Whenever we look at India at a glance, the first thing we notice is its rich culture and unique diversity.

"India is the cradle of the human race, the birthplace of human speech, the mother of history, the grandmother of legend, and the great grand mother of tradition. Our most valuable and most astrictive materials in the history of man are treasured up in India only!"

- By Mark Twain

The above quote about India truly describes what India is all about. India is a mix of various traditions, cultures, rituals, religions, casts, etc. a comprehensive of all these is what we call India.

Read on further to explore other facts and information on India-

Name: India, also known as Bharat or Hindustan.

Area: 3.3 million sq. km

Population: 1027 million (as per 2001 Census)

Capital: New Delhi

Religion: India is a secular country where many religions co-exist. The major religions practiced are-

Hindu: 80%

Muslim: 14%

Christian: 2.4%

Sikh: 2%

Buddhist: 0.7%

Jain: 0.5%

Zoroastrian and others: 0.4%

Location: Between latitudes 8 ° 4' and 37 ° 6 ' north and longitudes 68 ° 7 ' and 97 ° 25' east.

Coastline length: 7,600 km

Languages: 17 Major languages, 844 dialects. Hindi and English are most Popular

Climate: India experiences three major seasons - winters, summers and Monsoon.

States and Union Territories: India has 28 states and 7 Union Territories

Government: Democratic form of Government

Prime Minister: Mr. Manmohan Singh.

President: Mr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalaam

Currency: Rupees

National anthem: Jan Gana Mana, written by Rabindranath Tagore

National emblem: Replica of the Lion Capital of Sarnath

National flag: Horizontal tricolor in equal proportion of deep saffron on the top, white in the middle and dark green at the bottom. In the center of the white band is a wheel in navy blue colour.

National animal: Tiger

National bird: Peacock

National flower: Lotus

National tree: Banyan

National fruit: Mango

Time Zone: The Indian time zone, Indian Standard Time (IST) is 5.5 hours (5 hours and 30 minutes) ahead of the Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).

Business Hours: 10 A.M. - 5 P.M. (Monday to Friday)

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