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india |
5 definitions found From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]: India \In"di*a\, n. [See {Indian}.] A country in Southern Asia; the two peninsulas of Hither and Farther India; in a restricted sense Hither India, or Hindostan. {India ink}, a nearly black pigment brought chiefly from China, used for water colors. It is in rolls, or in square, and consists of lampblack or ivory black and animal glue. Called also {China ink}. The true India ink is sepia. See {Sepia}. {India matting}, floor matting made in China, India, etc., from grass and reeds; -- also called {Canton, or China, matting}. {India paper}, a variety of Chinese paper, of smooth but not glossy surface, used for printing from engravings, woodcuts, etc {India proof} (Engraving), a proof impression from an engraved plate, taken on India paper. {India rubber}. See {Caoutchouc}. {India-rubber tree} (Bot.), any tree yielding caoutchouc, but especially the East Indian {Ficus elastica}, often cultivated for its large shining, elliptical leaves. From WordNet r 1.6 [wn]: India n : a republic in S Asia; 2nd most populous country in the world [syn: {India}, {Bharat}] From Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary [easton]: India occurs only in Esther 1:1 and 8:9, where the extent of the dominion of the Persian king is described. The country so designated here is not the peninsula of Hindustan, but the country surrounding the Indus, the Punjab. The people and the products of India were well known to the Jews, who seem to have carried on an active trade with that country (Ezek. 27:15, 24). From Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary (late 1800's) [hitchcock]: India, praise; law From The CIA World Factbook (1995) [world95]: India India:Geography Location: Southern Asia, bordering the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal, between Bangladesh and Pakistan Map references: Asia Area: total area: 3,287,590 km2 land area: 2,973,190 km2 comparative area: slightly more than one-third the size of the US Land boundaries: total 14,103 km Bangladesh 4,053 km Bhutan 605 km Burma 1,463 km China 3,380 km Nepal 1,690 km Pakistan 2,912 km Coastline: 7,000 km Maritime claims: contiguous zone: 24 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm International disputes: boundaries with Bangladesh and China; status of Kashmir with Pakistan; water-sharing problems with downstream riparians, Bangladesh over the Ganges and Pakistan over the Indus Climate: varies from tropical monsoon in south to temperate in north Terrain: upland plain (Deccan Plateau) in south, flat to rolling plain along the Ganges, deserts in west, Himalayas in north Natural resources: coal (fourth-largest reserves in the world), iron ore, manganese, mica, bauxite, titanium ore, chromite, natural gas, diamonds, petroleum, limestone Land use: arable land: 55% permanent crops: 1% meadows and pastures: 4% forest and woodland: 23% other: 17% Irrigated land: 430,390 sq km (1989) Environment: current issues: 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 rapidly growing population is overstraining natural resources natural hazards: droughts, flash floods, severe thunderstorms common; earthquakes international agreements: party to - Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber, Wetlands, Whaling; signed, but not ratified - Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Desertification Law of the Sea Note: dominates South Asian subcontinent; near important Indian Ocean trade routes India:People Population: 936,545,814 (July 1995 est.) Age structure: 0-14 years: 35% (female 159,921,309; male 168,812,255) 15-64 years: 61% (female 274,105,407; male 296,145,798) 65 years and over: 4% (female 18,870,762; male 18,690,283) (July 1995 est.) Population growth rate: 1.77% (1995 est.) Birth rate: 27.78 births/1,000 population (1995 est.) Death rate: 10.07 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.) Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.) Infant mortality rate: 76.3 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.) Life expectancy at birth: total population: 59.04 years male: 58.5 years female: 59.61 years (1995 est.) Total fertility rate: 3.4 children born/woman (1995 est.) Nationality: noun: Indian(s) adjective: Indian Ethnic divisions: Indo-Aryan 72%, Dravidian 25%, Mongoloid and other 3% Religions: Hindu 80%, Muslim 14%, Christian 2.4%, Sikh 2%, Buddhist 0.7%, Jains 0.5%, other 0.4% Languages: English enjoys associate status but is the most important language for national, political, and commercial communication, Hindi the national language and primary tongue of 30% of the people, Bengali (official), Telugu (official), Marathi (official), Tamil (official), Urdu (official), Gujarati (official), Malayalam (official), Kannada (official), Oriya (official), Punjabi (official), Assamese (official), Kashmiri (official), Sindhi (official), Sanskrit (official), Hindustani a popular variant of Hindu/Urdu, is spoken widely throughout northern India note: 24 languages each spoken by a million or more persons; numerous other languages and dialects, for the most part mutually unintelligible Literacy: age 7 and over can read and write (1991) total population: 52% male: 64% female: 39% Labor force: 314.751 million (1990) by occupation: agriculture 65% (1993 est.) India:Government Names: conventional long form: Republic of India conventional short form: India Digraph: IN Type: federal republic Capital: New Delhi Administrative divisions: 25 states and 7 union territories*; Andaman and Nicobar Islands*, Andhra Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh Assam, Bihar, Chandigarh*, Dadra and Nagar Haveli*, Daman and Diu*, Delhi*, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana Himachal Pradesh Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka Kerala, Lakshadweep*, Madhya Pradesh Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya Mizoram Nagaland Orissa, Pondicherry*, Punjab, Rajasthan Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Tripura Uttar Pradesh West Bengal Independence: 15 August 1947 (from UK) National holiday: Anniversary of the Proclamation of the Republic, 26 January (1950) Constitution: 26 January 1950 Legal system: based on English common law; limited judicial review of legislative acts accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal Executive branch: chief of state: President Shankar Dayal SHARMA (since 25 July 1992); Vice President Kicheril Raman NARAYANAN (since 21 August 1992) head of government: Prime Minister P. V. Narasimha RAO (since 21 June 1991) cabinet: Council of Ministers; appointed by the president on recommendation of the prime minister Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament Sansad Council of States (Rajya Sabha): body consisting of not more than 250 members, up to 12 appointed by the president, the remainder chosen by the elected members of the state and territorial assemblies People's Assembly (Lok Sabha): elections last held 21 May 12 and 15 June 1991 (next to be held by 1996); results - percent of vote by party NA seats - (545 total, 543 elected, 2 appointed) Congress I Party 245, BJP 119, Janata Dal Party 39, Janata Dal (Ajit Singh) 20, CPI/M 35, CPI 14, Telugu Desam 13, AIADMK 11, Samajwadi Janata Party 5, Shiv Sena 4, RSP 4, BSP 1, Congress S Party 1, other 23, vacant 9; note - the distribution of seats as of 18 January 1995 is as follows: Congress I Party 260, BJP 117, CPI/M 36, Janata Dal Party 24, Samta Party 14, CPI 14, AIADMK 12, Janata Dal (Ajit) 7, Telugu Desam 7, RSP 4, Janata Dal (Ex-Ajit) 3, Samajwadi Party 3, BSP 3, AIFB 3, Shiv Sena 2, Congress S Party 1, Kerala Congress (Mani faction) 1, Bihar Peoples Party 1, India National League 1, other 14, vacant 16 Judicial branch: Supreme Court Political parties and leaders: Congress I Party, P. V. Narasimha RAO, president; Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), L.K. ADVANI Janata Dal Party, S.R. BOMMAI Janata Dal (Ajit), Ajit SINGH; Janata Dal (Ex-Ajit), leader NA Communist Party of India/Marxist (CPI/M), Harkishan Singh SURJEET Communist Party of India (CPI), Indrajit GUPTA; Telugu Desam (a regional party in Andhra Pradesh), N. T. Rama RAO; All-India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazagham (AIADMK; a regional party in Tamil Nadu), Jayaram JAYALALITHA Samajwadi Party (SP), Mulayam Singh YADAV (President), Om Prakash CHAUTALA Devi LAL; Shiv Sena, Bal THACKERAY; Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP), Tridip CHOWDHURY Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Kanshi RAM; Congress S Party, leader NA Communist Party of India/Marxist-Leninist (CPI/ML), Vinod MISHRA; Dravida Munnetra Kazagham (a regional party in Tamil Nadu), M. KARUNANIDHI Akali Dal factions representing Sikh religious community in the Punjab; National Conference (NC; a regional party in Jammu and Kashmir), Farooq ABDULLAH Bihar Peoples Party, Lovely ANAND; Samta Party (formerly Janata Dal members), Natish KUMAR Indian National League, Suliaman SAIT; Kerala Congress (Mani faction), K.M. MANI; All India Forward Bloc (AIFB), Prem Dutta PALIWAL (Chairman), Chitta BASU (General Secretary) Other political or pressure groups: various separatist groups seeking greater communal and/or regional autonomy; numerous religious or militant/chauvinistic organizations, including Adam Sena, Ananda Marg, Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh Member of: AfDB AG (observer), AsDB C, CCC, CP ESCAP, FAO, G- 6, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), PCA, SAARC UN UNAVEM II UNCTAD UNESCO, UNIDO UNIKOM UNITAR, UNOMIL UNOMOZ UNOSOM UNU, UPU, WFTU WHO WIPO, WMO, WTO Diplomatic representation in US: chief of mission: Ambassador Siddhartha Shankar RAY chancery: 2107 Massachusetts Avenue NW Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 939-7000 consulate(s) general: Chicago, New York, and San Francisco US diplomatic representation: chief of mission: Ambassador Frank G. WISNER embassy: Shanti Path, Chanakyapuri 110021, New Delhi mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [91] (11) 600651 FAX: [91] (11) 6872028 consulate(s) general: Bombay, Calcutta, Madras Flag: three equal horizontal bands of 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 Economy Overview: India's economy is a mixture of traditional village farming, modern agriculture, handicrafts, a wide range of modern industries, and a multitude of support services. Faster economic growth in the 1980s permitted a significant increase in real per capita private consumption. A large share of the population, perhaps as much as 40%, remains too poor to afford an adequate diet. Financial strains in 1990 and 1991 prompted government austerity measures that slowed industrial growth but permitted India to meet its international payment obligations without rescheduling its debt. Production, trade and investment reforms since 1991 have provided new opportunities for Indian businessmen and an estimated 100 million to 200 million middle class consumers. New Delhi has always paid its foreign debts on schedule and has stimulated exports, attracted foreign investment, and revived confidence in India's economic prospects. Foreign exchange reserves, precariously low three years ago, now total more than $19 billion. Positive factors for the remainder of the 1990s are India's strong entrepreneurial class and the central government's recognition of the continuing need for market-oriented approaches to economic development, for example in upgrading the wholly inadequate communications facilities. Negative factors include the desperate poverty of hundreds of millions of Indians and the impact of the huge and expanding population on an already overloaded environment. National product: GDP - purchasing power parity - $1.2539 trillion (1994 est.) National product real growth rate: 5% (1994 est.) National product per capita: $1,360 (1994 est.) Inflation rate (consumer prices): 10% (1994 est.) Unemployment rate: NA% Budget: revenues: $30.85 billion expenditures: $48.35 billion, including capital expenditures of $10.5 billion (FY93/94) Exports: $24.4 billion (f.o.b., 1994 est.) commodities: clothing, gems and jewelry, engineering goods, chemicals, leather manufactures, cotton yarn, and fabric partners: US Japan, Germany, UK Hong Kong Imports: $25.5 billion (c.i.f., 1994 est.) commodities: crude oil and petroleum products, machinery, gems, fertilizer, chemicals partners: US Germany, Saudi Arabia, UK Belgium, Japan External debt: $89.2 billion (November 1994) Industrial production: growth rate 7% (1994 est.); accounts for 28% of GDP Electricity: capacity: 81,200,000 kW production: 314 billion kWh consumption per capita: 324 kWh (1993) Industries: textiles, chemicals, food processing, steel, transportation equipment, cement, mining, petroleum, machinery Agriculture: accounts for 34% of GDP; principal crops - rice, wheat, oilseeds, cotton, jute, tea, sugarcane, potatoes; livestock - cattle, buffaloes, sheep, goats, poultry; fish catch of about 3 million metric tons ranks India among the world's top 10 fishing nations Illicit drugs: licit producer of opium poppy for the pharmaceutical trade but an undetermined quantity of opium is diverted to illicit international drug markets; major transit country for illicit narcotics produced in neighboring countries; illicit producer of hashish and methaqualone; produced 82 metric tons of illicit opium in 1994 Economic aid: recipient: US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-89), $4.4 billion; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1980-89), $31.7 billion; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $315 million; USSR (1970-89), $11.6 billion; Eastern Europe (1970-89), $105 million Currency: 1 Indian rupee Re = 100 paise Exchange rates: Indian rupees Rs per US$1 - 31.374 (January 1995), 31.374 (1994), 30.493 (1993), 25.918 (1992), 22.742 (1991), 17.504 (1990) Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March India:Transportation Railroads: total: 62,211 km (6,500 km electrified; 12,617 km double track) broad gauge: 34,544 km 1.676-m gauge narrow gauge: 23,599 km 1.000-m gauge; 4,068 km 0.762-m and 0.610-m gauge (1994 est.) Highways: total: 1.97 million km paved: 960,000 km unpaved: gravel, crushed stone, earth 1.01 million km (1989) Inland waterways: 16,180 km 3,631 km navigable by large vessels Pipelines: crude oil 3,497 km petroleum products 1,703 km natural gas 902 km (1989) Ports: Bombay, Calcutta, Cochin, Haldia, Kandla Madras, Mormugao New Mangalore Pondicherry Port Blair (Andaman Islands), Tuticorin Vishakhapatnam Merchant marine: total: 299 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 6,288,902 GRT/10,454,178 DWT ships by type: bulk 114, cargo 78, chemical tanker 9, combination bulk 2, combination ore/oil 5, container 10, liquefied gas tanker 6, oil tanker 68, passenger-cargo 5, roll-on/roll-off cargo 1, short-sea passenger 1 Airports: total: 352 with paved runways over 3,047 m: 11 with paved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m: 48 with paved runways 1,524 to 2,437 m: 85 with paved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 72 with paved runways under 914 m: 81 with unpaved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 with unpaved runways 1,524 to 2,438 m: 7 with unpaved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 46 India:Communications Telephone system: NA telephones; 5 telephones/1,000 persons; domestic telephone system is poor; long-distance telephoning has been improved by a domestic satellite system which also carries TV local: NA intercity: NA international: 3 INTELSAT (Indian Ocean) earth stations and submarine cables to Malaysia and the United Arab Emirates Radio: broadcast stations: AM 96, FM 4, shortwave 0 radios: NA Television: broadcast stations: 274 (government controlled) televisions: NA India:Defense Forces Branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, various security or paramilitary forces (includes Border Security Force, Assam Rifles, and Coast Guard) Manpower availability: males age 15-49 253,134,487; males fit for military service 148,814,104; males reach military age (17) annually 9,461,907 (1995 est.) Defense expenditures: exchange rate conversion - $7.8 billion, 2.8% of GDP (FY94/95)
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