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National Map
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India |
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National Flag
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India |
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Flag Description:
three equal horizontal bands of saffron (subdued orange)
(top), white, and green with a blue chakra (24-spoked wheel)
centered in the white band; similar to the flag of Niger,
which has a small orange disk centered in the white band
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National Emblem(Coat Of Arms)
Of |
India |
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National Anthem
Of |
India |
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Categories National Symbol Of |
India |
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Background:
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The Indus
Valley civilization, one of the oldest in the world,
dates back at least 5,000 years. Aryan tribes from the
northwest invaded about 1500 B.C.; their merger with the
earlier Dravidian inhabitants created the classical
Indian culture. Arab incursions starting in the 8th
century and Turkish in the 12th were followed by those
of European traders, beginning in the late 15th century.
By the 19th century, Britain had assumed political
control of virtually all Indian lands. Indian armed
forces in the British army played a vital role in both
World Wars. Nonviolent resistance to British colonialism
led by Mohandas GANDHI and Jawaharlal NEHRU brought
independence in 1947. The subcontinent was divided into
the secular state of India and the smaller Muslim state
of Pakistan. A third war between the two countries in
1971 resulted in East Pakistan becoming the separate
nation of Bangladesh. Despite impressive gains in
economic investment and output, India faces pressing
problems such as the ongoing dispute with Pakistan over
Kashmir, massive overpopulation, environmental
degradation, extensive poverty, and ethnic and religious
strife. |
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Location:
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Southern
Asia, bordering the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal,
between Burma and Pakistan |
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Geographic coordinates:
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20 00 N,
77 00 E |
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Map references:
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Asia |
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Area:
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total:
3,287,590 sq km
land: 2,973,190 sq km
water: 314,400 sq km |
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Area - comparative:
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slightly
more than one-third the size of the US |
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Land boundaries:
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total:
14,103 km
border countries: Bangladesh 4,053 km, Bhutan 605
km, Burma 1,463 km, China 3,380 km, Nepal 1,690 km,
Pakistan 2,912 km |
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Coastline:
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7,000 km
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Maritime claims:
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territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the
continental margin |
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Climate:
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varies
from tropical monsoon in south to temperate in north
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Terrain:
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upland
plain (Deccan Plateau) in south, flat to rolling plain
along the Ganges, deserts in west, Himalayas in north
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest
point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Kanchenjunga 8,598 m |
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Natural resources:
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coal
(fourth-largest reserves in the world), iron ore,
manganese, mica, bauxite, titanium ore, chromite,
natural gas, diamonds, petroleum, limestone, arable land
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Land use:
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arable
land: 54.4%
permanent crops: 2.74%
other: 42.86% (2001) |
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Irrigated land:
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590,000
sq km (1998 est.) |
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Natural hazards:
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droughts;
flash floods, as well as widespread and destructive
flooding from monsoonal rains; severe thunderstorms;
earthquakes |
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Environment - current issues:
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deforestation; soil erosion; overgrazing;
desertification; air pollution from industrial effluents
and vehicle emissions; water pollution from raw sewage
and runoff of agricultural pesticides; tap water is not
potable throughout the country; huge and growing
population is overstraining natural resources |
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Environment - international agreements:
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party
to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol,
Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty,
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species,
Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the
Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical
Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected
agreements |
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Geography - note:
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dominates
South Asian subcontinent; near important Indian Ocean
trade routes |
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Population:
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1,080,264,388 (July 2005 est.) |
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Age structure:
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0-14
years: 31.2% (male 173,634,432/female 163,932,475)
15-64 years: 63.9% (male 356,932,082/female
333,283,590)
65 years and over: 4.9% (male 26,542,025/female
25,939,784) (2005 est.) |
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Median age:
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total:
24.66 years
male: 24.64 years
female: 24.67 years (2005 est.) |
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Population growth rate:
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1.4%
(2005 est.) |
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Birth rate:
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22.32
births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
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Death rate:
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8.28
deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
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Net migration rate:
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-0.07
migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
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Sex ratio:
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at
birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.07 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.02 male(s)/female
total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
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Infant mortality rate:
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total:
56.29 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 56.86 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 55.69 deaths/1,000 live births (2005
est.) |
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total
population: 64.35 years
male: 63.57 years
female: 65.16 years (2005 est.) |
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Total fertility rate:
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2.78
children born/woman (2005 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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0.9%
(2001 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
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5.1
million (2001 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
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310,000
(2001 est.) |
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Major infectious diseases:
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degree
of risk: high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea,
hepatitis A and E, and typhoid fever
vectorborne diseases: dengue fever, malaria, and
Japanese encephalitis are high risks in some locations
animal contact disease: rabies (2004) |
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Nationality:
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noun:
Indian(s)
adjective: Indian |
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Ethnic groups:
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Indo-Aryan 72%, Dravidian 25%, Mongoloid and other 3%
(2000) |
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Religions:
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Hindu
80.5%, Muslim 13.4%, Christian 2.3%, Sikh 1.9%, other
1.8%, unspecified 0.1% (2001 census) |
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Languages:
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English
enjoys associate status but is the most important
language for national, political, and commercial
communication; Hindi is the national language and
primary tongue of 30% of the people; there are 14 other
official languages: Bengali, Telugu, Marathi, Tamil,
Urdu, Gujarati, Malayalam, Kannada, Oriya, Punjabi,
Assamese, Kashmiri, Sindhi, and Sanskrit; Hindustani is
a popular variant of Hindi/Urdu spoken widely throughout
northern India but is not an official language |
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Literacy:
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definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 59.5%
male: 70.2%
female: 48.3% (2003 est.) |
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Country name:
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conventional long form: Republic of India
conventional short form: India |
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Government type:
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federal
republic |
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Capital:
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New Delhi
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Administrative divisions:
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28 states
and 7 union territories*; Andaman and Nicobar Islands*,
Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar,
Chandigarh*, Chhattisgarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli*,
Daman and Diu*, Delhi*, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal
Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala,
Lakshadweep*, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur,
Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Orissa, Pondicherry*,
Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Tripura,
Uttaranchal, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal |
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Independence:
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15 August
1947 (from UK) |
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National holiday:
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Republic
Day, 26 January (1950) |
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Constitution:
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26
January 1950; amended many times |
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Legal system:
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based on
English common law; limited judicial review of
legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction,
with reservations; separate personal law codes apply to
Muslims, Christians, and Hindus |
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Suffrage:
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18 years
of age; universal |
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Executive branch:
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chief
of state: President A.P.J. Abdul KALAM (since 26
July 2002); Vice President Bhairon Singh SHEKHAWAT
(since 19 August 2002)
head of government: Prime Minister Manmohan SINGH
(since NA May 2004)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the
president on the recommendation of the prime minister
elections: president 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; election last held July 2002 (next to be
held 18 July 2007); vice president elected by both
houses of Parliament for a five-year term; election last
held 12 August 2002 (next to be held August 2007); prime
minister chosen by parliamentary members of the majority
party following legislative elections; election last
held April - May 2004 (next to be held May 2009)
election results: Abdul KALAM elected president;
percent of electoral college vote - 89.6%; Bhairon Singh
SHEKHAWAT elected vice president; percent of Parliament
vote - 59.8% |
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Legislative branch:
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bicameral
Parliament or Sansad consists of the Council of States
or Rajya Sabha (a body consisting of not more than 250
members, up to 12 of whom are appointed by the
president, the remainder are chosen by the elected
members of the state and territorial assemblies; members
serve six-year terms) and the People's Assembly or Lok
Sabha (545 seats; 543 elected by popular vote, 2
appointed by the president; members serve five-year
terms)
elections: People's Assembly - last held 20 April
through 10 May 2004 (next to be held 2009)
election results: People's Assembly - percent of
vote by party - NA%; seats by party - INC 145, BJP 138,
CPI(M) 43, SP 36, RJD 24, BSP 19, DMK 16, SS 12, BJD 11,
CPI 10, NCP 9, JDU 8, SAD 8, PMK 6, TDP 5, TRS 5, JMM 5,
LJSP 4, MDMK 4, independents 5, other 30 |
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Judicial branch:
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Supreme
Court (judges are appointed by the president and remain
in office until they reach the age of 65) |
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Political parties and leaders:
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All India
Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam or AIADMK [C. Jayalalitha
JAYARAM]; All India Forward Bloc or AIFB, [Debabrata
BISWAS]; Asom Gana Parishad [Brindaban GOSWAMI]; Bahujan
Samaj Party or BSP [MAYAWATI]; Bharatiya Janata Party or
BJP [Lal Krishna ADVANI]; Biju Janata Dal or BJD [Naveen
PATNAIK]; Communist Party of India or CPI [Ardhendu
Bhushan BARDHAN]; Communist Party of India (Marxist) or
CPI (M) Hakishan Singh SURJEET]; Congress (I) Party
[Sonia GANDHI]; Dravida Munnetra Kazagham or DMK (a
regional party in Tamil Nadu) [M. KARUNANIDHI]; Indian
National Congress or INC [Sonia GANDHI]; Indian National
League [Suliaman SAITH]; Janata Dal (Secular) [H. D.
Deve GOWDA]; Janata Dal (United) or JDU [Sharad YADAV];
Jharkhand Mukti Morcha or JMM [leader NA]; Kerala
Congress (Mani faction) [K. M. MANI]; Lok Jan Shakti
Party or LJSP [leader NA]; Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra
Kazhagam or MDMK [VAIKO]; Muslim League [G. M. BANATWALA];
Nationalist Congress Party or NCP [Sharad PAWAR];
Pattali Makkal Katchi or PMK [leader NA]; Rashtriya
Janata Dal or RJD [Laloo Prasad YADAV]; Revolutionary
Socialist Party or RSP [Abani ROY]; Samajwadi Party or
SP [Mulayam Singh YADAV]; Shiromani Akali Dal or SAD [G.
S. TOHRA]; Shiv Sena or SS [Bal THACKERAY]; Tamil
Maanila Congress [G. K. VASAN]; Telangana Rashtra
Samithi or TRS [leader NA]; Telugu Desam Party or TDP [Chandrababu
NAIDU]; Trinamool Congress [Mamata BANERJEE] |
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Political pressure groups and leaders:
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numerous
religious or militant/chauvinistic organizations,
including Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Bajrang Dal, and
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh; various separatist groups
seeking greater communal and/or regional autonomy,
including the All Parties Hurriyat Conference in the
Kashmir Valley and the National Socialist Council of
Nagaland in the Northeast |
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International organization participation:
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AfDB, ARF,
AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), BIS, C, CERN (observer),
CP, FAO, G- 6, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO,
ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF,
IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MIGA,
MONUC, NAM, OAS (observer), ONUB, OPCW, PCA, SAARC,
SACEP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMEE,
UNMIK, UNMOVIC, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO,
WMO, WToO, WTO |
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Diplomatic representation in the US:
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chief
of mission: Ambassador Ranendra SEN
chancery: 2107 Massachusetts Avenue NW,
Washington, DC 20008; note - Consular Wing located at
2536 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 939-7000
FAX: [1] (202) 265-4351
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, New York,
and San Francisco |
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Diplomatic representation from the US:
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chief
of mission: Ambassador David C. MULFORD
embassy: Shantipath, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi
110021
mailing address: use embassy street address
telephone: [91] (11) 2419-8000
FAX: [91] (11) 2419-0017
consulate(s) general: Chennai (Madras), Kolkata
(Calcutta), Mumbai (Bombay) |
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Flag description:
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three
equal horizontal bands of saffron (subdued orange)
(top), white, and green with a blue chakra (24-spoked
wheel) centered in the white band; similar to the flag
of Niger, which has a small orange disk centered in the
white band |
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Economy - overview:
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India's
diverse economy encompasses traditional village farming,
modern agriculture, handicrafts, a wide range of modern
industries, and a multitude of services. Services are
the major source of economic growth, though two-thirds
of the workforce is in agriculture. The UPA government
has committed to furthering economic reforms and
developing basic infrastructure to improve the lives of
the rural poor and boost economic performance.
Government controls on foreign trade and investment have
been reduced in some areas, but high tariffs (averaging
20% in 2004) and limits on foreign direct investment are
still in place. The government has indicated it will do
more to liberalize investment in civil aviation,
telecom, and insurance sectors in the near term.
Privatization of government-owned industries has
proceeded slowly, and continues to generate political
debate; continued social, political, and economic
rigidities hold back needed initiatives. The economy has
posted an excellent average growth rate of 6.8% since
1994, reducing poverty by about 10 percentage points.
India is capitalizing on its large numbers of
well-educated people skilled in the English language to
become a major exporter of software services and
software workers. Despite strong growth, the World Bank
and others worry about the combined state and federal
budget deficit, running at approximately 9% of GDP. The
huge and growing population is the fundamental social,
economic, and environmental problem. In late December
2004, a major tsunami took nearly 11,000 lives, left
almost 6,000 missing, destroyed $1.2 billion worth of
property, and severely damaged the fishing fleet. |
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GDP (purchasing power parity):
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$3.319
trillion (2004 est.) |
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GDP - real growth rate:
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6.2%
(2004 est.) |
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GDP - per capita:
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purchasing power parity - $3,100 (2004 est.) |
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture: 23.6%
industry: 28.4%
services: 48% (2002 est.) |
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Labor force:
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482.2
million (2004 est.) |
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Labor force - by occupation:
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agriculture 60%, industry 17%, services 23% (1999) |
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Unemployment rate:
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9.2%
(2004 est.) |
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Population below poverty line:
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25% (2002
est.) |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share:
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lowest
10%: 3.5%
highest 10%: 33.5% (1997) |
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Distribution of family income - Gini index:
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37.8
(1997) |
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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4.2%
(2004 est.) |
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Investment (gross fixed):
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23.8% of
GDP (2004 est.) |
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Budget:
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revenues: $67.3 billion
expenditures: $104 billion, including capital
expenditures of $13.5 billion (2004 est.) |
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Public debt:
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59.7% of
GDP (federal debt only; state debt not included) (2004
est.) |
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Agriculture - products:
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rice,
wheat, oilseed, cotton, jute, tea, sugarcane, potatoes;
cattle, water buffalo, sheep, goats, poultry; fish |
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Industries:
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textiles,
chemicals, food processing, steel, transportation
equipment, cement, mining, petroleum, machinery,
software |
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Industrial production growth rate:
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7.4%
(2004 est.) |
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Electricity - production:
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547.2
billion kWh (2002) |
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Electricity - production by source:
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fossil
fuel: 81.7%
hydro: 14.5%
nuclear: 3.4%
other: 0.3% (2001) |
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Electricity - consumption:
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510.1
billion kWh (2002) |
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Electricity - exports:
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350
million kWh (2002) |
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Electricity - imports:
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1.54
billion kWh (2002) |
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Oil - production:
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780,000
bbl/day (2004 est.) |
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Oil - consumption:
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2.13
million bbl/day (2001 est.) |
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Oil - exports:
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NA |
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Oil - imports:
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NA |
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Oil - proved reserves:
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5.7
billion bbl (2004 est.) |
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Natural gas - production:
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22.75
billion cu m (2001 est.) |
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Natural gas - consumption:
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22.75
billion cu m (2001 est.) |
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Natural gas - exports:
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0 cu m
(2001 est.) |
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Natural gas - imports:
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0 cu m
(2001 est.) |
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Natural gas - proved reserves:
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542.4
billion cu m (2004) |
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Current account balance:
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$4.897
billion (2004 est.) |
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Exports:
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$69.18
billion f.o.b. (2004 est.) |
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Exports - commodities:
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textile
goods, gems and jewelry, engineering goods, chemicals,
leather manufactures |
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Exports - partners:
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US 17%,
UAE 8.8%, China 5.5%, Hong Kong 4.7%, UK 4.5%, Singapore
4.5% (2004) |
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Imports:
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$89.33
billion f.o.b. (2004 est.) |
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Imports - commodities:
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crude
oil, machinery, gems, fertilizer, chemicals |
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Imports - partners:
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China
6.1%, US 6%, Switzerland 5.2%, Belgium 4.4% (2004) |
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Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
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$126
billion (2004 est.) |
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Debt - external:
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$117.2
billion (2004 est.) |
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Economic aid - recipient:
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$2.9
billion (FY98/99) |
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Currency (code):
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Indian
rupee (INR) |
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Currency code:
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INR |
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Exchange rates:
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Indian
rupees per US dollar - 45.317 (2004), 46.583 (2003),
48.61 (2002), 47.186 (2001), 44.942 (2000) |
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Fiscal year:
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1 April -
31 March |
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Telephones - main lines in use:
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48.917
million (2003) |
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Telephones - mobile cellular:
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26,154,400 (2003) |
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Telephone system:
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general assessment: recent deregulation and
liberalization of telecommunications laws and policies
have prompted rapid change; local and long distance
service provided throughout all regions of the country,
with services primarily concentrated in the urban areas;
steady improvement is taking place with the recent
admission of private and private-public investors, but
telephone density remains low at about seven for each
100 persons nationwide but only one per 100 persons in
rural areas and a national waiting list of over 1.7
million; fastest growth is in cellular service with
modest growth in fixed lines
domestic: expansion of domestic service, although
still weak in rural areas, resulted from increased
competition and dramatic reductions in price led in
large part by wireless service; mobile cellular service
(both CDMA and GSM) introduced in 1994 and organized
nationwide into four metropolitan cities and 19 telecom
circles each with about three private service providers
and one state-owned service provider; in recent years
significant trunk capacity added in the form of
fiber-optic cable and one of the world's largest
domestic satellite systems, the Indian National
Satellite system (INSAT), with five satellites
supporting 33,000 very small aperture terminals (VSAT)
international: country code - 91; satellite earth
stations - 8 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Inmarsat
(Indian Ocean region); nine gateway exchanges operating
from Mumbai (Bombay), New Delhi, Kolkata (Calcutta),
Chennai (Madras), Jalandhar, Kanpur, Gandhinagar,
Hyderabad, and Ernakulam; 5 submarine cables, including
Sea-Me-We-3 with landing sites at Cochin and Mumbai
(Bombay), Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe (FLAG) with
landing site at Mumbai (Bombay), South Africa - Far East
(SAFE) with landing site at Cochin, i2icn linking to
Singapore with landing sites at Mumbai (Bombay) and
Chennai (Madras), and Tata Indicom linking Singapore and
Chennai (Madras), provide a significant increase in the
bandwidth available for both voice and data traffic
(2004) |
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Radio broadcast stations:
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AM 153,
FM 91, shortwave 68 (1998) |
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Radios:
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116
million (1997) |
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Television broadcast stations:
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562 (of
which 82 stations have 1 kW or greater power and 480
stations have less than 1 kW of power) (1997) |
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Televisions:
|
63
million (1997) |
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Internet country code:
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.in |
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Internet hosts:
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86,871
(2003) |
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Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
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43 (2000)
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Internet users:
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18.481
million (2003) |
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Railways:
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total:
63,230 km (16,693 km electrified)
broad gauge: 45,718 km 1.676-m gauge
narrow gauge: 14,406 km 1.000-m gauge; 3,106 km
0.762-m gauge and 0.610-m gauge (2004) |
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Highways:
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total:
2,525,989 km
paved: 1,448,655 km
unpaved: 1,077,334 km (1999) |
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Waterways:
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14,500 km
note: 5,200 km on major rivers and 485 km on
canals suitable for mechanized vessels (2004) |
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Pipelines:
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gas 6,171
km; liquid petroleum gas 1,195 km; oil 5,613 km; refined
products 5,567 km (2004) |
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Ports and harbors:
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Chennai,
Haldia, Jawaharal Nehru, Kandla, Kolkata (Calcutta),
Mumbai (Bombay), New Mangalore, Vishakhapatnam |
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Merchant marine:
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total:
299 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 6,555,507 GRT/11,069,791
DWT
by type: bulk carrier 85, cargo 75, chemical
tanker 13, combination ore/oil 1, container 7, liquefied
gas 14, passenger 3, passenger/cargo 9, petroleum tanker
91, roll on/roll off 1
foreign-owned: 10 (Australia 1, China 1, Greece
1, UAE 6, United Kingdom 1)
registered in other countries: 30 (2005) |
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Airports:
|
333 (2004
est.) |
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Airports - with paved runways:
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total:
234
over 3,047 m: 14
2,438 to 3,047 m: 47
1,524 to 2,437 m: 78
914 to 1,523 m: 74
under 914 m: 21 (2004 est.) |
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Airports - with unpaved runways:
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total:
99
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 9
914 to 1,523 m: 42
under 914 m: 45 (2004 est.) |
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Heliports:
|
20 (2004
est.) |
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Military branches:
|
Army,
Navy (includes naval air arm), Air Force, Coast Guard,
various security or paramilitary forces (includes Border
Security Force, Assam Rifles, National Security Guards,
Indo-Tibetan Border Police, Special Frontier Force,
Central Reserve Police Force, Central Industrial
Security Force, Railway Protection Force, and Defense
Security Corps) |
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Military service age and obligation:
|
16 years
of age for voluntary military service (2001) |
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Manpower available for military service:
|
males
age 16-49: 287,551,111 (2005 est.) |
|
Manpower fit for military service:
|
males
age 16-49: 219,471,999 (2005 est.) |
|
Manpower reaching military service age annually:
|
males:
11,446,452 (2005 est.) |
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Military expenditures - dollar figure:
|
$18.86
billion (2005) |
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Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
|
2.93%
(2005/06) |
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Disputes - international:
|
China and
India launched a security and foreign policy dialogue in
2005, consolidating discussions related to the dispute
over most of their rugged, militarized boundary,
regional nuclear proliferation, Indian claims that China
transferred missiles to Pakistan, and other matters;
recent talks and confidence-building measures have begun
to defuse tensions over Kashmir, site of the world's
largest and most militarized territorial dispute with
portions under the de facto administration of China (Aksai
Chin), India (Jammu and Kashmir), and Pakistan (Azad
Kashmir and Northern Areas); in 2004, India and Pakistan
instituted a cease fire in the Kashmir and in 2005,
restored bus service across the highly militarized Line
of Control; Pakistan has taken its dispute on the impact
and benefits of India's building the Baglihar dam on the
Chenab River in Jammu and Kashmir to the World Bank for
arbitration; UN Military Observer Group in India and
Pakistan (UNMOGIP) has maintained a small group of
peacekeepers since 1949; India does not recognize
Pakistan's ceding historic Kashmir lands to China in
1964; disputes persist with Pakistan over Indus River
water sharing; to defuse tensions and prepare for
discussions on a maritime boundary, in 2004, India and
Pakistan resurveyed a portion of the disputed boundary
in Sir Creek estuary at the mouth of the Rann of Kutch;
Pakistani maps continue to show Junagadh claim in Indian
Gujarat State; discussions with Bangladesh remain
stalled to delimit a small section of river boundary, to
exchange 162 miniscule enclaves in both countries, to
allocate divided villages, and to stop illegal
cross-border trade, migration, violence, and transit of
terrorists through the porous border; Bangladesh
protests India's attempts to fence off high-traffic
sections; dispute with Bangladesh over New Moore/South
Talpatty/Purbasha Island in the Bay of Bengal deters
maritime boundary delimitation; India seeks cooperation
from Bhutan and Burma to keep Indian Nagaland and Assam
separatists from hiding in remote areas along the
borders; Joint Border Committee with Nepal continues to
demarcate minor disputed boundary sections; India has
instituted a stricter border regime to keep out Maoist
insurgents and control illegal cross-border activities
from Nepal |
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Refugees and internally displaced persons:
|
refugees (country of origin): 92,394 (Tibet/China)
60,922 (Sri Lanka)
IDPs: 650,000 (Jammu and Kashmir conflicts; most
IDPs are Kashmiri Hindus); 113,000 (resulting from 26
December 2004 tsunami) (2004) |
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Illicit drugs:
|
world's
largest producer of licit opium for the pharmaceutical
trade, but an undetermined quantity of opium is diverted
to illicit international drug markets; transit point for
illicit narcotics produced in neighboring countries;
illicit producer of methaqualone; vulnerable to
narcotics money laundering through the hawala system
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This page was last updated on
20 October, 2005 |
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