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People of India
Owing to its ability to adopt people from all types of
background,
India is home to diverse population. The country had inherited a civilization that began more than 4,500 years ago. They are culturally diverse and religion plays an important role in each one's life. About 83 percent of the people practice Hinduism. Another 12 percent are Muslims, and millions of others are Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists,
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and Jains. Eighteen major languages and more than 1,000 minor languages and dialects are spoken in India. Though Hindi is the official language, English is also widely spoken.
Arts, Culture and Music of India
India has a rich cultural heritage that it is very proud of. The music and dance of the country is based on the Natya Shastra, a form of Sanskrit music and dance that was practiced during the 2nd century AD. The music can be divided into the North Indian Hindustani style and the South Indian Carnatic (Karnatak) style. Dance is also a major art form in India. The major classical dance forms include Bharata Natyam, Kathak, Manipuri, and Kathakali.
As far as Indian art goes, its architecture, sculpture, and painting have developed many distinct styles over the centuries and is widely accepted all over the world. Most of the designs have religious touches to it.
Flag of India
The flag of India has three equal horizontal bands of saffron (subdued orange) at the top, white in the middle and green at the bottom. The white band has a blue chakra (24-spoked wheel).
Please click here to view the Flag of India
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Economy of India
Since its independence from the British rule in 1947, India has been making considerable progress in the economic sector. Under the British, the cottage industries and the then thriving trades of India were virtually
destroyed due to imports of European manufactured goods, which the government paid for with the exports of agricultural products such as cotton, opium, and tea.
Finally, when India was freed, it began concentrating on the agricultural sector. Later on, the country began investing in the industrial sector and infrastructure, laying emphasis on railways and irrigation works. Policies of economic liberalization introduced in the late 1970s stimulated the industrial sector, leading to an acceleration of economic growth in the 1980s.
In the mid-1990s, the service sector began to govern the economy. Although the economic structure of the country began to change, with services providing a larger portion of the GDP than any other sector, agriculture provided maximum employment to the people.
In 2001 India's annual gross domestic product (GDP) was $477 billion. Agriculture, forestry, and fishing made up 25 percent of the GDP, compared with 26 percent for industry (including manufacturing, mining, and construction) and 48 percent for services.
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