughout the country between June and September and severe hot weather with temperatures above 40 °C persists for most of summer. Rainfall varies greatly from the massive 11,430 millimetres per year at Cherrapunji in Assam to below 100 millimetres in the Thar Desert.

Environment

India has a rich diversity of wildlife and natural resources. The Himalayas, the highest and the youngest mountain range on Earth, is home to a vast diversity of flora and fauna. There are over 500 species of mammals including the famous Bengal tiger, elephants, rhinoceros and antelopes, and 2,000 species of birds. Population growth and poaching have created strong environmental pressures. India has established a number of national parks and wildlife sanctuaries to conserve the wildlife.

The Nanda Devi National Park and Valley of Flowers National Park, in the West Himalaya region, have World Heritage listing for their indigenous alpine flowers and their range of endangered animals, including the Asiatic black bear, snow leopard, brown bear and blue sheep.

Population

India occupies 2.4% of the world’s land area, but contains 17% of the world’s population. Most Indians (69%) live in rural areas. Large cities include the capital New Delhi (22.2 million), Mumbai (16.9 million), Kolkata (14.3 million), Chennai (8.8 million), and Bangalore (8.6 million). During the past few decades migration to urban centres has increased and Indian cities are growing rapidly, giving birth to a large number of slums.

People

Culture and ethnicity

India has a great variety of cultures, religions, languages and ethnic backgrounds. Religious ideas and motifs are integral parts of Indian culture as are dance, theatre, literature and fine and folk arts. Bollywood, the Indian film industry, produces films known for lavish dance and song sequences.

The complex social structure is based on caste. Castes are mutually exclusive social groups that determine people’s social standing and occupation. There are four broad categories, known as the ‘Varna Hierarchy’, which are further divided into hundreds of sub-castes. At the top of this hierarchy are the Brahmans, the caste responsible for ritual and learning, followed by the Kshatriya, the warrior caste, followed by the Vaishyas, the trading caste, and lastly the Shudras or the labourer caste. Outside this hierarchy are the Dalits (sometimes called ‘untouchables’). Dalits are responsible for various menial works considered to be polluting. A person’s position in the caste system is determined by birth. Despite economic modernisation and laws banning untouchability, the caste system still plays a dominant role in Indian social and political life.

The Taj Mahal, Agra Fort and the Jantar Mantar in Jaipur are some of the listed World Heritage cultural sites.

Health

The government has initiated various programs to improve health but India still suffers from health problems linked to poverty, malnutrition, rapid population growth, environmental pollution and neglect of children and women’s wellbeing. Life expectancy is 66 years. The infant mortality rate is 44 deaths per 1,000 births compared to only 4 in Australia. Infectious diseases such as malaria, dengue fever, tuberculosis and measles are common, and HIV/AIDS although a low percentage (o.3%) presents a serious health threat with an estimated 2.1 million living with HIV/AIDS in 2012.

Religion and beliefs

The majority, 80.5%, of the population are Hindus followed by 13% Muslims, 2% Christians and 2% Sikhs. About 1% follow Buddhism and Jainism. Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism all originated in India. Religion is part of everyday life and even though each has its own beliefs and practices, communities often share in the music and dance that mark each other’s festivals.

Food and shelter

Indian cuisine is very diverse. Rice is the main staple food, although in the north wheat is also widely used to make many forms of bread. Pulses (peas and beans) and vegetables are the main accompanying foods. A large proportion of Indians are vegetarians. Many Hindus eat meat, but their religion forbids them to eat beef, as cows are considered sacred animals. The use of rich and complex spice mixtures has made Indian food famous. There are many sweets, and in northern India especially these are often based on dairy products.

Housing styles vary from region to region depending upon what materials are available and local cultural traditions. Bricks, stones, tiles, cement and steel are commonly used, along with less durable materials such as wood, bamboo and thatching. There are more than 31 million phone lines, 894 million mobile phones and around 62 million internet users.

Economy

Wealth and poverty

India has a growing urban middle class as well as traditional wealthy classes of landowners, merchants and aristocrats. However, almost 33% of Indians live on less than US$1.25 a day. Although the Indian economy is growing rapidly, an uneven distribution system means the gap between rich and poor communities is growing. It is estimated that a woman’s income is around a third of what a man earns.

Education and work

Though primary education is compulsory in India, only 63% of adults are literate with big differences between males (75%) and females (51%). Despite increases in government spending (3.2% of total expenditure), school dropouts, especially among girls, are frequent. The southern state of Kerala has the highest literacy rate (over 90%). A considerable growth in higher education has helped India to build a diverse and large professional workforce.

Over half of the population relies on agriculture for their living, but industry and the service sector generate most of the country’s income.

Industries and products

Since gaining independence from British rule in 1947, India has developed a strong industrial base. Major industries are textiles, chemicals, food processing, steel, transportation equipment, cement, mining, petroleum and machinery. India has also developed high technology capacity in areas such as aviation and communications. During recent years the Indian software industry has strongly established itself on the global scene. The government-run Indian Railways is one of the world’s biggest employers, with 1.6 million workers. Key agricultural products are rice, wheat, oilseed, cotton, jute, tea, sugarcane, potatoes, onions, dairy products, sheep, goats, poultry and fish.

Trade

The China and United Arab Emirates are India’s biggest trading partners. Other major partners include the United States, Singapore, Saudi Arabia and Switzerland. Indian exports mainly consist of petroleum products, gems, machinery, iron and steel, chemicals, vehicles and clothes. Indian imports include crude oil, machinery, gems, fertiliser and chemicals. Two-way gods and services trade between India and Australian totalled $20.3 billion in 2011. Major Australian export to India were coal, gold, education, copper ore and crude petroleum, while Australia imported tourism, diamonds, medicines, jewellery and information services from India.

Government

India is a federal republic made up of 28 states and 7 union territories. It became independent from UK in 1947. There are two houses of parliament: the Council of States or Rajya Sabha and the House of the People or Lok Sabha. The president is 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 (no term limits). Its prime minister is chosen by parliamentary members of the majority party following legislative elections.

India’s National Human Rights Commission was established in 1993. It is working to address issues of bonded labour; protection of women and children; discrimination against Dalits (‘untouchables’), tribal groups, and religious minorities; and access to food, healthcare and education. There has been concern about excessive force in controlling conflict and immunity among government officials, soldiers and police from prosecution.

Achievements and challenges

India endures frequent natural disasters, and the high population density means that large numbers of people are affected. However, the country has well-developed systems for responding to disasters when they occur. Major concerns include flooding during the monsoon season, cyclones in the Bay of Bengal, which devastate the eastern coastal areas, and damaging earthquakes in the central northern area.

Deforestation, river and air pollution and land degradation due to large-scale mining and rapidly expanding urban areas are major pressures on the environment. There are active environmental lobby groups and India has established a number of national parks and wildlife sanctuaries.

While India has substantially improved the numbers of students in schools and decreased the numbers of people living in poverty, there has been only a slow improvement in the health of the population and over-population places great strain on the country’s resources.

Tensions between religious communities and caste-based social conflicts within India arise from time to time.

There are border tensions with China and with Pakistan over the disputed territory of Kashmir, which were exacerbated in the late 1990s due to nuclear weapons testing by both India and Pakistan. However, India’s diplomatic relations with both China and Pakistan have improved in recent years.

Links with Australia

The first Indian migration to Australia dates back to the early 19th century. The 2011 census showed 343,070 Indian-born people live in Australia predominantly in New South Wales and Victoria. Indian-Australians are a thriving community with a high level of education.

There are strong trade and tourism links between India and Australia, including the use of Australia as a backdrop for Bollywood films. There are many Indian students studying in Australia.

Australia's development assistance to India is through multilateral and non-government organisations.