The
ministry works to prepare specialty ministry teams to go into territories where
no one wants to go, and then to tell the Good News. We carry this message
through preaching and provision care ministries.
|
Read
a typical & current Request - maybe you can help?
More Info at
Mission Fields
India
See also www.indiachurches.com
|
|
Legend:
 Definition
 Field
Listing  Rank
Order
|
Background:
|
The Indus Valley civilization, one of the oldest in
the world, goes back at least 5,000 years. Aryan
tribes from the northwest invaded about 1500 B.C.;
their merger with the earlier inhabitants created the
classical Indian culture. Arab incursions starting in
the 8th century and Turkish in 12th were followed by
European traders, beginning in the late 15th century.
By the 19th century, Britain had assumed political
control of virtually all Indian lands. Nonviolent
resistance to British colonialism under Mohandas
GANDHI and Jawaharlal NEHRU led to independence in
1947. The subcontinent was divided into the secular
state of India and the smaller Muslim state of
Pakistan. A third war between the two countries in
1971 resulted in East Pakistan becoming the separate
nation of Bangladesh. Fundamental concerns in India
include the ongoing dispute with Pakistan over
Kashmir, massive overpopulation, environmental
degradation, extensive poverty, and ethnic and
religious strife, all this despite impressive gains in
economic investment and output. |
|
Location:
|
Southern Asia, bordering the Arabian Sea and the Bay
of Bengal, between Burma and Pakistan |
|
Geographic coordinates:
|
20 00 N, 77 00 E |
|
Map references:
|
Asia |
|
Area:
|
total: 3,287,590 sq km
land: 2,973,190 sq km
water: 314,400 sq km |
|
Area - comparative:
|
slightly more than one-third the size of the US |
|
Land boundaries:
|
total: 14,103 km
border countries: 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
territorial sea: 12 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the
continental margin
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM |
|
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 |
|
Elevation extremes:
|
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Kanchenjunga 8,598 m |
|
Natural resources:
|
coal (fourth-largest reserves in the world), iron ore,
manganese, mica, bauxite, titanium ore, chromite,
natural gas, diamonds, petroleum, limestone, arable
land |
|
Land use:
|
arable land: 54.35%
permanent crops: 2.66%
other: 42.99% (1998 est.) |
|
Irrigated land:
|
590,000 sq km (1998 est.) |
|
Natural hazards:
|
droughts; flash floods, as well as widespread and
destructive flooding from monsoonal rains; severe
thunderstorms; earthquakes |
|
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
growing population is overstraining natural resources |
|
Environment - international
agreements:
|
party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol,
Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty,
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification,
Endangered Species, Environmental Modification,
Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer
Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83,
Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected
agreements |
|
Geography - note:
|
dominates South Asian subcontinent; near important
Indian Ocean trade routes |
|
Population:
|
1,049,700,118 (July 2003 est.) |
|
Age structure:
|
0-14 years: 32.2% (male 173,973,350; female
163,979,116)
15-64 years: 63% (male 342,620,712; female
319,259,867)
65 years and over: 4.8% (male 25,281,756;
female 24,585,317) (2003 est.) |
|
Median age:
|
total: 24.1 years
male: 24.1 years
female: 24.2 years (2002) |
|
Population growth rate:
|
1.47% (2003 est.) |
|
Birth rate:
|
23.28 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
|
Death rate:
|
8.49 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
|
Net migration rate:
|
-0.07 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
|
Sex ratio:
|
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.07 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.03 male(s)/female
total population: 1.07 male(s)/female (2003
est.) |
|
Infant mortality rate:
|
total: 59.59 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 58.93 deaths/1,000 live births (2003
est.)
male: 60.23 deaths/1,000 live births |
|
Life expectancy at birth:
|
total population: 63.62 years
male: 62.92 years
female: 64.37 years (2003 est.) |
|
Total fertility rate:
|
2.91 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
|
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
|
0.8% (2001 est.) |
|
HIV/AIDS - people living with
HIV/AIDS:
|
3.97 million (2001 est.) |
|
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
|
310,000 (2001 est.) |
|
Nationality:
|
noun: Indian(s)
adjective: Indian |
|
Ethnic groups:
|
Indo-Aryan 72%, Dravidian 25%, Mongoloid and other 3%
(2000) |
|
Religions:
|
Hindu 81.3%, Muslim 12%, Christian 2.3%, Sikh 1.9%,
other groups including Buddhist, Jain, Parsi 2.5%
(2000) |
|
Languages:
|
English enjoys associate status but is the most
important language for national, political, and
commercial communication; Hindi is the national
language and primary tongue of 30% of the people;
there are 14 other official languages: Bengali,
Telugu, Marathi, Tamil, Urdu, Gujarati, Malayalam,
Kannada, Oriya, Punjabi, Assamese, Kashmiri, Sindhi,
and Sanskrit; Hindustani is a popular variant of
Hindi/Urdu spoken widely throughout northern India but
is not an official language |
|
Literacy:
|
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 59.5%
male: 70.2%
female: 48.3% (2003 est.) |
|
Country name:
|
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, Uttaranchal, Uttar
Pradesh, West Bengal |
|
Independence:
|
15 August 1947 (from UK) |
|
National holiday:
|
Republic Day, 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 Abdul KALAM (since 26
July 2002); Vice President Bhairon Singh SHEKHAWAT
(since 12 August 2002)
elections: president 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 NA July 2002 (next
to be held NA 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 NA
August 2007); prime minister elected by parliamentary
members of the majority party following legislative
elections; election last held NA October 1999 (next to
be held NA October 2004)
head of government: Prime Minister Atal Bihari
VAJPAYEE (since 19 March 1998)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the
president on the recommendation of the prime minister
election results: Abdul KALAM elected
president; percent of electoral college vote - NA%;
Bhairon Singh SHEKHAWAT elected vice president;
percent of Parliament vote - 59.8%; Atal Bihari
VAJPAYEE elected prime minister; percent of vote - NA% |
|
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 which 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)
elections: People's Assembly - last held 5
September through 3 October 1999 (next to be held NA
2004)
election results: People's Assembly - percent
of vote by party - BJP alliance 40.8%, Congress (I)
alliance 33.8%, other 25.4%; seats by party - BJP
alliance 304, Congress (I) alliance 134, other 107 |
|
Judicial branch:
|
Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president
and remain in office until they reach the age of 65) |
|
Political parties and leaders:
|
All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam or AIADMK [C.
Jayalalitha JAYARAM]; All India Forward Bloc or AIFB,
[D. BISWAS (general secretary)]; Asom Gana Parishad [Brindaban
GOSWAMI]; Bahujan Samaj Party or BSP [MAYAWATI];
Bharatiya Janata Party or BJP [Jana KRISNAMURTHY];
Biju Janata Dal or BJD [Naveen PATNAIK]; Communist
Party of India or CPI [Ardhendu Bhushan BARDHAN];
Communist Party of India/Marxist-Leninist or CPI/ML [Dipankar
BHATTACHARYA]; Congress (I) Party [Sonia GANDHI];
Dravida Munnetra Kazagham or DMK (a regional party in
Tamil Nadu) [M. KARUNANIDHI]; Indian National League [Suliaman
SAITH]; Janata Dal (Secular) [H. D. Deve GOWDA];
Janata Dal (United) or JDU [Sharad YADAV]; Kerala
Congress (Mani faction) [K. M. MANI]; Marumalarchi
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam or MDMK [VAIKO]; Muslim
League [G. M. BANATWALA]; Nationalist Congress Party
or NCP [Sharad PAWAR]; Rashtriya Janata Dal or RJD [Laloo
Prasad YADAV]; Revolutionary Socialist Party or RSP [Abani
ROY]; Samajwadi Party or SP [Mulayam Singh YADAV];
Shiromani Akali Dal [G. S. TOHRA]; Shiv Sena [Bal
THACKERAY]; Tamil Maanila Congress [G. K. VASAN];
Telugu Desam Party or TDP [Chandrababu NAIDU];
Trinamool Congress [Mamata BANERJEE] |
|
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 |
|
International organization
participation:
|
AfDB, ARF (dialogue partner), AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue
partner), BIS, C, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G- 6, G-15, G-19,
G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA,
IEA (observer), IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO,
Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MIPONUH,
MONUC, NAM, OAS (observer), OPCW, PCA, SAARC, UN,
UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNIKOM, UNMEE,
UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOVIC, UNU, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO,
WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO |
|
Diplomatic representation in the US:
|
chief of mission: Ambassador Lalit MANSINGH
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, New
York, and San Francisco
FAX: [1] (202) 483-3972
telephone: [1] (202) 939-7000
chancery: 2107 Massachusetts Avenue NW,
Washington, DC 20008; note - Embassy located at 2536
Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 |
|
Diplomatic representation from the
US:
|
chief of mission: Ambassador Robert D.
BLACKWILL
embassy: Shantipath, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi
110021
mailing address: use embassy street address
telephone: [91] (11) 419-8000
FAX: [91] (11) 419-0017
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 economy encompasses traditional village
farming, modern agriculture, handicrafts, a wide range
of modern industries, and a multitude of support
services. Overpopulation severely handicaps the
economy and about a quarter of the population is too
poor to be able to afford an adequate diet. Government
controls have been reduced on imports and foreign
investment, and privatization of domestic output has
proceeded slowly. The economy has posted an excellent
average growth rate of 6% since 1990, reducing poverty
by about 10 percentage points. India has large numbers
of well-educated people skilled in the English
language; India is a major exporter of software
services and software workers; the information
technology sector leads the strong growth pattern. The
World Bank and others worry about the continuing
public-sector budget deficit, running at approximately
10% of GDP in 1997-2002. In 2003 the state-owned
Indian Bank substantially reduced non-performing
loans, attracted new customers, and turned a profit.
Deep-rooted problems remain, notably conflicts among
political and cultural groups. |
|
GDP:
|
purchasing power parity - $2.664 trillion (2002 est.) |
|
GDP - real growth rate:
|
4.3% (2002 est.) |
|
GDP - per capita:
|
purchasing power parity - $2,600 (2002 est.) |
|
GDP - composition by sector:
|
agriculture: 25%
industry: 25%
services: 50% (2002 est.) |
|
Population below poverty line:
|
25% (2002 est.) |
|
Household income or consumption by
percentage share:
|
lowest 10%: 3.5%
highest 10%: 33.5% (1997) |
|
Distribution of family income - Gini
index:
|
37.8 (1997) |
|
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
|
5.4% (2002 est.) |
|
Labor force:
|
406 million (1999) |
|
Labor force - by occupation:
|
agriculture 60%, services 23%, industry 17% (1999) |
|
Unemployment rate:
|
8.8% (2002) |
|
Budget:
|
revenues: $48.3 billion
expenditures: $78.2 billion, including capital
expenditures of $14 (FY01/02 est.) |
|
Industries:
|
textiles, chemicals, food processing, steel,
transportation equipment, cement, mining, petroleum,
machinery, software |
|
Industrial production growth rate:
|
6% (2002 est.) |
|
Electricity - production:
|
533.3 billion kWh (2001) |
|
Electricity - production by source:
|
fossil fuel: 81.7%
hydro: 14.5%
other: 0.3% (2001)
nuclear: 3.4% |
|
Electricity - consumption:
|
497.2 billion kWh (2001) |
|
Electricity - exports:
|
321 million kWh (2001) |
|
Electricity - imports:
|
1.54 billion kWh (2001) |
|
Oil - production:
|
732,400 bbl/day (2001 est.) |
|
Oil - consumption:
|
2.13 million bbl/day (2001 est.) |
|
Oil - exports:
|
NA (2001) |
|
Oil - imports:
|
NA (2001) |
|
Oil - proved reserves:
|
4.33 billion bbl (37257) |
|
Natural gas - production:
|
22.75 billion cu m (2001 est.) |
|
Natural gas - consumption:
|
22.75 billion cu m (2001 est.) |
|
Natural gas - exports:
|
0 cu m (2001 est.) |
|
Natural gas - imports:
|
0 cu m (2001 est.) |
|
Natural gas - proved reserves:
|
542.4 billion cu m (37257) |
|
Agriculture - products:
|
rice, wheat, oilseed, cotton, jute, tea, sugarcane,
potatoes; cattle, water buffalo, sheep, goats,
poultry; fish |
|
Exports:
|
$44.5 billion f.o.b. (2001) |
|
Exports - commodities:
|
textile goods, gems and jewelry, engineering goods,
chemicals, leather manufactures |
|
Exports - partners:
|
US 22.5%, UK 5.1%, UAE 5.1%, Hong Kong 4.5%, Germany
4.3%, China 4.1% (2002) |
|
Imports:
|
$53.8 billion f.o.b. (2001) |
|
Imports - commodities:
|
crude oil, machinery, gems, fertilizer, chemicals |
|
Imports - partners:
|
US 7.1%, Belgium 6.7%, China 4.6%, Singapore 4.6%, UK
4.6% (2002) |
|
Debt - external:
|
$100.6 billion (2001 est.) |
|
Economic aid - recipient:
|
$2.9 billion (FY 98/99) |
|
Currency:
|
Indian rupee (INR) |
|
Currency code:
|
INR |
|
Exchange rates:
|
Indian rupees per US dollar - 48.61 (2002), 47.19
(2001), 44.94 (2000), 43.06 (1999), 41.26 (1998) |
|
Fiscal year:
|
1 April - 31 March |
|
Telephones - main lines in use:
|
27.7 million (October 2000) |
|
Telephones - mobile cellular:
|
2.93 million (November 2000) |
|
Telephone system:
|
general assessment: mediocre service; local and
long distance service provided throughout all regions
of the country, with services primarily concentrated
in the urban areas; major objective is to continue to
expand and modernize long-distance network to keep
pace with rapidly growing number of local subscriber
lines; steady improvement is taking place with the
recent admission of private and private-public
investors, but, with telephone density at about two
for each 100 persons and a waiting list of over 2
million, demand for main line telephone service will
not be satisfied for a very long time
domestic: local service is provided by
microwave radio relay and coaxial cable, with open
wire and obsolete electromechanical and manual
switchboard systems still in use in rural areas;
starting in the 1980s, a substantial amount of digital
switch gear has been introduced for local and
long-distance service; long-distance traffic is
carried mostly by coaxial cable and low-capacity
microwave radio relay; since 1985 significant trunk
capacity has been added in the form of fiber-optic
cable and a domestic satellite system with 254 earth
stations; mobile cellular service is provided in four
metropolitan cities
international: satellite earth stations - 8
Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Inmarsat (Indian Ocean
region); nine gateway exchanges operating from Mumbai
(Bombay), New Delhi, Kolkata (Calcutta), Chennai
(Madras), Jalandhar, Kanpur, Gaidhinagar, Hyderabad,
and Ernakulam; 4 submarine cables - LOCOM linking
Chennai (Madras) to Penang; Indo-UAE-Gulf cable
linking Mumbai (Bombay) to Al Fujayrah, UAE;
India-SEA-ME-WE-3, SEA-ME-WE-2 with landing sites at
Cochin and Mumbai (Bombay); Fiber-Optic Link Around
the Globe (FLAG) with landing site at Mumbai (Bombay)
(2000) |
|
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 Service Providers (ISPs):
|
43 (2000) |
|
Internet users:
|
7 million (2002) |
|
Railways:
|
total: 63,518 km (15,009 km electrified)
broad gauge: 45,142 km 1.676-m gauge
narrow gauge: 15,013 km 1.000-m gauge; 3,363 km
0.762-m gauge and 0.610-m gauge (2002) |
|
Highways:
|
total: 3,319,644 km
paved: 1,517,077 km
unpaved: 1,802,567 km (1999 est.) |
|
Waterways:
|
16,180 km
note: 3,631 km navigable by large vessels |
|
Pipelines:
|
gas 5,798 km; liquid petroleum gas 1,195 km; oil 5,613
km; refined products 5,567 km (2003) |
|
Ports and harbors:
|
Chennai (Madras), Cochin, Jawaharal Nehru, Kandla,
Kolkata (Calcutta), Mumbai (Bombay), Vishakhapatnam |
|
Merchant marine:
|
total: 305 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 5,753,279
GRT/9,621,911 DWT
ships by type: bulk 100, cargo 82, chemical
tanker 15, combination bulk 2, combination ore/oil 2,
container 10, liquefied gas 10, passenger/cargo 5,
petroleum tanker 75, roll on/roll off 1, short-sea
passenger 2, specialized tanker 1
note: includes some foreign-owned ships
registered here as a flag of convenience: China 1, UAE
10, UK 1 (2002 est.) |
|
Airports:
|
334 (2002) |
|
Airports - with paved runways:
|
total: 232
over 3,047 m: 14
2,438 to 3,047 m: 47
914 to 1,523 m: 73
under 914 m: 20 (2002)
1,524 to 2,437 m: 78 |
|
Airports - with unpaved runways:
|
total: 102
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 9
under 914 m: 48 (2002)
914 to 1,523 m: 42 |
|
Heliports:
|
19 (2002) |
|
Military branches:
|
Army, Navy (including naval air arm), Air Force,
Strategic Nuclear Command (SNC), Coast Guard, various
security or paramilitary forces (including Border
Security Force, Assam Rifles, Rashtriya Rifles,
National Security Guards, Indo-Tibetan Border Police,
Special Frontier Force, Ladakh Scouts, Central Reserve
Police Force, Central Industrial Security Force,
Railway Protection Force, Defense Security Corps, and
Indian Reserve Battalions) |
|
Military manpower - military age:
|
17 years of age (2003 est.) |
|
Military manpower - availability:
|
males age 15-49: 288,251,975 (2003 est.) |
|
Military manpower - fit for military
service:
|
males age 15-49: 169 million (2003 est.) |
|
Military manpower - reaching military
age annually:
|
males: 11,035,174 (2003 est.) |
|
Military expenditures - dollar
figure:
|
$11.52 billion (FY02) |
|
Military expenditures - percent of
GDP:
|
2.3% (FY02) |
This page was last
updated on 18 December, 2003
|
|
|
