Tourism resources India

Online resources and web addresses on tourism in India!

Ideas and proposals for travel and holidays in India

Introduction

India, officially Republic of India (Hindi Bharat), country in southern Asia, located on the subcontinent of India. It is bounded on the north by China, Nepal, and Bhutan; on the east by Bangladesh, Myanmar (formerly known as Burma), and the Bay of Bengal; on the south by the Palk Strait and the Gulf of Mannar (which separates it from Sri Lanka) and the Indian Ocean; and on the west by the Arabian Sea and Pakistan. India is divided into 28 states and 7 union territories (including the National Capital Territory of Delhi). New Delhi is the country’s capital.

The world’s seventh largest country in area, India occupies more than 3 million sq km (1 million sq mi), encompassing a varied landscape rich in natural resources. The Indian Peninsula forms a rough triangle framed on the north by the world’s highest mountains, the Himalayas, and on the east, south, and west by oceans. Its topography varies from the barren dunes of the Thar Desert to the dense tropical forests of rain-drenched Assam state. Much of India, however, consists of fertile river plains and high plateaus. Several major rivers, including the Ganges, Brahmaputra, and Indus, flow through India. Arising in the northern mountains and carrying rich alluvial soil to the plains below, these mighty rivers have supported agriculture-based civilizations for thousands of years.

With more than 1 billion inhabitants, India ranks second only to China among the world’s most populous countries. Its people are culturally diverse, and religion plays an important role in the life of the country. About four-fifths of the people practice Hinduism, a religion that originated in India. Muslims form the next-largest group, and millions of others are Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, or Jains. Eighteen major languages and more than 1,000 minor languages and dialects are spoken in India.

India’s long history stretches back to the Indus Valley civilization of about 2500-1700 BC. For hundreds of years, India was home to massive empires and regional kingdoms. British rule in India began in the AD 1700s. Foreign domination engendered Indian nationalism, which eventually led to India winning its independence in 1947. With independence, part of India became the new, predominantly Muslim nation of Pakistan. The two nations subsequently struggled over border differences and Hindu-Muslim relations. India’s federal political system, a democracy for more than 50 years, has demonstrated a remarkable resilience in resolving domestic and international crises. India has grown since independence to have great influence on Asia and a massive world presence. The country is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations, an association of political entities that once gave or currently give allegiance to the British monarchy.

The Indian economy has also evolved since independence. Once heavily dependent on agriculture, it has expanded in recent decades into the realms of industry and services. Economic reforms in 1991 dramatically altered economic policy to privatize state-owned enterprises and to promote competition and investment. The economic focus of the country has since changed from one based on self-sufficiency to one based on trade with other countries.

Land

India consists geographically of the entire Indian Peninsula and portions of the Asian mainland. The length of India from north to south is 3,050 km (1,900 mi); from east to west it is 2,950 km (1,830 mi). India also has two island chains, each forming its own union territory. The Andaman and Nicobar island chain lies east of the mainland between the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea. Its southernmost island is only 200 km (120 mi) from the northern tip of the Indonesian island of Sumatra. The Lakshadweep island group is located off India’s southwest coast. Excluding the portions of Jammu and Kashmir claimed by India but occupied by Pakistan or China, India has an area of 3,165,596 sq km (1,222,243 sq mi). India’s land frontier—the length of its border with other countries—measures more than 15,200 km (9,400 mi). It also has 7,000 km (4,300 mi) of coastline, including the island territories, or 5,600 km (3,500 mi) of coastline without the islands.

The Himalayan mountain system is 160 to 320 km (100 to 200 mi) wide and extends 2,400 km (1,500 mi) along the northern and eastern borders of India. It includes the mountains surrounding the Vale of Kashmir in the Karakoram Range, and the central and eastern Himalayas. Ancient geological forces molded the Himalayas as the Indian plate of the Earth’s crust burrowed under the Eurasian landmass, creating an uplift that continues to push this northernmost boundary of India ever higher (see Plate Tectonics). The Himalayan Range is the highest mountain system in the world. Among its towering summits, wholly or partly within India or within territory claimed by India and administered by Pakistan, are K2 (8,611 m/28,251 ft) and Kanchenjunga (8,598 m/28,209 ft), which are the second and third highest peaks in the world, after Mount Everest. Other prominent Indian peaks include Nanga Parbat (8,125 m/26,657 ft), Nanda Devi (7,817 m/25,646 ft), Rakaposhi (7,788 m/25,551 ft), and Kamet peak (7,756 m/25,446 ft). The Himalayas region, including the foothills, is sparsely settled. Agriculture and animal herding are the main economic activities.

South and parallel to the Himalayas lies the Gangetic Plain, a belt of flat, alluvial lowlands 280 to 400 km (175 to 250 mi) wide. This area includes some of the most agriculturally productive land in India. The Indian portion of the broad Gangetic Plain encompasses several river systems, and stretches from Punjab state in the west, through the Gangetic Plain, to the Assam Valley in the east. Marking the western end of the Gangetic Plain are the Indus River and its tributaries, including the Sutlej and Chenab rivers, which flow through Punjab in India’s northwest corner. The Gangetic Plain is formed by the Ganges River and its tributaries, which drain the southern slopes of the Himalayas. Assam Valley is separated from the Gangetic Plain by a narrow corridor of land near the city of Darjiling (Darjeeling). The valley is watered by the Brahmaputra River, which rises in Tibet and crosses into India at its northeast corner, then flows north of the Khasi Hills into Bangladesh. The Thar Desert, a huge, dry, sandy region extending into Pakistan, lies at the southwestern end of the Gangetic Plain.

South of the plains region lies peninsular India. The northern peninsula features a series of mountain ranges and plateaus. The Aravalli Range runs in a north-south direction on the eastern edge of the Thar Desert, and low hills cut by valleys lie along the border between the states of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh in central India. The Narmada River flows southwest between the Vindhya Range and an associated plateau on the north, and the Satpura Range on the south. The plains of the Chota Nagpur Plateau in the eastern states of Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand also lie within this region. The rocky and uneven lands of the northern peninsula are sparsely populated. Herding is a major occupation in the west, and farming of coarse grains such as millet is common in the central part.

In the southern part of peninsular India lies the vast Deccan Plateau, a tableland lying within a triangle formed by the Satpura Range, the steep mountain slopes of the Western Ghats, and the gentler slopes of the Eastern Ghats. Elevations in the plateau region average 600 m (2,000 ft), although outcroppings as high as 1,200 m (4,000 ft) occur. At their northern end, the Western Ghats vary in height from 900 to 1,200 m (3,000 to 4,000 ft), but the Nilgiri Hills of the extreme south reach a height of 2,637 m (8,652 ft) at Doda Betta, their highest peak. The Eastern Ghats lie along the eastern flank of the Deccan Plateau, interrupted by the Krishna and Godavari river basins. Elevations of the Eastern Ghats are much lower, averaging 600 m (2,000 ft). The plateau itself, even rockier than the northern extension of peninsular India, supports a sparse agricultural population and is also home to industrial enterprises.

The Indian Peninsula is bordered by a mostly fertile seashore. The west coast, including the extensive Gujarat Plain in the north, the thin Konkan shore in Maharashtra state, and the Malabar Coast in the south, support substantial populations of farmers and fishermen. Ancient trade routes to the west helped make the cities and towns of this region into market centers for textiles and spices. The east coast’s broad alluvial plains, stretching from the Kaveri River delta in the south to the Mahanadi River delta in the north, are intensely farmed.

Climate

India’s shape, unusual topography, and geographical position give it a diverse climate. Most of India has a tropical or subtropical climate, with little variation in temperature between seasons. The northern plains, however, have a greater temperature range, with cooler winters and hotter summers. The mountain areas have cold winters and cool summers. As elevations increase sharply in the mountains, climate type can change from subtropical to polar within a few miles.

India’s seasonal cycle includes three main phases: the cool, dry winter from October to March; the hot, dry summer from April to June; and the southwest monsoon season of warm, torrential rains from mid-June to September. India’s winter season brings cold temperatures to the mountain slopes and northern plains; temperatures in the Thar Desert reach freezing at night. Farther south, temperatures are mild. Average daily temperatures in January range from 13° to 27°C (55° to 81°F) in the northeastern city of Kolkata; from 8° to 21°C (46° to 70°F) in the north central city of New Delhi; from 19° to 30°C (67° to 85°F) in the west central coast city of Mumbai (formerly Bombay); and from 19° to 29°C (67° to 85°F) in the vicinity of Chennai (formerly Madras) on the southeastern coast. Dry weather generally accompanies the cool winter season, although severe storms sometimes traverse the country, yielding slight precipitation on the northern plains and heavy snowfall in the Himalayas.

India’s hot and dry season reaches its peak during May, when temperatures as high as 49°C (120°F) are commonly recorded in the northern plains. Temperatures in the southern peninsula are somewhat lower, averaging 35° to 40°C (95° to 104°F). At higher altitudes, as in the Western Ghats and the Himalayas, temperatures are considerably cooler.

The intense heat breaks when the summer monsoon season arrives in June. For most of the year the monsoons, or seasonal winds, blow from the northeast. In the summer months, however, they begin to blow from the southwest, absorbing moisture as they cross the Indian Ocean. This warm, moist air creates heavy rains as it rises over the Indian Peninsula and is finally forced up the slopes of the Himalayas. The rains start in early June on a strip of coast lying between the Arabian Sea and the foot of the Western Ghats. A second “arm” of the monsoon starts from the Bay of Bengal in the northeast and gradually extends up the Gangetic Plain, where it meets the Arabian Sea “arm” in the Delhi region around July 1. In July the average daily temperature range is 26° to 32°C (79° to 89°F) in Kolkata; 27° to 35°C (80° to 94°F) in New Delhi; 25° to 30°C (78° to 86°F) in Mumbai; and 26° to 36°C (79° to 96°F) in Chennai.

The monsoon season is critical to India. Farming depends heavily on the monsoon, even though artificial sources of irrigation are also commonly used. The economy prospers when the monsoon season is normal and plummets when it is not. In the past a failure of the monsoon has brought abnormally low rains in crucial food-growing regions, leading to famine. A failed monsoon season in the dryland areas of the Deccan Plateau can mean poor or nonexistent harvests for that year’s crop. In the Gangetic Plain, the groundwater needed for irrigating the winter crop depends on the monsoon for replenishing. However, an excessive monsoon may also spell disaster, especially in the Gangetic Plain of eastern Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, where rivers can flood and wash away homes and fields.

The average annual rainfall for India as a whole is 1,250 mm (49 in). The heaviest rainfall occurs along the Western Ghats, often more than 3,175 mm (125 in), and on the slopes of the eastern Himalayas and the Khasi Hills (of Meghalaya), where the town of Cherrapunji receives 10,900 mm (430 in) annually. The entire northeast region averages more than 2,000 mm (80 in) annually, with Jharkhand, Orissa, and the Bengal region receiving nearly as much. Rain and snow fall in abundance on the entire Himalayan range. New Delhi receives an annual average of 800 to 1,000 mm (32 to 40 in) of rain, and the broad swath of land extending to the south, much of it in the rain shadow of the Western Ghats, receives about the same or a little more.