India is at the centre of the Asian continent and constitutes, in a manner of speaking, the boundary between the Middle East and South-East Asia.India is almost 3 200 km from north to south, from the high peaks of the Himalayas to the tip of Deccan, on the edge of the Indian Ocean. Its maximum width is 2 700 km. The name « India » applies to the whole triangular peninsula which contains the federal republic, made up of 25 states and 7 territories.
India is a huge country, whose area is 3 287 590 km 2 , inhabited by more than a billion people. Average population density is 324/km 2 – 3 times that of France. Around 75% of the population live in the country, in one of the more than 700 000 villages that dot the landscape. English and 15 recognised languages are spoken in India, the most common being Hindi (spoken by almost 30% of Indians). There also exist more than 4000 « unofficial » dialects.
Some twenty or so religions are practiced in India. By far the most numerous are the Hindus (82%), ahead of the Muslims (12%, the majority being in the north-west – in Jammu and Kashmir), Christians (3%, mostly in the south), Buddhists (1%), Sikhs (mostly in the Punjab), Jains (largely in Gujarat), Parsis (Bombay) and Jews.
The capital is New-Delhi – a mix of old and new . History and modernity co-habit here, not just in the traces of a long succession of empires, but equally in the social structure and current lifestyles. Delhi / Dehali / Dilli is derived from Dhillika , the name of the earliest (medieval) suburb of Delhi, situated at the edge of contemporary south-west Delhi, at Mehrauli. It was the first of a collection of seven medieval towns. It is also called Yoginipura, cwhich means “the fortress of the yoginis” (female divinities).
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The national currency is the rupee. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is responsible for issuing Indian currency. The current system is the result of a financial reform of 1957, which introduced the decimal system. The Rupee is now made up of 100 Paise ( singular paisa ); the Anna no longer exists. Indian banknotes are mainly printed in English; but also feature 15 other official languages. |
Indian banknotes are issued in denominations ranging from 5 Rupees to 1000 Rupees (Rs). In fact, the notes of 500 Rs and 1000 Rs are not much used. Just try paying for your « tchai » on the street with notes of such high value !! One series of notes carries the picture of Mahatma Gandhi.
Currently in circulation are the latest issue of coins worth 10 Paise, 25 Paise, 50 Paise, 1 R, 2 Rs and 5 Rs. One still sees 1 Paisa, 2 Paise and 5 Paise coins from earlier issues. Large 1 R, 2 Rs and 5 Rs coins have replaced notes of these same denominations, whose manufacturing-cost had become uneconomically high in relation to their face-value. The very small-denomination coins are disappearing from circulation and are less and less frequently used for day-to-day transactions. Most prices are now rounded up to the nearest ten paise.
1€ was worth 58 Indian Rupees in January 2004
Mahatma Gandhi on non-violence
INDIA's NATIONAL FLAG
The Indian flag was conceived as a symbol of freedom.
The late Prime Minister Pandit Nehru called it a flag not only of freedom for ourselves, but a symbol of freedom for all people.
The flag is a horizontal tricolor of equal proportions of safran at the top, white in the middle and dark green at the bottom. In the middle of the white band is a navy-blue wheel, which symbolises the Chakra. It represents the wheel that appears on the nomograph of the tent of Ashoka, which was found at Sarnath. Its diameter covers the whole width of the white stripe, and has 24 spokes. Saffron represents courage, sacrifice and self-denial, white purity and truth and green faith and fertility.
A very interesting site : www.webshopindia.fr
« Compassion is not religious business, it is human business, it is not luxury, it is essential for our own peace and mental stability, it is essential for human survival. »
Dalaï lama