|
State |
Republic
of India |
|
Area |
3
287 263 km2 (World status 7) |
|
Capital |
New
Delhi |
|
Administration |
28
Union States and 8 Union Territories |
|
Political
System |
Democratic-Federal
Republic since 1950 |
|
Official
Languages |
Hindi,
English |
|
Religious
Groups |
Hindus
(79%), Muslims(14.2%), Christians (2.3%), Sikhs (1.7%), Buddhists
(0.7%),Jains (0.4%),Parses and Jews(0.5%), others (1.2%) |
|
Currency |
Indian
Rupee (INR) |
|
National
Holiday |
26
January (Republic Day) 15 August (Day of Independence) |
|
 |
|
Entry
Regulations for India
|
Foreign nationals wishing to visit India must be
in possession of a valid passport and a visa granted by an Indian
mission abroad. Indian missions are located in 140 countries of
the world.
Nationals
of Nepal and Bhutan are exempted from obtaining a visa. They can
enter India without a passport and visa provided they have their
identity papers.
Visas are of different kinds. The period of their validity is subject
to certain restrictions. The visa must be checked before entering
India. All visas specify the number of times a visitor may enter
a country. a multi-entry visa must be obtained if one is visiting
some of the neighboring countries like Nepal and Sri Lanka and re-entering
India.
Various offices of the Indian
Embassies, Consulates, High Commission and Diplomatic and Foreign
missions are located in abroad from where you can apply for the visa
and obtain other information regarding the visit to India. These
offices are located in United States of America, Canada, United
Kingdom, Australia and various other countries.
Indian standard time is 5 ½ hours ahead of Greenwich means
time and 10 ½ hours ahead of us east. Thus noon in India
is 1:30 a.m. in New York. Nepal stick to its ancient sundial time
which is ten minutes ahead of Indian standard time. Indian standard
time has no variation in summer or winter.
Indian currency is based on the decimal system-100 paise to the
rupee. Coins are in the denominations of 5, 10, 20, 25, and 50
paise, though 5, 10 and 20 paise coins have virtually vanished,
thanks to inflation. Bank notes are in the denominations of 1,2,5,10,20,50,100,500,2000
rupees.
Climate in India varies greatly according to latitude, altitude
and season.
Temperatures: Average maximum winter temperatures range from the
high 20 degree Celsius in the S to below freezing in parts of
Kashmir, Leh and Ladakh, and the low 20 degree Celsius in the
northern plains. The range of minimum winter temperatures between
N and S is greater. In many parts of the N plains, especially
in the NW, close to the foothills of the Himalayas, night temperatures
fall close to freezing. In contrast, in the far S, minimum temperature
never fall below 20 degree Celsius except in the hills.
In summer the N is generally hotter than the S, with daytime temperatures
usually over 40 degree Celsius and in parts of the NW up to nearly
50 degree Celsius from time to time. Night time temperatures also
remain high. The end of Apr - May is the hottest time. Once the
clouds of the monsoon season arrives, the temperature fall a few degrees,
but the air gets much more humid, often making it intensely uncomfortable.
In the S maximum temperatures never reach those experienced in the
N, rarely rising above 40 degree Celsius for more than a day or
at a time. May is also generally the hottest month.
India's
seasonal rainfall pattern is dominated by the monsoon, which generally
arrives at the SW coast in late May or June, covering most of
the country by the beginning of July, and retreating in October.
However, the popular image of the monsoon is misplaced. Even in
the wettest areas - the west coast or the NE hills of the
Shillong
plateau - there are periods of days at a time when it does not
rain. Elsewhere the rainy season is marked by prolonged very heavy
showers, interspersed with cloudy, humid weather and occasional
bright patches.
 |
The
people of India have colorful & different attires. The
silk saris, brightly mirrored cholis, colorful lehangas and
the traditional salwar- kameez have fascinated many travellers,
over time.
Light
cotton clothes are useful almost anywhere in India at any time
of year. It is a good idea to have some very lightweight long
sleeve cotton and trousers for evenings, preferable light in
colour, as they also give some protection against mosquitoes.
Between Dec - Feb it can be cool at night even on the plains
in N and E India, and at altitudes above 1,500m right across
India some woolens are essential. Dress is rarely formal. In
the large cities short sleeve shirt and ties are often worn
for business. For traveling loose clothes are most
comfortable.
Indian
dressing styles are marked by many variations, both religious
and regional and one is likely to witness a plethora of
colors, textures and styles in garments worn by the Indians.
|
|
|
Next
to China, India is the country with the largest number of
inhabitants in the world. Facing the fact that almost one
thousand million people are living in India it is amazing
that they occupy only 2.4 % of the earth's surface. The average
population density is 298 inhabitants per square km. In some areas,
population density reaches over 1000 inhabitants per km square
for
which two reasons can be mentioned. First, population remains
concentrated in the big cities and around the fertile
riverbeds of the Ganges and second huge parts of the country
remain uninhabitable because they are covered either by desert
or by high mountains. The
average life expectancy is 58 years, the share of young people under the age of
18 is over 40%.Around ¾ of Indians are living in the rural area, ¼ of the
population lives in cities. The biggest cities are Kolkata (formerly Calcutta),
Mumbai (formerly Bombay), Delhi and Chennai (formerly Madras). About 5
million Indians are living abroad, primarily in South and East Africa, in
South-East-Asia, North America and around the Persian Gulf.
|
|
|
Online Chatting
