World Country Guide

Area
3,166,414 sq km (1,222,582 sq miles).

Population
1,049,000,000 (official estimate 2003).

Population Density
331 per sq km.

Capital
New Delhi. Population: 19,817,439 (2001).

Geography
India shares borders to the northwest with Pakistan, to the north with China, Nepal and Bhutan, and to the east with Bangladesh and Myanmar. To the west lies the Arabian Sea, to the east the Bay of Bengal and to the south the Indian Ocean. Sri Lanka lies off the southeast coast, and the Maldives off the southwest coast. The far northeastern states and territories are all but separated from the rest of India by Bangladesh as it extends northwards from the Bay of Bengal towards Bhutan. The Himalayan mountain range to the north and the Indus River (west) and Ganges River (east) form a physical barrier between India and the rest of Asia. The country can be divided into five regions: Western, Central, Northern (including Kashmir and Rajasthan), Eastern and Southern.

Government
Republic since 1947. Head of State: President APJ Abdul Kalam since 2002. Head of Government: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh since 2004.

Language
The official language is Hindi which is spoken by about 30 per cent of the population; English is also often used for official or commercial purposes. In addition, 17 regional languages are recognised by the Constitution. These include Bengali, Gujarati, Oriya and Punjabi which are widely used in the north, and Tamil and Telegu, which are common in the south. Other regional languages are Kannada, Malayalam and Marathi. The Muslim population largely speak Urdu.

Religion
About 82 per cent Hindu, 11 per cent Muslim with Sikh, Christian, Jain and Buddhist minorities.

Time
GMT + 5.5.

Electricity
Usually 220 volts AC, 50Hz. Some areas have a DC supply. Plugs used are of the round two- and three-pin type.

Communications

Telephone
IDD service is widely available all over India. Otherwise calls must be placed through the international operator. Country code: 91. Outgoing international code: 00.

Mobile telephone
GSM 900 networks. Network operators include Aircel LTD (website: www.aircel.com), BPL Mobile (website: www.bplmobile.com, CellOne (website: www.bsnl.co.in) and SPICE (website: www.spiceindia.com). Coverage is limited to major towns.

Fax
24-hour facilities are available in most large hotels and some offices of the Overseas Communication Service in large cities.

Internet
ISPs include Narmada and VSLnet (website: www.vsnl.net.in). E-mail can be accessed from Internet cafes accross the country.

Telegram
International 24-hour service from large hotels and telegraphic offices in major cities.

Post
Airmail service to Western Europe takes up to one week. Stamps are often sold at hotels.

Press
There are numerous local dailies published in several languages. Many newspapers are in English, the most important include The Economic Times, The Hindu, Hindustan, Hindustan Times, Indian Express, Navbharat Times, Punjab Kesari, The Statesman and The Times of India.

Radio
BBC World Service (website: www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice) and Voice of America (website: www.voa.gov) can be received. From time to time the frequencies change and the most up-to-date can be found online.