1990 Edition
CIA World Factbook 1990 (Project Gutenberg)
Geography
Climate
varies from tropical monsoon in south to temperate in north
Coastline
7,000 km
Comparative area
slightly more than one-third the size of the US
Contiguous zone
24 nm;
Continental shelf
edge of continental margin or 200 nm;
Disputes
boundaries with Bangladesh, China, and Pakistan; water sharing problems with downstream riparians, Bangladesh over the Ganges and Pakistan over the Indus
Environment
droughts, flash floods, severe thunderstorms common; deforestation; soil erosion; overgrazing; air and water pollution; desertification
Extended economic zone
200 nm;
Land boundaries
14,103 km total; Bangladesh 4,053 km, Bhutan 605 km, Burma 1,463 km, China 3,380, Nepal 1,690 km, Pakistan 2,912 km
Land use
55% arable land; 1% permanent crops; 4% meadows and pastures; 23% forest and woodland; 17% other; includes 13% irrigated
Natural resources
coal (fourth-largest reserves in the world), iron ore, manganese, mica, bauxite, titanium ore, chromite, natural gas, diamonds, crude oil, limestone
Note
dominates South Asian subcontinent; near important Indian Ocean trade routes
Terrain
upland plain (Deccan Plateau) in south, flat to rolling plain along the Ganges, deserts in west, Himalayas in north
Territorial sea
12 nm
Total area
3,287,590 km2; land area: 2,973,190 km2
People and Society
Birth rate
30 births/1,000 population (1990)
Death rate
10 deaths/1,000 population (1990)
Ethnic divisions
72% Indo-Aryan, 25% Dravidian, 3% Mongoloid and other
Infant mortality rate
89 deaths/1,000 live births (1990)
Labor force
284,400,000; 67% agriculture (FY85)
Language
Hindi, English, and 14 other official languages--Bengali, Telgu, Marathi, Tamil, Urdu, Gujarati, Malayalam, Kannada, Oriya, Punjabi, Assamese, Kashmiri, Sindhi, and Sanskrit; 24 languages spoken by a million or more persons each; numerous other languages and dialects, for the most part mutually unintelligible; Hindi is the national language and primary tongue of 30% of the people; English enjoys associate status but is the most important language for national, political, and commercial communication; Hindustani, a popular variant of Hindi/Urdu, is spoken widely throughout northern India
Life expectancy at birth
57 years male, 59 years female (1990)
Literacy
36%
Nationality
noun--Indian(s); adjective--Indian
Net migration rate
0 migrants/1,000 population (1990)
Organized labor
less than 5% of the labor force
Population
849,746,001 (July 1990), growth rate 2.0% (1990)
Religion
82.6% Hindu, 11.4% Muslim, 2.4% Christian, 2.0% Sikh, 0.7% Buddhist, 0.5% Jains, 0.4% other
Total fertility rate
3.8 children born/woman (1990)
Government
Administrative divisions
24 states and 7 union territories*; Andaman and Nicobar Islands*, Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chandigarh*, Dadra and Nagar Haveli*, Delhi*, Goa and Daman and Diu*, 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; note--Goa may have become a state with Daman and Diu remaining a union territory
Capital
New Delhi
Communists
466,000 members claimed by CPI, 361,000 members claimed by CPI/M; Communist extremist groups, about 15,000 members
Constitution
26 January 1950
Diplomatic representation
Ambassador-designate Abid HUSSEIN; Chancery at 2107 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington DC 20008; telephone (202) 939-7000; there are Indian Consulates General in Chicago, New York, and San Francisco; US--Ambassador William CLARK; Embassy at Shanti Path, Chanakyapuri 110021, New Delhi; telephone [91] (11) 600651; there are US Consulates General in Bombay, Calcutta, and Madras
Elections
People's Assembly--last held 22, 24, 26 November 1989 (next to be held by November 1994, subject to postponement); results--percent of vote by party NA; seats--(544 total), 525 elected--Congress (I) Party 193, Janata Dal Party 141, Bharatiya Janata Party 86, Communist Party of India (Marxist) 32, independents 18, Communist Party of India 12, AIADMK 11, Akali Dal 6, Shiv Sena 4, RSP 4, Forward Bloc 3, BSP 3, Telugu Desam 2, Congress (S) Party 1, others 9
Executive branch
president, vice president, prime minister, Council of Ministers
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
Independence
15 August 1947 (from UK)
Judicial branch
Supreme Court
Leaders
Chief of State--President Ramaswamy Iyer VENKATARAMAN (since 25 July 1987); Vice President Dr. Shankar Dayal SHARMA (since 3 September 1987); Head of Government--Prime Minister Vishwanath Pratap SINGH
Legal system
based on English common law; limited judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Legislative branch
bicameral Parliament (Sansad) consists of an upper house or Government Assembly (Rajya Sabha) and a lower house or People's Assembly (Lok Sabha)
Long-form name
Republic of India
Member of
ADB, AIOEC, ANRPC, CCC, Colombo Plan, Commonwealth, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAC, ICAO, ICO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IHO, ILO, ILZSG, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IPU, IRC, ITC, ITU, IWC--International Wheat Council, NAM, SAARC, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WSG, WTO
National holiday
Anniversary of the Proclamation of the Republic, 26 January (1950)
Other political or pressure groups
various separatist groups seeking greater communal autonomy; numerous senas or militant/chauvinistic organizations, including Shiv Sena (in Bombay), Anand Marg, and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh
Political parties and leaders
Janata Dal Party, Prime Minister V. P. Singh; Congress (I) Party, Rajiv Gandhi; Bharatiya Janata Party, L. K. Advani; Communist Party of India (CPI), C. Rajeswara Rao; Communist Party of India/Marxist (CPI/M), E. M. S. Namboodiripad; Communist Party of India/Marxist-Leninist (CPI/ML), Satyanarayan Singh; All-India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazagham (AIADMK), a regional party in Tamil Nadu, Jayalalitha; Dravida Munnetra Kazagham, M. Karunanidhi; Akali Dal factions representing Sikh religious community in the Punjab; Telugu Desam, a regional party in Andhra Pradesh, N. T. Rama Rao; National Conference (NC), a regional party in Jammu and Kashmir, Farooq Abdullah; Asom Gana Parishad, a regional party in Assam, Prafulla Mahanta
Suffrage
universal at age 18
Type
federal republic
Economy
Agriculture
accounts for about 33% of GNP and employs 67% of labor force; self-sufficient in food grains; principal crops--rice, wheat, oilseeds, cotton, jute, tea, sugarcane, potatoes; livestock--cattle, buffaloes, sheep, goats and poultry; fish catch of about 3 million metric tons ranks India in the world's top 10 fishing nations
Aid
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-88), $4.2 billion; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1980-87), $18.6 billion; OPEC bilateral aid (1979-89), $315 million; USSR (1970-88), $10.0 billion; Eastern Europe (1970-88), $105 million
Budget
revenues $48 billion; expenditures $53 billion, including capital expenditures of $13.6 billion (1989)
Currency
Indian rupee (plural--rupees); 1 Indian rupee (Re) = 100 paise
Electricity
59,000,000 kW capacity; 215,000 million kWh produced, 260 kWh per capita (1989)
Exchange rates
Indian rupees (Rs) per US$1--16.965 (January 1990), 16.226 (1989), 13.917 (1988), 12.962 (1987), 12.611 (1986), 12.369 (1985)
Exports
$17.2 billion (f.o.b., 1989); commodities--tea, coffee, iron ore, fish products, manufactures; partners--EC 25%, USSR and Eastern Europe 17%, US 19%, Japan 10%
External debt
$48.7 billion (1989)
Fiscal year
1 April-31 March
GNP
$333 billion, per capita $400; real growth rate 5.0% (1989 est.)
Illicit drugs
licit producer of opium poppy for the pharmaceutical trade, but some opium is diverted to international drug markets; major transit country for illicit narcotics produced in neighboring countries
Imports
$24.7 billion (c.i.f., 1989); commodities--petroleum, edible oils, textiles, clothing, capital goods; partners--EC 33%, Middle East 19%, Japan 10%, US 9%, USSR and Eastern Europe 8%
Industrial production
growth rate 8.8% (1989)
Industries
textiles, food processing, steel, machinery, transportation equipment, cement, jute manufactures, mining, petroleum, power, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, electronics
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
9.5% (1989 est.)
Overview
India's Malthusian economy is a mixture of traditional village farming and handicrafts, modern agriculture, old and new branches of industry, and a multitude of support services. It presents both the entrepreneurial skills and drives of the capitalist system and widespread government intervention of the socialist mold. Growth of 4% to 5% annually in the 1980s has softened the impact of population growth on unemployment, social tranquility, and the environment. Agricultural output has continued to expand, reflecting the greater use of modern farming techniques and improved seed that have helped to make India self-sufficient in food grains and a net agricultural exporter. However, tens of millions of villagers, particularly in the south, have not benefited from the green revolution and live in abject poverty. Industry has benefited from a liberalization of controls. The growth rate of the service sector has also been strong.
Unemployment rate
20% (1989 est.)
Communications
Airports
345 total, 292 usable; 202 with permanent-surface runways; 2 with runways over 3,659 m; 57 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 91 with runways 1,220-2,439 m
Civil air
93 major transport aircraft
Highways
1,633,300 km total (1986); 515,300 km secondary and 1,118,000 km gravel, crushed stone, or earth
Inland waterways
16,180 km; 3,631 km navigable by large vessels
Merchant marine
296 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 5,855,842 GRT/9,790,260 DWT; includes 1 short-sea passenger, 8 passenger-cargo, 95 cargo, 1 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 8 container, 53 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 10 chemical tanker, 9 combination ore/oil,109 bulk, 2 combination bulk
Pipelines
crude oil, 3,497 km; refined products, 1,703 km; natural gas, 902 km (1989)
Ports
Bombay, Calcutta, Cochin, Kandla, Madras, New Mangalore, Port Blair (Andaman Islands)
Railroads
61,850 km total (1986); 33,553 km 1.676-meter broad gauge, 24,051 km 1.000-meter gauge, 4,246 km narrow gauge (0.762 meter and 0.610 meter); 12,617 km is double track; 6,500 km is electrified
Telecommunications
poor domestic telephone service, international radio communications adequate; 3,200,000 telephones; stations--170 AM, no FM, 14 TV (government controlled); domestic satellite system for communications and TV; 3 Indian Ocean INTELSAT earth stations; submarine cables to Sri Lanka, Malaysia, and Pakistan
Military and Security
Branches
Army, Navy, Air Force, Border Security Forces, Coast Guard, Paramilitary Forces
Defense expenditures
2.6% of GNP, or $8.7 billion (FY90 est.)
Military manpower
males 15-49, 227,436,282; 134,169,114 fit for military service; about 9,403,063 reach military age (17) annually