Conventional Long Form: Republic of India

Conventional Short Form: India

Government type: Federal republic

Capital: New Delhi

Administrative divisions: 

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, Uttar Pradesh, Uttaranchal, West Bengal

Independence: 15 August 1947 (from UK)

National Holiday: Republic Day, 26 January (1950)

Constitution: 26 January 1950; amended many times

Legal System:

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

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive Branch:

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 22 May 2004)

Cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister

Elections:

resident 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)

Legislative Branch:

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)

Judicial Branch:

Supreme Court (one chief justice and 25 associate justices are appointed by the president and remain in office until they reach the age of 65 or are removed for "proved misbehavior")

Political Pressure Groups and Leaders:

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

International Organization Participation:

AfDB, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), BIMSTEC, BIS, C, CERN (observer), CP, EAS, FAO, G- 6, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MONUC, NAM, OAS (observer), ONUB, OPCW, PCA, PIF (partner), SAARC, SACEP, SCO (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMEE, UNMIS, UNMOVIC, UNOCI, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO

Diplomatic Representation in the US:

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, San Francisco

Diplomatic Representation from the US:

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)

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

Economy - Overview:

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, accounting for half of India's output with less than one quarter of its labor force. About three-fifths of the work-force is in agriculture, leading the UPA government to articulate an economic reform program that includes 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% on non-agricultural items in 2004) and limits on foreign direct investment are still in place. The government in 2005 liberalized investment in the civil aviation, telecom, and construction sectors. Privatization of government-owned industries essentially came to a halt in 2005, and continues to generate political debate; continued social, political, and economic rigidities hold back needed initiatives. The economy has posted an average growth rate of more than 7% in the decade since 1994, reducing poverty by about 10 percentage points. India achieved 7.6% GDP growth in 2005, significantly expanding manufacturing. 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; government borrowing has kept interest rates high. Economic deregulation would help attract additional foreign capital and lower interest rates. The huge and growing population is the fundamental social, economic, and environmental problem.

GDP - Composition by Sector:

Agriculture: 20.6%

Industry: 28.1%

Services: 51.4% (2005 est.)

Labor Force: 496.4 million (2005 est.)

Labor Force - By Occupation :

agriculture: 60%

industry: 17%

services: 23% (1999)

Unemployment Rate: 9.9% (2005 est.)

Population Below Poverty Line : 25% (2002 est.)

Household Income or Consumption by Percentage Share :

Lowest 10%: 3.5%

Highest 10%: 33.5% (1997)

Inflation Rate (Consumer Prices): 4.6% (2005 est.)

Investment (Gross Fixed): 24.8% of GDP (2005 est.)

Budget:

Revenues: $111.2 billion

Expenditures: $135.8 billion; including capital expenditures of $15 billion (2005 est.)

Public Debt: 82% of GDP (federal and state debt combined) (2005 est.)

Agriculture - Products:

Rice, wheat, oilseed, cotton, jute, tea, sugarcane, potatoes; cattle, water buffalo, sheep, goats, poultry; fish

Industries:

Textiles, chemicals, food processing, steel, transportation equipment, cement, mining, petroleum, machinery, software

Industrial Production Growth Rate: 8.2% (2005 est.)

Current Account Balance: $-13.19 billion (2005 est.)

Exports: $76.23 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)

Exports - Commodities:

Textile goods, gems and jewelry, engineering goods, chemicals, leather manufactures

Exports - Partners:

US 17%, UAE 8.8%, China 5.5%, Hong Kong 4.7%, UK 4.5%, Singapore 4.5% (2004)

Imports: $113.1 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)

Imports - Commodities: Crude oil, machinery, gems, fertilizer, chemicals

Imports - Partners: China 6.1%, US 6%, Switzerland 5.2%, Belgium 4.4% (2004)

Reserves of Foreign Exchange and Gold: $145 billion (2005 est.)

Debt - External: $119.7 billion (2005 est.)

Economic Aid - Recipient: $2.9 billion (FY98/99)

Currency (Code): Indian rupee (INR)

Exchange Rates:

Indian rupees per US dollar - 44.101 (2005), 45.317 (2004), 46.583 (2003), 48.61 (2002), 47.186 (2001)

Fiscal Year: 1 April - 31 March

Telephones - Main Lines in Use: 67.285 million (2005)

Telephones - Mobile Cellular: 69,193,321 (2006)

Radio Broadcast Stations: AM 153, FM 91, shortwave 68 (1998)

Television Broadcast Stations:

562 (of which 82 stations have 1 kW or greater power and 480 stations have less than 1 kW of power) (1997)

Internet Country Code: .in

Internet Hosts: 787,543 (2005)

Internet Users: 50.6 million (2005)