Geography

Economics

Demographics

Military

Politics

With a total surface area of 3.3 million square kilometers or 1.3 million square miles, India is the seventh largest state in the world being slightly smaller than Australia and slightly larger than Argentina. 

Surface

Surface (in square kilometers)

Surface (in square miles)

Surface (water)

Water Surface (in square kilometers)

Water Surface (in square miles)

Share of water (%)

Temperature

Average temperature (in Celcius)

Average temperature (in Farenheit)

Average high temperature (in Celcius)

Average high temperature (in Farenheit)

Average low temperature (in Celcius)

Average low temperature (in Farenheit)

Rainfall

Average rainfall (mm)

Average rainfall (inch)

Distance to other capitals (kilometers)

Distance to other capitals (miles)

Proximity

Economic organizations

Gross Domestic Product (US$)

Gross Domestic Product per capita

Amount of memberships (economic organizations)

Absolute earnings for every 1$

Relative earnings

GDP in PPP per capita (in US$)

 

GDP in PPP per capita

Gross Domestic product (in million US$)

GDP per capita (in US$)

Surface GDP

GDP per square kilometer (in US$)

GDP per square mile(in US$)

Relative GDP in PPP

Population

Population density

Emigration

Immigration

Literacy

Health

Population density (in km2)

Population density (in mi2)

Religion

Christianity (share of the total population)

Islam (share of the total population)

Buddhism (share of the total population)

Hinduism (share of the total population)

Judaism (share of the total population)

Other religions (share of the total population)

Non-religious (share of the total population)

Military spending (in % of GDP)

Military spending

The Indian army is the fifth most funded Army and represents 3.7 percent of total global military expenditure with an annual budget of US$71 billion. 

The Indian Armed Forces consists of an Army, a Navy and an Air Force. Since its independence, India has developed itself from a regional power to a larger maritime power. Its army, which is considered to be the fourth largest in the world, has the president of India as its supreme commander. Currently, the Indian Army is actively defending disputed borders between Pakistan and China with skirmishes on a regular basis.

 

Military membership

India is a member of 21 international political organizations making it the third most connected state in the world. It is a member of the following organizations: 

  • Member state of the United Nations 

  • United Nations Security Council 

  • International Labour Organization 

  • Asia Cooperation Dialogue 

  • Mekong–Ganga Cooperation 

  • South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation 

  • Colombo Plan 

  • Group of Five 

  • Asian–African Legal Consultative Organization 

  • Commonwealth of Nations 

  • International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property 

  • UNIDROIT 

 

  • Interpol 

  • Permanent Court of Arbitration 

  • BRICS 

  • Association of World Election Bodies 

  • International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance 

  • Partners in Population and Development 

  • South Centre (organization) 

  • World Organization for Animal Health 

  • Forum for India–Pacific Islands Cooperation 

India is also a member of nine international military organizations. These are: 

  • States with nuclear weapons 
  • Conference on Disarmament 
  • Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons 
  • Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty 
  • Wassenaar Arrangement 
  • Australia Group 
  • Missile Technology Control Regime 
  • International Atomic Energy Agency 
  • Non-Aligned Movement 

Military membership

International wars

India has partaken in 19 international wars. These are: 

  • Second Boer War 1899-1901 

  • Third Anglo-Afghan War 1919-1919 

  • World War II 1939-1945 

  • Afghanistan–Pakistan skirmishes 1949-present 

  • Annexation of Dadra and Nagar Haveli 1954-1954 

  • Indian annexation of Goa 1961-1961 

  • Sino-Indian War 1961-1961 

  • Indo-Pakistani War  1965-1965 

  • China-India border conflicts 1967-1967 

  • Bangladesh Liberation War 1971-1971 

  • Indo-Pakistani War 1971-1971 

  • Siachen conflict 1984-1003 

  • Sino-Indian skirmish 1987-1987 

  • Civil war in Afghanistan 1996-1001 

  • Kargil War 1999-1999 

  • Bangladesh-India border clashes 2001-2001 

  • Bangladesh India border clash 2015-2015 

  • Bangladesh India border clash 2008-2008 

  • China–India skirmishes 2010-present 

  • India – Pakistan war 2025-2025 

Number of international wars fought

Military spending (in US$ million)

Membership (international political organizations)

Political Membership

Democracy/dictatorship rating

India is ranked as the 74th most democratic state in the world. This is mainly due to increasing tensions between the Hindu majority and the Muslim minority. This has led to the infringement of individual rights of Muslims which decreases its democratic status. 

Democracy/Dictatorship

The politics of India takes place in the form of a parliamentary democratic republic where the president of India is head of state and the Prime Minister is the head of government. Since its independence in 1947, India transitioned into a democracy in 1951 when its first elections were held. Since then, elections have taken place regularly. 

Known for being the largest democracy in the world and on its way to becoming the most populous state in the world, India has been home to many civilizations throughout its history. One of its first known civilizations was the Indus Valley civilization which flourished between 2602 to 2000 BC. After the arrival of the Arians, as well as the introduction of Buddhism in the sixth century BC, the civilization in the Indus Valley spread throughout the Indian subcontinent and became the Mauryan Dynasty. This dynasty was shortly followed up by the Gupta Empire which spans across the northern part of India until the eighth century BC. From then, the spread of Islam arrived in the Indian subcontinent with the Delhi and the Mughal Empire dominating the area until the second half of the 19th century. Since then, India became a part of the British Empire. During this period, several anti-British protests were held under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi which has played a large role in India's road to independence. When Great Britain acknowledged Indian independence in 1947, it partitioned the Indian subcontinent into a Muslim majority Pakistan and a Hindu majority India. Shortly after independence, several civil wars as well as a war with Pakistan over territorial disputes have ensued which still play a large role in Indian politics today. 

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India 

 Because of its size, as well as its location, the geography of India is extremely diverse, ranging from the Himalaya Mountain range to its north, a desert to its west, large plains to its northeast and a large plateau in its center. It borders China, Nepal and Bhutan to its north, Bangladesh to its east and Pakistan to its west. It could also be argued that with India borders Afghanistan to its far north if the disputed region of Kashmir would be included in the Indian territory. To the southeast, India is located on the Bay of Bengal and to its southwest it is located on the Arabian Sea which are both located in the Indian Ocean. 

It is the fourth state with the highest amount of surface water which is around 315,000 square kilometers or 121,000 square miles. 

 

Below, a graph is shown which displays the absolute amount of water of each state in square kilometers and square miles.

Water covers nearly 10 percent of India’s total surface. There are more than 10,000 different rivers, with the Ganges River, which originates from the Himalaya and flows through the northern parts of India into Bangladesh, being the largest. 

The climate in India is a highly dependent on the region, but overall, India has a tropical climate. The exceptions are its northern region, which has a tundra climate and its desert area to its west. On average, the temperature in India is 23.9 degrees Celsius or 75.1 degrees Fahrenheit which makes it the 81st warmest state in the world. 

During its summer period, which spans from March to April, the average temperature is 29.8 degrees Celsius or 85.6 degrees Fahrenheit. 

During winter which spans from January to February, the average temperature is 18.5 degrees Celsius or 65.3 degrees Fahrenheit. 

Rainfall mainly occurs in the period between July and September which is characterized as India's monsoon. The annual precipitation is the 68th highest in the world with 126 centimetres or 49.9 inches per year. 

The capital of India, new Delhi, is home to around 12 million people. The capital that is closest located to New Delhi is Islamabad, Pakistan with a distance of 680 kilometers or 422 miles. The capital that is furthest removed from New Delhi is Santiago Chile with a distance of 16,934 kilometers or 10,522 miles. 

The Indian economy is characterized as a developing economy. However, it also has economic sectors that can only be found in developed economies such as a space agency. Since its economic shifts from a centralized economy towards a liberalized economy at the end of the 20th century, India has seen a large economic growth over the last three decades. However, half of the population still works in the agricultural sector. Another large sector within India is the service industry. Because of India’s history with the United Kingdom, a large portion of the population speaks English which is used extensively in the outsourcing of software development as well as customer service by other English-speaking states. Other goods that are exported are gold, textile products and agricultural products which are mainly exported to Singapore and the United Arab Emirates which are together responsible for more than 25 percent of total exports. Most of its imports comes from China and United States which together represent more than 20 percent of total imports. 

India is a member of 22 international economic organizations which makes it the 9th most economically interconnected state in the world. It is a member of the following organizations: 

  • Alliance for Financial Inclusion 
  • African development Bank 
  • Asian Development Bank 
  • Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank 
  • Bank for International Settlements 
  • Financial Action Task Force 
  • International Monetary Fund 
  • New Development Bank 
  • World Bank Group 
  • World Customs Organization 
  • World Trade Organization 

 

  • Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation 
  • International Bamboo and Rattan Organization 
  • Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) 
  • Indian Ocean Rim Association 
  • International Renewable Energy Agency 
  • International Solar Alliance 
  • Group of 15 
  • Group of 77 
  • Group of 24 
  • G20 
  • Advisory Centre on World Trade Organization Law 

Its GDP is US$2.75 trillion which makes it the fifth largest economy in the world representing 3.287 percent of total global GDP. 

Its GDP per service area is the 74th highest in the world with US$832,000 per square kilometer or US$2.1 million per square mile. 

Its GDP per capita is the 145th highest in the world which stands at just over US$2000 per year. 

The absolute earnings (GDP per capita) reflect the average yearly income. The figure below shows how much, on average, an inhabitant of another state earns for every $1 earned by a citizen of this state.

Its purchasing power is the 135th highest in the world and stands at US$6827. 

The relative Gross Domestic Product in Purchasing Power Parity compares the purchasing power of this state with that of the rest of the world. The graph on the left shows how much purchasing power of 1$ compared to the purchasing power of other states

As the most populous state in the world, India is home to more than 1.4 billion people. India has the most officially recognized languages in the world. Because of its contacts with regional powers as well as migrations from other regions of the world towards the Indian continent, there are several ethnic groups that reside within its border. The largest is the Hindi speaking group which is spoken by more than 40 percent. Second largest group is the Bengali which is spoken by eight percent of the population. There are 13 other languages which represents between one and seven percent of the population. 

India has the 21st highest population density in the world with 413 people per square kilometer or 1070 people the square mile. 

Around 1.3 percent of Indians have migrated to other states. This corresponds with nearly 17.5 million people which makes India the largest supplier of emigrants in the world. This also represents 6.98 percent of total global migration. The main reasons for migration are economic as well as political with 1.5 million people migrating to neighbouring Pakistan due to ethnic tensions. Other large recipients of Indian migrants are the United Arab Emirates with nearly 3.5 million people, Saudi Arabia with 2.5 million people and the United States with 2.5 million people. 

Around 5 million people, or just over two percent of total global immigration have migrated to India. This makes India the 12th state with the highest recipients of migrants. Despite a strict immigration policy, there are numerous people from its direct neighbourhood that have migrated to India. The largest supplier of migrants has been Bangladesh which is solely responsible for 60 percent of all migrants. This is followed by Pakistan which has supplied 1 million migrants. The remaining migrants come from Nepal, China and Sri Lanka. 

Education is provided for free and is compulsory in India between the ages of 3 and 14. During this period, children in India are subjected to primary and middle school in which they learn their regional language as well as English as a second language. Despite this educational system, the literacy rate in India is 74.3 percent which makes it the 154th highest in the world. This is largely due to an inaccessibility of education as well as a gap in gender education which negatively affects young women. 

Health risks in India are fairly evenly spread out between the communicable and noncommunicable diseases. There has been a decrease in communicable diseases such as polio and tetanus through the use of preventative measures such as vaccination and other medication. Other health risks are especially focused on women that are at a high risk of natal deaths compared to other states. On average, the life expectancy is 70.4 years with women reaching 71.8 years and men reaching 69.2 years. This makes India the 122nd state with the highest life expectancy. 

India has been the birthplace of several large religions such as Hinduism, Sikhism and Buddhism. Despite establishing religious tolerance by law, there are still interreligious clashes that occur regularly. 

It is argued that one of the disciples of Jesus Christ had visited the Indian subcontinent. However, only in the sixth century did Christianity flourish in the southern part of India. Today, around 2.5 percent of Indians adhere to Christianity which makes India the 172nd most Christian state in the world. 

 

On the right, the global share of Christians per state is displayed 

Islam is the second largest religion in India and is followed by 14.3 percent of the population and makes India the 69th most Islamic state in the world. Most Muslims adhere to the Sunni denomination with a small minority adhering to the Shia denomination. 

Buddhism is followed by 4.93 percent of the population and has been the center of the Charvaka and Janism denominations during the seventh century. Throughout the centuries, these denominations evolved into subbranches and have slowly disappeared from the Indian continent. Today, there are few remaining Buddhists which are mainly located in the northern part of India and are either of Indian origin or refugees. 

Hinduism is the largest religion in India and is followed by nearly 80 percent of all Indians. This makes India the state with the second highest share of Hindus in the world. 

It has been argued that Judaism has been the first religion to arrive in India. However, over time and under pressure of other religions, many Jews have converted to other religions or have moved out of India. Today there are some remnants of Judaism that can be found in other religions. 

Other religions are followed by 1.87 percent of the population with Jainism being the largest. 

Irreligion is not officially recognized in India. Even though irreligion is allowed under its Constitution, it was not allowed until 1954 for people to get married if they were irreligious. 

India