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India at a glance
India is a country located in South Asia. As a country with over 1.2 billion people, India is the most populous democracy in the world. It is divided into twenty-eight states and seven union territories (UTs). Each of the 28 states have their own government, whereas union territories are administered by the Government of India itself. As per the Constitution of India, the central government can also empower a union territory with a legislature. As of 2008, two union territories, the National Capital Territory of Delhi and Pondicherry have their own legislatures. India is a federal union of states The states and territories are further subdivided into districts.
Capitals
The state and union territory capitals are sorted according to the administrative, legislative and judicial capitals. The administrative capital is where the executive government offices are located, the legislative capital is where the state assembly convenes, and the judicial capital is the location of the state or territorial High Courts of India.
No. | State/UT | Administrative capital | Legislative capital | Judiciary capital | Year of establishment | Former capital |
1 | Andaman and Nicobar Islands | Port Blair | Port Blair | Kolkata | 1956 | Calcutta (1945–1956) |
2 | Andhra Pradesh | Hyderabad | Hyderabad | Hyderabad | 1956 | Hyderabad (Hyderabad State), Kurnool (Andhra State); Andhra Pradesh was formed combining erstwhile Andhra State and region of Hyderabad state. |
3 | Arunachal Pradesh | Itanagar | Itanagar | Guwahati | 1987 | |
4 | Assam | Dispur | Guwahati | Guwahati | 1975 | Shillong[3] (1874–1972) |
5 | Bihar | Patna | Patna | Patna | 1935 | |
6 | Chandigarh | Chandigarh[4] | — | Chandigarh | 1966 | — |
7 | Chhattisgarh | Raipur | Raipur | Bilaspur | 1 Nov. 2000 | — |
8 | Dadra and Nagar Haveli | Silvassa | — | Mumbai | 1944 | Mumbai (1954–1961) Panaji (1961–1987) |
9 | Daman and Diu | Daman | — | 1987 | Ahmedabad (1961–1963) Panaji (1963–1987) | |
10 | National Capital Territory of Delhi | Delhi | Delhi | Delhi | 1952 | — |
11 | Goa | Panaji[5] | Porvorim | Mumbai | 1961 | Panaji (1961–1987) |
12 | Gujarat | Gandhinagar | Gandhinagar | Ahmedabad | 1960 | Ahmedabad (1960–1970) |
13 | Haryana | Chandigarh | Chandigarh | Chandigarh | 1966 | — |
14 | Himachal Pradesh | Shimla | Shimla | Shimla | 1971 | Bilaspur (1950–1956) |
15 | Jammu and Kashmir | Srinagar (S) Jammu (w) | Srinagar (S) Jammu (W) | 1948 | — | |
16 | Jharkhand | Ranchi | Ranchi | Ranchi | 2000 | Patna |
17 | Karnataka | Bengaluru | Bengaluru | Bengaluru | 1956 | Mysore (1956–1971) |
18 | Kerala | Thiruvananthapuram | Thiruvananthapuram | Kochi | 1956 | |
19 | Lakshadweep | Kavaratti | Kavaratti | Kochi | ||
20 | Madhya Pradesh | Bhopal | Bhopal | Jabalpur | 1956 | Nagpur[6] (1861–1956) |
21 | Maharashtra | Mumbai[7] Nagpur (W/2nd)[8] | Mumbai (S+B) Nagpur (W) | Mumbai | 1818 1960 |
— |
22 | Manipur | Imphal | Imphal | Guwahati | 1947 | — |
23 | Meghalaya | Shillong | Shillong | Guwahati | 1970 | — |
24 | Mizoram | Aizawl | Aizawl | Guwahati | 1972 | — |
25 | Nagaland | Kohima | Kohima | Guwahati | 1963 | — |
26 | Orissa | Bhubaneswar | Bhubaneswar | Cuttack | 1948 | Cuttack (1936–1948) |
27 | Pondicherry | Pondicherry | Pondicherry | Chennai | 1954 | Madras (1948–1954) |
28 | Punjab | Chandigarh | Chandigarh | Chandigarh | 1966 | Lahore[10] (1936–1947) |
29 | Rajasthan | Jaipur | Jaipur | Jodhpur | 1948 | Shimla (1947–1966) |
30 | Sikkim | Gangtok[11] | Gangtok | Gangtok | 1975 | — |
31 | Tamil Nadu | Chennai[12] | Chennai | Chennai | 1688 | — |
32 | Tripura | Agartala | Agartala | Guwahati | 1956 | — |
33 | Uttar Pradesh | Lucknow | Lucknow | Allahabad | 1937 | — |
34 | Uttarakhand | Dehradun[13] | Dehradun | Nainital | 9-Nov-00 | — |
35 | West Bengal | Kolkata | Kolkata | Kolkata | 1947 | — |
India History
India is the seventh largest country in the world which makes it obvious for the country to have vast geographical features. The map on geography of India by mapsofindia tries to contain the massive geographical details of the country on a map, for your convenience.
The country covers an area of 3.28 million sq kilometer. The mainland of India extends between 8° 4 ‘ N and 37° 6’ North Latitude and 68° 7 ‘ and 97° 25 ‘ East sLongitudes. The Tropic of Cancer 23° 30 ‘ N divides India almost into two halves. The land frontier of the country is 15, 200 km and the total length of the coastline is 7, 517 kilometers. Indian peninsula tapers southward resulting in the division of the Indian Ocean into two water bodies – the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea. In India, there is a great diversity of landforms such as lofty mountains, deep valleys, extensive plains, and a number of islands. Broadly the physical features of India can be divided into five physical units – The Great Mountains of the North, The North Indian Plain, The Peninsular Plateau, The Coastal Plains, and The Islands.
There are as many as 28 states in India, located in the total area of 3,287,263 km2.
The largest of all Indian states is Rajasthan which covers an area of 342240 sq km. The state of Rajasthan shares its border with Pakistan on the West, Gujarat on the South West, Madhya Pradesh on the South East and Punjab to the North.
Goa is the smallest state in India located merely in 3702 sq km. The state of Goa is located to the South West of India and is the most prosperous of all the states in the country. Uttar Pradesh lying to the North East of the country is the most populous country in India. The state of Gujarat lying on the extreme west of India is one of the most prosperous of all Indian states. The awe strikingly beautiful Jammu and Kashmir is the northernmost state in the country. India’s eastern border is equipped by states of Manipur, Meghalaya, Assam, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura and Arunachal Pradesh. All these states together are located in the 7% of the total area in the country. The union territories in the country are seven in number. Delhi, the capital of India also falls under the category. The other union territories of the country include Chandigarh located to the North of the country, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu located to the West of the country, Lakshadweep located to the South West of the country, Puducherry located to the South East of the country and Andaman and Nicobar Islands located to the South East of the country.
India has a large reserve of rivers- big and small and all these rivers are revered in the country other than merely being the sources of water. The River Brahmaputra is a trans-boundary River. The river originates in Tibet and enters India in Arunachal Pradesh and passes through Assam before finally making its way through Bangladesh. The River Ganga is the longest river in India and is considered to be the most pious river in the country. The river has several tributaries including River Yamuna which is the only water body near the National Capital- New Delhi. River Chambal, a tributary of Yamuna passes through Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. The other major rivers in India include Narmada River originating at Amarkantak in Madhya Pradesh, River Godavri originating at Tryambakeshar in Maharashtra, River Krishna originating at Mahabaleshwar, River Kaveri passing through Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, Mahanadi River flowing through Chattisgarh and Odisha. The other rivers in the country include Mahi, Betwa, Penner, Kosi, Tungabhadra and several others.
India shares its international borders with Pakistan in the west, Nepal, China and Bhutan in the North West. It is surrounded by Burma and Bangladesh to the East. Sri Lanka lies to the South of India and India’s union territory Andaman and Nicobar Islands lie close to Thailand and Indonesia.
The map will help you locate all this and more. All the international boundaries of the country are marked in pink lines. Grey dotted lines stand for the state boundaries and help you be familiar with all the Indian states and their neighbours. The blue lines scattered throughout the map represent all the major rivers in the country.
The history of India is one of the grand epics of world history and can be best described in the words of India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru as “a bundle of contradictions held together by strong but invisible threads”. Indian history can be characterized as a work in progress, a continuous process of reinvention that can eventually prove elusive for those seeking to grasp its essential character.
The history of this astonishing sub continent dates back to almost 75000 years ago when the evidence of human activity of Homo sapiens. The Indus Valley Civilization which thrived in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent from 3300- 1300 BCE was the first major civilization in India.
Following is the history of India through the Ages:
The Pre Historic Era
The Stone Age:
The Stone Age began 500,000 to 200,000 years ago and recent finds in Tamil Nadu (at C. 75000 years ago, before and after the explosion of the Toba Volcano) indicate the presence of the first anatomically humans in the area. Tools crafted by proto-humans that have been dated back to two million years have been discovered in the Northwestern part of the country.
The Bronze Age:
The Bronze Age in the Indian subcontinent dates back to around 3300 BCE with the early Indus Valley Civilization. Historically part of ancient India, it is one of the world’s earliest, urban civilizations, along with Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt. Inhabitants of this era developed new techniques in metallurgy and handicraft and produced copper, bronze, lead and tin.
Early Historic Period
Vedic Period:
The Vedic Period is distinguished by the Indo-Aryan culture which was associated with the texts of Vedas, sacred to Hindus, and that were orally composed in Vedic Sanskrit. The Vedas are some of the oldest extant texts, next to those in Egypt and Mesopotamia. The Vedic era in the subcontinent lasted from about 1500-500 BCE, laying down the foundation of Hinduism and other cultural dimensions of early Indian society. The Aryans laid down Vedic civilization all over North India, particularly in the Gangetic Plain.
Mahajanapadas:
This period saw the second major rise in urbanization in India after the Indus valley Civilization. The word “maha” means great and the word “janapada” means foothold of a tribe. In the later Vedic Age a number of small kingdoms or city states had mushroomed across the subcontinent and also find mention in early Buddhist and Jain literature as far back as 1000 BCE. By 500 BCE, sixteen “republics” or Mahajanapadas has been established, namely; Kasi, Kosala, Anga, Magadha, Vajji (or Vriji),Malla, Chedi, Vatsa (or Vamsa), Kuru, Panchala, Matsya, Surasena, Assaka, Avanti,Gandhara, and Kamboja.
Persian and Greek Conquests:
Much of the Northwest subcontinent (currently Afghanistan and Pakistan) came under the rule of the Persian Achaemenid Empire in C. 520 BCE under the rule of Darius the Great and remained so for two centuries. In 326 BCE, Alexander the Great conquered Asia Minor and the Achaemenid Empire, when he reached the Northwest frontier of the Indian subcontinent he defeated King Porus and conquered most of Punjab.
Maurya Empire:
The Maurya Empire, ruled by the Mauryan Dynasty from 322-185 BCE was a geographically extensive and mighty political and military empire in ancient India, established in the subcontinent by Chandragupta Maurya in Magadha (present day Bihar) and was it further thrived under Ashoka the Great.
The Mughal Empire:
In 1526, Babur, a descendant of Timur and Gengis Kahn from Fergana Valler (present day Uzbekistan) swept across the Khyber Pass and established the Mughal Empire which covered modern day Afghanistan, Pakistan, India and Bangladesh. The Mughal dynasty ruled most of the Indian subcontinent till 1600; after which it went into decline after 1707 and was finally defeated during India’s first war of Independence in 1857.
Colonial Era:
From the 16th century, European powers such as Portugal, Netherlands, France and the United Kingdom established trading posts in India. Later, they took advantage of internal conflicts and established colonies in the country.
The British Rule:
The British Rule in India began with the coming of the British East India Company in 1600 and continued till Indian independence from British rule in 1947.
The Indian Independence Movement and Mahatma Gandhi:
In the 20th century Mahatma Gandhi led millions of people in a national campaign of non-violent civil disobedience to contain independence from the British.
Independence and Partition:
Religious tension between the Hindus and Muslims had been brewing over the years, especially in provinces like Punjab and Bengal. The Muslims were a minority and they did not feel secure in the prospect of an exclusively Hindu government and hence made them wary of independence. All through this Mahatama Gandhi called for unity among the two religious groups. The British, whose economy had been weakened after World War 2, decided to leave India and participated in the formation of an interim government. The British Indian territories gained independence in 1947, after being partitioned into the Union of India and the Dominion of Pakistan.
Indian Flag
Indian flag” redirects here. For flags used by Native American people, see the tribes’ respective articles, for example the Navajo Nation.
India Tirangā Flag of India.svg
Name Tiranga; Tricolour
Use National flag National flag IFIS Normal.svg
Proportion 2:3
Adopted 22 July 1947
Design Horizontal tricolour flag (deep saffron, white, and green). In the centre of the white is a navy blue wheel with 24 spokes
Designed by Pingali Venkayya[N 1]
The National flag of India is a horizontal rectangular tricolour of deep saffron, white and dark green; with the Ashok Chakra, a 24-spoke wheel, in navy blue at its centre. It was adopted in its present form during a meeting of the Constituent Assembly held on 22 July 1947, when it became the official flag of the Dominion of India. The flag was subsequently retained as that of the Republic of India. In India, the term “tricolour” (Hindi: तिरंगा, Tirangā) almost always refers to the Indian national flag. The flag is based on the Swaraj flag, a flag of the Indian National Congress designed by Pingali Venkayya.
The flag, by law, is to be made of khadi, a special type of hand-spun cloth of cotton or silk made popular by Mahatma Gandhi. The manufacturing process and specifications for the flag are laid out by the Bureau of Indian Standards. The right to manufacture the flag is held by the Khadi Development and Village Industries Commission, who allocate it to the regional groups. As of 2009, the Karnataka Khadi Gramodyoga Samyukta Sangha was the sole manufacturer of the flag.
Usage of the flag is governed by the Flag Code of India and other laws relating to the national emblems. The original code prohibited use of the flag by private citizens except on national days such as the Independence day and the Republic Day. In 2002, on hearing an appeal from a private citizen, Naveen Jindal, the Supreme Court of India directed the Government of India to amend the code to allow flag usage by private citizens. Subsequently, the Union Cabinet of India amended the code to allow limited usage. The code was amended once more in 2005 to allow some additional use including adaptations on certain forms of clothing. The flag code also governs the protocol of flying the flag and its use in conjunction with other national and non-national flags.
The saffron color represents courage and sacrifice; white – truth and purity; green – peace and prosperity; and the Ashok Chakra represents the Laws of Dharma (righteousness)
A few days before India gained its freedom in August 1947, the Constituent Assembly was formed. To select a flag for independent India, on 23 June 1947, the assembly set up an ad hoc committee headed by Rajendra Prasad and including Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Sarojini Naidu, C. Rajagopalachari, K. M. Munshi and B.R. Ambedkar as its members. On 14 July 1947, the committee recommended that the flag of the Indian National Congress be adopted as the National Flag of India with suitable modifications, so as to make it acceptable to all parties and communities. It was also resolved that the flag should not have any communal undertones.[6] The spinning wheel of the Congress flag was replaced by the Chakra (wheel) from the Lion Capital of Ashoka. According to Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, the chakra was chosen as it was representative of dharma and law. However, Nehru explained that the change was more practical in nature, as unlike the flag with the spinning wheel, this design would appear symmetrical. Gandhi was not very pleased by the change, but eventually came around to accepting it. The flag was proposed by Nehru at the Constituent Assembly on 22 July 1947 as a horizontal tricolor of deep saffron, white and dark green in equal proportions, with the Ashoka wheel in blue in the centre of the white band. Nehru also presented two flags, one in Khadi-silk and the other in Khadi-cotton, to the assembly. The resolution was approved unanimously. It served as the national flag of the Dominion of India between 15 August 1947 and 26 January 1950, and has served as the flag of the Republic of India since then.
The privilege of flying the national flag on vehicles is restricted to the President, Vice-President, Prime Minister, Governors and Lieutenant Governors of states, Chief Ministers, Union Ministers, members of the Parliament of India and state legislatures of the Indian states (Vidhan Sabha and Vidhan Parishad), judges of the Supreme Court of India and High Courts, and flag officers of the Army, Navy and Air Force. The flag has to be flown from a staff affixed firmly either on the middle front or to the front right side of the car. When a foreign dignitary travels in a car provided by government, the flag should be flown on the right side of the car while the flag of the foreign country should be flown on the left side.[6] The flag should be flown on the aircraft carrying the President, the Vice-President or the Prime Minister on a visit to a foreign country. Alongside the National Flag, the flag of the country visited should also be flown; however, when the aircraft lands in countries en route, the national flags of the respective countries would be flown instead. When carrying the President within India, aircraft display the flag on the side the President embarks or disembarks; the flag is similarly flown on trains, but only when the train is stationary or approaching a railway station
Where was Indian first flag hosted?
Calcutta
Who design the first national Indian flag?
Pingali Venkayya
Who designed Indian national flag at first?
Prakriti jha
Who hosted National Flag first time in free India?
pandit jawaharlal nehru
The Indian flag was hoisted on the highest mountain peak of the world, Mount Everest on 29th May 1953.
Madam Bhikaji Rustom Cama was the first person to hoist Indian flag on foreign soil on 22nd August 1907 in Stuttgrat, Germany.
The Indian National Flag flew to space in 1984 when Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma went to the space. The flag was attached as a medallion on the space suit of Rakesh Sharma
Currencies of the World
Country | Currency | Sub Currency |
Afghanistan | afghani | 100 puls |
Algeria | dinar | 100 centimes |
Andorra | euro | 100 cents |
Argentina | austral | 100 centavos |
Australia | dollar | 100 cents |
Austria | euro | 100 cents |
Bahamas | dollar | 100 cents |
Bahrain | dinar | 1,000 fils |
Barbados | dollar | 100 cents |
Belgium | euro | 100 cents |
Belize | dollar | 100 cents |
Benin | franc | 100 centimes |
Bolivia | boliviano | 100 centavos |
Brazil | real | 100 centavos |
Brunei | dollar | 100 cents or sen |
Bulgaria | lev | 100 stotinki |
Cameroon | franc | 100 centimes |
Canada | dollar | 100 cents |
Cayman Islands | dollar | 100 cents |
Central African Rep. | franc | 100 centimes |
Chad | franc | 100 centimes |
Chile | peso | 100 centavos |
China | yuan | 10 fen |
Columbia | peso | 100 centavos |
Congo | franc | 100 centimes |
Costa Rica | colon | 100 centimos |
Cuba | peso | 100 centavos |
Cyprus (Greek) | euro | 100 cents |
Cyprus (Turkish) | lira | 100 kurus |
Czechoslovakia | koruna | 100 halers |
Denmark | krone | 100 ore |
Djibouti | franc | 100 centimes |
Dominican Rep. | peso | 100 centavos |
Ecuador | dollar | 100 cents |
Egypt | pound | 100 piastres |
El Salvador | colon | 100 centavos |
Ethiopia | birr | 100 cents |
Fiji | dollar | 100 cents |
Finland | euro | 100 cents |
COUNTRY | CURRENCY | SUB CURRENCY |
France | euro | 100 cents |
Gabon | franc | 100 centimes |
Gambia | dalasi | 100 bututs |
Germany | euro | 100 cents |
Ghana | cedi | 100 pesewas |
Greece | euro | 100 cents |
Guatemala | quetzal | 100 centavos |
Guinea | franc | 100 centimes |
Guyana | dollar | 100 cents |
Haiti | gourde | 100 centimes |
Honduras | lempira | 100 centavos |
Hong Kong | dollar | 100 cents |
Hungary | forint | 100 filler |
Iceland | Krona | 100 aurar |
India | rupee | 100 paise |
Indonesia | rupiah | 100 sen |
Iraq | dinar | 1,000 fils |
Ireland | euro | 100 cents |
Israel | shekel | 100 agorot |
Italy | euro | 100 cents |
Ivory Coast | franc | 100 centimes |
Jamaica | dollar | 100 cents |
Japan | yen | 100 cen |
Jordan | dinar | 1,000 fils |
Kenya | shilling | 100 cents |
Kuwait | dinar | 1,000 fils |
Lebanon | pound | 100 piastres |
Luxembourg | euro | 100 cents |
COUNTRY | CURRENCY | SUB CURRENCY |
Malawi | kwacha | 100 tambala |
Malaysia | ringgit | 100 sen |
Maldives | rufiyaa | 100 laari |
Malta | euro | 100 cents |
Mauritania | ouguiya | 5 khoums |
Mauritius | rupee | 100 cents |
Mexico | peso | 100 centavos |
Mongolia | tugrik | 100 mongo |
Montenegro | euro | 100 cents |
Morocco | dirham | 100 centimes |
Nepal | rupee | 100 paisa |
Netherlands | euro | 100 cents |
New Zealand | dollar | 100 cents |
Nicaragua | cordoba | 100 centavos |
Niger | franc | 100 centimes |
Norway | krone | 100 ore |
Oman | riyal-omani | 1,000 baiza |
Pakistan | rupee | 100 paisa |
Papua New Guinea | kina | 100 toea |
Paraguay | guarani | 100 centimos |
Peru | inti | 100 centimes |
Philippines | peso | 100 centavos |
Poland | zloty | 100 groszy |
Portugal | euro | 100 cents |
Qatar | riyal | 100 dirhams |
Romania | leu | 100 bani |
Saudi Arabia | riyal | 100 dirhams |
Senegal | franc | 100 centimes |
Serbia | dinar | 100 paras |
Seychelles | rupee | 100 cents |
COUNTRY | CURRENCY | SUB CURRENCY |
Sierra Leone | leone | 100 cents |
Singapore | dollar | 100 cents |
Slovakia | koruna | |
Slovenia | euro | 100 cents |
Solomon Islands | dollar | 100 cents |
Somalia | shilling | 100 cents |
South Africa | rand | 100 cents |
South Korea | won | 100 chon |
Spain | euro | 100 cents |
Sri Lanka | rupee | 100 cents |
Sudan | dinar | |
Suriname | guilder | 100 cents |
Sweden | krona | 100 ore |
Switzerland | franc | 100 centimes |
Syria | pound | 100 piastres |
Taiwan | dollar | 100 cents |
Tanzania | shilling | 100 cents |
Thailand | baht | 100 satang |
Togo | franc | 100 centimes |
Trinidad & Tobago | dollar | 100 cents |
Tunisia | dinar | 1,000 millimes |
Turkey | lira | 100 kurus |
Uganda | shilling | 100 cents |
United Arab Emir. | dirham | 1,000 fils |
United Kingdom | pound | 100 pence |
United States | dollar | 100 cents |
Uruguay | peso | 100 centesimos |
Venezuela | bolivar | 100 centimos |
Vietnam | dong | 100 xu |
Western Samoa | tala | 100 sene |
Zambia | kwacha | 100 ngwee |
Zimbabwe | dollar | 100 cents |
Note: currencies often change value without notice