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	textiles, shoes, chemicals, cement, lumber, iron ore, tin, steel, aircraft, motor vehicles and parts, other machinery and equipmen

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china, india, south korea, us, italy, greece

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China makes vaseline

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China is the worlds biggest US soybean buyer. It imported $14 billion worth of them.

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helpful website for stuff that has iraq trade balance

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helpful website for stuff that has iraq trade balance

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Trading Economics members can view, download and compare data from nearly 200 countries, including more than 20 million economic indicators, exchange rates, government bond yields, stock indexes and commodity prices.

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Iraq Balance of Trade | 1988-2018 | Data | Chart | Calendar | Forecast

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Iraq recorded a trade surplus of 3317.80 USD Million in 2015. Balance of Trade in Iraq averaged 10263.47 USD Million from 1988 until 2015, reaching an all time high of 47550 USD Million in 2008 and a record low of -3492 USD Million in 2004.

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Iraq's most profitable trade (refined petroleum)

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Iraq's most profitable trade (refined petroleum)

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The trade balance goes up almost every year [1995-2016] .

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What is the trade balance for China? (1995-2016) Data visualization of economic trade.

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The people in this photo are gathering wheat.

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India's Imports and exports

This Pie Chart shows the Top things that India Exports and Imports

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India's economy encompasses village farming, modern agriculture, handicrafts but employing less than one-third of its labor force.

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Crude Oil,Crude Materials Excluding Fuels, Food And Live Animals

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Exports - commodities:

petroleum products, precious stones, vehicles, machinery, iron and steel, chemicals, pharmaceutical products, cereals, apparel

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"Northern Africa,bordering the Mediterranean sea, between Libya and the Gaza strip,red sea north of the sudan

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Imported and crude  oil  have been traded between economies and the prices have doubled between 2001 and 2006.

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Imported and crude  oil  have been traded between economies and the prices have doubled between 2001 and 2006.

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Imports - commodities:

crude oil, precious stones, machinery, chemicals, fertilizer, plastics, iron and steel

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crude oil and petroleum products, fruits and vegetables, cotton, textiles, metal products, chemicals, processed food. The picture is a textile from Egypt.

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mostly trade crude oil and they trade the most with China

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Middle East :: IRAQ

Introduction :: IRAQ

Formerly part of the Ottoman Empire, Iraq was occupied by the United Kingdom during the course of World War I; in 1920, it was declared a League of Nations mandate under UK administration. In stages over the next dozen years, Iraq attained its independence as a kingdom in 1932. A "republic" was proclaimed in 1958, but in actuality a series of strongmen ruled the country until 2003. The last was SADDAM Husayn from 1979 to 2003. Territorial disputes with Iran led to an inconclusive and costly eight-year war (1980-88). In August 1990, Iraq seized Kuwait but was expelled by US-led UN coalition forces during the Gulf War of January-February 1991. Following Kuwait's liberation, the UN Security Council (UNSC) required Iraq to scrap all weapons of mass destruction and long-range missiles and to allow UN verification inspections. Continued Iraqi noncompliance with UNSC resolutions over a period of 12 years led to the US-led invasion of Iraq in March 2003 and the ouster of the SADDAM Husayn regime. US forces remained in Iraq under a UNSC mandate through 2009 and under a bilateral security agreement thereafter, helping to provide security and to train and mentor Iraqi security forces.

In October 2005, Iraqis approved a constitution in a national referendum and, pursuant to this document, elected a 275-member Council of Representatives (COR) in December 2005. The COR approved most cabinet ministers in May 2006, marking the transition to Iraq's first constitutional government in nearly a half century. Nearly nine years after the start of the Second Gulf War in Iraq, US military operations there ended in mid-December 2011. In January 2009 and April 2013, Iraq held elections for provincial councils in all governorates except for the three comprising the Kurdistan Regional Government and Kirkuk Governorate. Iraq held a national legislative election in March 2010 - choosing 325 legislators in an expanded COR - and, after nine months of deadlock, the COR approved the new government in December 2010. In April 2014, Iraq held a national legislative election and expanded the COR to 328 legislators. Prime Minister Nuri al-MALIKI dropped his bid for a third term in office, enabling new Prime Minister Haydar al-ABADI, a Shia Muslim from Baghdad, to win legislative approval of his new cabinet in September 2014.

Since 2014, Iraq has been engaged in a military campaign against ISIS to recapture territory lost in the western and northern portion of the country. In 2017, Iraqi forces completed operations to retake Mosul and drove ISIS out of its other urban strongholds in Iraq. In late 2017, in response to a KRG referendum, Iraqi forces took control over disputed territories across central and northern Iraq that were previously occupied and governed by Kurdish forces. In December 2017, Abadi publicly declared victory against ISIS amid continued tensions among Iraq's enthnosectarian groups. Iraqi politicians are preparing to hold the national legislative election again in May 2018 for the 329-member COR and have decided to postpone provincial elections, originally planned for April 2017, to December 2018.

Geography :: IRAQ

Middle East, bordering the Persian Gulf, between Iran and Kuwait

slightly more than three times the size of New York state

Area comparison map:

border countries (6): Iran 1,599 km, Jordan 179 km, Kuwait 254 km, Saudi Arabia 811 km, Syria 599 km, Turkey 367 km

continental shelf: not specified

mostly desert; mild to cool winters with dry, hot, cloudless summers; northern mountainous regions along Iranian and Turkish borders experience cold winters with occasionally heavy snows that melt in early spring, sometimes causing extensive flooding in central and southern Iraq

mostly broad plains; reedy marshes along Iranian border in south with large flooded areas; mountains along borders with Iran and Turkey

elevation extremes: lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m

highest point: Cheekha Dar (Kurdish for "Black Tent") 3,611 m

petroleum, natural gas, phosphates, sulfur

arable land 8.4%; permanent crops 0.5%; permanent pasture 9.2%

population is concentrated in the north, center, and eastern parts of the country, with many of the larger urban agglomerations found along extensive parts of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers; much of the western and southern areas are either lightly populated or uninhabited

dust storms; sandstorms; floods

government water control projects drained most of the inhabited marsh areas east of An Nasiriyah by drying up or diverting the feeder streams and rivers; a once sizable population of Marsh Arabs, who inhabited these areas for thousands of years, has been displaced; furthermore, the destruction of the natural habitat poses serious threats to the area's wildlife populations; inadequate supplies of potable water; soil degradation (salination) and erosion; desertification; military and industrial infrastructure has released heavy metals and other hazardous substances into the air, soil, and groundwater; major sources of environmental damage are effluents from oil refineries, factory and sewage discharges into rivers, fertilizer and chemical contamination of the soil, and industrial air pollution in urban areas

party to: Biodiversity, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection

signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification

strategic location on Shatt al Arab waterway and at the head of the Persian Gulf

People and Society :: IRAQ

39,192,111 (July 2017 est.)

Arab 75-80%, Kurdish 15-20%, other 5% (includes Turkmen, Yezidi, Shabak, Kaka'i, bedouin, Romani, Assyrian, Circassian, Sabaean-Mandaean, Persian)

note: data is a 1987 government estimate; no more recent reliable numbers are available

Arabic (official), Kurdish (official), Turkmen (a Turkish dialect), Syriac (Neo-Aramaic), and Armenian are official in areas where native speakers of these languages constitute a majority of the population)

Muslim (official) 95-98% (Shia 64-69%, Sunni 29-34%), Christian 1% (includes Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant, Assyrian Church of the East), other 1-4%

note: while there has been voluntary relocation of many Christian families to northern Iraq, recent reporting indicates that the overall Christian population may have dropped by as much as 50% since the fall of the SADDAM Husayn regime in 2003, with many fleeing to Syria, Jordan, and Lebanon (2015 est.)

religious affiliation:

0-14 years: 39.46% (male 7,895,522/female 7,569,205)

15-24 years: 19.25% (male 3,841,375/female 3,702,187)

25-54 years: 33.84% (male 6,704,201/female 6,558,108)

55-64 years: 3.99% (male 752,598/female 812,683)

65 years and over: 3.46% (male 601,937/female 754,295) (2017 est.)

population pyramid:

total dependency ratio: 77.7

youth dependency ratio: 72.3

elderly dependency ratio: 5.5

potential support ratio: 18.3 (2015 est.)

female: 20.3 years (2017 est.)

30.4 births/1,000 population (2017 est.)

3.8 deaths/1,000 population (2017 est.)

-1.2 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2017 est.)

population is concentrated in the north, center, and eastern parts of the country, with many of the larger urban agglomerations found along extensive parts of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers; much of the western and southern areas are either lightly populated or uninhabited

urban population: 69.7% of total population (2017)

rate of urbanization: 2.97% annual rate of change (2015-20 est.)

BAGHDAD (capital) 6.643 million; Mosul 1.694 million; Erbil 1.166 million; Basra 1.019 million; As Sulaymaniyah 1.004 million; Najaf 889,000 (2015)

at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female

0-14 years: 1.04 male(s)/female

15-24 years: 1.04 male(s)/female

25-54 years: 1.02 male(s)/female

55-64 years: 0.91 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female

total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2017 est.)

50 deaths/100,000 live births (2015 est.)

total: 37.5 deaths/1,000 live births

male: 40.6 deaths/1,000 live births

female: 34.2 deaths/1,000 live births (2017 est.)

total population: 74.9 years

female: 77.2 years (2017 est.)

4 children born/woman (2017 est.)

0.85 physicians/1,000 population (2014)

1.4 beds/1,000 population (2014)

urban: 93.8% of population

rural: 70.1% of population

total: 86.6% of population

urban: 6.1% of population

rural: 31.5% of population

total: 14.6% of population (2015 est.)

urban: 86.4% of population

rural: 83.8% of population

total: 85.6% of population

urban: 13.6% of population

rural: 16.2% of population

total: 14.4% of population (2015 est.)

degree of risk: intermediate

food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever (2016)

definition: age 15 and over can read and write

female: 73.7% (2015 est.)

Government :: IRAQ

conventional long form: Republic of Iraq

conventional short form: Iraq

local long form: Jumhuriyat al-Iraq/Komar-i Eraq

local short form: Al Iraq/Eraq

etymology: the name probably derives from "Uruk" (Biblical "Erech"), the ancient Sumerian and Babylonian city on the Euphrates River

federal parliamentary republic

geographic coordinates: 33 20 N, 44 24 E

time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

18 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah (Arabic); parezgakan, singular - parezga (Kurdish)) and 1 region*; Al Anbar; Al Basrah; Al Muthanna; Al Qadisiyah (Ad Diwaniyah); An Najaf; Arbil (Erbil) (Arabic), Hewler (Kurdish); As Sulaymaniyah (Arabic), Slemani (Kurdish); Babil; Baghdad; Dahuk (Arabic), Dihok (Kurdish); Dhi Qar; Diyala; Karbala'; Kirkuk; Kurdistan Regional Government*; Maysan; Ninawa; Salah ad Din; Wasit

3 October 1932 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration); note - on 28 June 2004 the Coalition Provisional Authority transferred sovereignty to the Iraqi Interim Government

Independence Day, 3 October (1932); Republic Day, 14 July (1958)

history: several previous; latest adopted by referendum 15 October 2005

amendments: proposed by the president of the republic and the Council of Minsters collectively, or by one-fifth of the Council of Representatives members; passage requires at least a two-thirds majority vote by the Council of Representatives, approval by referendum, and ratification by the president; passage of amendments to articles on citizen rights and liberties requires a two-thirds majority vote of Council of Representatives members after two successive electoral terms, approval in a referendum, and ratification by the president (2016)

mixed legal system of civil and Islamic law

has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt

citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Iraq

dual citizenship recognized: yes

residency requirement for naturalization: 10 years

18 years of age; universal

chief of state: President Fuad MASUM (since 24 July 2014); Vice Presidents Ayad ALLAWI (since 9 September 2014), Nuri al-MALIKI (since 8 September 2014), Usama al-NUJAYFI (since 9 September 2014)

head of government: Prime Minister Haydar al-ABADI (since 8 September 2014)

cabinet: Council of Ministers proposed by the prime minister, approved by Council of Representatives

elections/appointments: president indirectly elected by Council of Representatives (COR) to serve a 4-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 30 April 2014 (next to be held in May 2018); prime minister nominated by the majority COR bloc and submission of COR minister nominees for majority COR approval; disapproval requires designation of a new prime minister candidate

election results: Fuad MASUM elected president; Council of Representatives vote - Fuad MASUM (PUK) 211, Barham SALIH (PUK) 17

description: unicameral Council of Representatives or Majlis an-Nuwwab al-Iraqiyy (329 seats; 320 members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by open-list proportional representation vote and 9 seats at the national level reserved for minorities - 5 for Assyrians, 1 each for Mandaeans, Yazidis, Shabaks, Feyli Kurds; 25% of seats allocated to women; members serve 4-year terms); note - Iraq's constitution calls for the establishment of an upper house, the Federation Council, but it has not been instituted

elections: last held on 12 May 2018 (next to be held in 2022)

election results: percent of vote by party/coalition - NA; seats by party/coalition - Alliance Towards Reform 54, Fatah Alliance 47, Victory coalition 42, KDP 25, State of Law Coalition 25, National Alliance 21, National Wisdom Movement 19, PUK 18, Decision Alliance 14, Anbar Our Identity 6, Gorran Movement 5, New Generation 4, Baghdad Alliance 4, other 43, independent 2

highest court(s): Federal Supreme Court or FSC (consists of 9 judges); note - court jurisdiction limited to constitutional issues and disputes between regions or governorates and the central government; Court of Cassation (consists of a court president, 5 vice-presidents, and at least 24 judges)

judge selection and term of office: Federal Supreme Court and Court of Cassation judges selected by the president of the republic from nominees selected by the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC), a 25-member committee of judicial officials that manage the judiciary and prosecutors; FSC members appointed for life; Court of Cassation judges appointed by the SJC and confirmed by the Council of Representatives to serve until retirement nominally at age 63

subordinate courts: Courts of Appeal (governorate level); civil courts including first instance, personal status, labor, and customs; criminal courts including felony, misdemeanor, investigative, major crimes, juvenile, and traffic; religious courts

Alliance Towards Reform or Sayirun alliance (2018 electoral coalition of Iraqi Communist Party and Sadrist Trend)

Anabar is Our Identity [Mohammad Rikan al-HALBUSI] (a coalition of 5 parties)

Badr Organization [Hadi al-AMIRI]

Da`wa Party [Nuri al-MALIKI]

Decision Alliance or Muttahidoon [Usama al-NUJAYFI]

Duat al-Islam [Khalid al-ASADI]

Fadilah Party [Muhammad al-YAQUBI]

Fatah coalition [Hadi al-AMIRI]

Gorran Party [Omar SAYYID ALI]

Iraq Decision coalition [Usama al-NUJAYFI]

Iraqi Communist Party [Hamid Majid MOUSA]

Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq or ISCI/Muwatin Coalition [Humam HAMOUDI]

Kurdistan Democratic Party or KDP [Masud BARZANI]

Kurdistan Islamic Union or KIU [Salahaddin Muhammad Bahaaeddin SADIQ]

National Reform Trend [Ibrahim al-JAFARI]

National Wisdom Trend [Ammar al-HAKIM]

New Generation Movement [Shaswar Abdulwahid QADIR] (formed in 2018)

Patriotic Union of Kurdistan or PUK [KOSRAT Rasul Ali, acting]

Sadrist Trend [Muqtada al-SADR]

State of Law coalition [Nuri al MALIKI]

Victory coalition [Haydar al-ABADI]

note: Wataniyah coalition [Ayad ALLAWI]

numerous smaller religious, local, tribal, and minority parties

Sunni militias; Shia militias, some associated with political parties

ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, CAEU, CICA, EITI (compliant country), FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO (observer)

chief of mission: Ambassador Farid YASIN (since 18 January 2017)

chancery: 3421 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20007

telephone: [1] (202) 742-1600

consulate(s) general: Detroit, Los Angeles

chief of mission: Ambassador Douglas A. SILLIMAN (since 1 September 2016)

embassy: Al-Kindi Street, International Zone, Baghdad

mailing address: APO AE 09316

three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black; the Takbir (Arabic expression meaning "God is great") in green Arabic script is centered in the white band; the band colors derive from the Arab Liberation flag and represent oppression (black), overcome through bloody struggle (red), to be replaced by a bright future (white); the Council of Representatives approved this flag in 2008 as a compromise temporary replacement for the Ba'thist SADDAM-era flag

note: similar to the flag of Syria, which has two stars but no script; Yemen, which has a plain white band; and that of Egypt, which has a golden Eagle of Saladin centered in the white band

golden eagle; national colors: red, white, black

name: "Mawtini" (My Homeland)

lyrics/music: Ibrahim TOUQAN/Mohammad FLAYFEL

note: adopted 2004; following the ouster of SADDAM Husayn, Iraq adopted "Mawtini," a popular folk song throughout the Arab world; also serves as an unofficial anthem of the Palestinian people

Economy :: IRAQ

Iraq's GDP growth slowed to 1.1% in 2017, a marked decline compared to the previous two years as domestic consumption and investment fell because of civil violence and a sluggish oil market. The Iraqi Government received its third tranche of funding from its 2016 Stand-By Arrangement (SBA) with the IMF in August 2017, which is intended to stabilize its finances by encouraging improved fiscal management, needed economic reform, and expenditure reduction. Additionally, in late 2017 Iraq received more than $1.4 billion in financing from international lenders, part of which was generated by issuing a $1 billion bond for reconstruction and rehabilitation in areas liberated from ISIL. Investment and key sector diversification are crucial components to Iraq's long-term economic development and require a strengthened business climate with enhanced legal and regulatory oversight to bolster private-sector engagement. Sustained improvements in the overall standard of living depend heavily on global oil prices, the central government passage of major policy reforms, a stable security environment post-ISIS, and the resolution of civil discord with the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG).

Iraq's largely state-run economy is dominated by the oil sector, which provides roughly 85% of government revenue and 80% of foreign exchange earnings, and is a major determinant of the economy's fortunes. Iraq's contracts with major oil companies have the potential to further expand oil exports and revenues, but Iraq will need to make significant upgrades to its oil processing, pipeline, and export infrastructure to enable these deals to reach their economic potential.

In 2017, Iraqi oil exports from northern fields were disrupted following a KRG referendum that resulted in the Iraqi Government reasserting federal control over disputed oil fields and energy infrastructure in Kirkuk. The Iraqi government and the KRG dispute the role of federal and regional authorities in the development and export of natural resources. In 2007, the KRG passed an oil law to develop IKR oil and gas reserves independent of the federal government. The KRG has signed about 50 contracts with foreign energy companies to develop its reserves, some of which lie in territories taken by Baghdad in October 2017. The KRG is able to unilaterally export oil from the fields it retains control of through its own pipeline to Turkey, which Baghdad claims is illegal. In the absence of a national hydrocarbons law, the two sides have entered into five provisional oil- and revenue-sharing deals since 2009, all of which collapsed.

Iraq is making slow progress enacting laws and developing the institutions needed to implement economic policy, and political reforms are still needed to assuage investors' concerns regarding the uncertain business climate. The Government of Iraq is eager to attract additional foreign direct investment, but it faces a number of obstacles, including a tenuous political system and concerns about security and societal stability. Rampant corruption, outdated infrastructure, insufficient essential services, skilled labor shortages, and antiquated commercial laws stifle investment and continue to constrain growth of private, nonoil sectors. Under the Iraqi constitution, some competencies relevant to the overall investment climate are either shared by the federal government and the regions or are devolved entirely to local governments. Investment in the IKR operates within the framework of the Kurdistan Region Investment Law (Law 4 of 2006) and the Kurdistan Board of Investment, which is designed to provide incentives to help economic development in areas under the authority of the KRG.

Inflation has remained under control since 2006. However, Iraqi leaders remain hard-pressed to translate macroeconomic gains into an improved standard of living for the Iraqi populace. Unemployment remains a problem throughout the country despite a bloated public sector. Encouraging private enterprise through deregulation would make it easier for Iraqi citizens and foreign investors to start new businesses. Rooting out corruption and implementing reforms - such as restructuring banks and developing the private sector - would be important steps in this direction.

$660.7 billion (2017 est.)

$663.7 billion (2016 est.)

note: data are in 2017 dollars

$192.7 billion (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2017 dollars

household consumption: 50.4%

government consumption: 18.8%

investment in fixed capital: 23.5%

investment in inventories: -4.5%

exports of goods and services: 39.7%

imports of goods and services: -27.9% (2016 est.)

services: 54.6% (2017 est.)

wheat, barley, rice, vegetables, dates, cotton; cattle, sheep, poultry

petroleum, chemicals, textiles, leather, construction materials, food processing, fertilizer, metal fabrication/processing

services: 59.8% (2008 est.)

highest 10%: 25.7% (2007 est.)

expenditures: $76.35 billion (2017 est.)

4% (31 December 2017 est.)

4% (31 December 2016 est.)

$62.01 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$59.84 billion (31 December 2016 est.)

$77.06 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$74.52 billion (31 December 2016 est.)

$3.504 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$3.191 billion (31 December 2016 est.)

$4 billion (9 December 2011 est.)

$2.6 billion (31 July 2010 est.)

$2 billion (31 July 2009 est.)

$-12.22 billion (2017 est.)

$-14.9 billion (2016 est.)

$56.74 billion (2017 est.)

$28.36 billion (2016 est.)

crude oil 99%, crude materials excluding fuels, food, live animals

China 25.4%, India 17.3%, US 14.3%, South Korea 12%, Italy 6.5%, Greece 6.1% (2016)

$36.47 billion (2017 est.)

$19.57 billion (2016 est.)

food, medicine, manufactures

China 23.5%, Turkey 23%, Iran 20%, South Korea 5%, US 4% (2016)

$47.02 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$45.36 billion (31 December 2016 est.)

$73.43 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$64.16 billion (31 December 2016 est.)

$26.63 billion (2015 est.)

$23.16 billion (2014 est.)

$2.109 billion (2015 est.)

$1.956 billion (2014 est.)

Iraqi dinars (IQD) per US dollar -

Energy :: IRAQ

population without electricity: 600,000

electrification - total population: 98%

electrification - urban areas: 99.6%

electrification - rural areas: 95.4% (2013)

84 billion kWh (2016 est.)

66 billion kWh (2016 est.)

12 billion kWh (2016 est.)

28 million kW (2017 est.)

87.3% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)

0% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)

6.2% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)

0% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)

4.452 million bbl/day (2016 est.)

2.792 million bbl/day (2015 est.)

142.5 billion bbl (1 January 2017 est.)

484,800 bbl/day (2014 est.)

850,000 bbl/day (2015 est.)

7,080 bbl/day (2014 est.)

295,300 bbl/day (2014 est.)

1.002 billion cu m (2015 est.)

1.27 billion cu m (2015 est.)

3.158 trillion cu m (1 January 2017 est.)

137 million Mt (2013 est.)

Communications :: IRAQ

total subscriptions: 2.031 million

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 5 (July 2016 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 77 (July 2016 est.)

general assessment: the 2003 liberation of Iraq severely disrupted telecommunications throughout Iraq; widespread government efforts to rebuild domestic and international communications have slowed due to the conflict with ISIS/ISIL

domestic: the mobile cellular market continues to expand (cell phones were banned prior to 2003 under the SADDAM regime); 3G services offered by three major mobile operators in 2015; conflict has destroyed infrastructure in areas

international: country code - 964; satellite earth stations - 4 (2 Intelsat - 1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean, 1 Intersputnik - Atlantic Ocean region, and 1 Arabsat (inoperative)); local microwave radio relay connects border regions to Jordan, Kuwait, Syria, and Turkey; international terrestrial fiber-optic connections have been established with Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Kuwait, Jordan, and Iran; links to the Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe (FLAG) and the Gulf Bridge International (GBI) submarine fiber-optic cables have been established (2017)

the number of private radio and TV stations has increased rapidly since 2003; government-owned TV and radio stations are operated by the publicly funded Iraqi Media Network; private broadcast media are mostly linked to political, ethnic, or religious groups; satellite TV is available to an estimated 70% of viewers and many of the broadcasters are based abroad; transmissions of multiple international radio broadcasters are accessible (2015)

percent of population: 21.2% (July 2016 est.)

Transportation :: IRAQ

number of registered air carriers: 4

inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 39

annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 484,803

annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 10,758,230 mt-km (2015)

gas 2,455 km; liquid petroleum gas 913 km; oil 5,432 km; refined products 1,637 km (2013)

standard gauge: 2,272 km 1.435-m gauge (2014)

paved: 59,623 km (includes Kurdistan Region) (2012)

5,279 km (the Euphrates River (2,815 km), Tigris River (1,899 km), and Third River (565 km) are the principal waterways) (2012)

by type: general cargo 1, oil tanker 6, other 70 (2017)

river port(s): Al Basrah (Shatt al-'Arab); Khawr az Zubayr, Umm Qasr (Khawr az Zubayr waterway)

Military and Security :: IRAQ

Ministry of Defense: Iraqi Army (includes Army Aviation Directorate), Iraqi Navy, Iraqi Air Force; National-Level Security Forces: Iraqi Counterterrorism Service, Iraqi Federal Police (includes Emergency Response Division), Iraqi Border Guard Force, Popular Mobilization Committee Forces (2017)

18-40 years of age for voluntary military service; no conscription (2017)

Terrorism :: IRAQ

aim(s): expel western interests from Iraq and, ultimately, establish an independent Iraqi state operating according to its interpretation of Sharia

area(s) of operation: headquartered in northern Iraq with its largest presence in Kirkuk, Tikrit, and Mosul; active in the western and central regions of the country

note(s): majority of members are Iraqi Kurds or Iraqi Arabs who are Sunni Muslim

Jaysh Rijal al-Tariq al Naqshabandi (JRTN):

aim(s): end external influence in Iraq and, ultimately, overthrow the Government of Iraq to install a secular Ba'athist state within the internationally recognized borders of Iraq

area(s) of operation: attacks separatist Kurdish groups, Iraqi Government military and security forces and facilities, and foreign military personnel

aim(s): counter US influence and, ultimately, overthrow the Iraqi Government to install a government based on Shia Muslim laws and precepts

area(s) of operation: headquartered in the Shia Muslim areas of Baghdad, with fighters active in Ninawa, Al Anbar, and Babil governorates

Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK):

aim(s): advance Kurdish autonomy and security goals in Iraq, Turkey, Iran, and Syria

area(s) of operation: operational in the north and east, with its stronghold in the Qandil Mountains; majority of members inside Iraq are Iraqi, Turkish, and Iranian Kurds, along with Kurds from Syria; (April 2018)

Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS):

aim(s): replace the Iraqi Government with an Islamic state operating according to ISIS's strict interpretation of Sharia; declared its intention to wipe out the Yazidi community, whose faith is one of the country's oldest

area(s) of operation: operational in the rural and desert areas of central and northern Iraq, primarily within and near Sunni populations, with some presence in major population areas (April 2018)

Transnational Issues :: IRAQ

Iraq's lack of a maritime boundary with Iran prompts jurisdiction disputes beyond the mouth of the Shatt al Arab in the Persian Gulf; Turkey has expressed concern over the autonomous status of Kurds in Iraq

refugees (country of origin): 15,692 (Turkey); 7,703 (West Bank and Gaza Strip); 7,545 (Iran) (2016); 249,641 (Syria) (2018)

IDPs: 3,159,380 (includes displacement between 2006 and 2008 due to ethno-sectarian violence and displacement in central and northern Iraq since January 2014) (2018)

stateless persons: 48,200 (2016); note - in the 1970s and 1980s under SADDAM Husayn's regime, thousands of Iraq's Faili Kurds, followers of Shia Islam, were stripped of their Iraqi citizenship, had their property seized by the government, and many were deported; some Faili Kurds had their citizenship reinstated under the 2006 Iraqi Nationality Law, but others lack the documentation to prove their Iraqi origins; some Palestinian refugees persecuted by the SADDAM regime remain stateless

note: estimate revised to reflect the reduction of statelessness in line with Law 26 of 2006, which allows stateless persons to apply for nationality in certain circumstances; more accurate studies of statelessness in Iraq are pending (2015)

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Agriculture - products:

rice, wheat, oilseed, cotton, jute, tea, sugarcane, lentils, onions, potatoes; dairy products, sheep, goats, poultry; fish

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The location of the U.S matters for trade because that depends on the type of crops that they can farm to trade with the other states and countries

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The United States are  getting car parts,toys,computers,medicine and more from countries like China,Mexico,Germany and more

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In China, they make  rice, wheat, potatoes, corn, tobacco, peanuts, tea, apples, cotton, pork, mutton, eggs, fish and shrimp.

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China's products are rice, wheat, potatoes, corn, tobacco, peanuts, tea, apples, cotton, pork, mutton, eggs,fish, and shrimp

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China's products are rice, wheat, potatoes, corn, tobacco, peanuts, tea, apples, cotton, pork, mutton, eggs,fish, and shrimp

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India's Imports, Export and Percents of who the work with 

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Exports partners US 16%, UAE 11.7%,  and Hong Kong 5.1%. Import partners China 17%, US 5.8%, UAE 5.4%, Saudi Arabia 5.2%, Switzerland 4.2% Export commodities Petroleum Products, Vehicles, Machinery etc. Import commodities crude oil, chemical etc.

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South Asia :: INDIA

Introduction :: INDIA

The Indus Valley civilization, one of the world's oldest, flourished during the 3rd and 2nd millennia B.C. and extended into northwestern India. Aryan tribes from the northwest infiltrated the Indian subcontinent about 1500 B.C.; their merger with the earlier Dravidian inhabitants created the classical Indian culture. The Maurya Empire of the 4th and 3rd centuries B.C. - which reached its zenith under ASHOKA - united much of South Asia. The Golden Age ushered in by the Gupta dynasty (4th to 6th centuries A.D.) saw a flowering of Indian science, art, and culture. Islam spread across the subcontinent over a period of 700 years. In the 10th and 11th centuries, Turks and Afghans invaded India and established the Delhi Sultanate. In the early 16th century, the Emperor BABUR established the Mughal Dynasty, which ruled India for more than three centuries. European explorers began establishing footholds in India during the 16th century.

By the 19th century, Great Britain had become the dominant political power on the subcontinent. The British Indian Army played a vital role in both World Wars. Years of nonviolent resistance to British rule, led by Mohandas GANDHI and Jawaharlal NEHRU, eventually resulted in Indian independence, which was granted in 1947. Large-scale communal violence took place before and after the subcontinent partition into two separate states - India and Pakistan. The neighboring nations have fought three wars since independence, the last of which was in 1971 and resulted in East Pakistan becoming the separate nation of Bangladesh. India's nuclear weapons tests in 1998 emboldened Pakistan to conduct its own tests that same year. In November 2008, terrorists originating from Pakistan conducted a series of coordinated attacks in Mumbai, India's financial capital. Despite pressing problems such as significant overpopulation, environmental degradation, extensive poverty, and widespread corruption, economic growth following the launch of economic reforms in 1991 and a massive youthful population are driving India's emergence as a regional and global power.

Geography :: INDIA

Southern Asia, bordering the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal, between Burma and Pakistan

slightly more than one-third the size of the US

Area comparison map:

border countries (6): Bangladesh 4,142 km, Bhutan 659 km, Burma 1,468 km, China 2,659 km, Nepal 1,770 km, Pakistan 3,190 km

exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin

varies from tropical monsoon in south to temperate in north

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 8,586 m

coal (fourth-largest reserves in the world), iron ore, manganese, mica, bauxite, rare earth elements, titanium ore, chromite, natural gas, diamonds, petroleum, limestone, arable land

arable land 52.8%; permanent crops 4.2%; permanent pasture 3.5%

with the notable exception of the deserts in the northwest, including the Thar Desert, and the mountain fringe in the north, a very high population density exists throughout most of the country; the core of the population is in the north along the banks of the Ganges, with other river valleys and southern coastal areas also having large population concentrations

droughts; flash floods, as well as widespread and destructive flooding from monsoonal rains; severe thunderstorms; earthquakes

volcanism: Barren Island (354 m) in the Andaman Sea has been active in recent years

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; preservation and quality of forests; biodiversity loss

party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, 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

dominates South Asian subcontinent; near important Indian Ocean trade routes; Kanchenjunga, third tallest mountain in the world, lies on the border with Nepal

People and Society :: INDIA

1,281,935,911 (July 2017 est.)

Indo-Aryan 72%, Dravidian 25%, Mongoloid and other 3% (2000)

Hindi 41%, Bengali 8.1%, Telugu 7.2%, Marathi 7%, Tamil 5.9%, Urdu 5%, Gujarati 4.5%, Kannada 3.7%, Malayalam 3.2%, Oriya 3.2%, Punjabi 2.8%, Assamese 1.3%, Maithili 1.2%, other 5.9%

note: English enjoys the status of subsidiary official language but is the most important language for national, political, and commercial communication; Hindi is the most widely spoken language and primary tongue of 41% 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 (2001 est.)

Hindu 79.8%, Muslim 14.2%, Christian 2.3%, Sikh 1.7%, other and unspecified 2% (2011 est.)

0-14 years: 27.34% (male 186,087,665/female 164,398,204)

15-24 years: 17.9% (male 121,879,786/female 107,583,437)

25-54 years: 41.08% (male 271,744,709/female 254,834,569)

55-64 years: 7.45% (male 47,846,122/female 47,632,532)

65 years and over: 6.24% (male 37,837,801/female 42,091,086) (2017 est.)

population pyramid:

total dependency ratio: 52.2

youth dependency ratio: 43.6

elderly dependency ratio: 8.6

potential support ratio: 11.7 (2015 est.)

female: 28.6 years (2017 est.)

19 births/1,000 population (2017 est.)

7.3 deaths/1,000 population (2017 est.)

0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2017 est.)

with the notable exception of the deserts in the northwest, including the Thar Desert, and the mountain fringe in the north, a very high population density exists throughout most of the country; the core of the population is in the north along the banks of the Ganges, with other river valleys and southern coastal areas also having large population concentrations

urban population: 33.5% of total population (2017)

rate of urbanization: 2.28% annual rate of change (2015-20 est.)

NEW DELHI (capital) 25.703 million; Mumbai 21.043 million; Kolkata 11.766 million; Bangalore 10.087 million; Chennai 9.62 million; Hyderabad 8.944 million (2015)

at birth: 1.12 male(s)/female

0-14 years: 1.13 male(s)/female

15-24 years: 1.13 male(s)/female

25-54 years: 1.06 male(s)/female

55-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.9 male(s)/female

total population: 1.08 male(s)/female (2017 est.)

174 deaths/100,000 live births (2015 est.)

total: 39.1 deaths/1,000 live births

male: 38 deaths/1,000 live births

female: 40.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2017 est.)

total population: 68.8 years

female: 70.1 years (2017 est.)

2.43 children born/woman (2017 est.)

0.76 physicians/1,000 population (2016)

0.7 beds/1,000 population (2011)

urban: 97.1% of population

rural: 92.6% of population

total: 94.1% of population

urban: 2.9% of population

rural: 7.4% of population

total: 5.9% of population (2015 est.)

urban: 62.6% of population

rural: 28.5% of population

total: 39.6% of population

urban: 37.4% of population

rural: 71.5% of population

total: 60.4% of population (2015 est.)

degree of risk: very high

food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A and E, and typhoid fever

vectorborne diseases: dengue fever, Japanese encephalitis, and malaria

water contact disease: leptospirosis

animal contact disease: rabies (2016)

definition: age 15 and over can read and write

female: 60.6% (2015 est.)

female: 11.6% (2012 est.)

Government :: INDIA

conventional long form: Republic of India

conventional short form: India

local long form: Republic of India/Bharatiya Ganarajya

local short form: India/Bharat

etymology: the English name derives from the Indus River; the Indian name "Bharat" may derive from the "Bharatas" tribe mentioned in the Vedas of the second millennium B.C.; the name is also associated with Emperor Bharata, the legendary conqueror of all of India

federal parliamentary republic

geographic coordinates: 28 36 N, 77 12 E

time difference: UTC+5.5 (10.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

29 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, Odisha, Puducherry*, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, West Bengal

note: although its status is that of a union territory, the official name of Delhi is National Capital Territory of Delhi

15 August 1947 (from the UK)

Republic Day, 26 January (1950)

history: previous 1935 (preindependence); latest draft completed 4 November 1949, adopted 26 November 1949, effective 26 January 1950

amendments: proposed by either the Council of States or the House of the People; passage requires majority participation of the total membership in each house and at least two-thirds majority of voting members of each house, followed by assent of the president of India; proposed amendments to the constitutional amendment procedures also must be ratified by at least one-half of the India state legislatures before presidential assent; amended many times, last in 2016 (2017)

common law system based on the English model; separate personal law codes apply to Muslims, Christians, and Hindus; judicial review of legislative acts

accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; non-party state to the ICCt

citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of India

dual citizenship recognized: no

residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years

18 years of age; universal

chief of state: President Ram Nath KOVIND (since 25 July 2017); Vice President M. Venkaiah NAIDU (since 11 August 2017)

head of government: Prime Minister Narendra MODI (since 26 May 2014)

cabinet: Union Council of Ministers recommended by the prime minister, appointed by the president

elections/appointments: president indirectly elected by an electoral college consisting of elected members of both houses of Parliament and state legislatures for a 5-year term (no term limits); election last held on 17 July 2017 (next to be held in July 2022); vice president indirectly elected by an electoral college consisting of elected members of both houses of Parliament and state legislatures for a 5-year term (no term limits); election last held on 5 August 2017 (next to be held in August 2022); following legislative elections, the prime minister is elected by parliamentary members of the majority party

election results: Ram Nath KOVIND elected president; percent of electoral college vote - Ram Nath KOVIND (BJP) 65.7% Meira KUMAR (INC) 34.3%; Mohammad Hamid ANSARI reelected vice president (2012 election); electoral college vote - Mohammad Hamid ANSARI 490, Jaswant SINGH 238

description: bicameral Parliament or Sansad consists of the Council of States or Rajya Sabha (245 seats; 233 members indirectly elected by state and territorial assemblies by proportional representation vote, and 12 members appointed by the president; members serve 6-year terms) and the House of the People or Lok Sabha (545 seats; 543 members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote and 2 appointed by the president; members serve 5-year terms)

elections: House of the People - last held April-May 2014 in 9 phases; (next must be held by May 2019)

election results: House of the People - percent of vote by party - BJP 31.0%, INC 19.3%, AITC 3.8%, SP 3.4%, AIADMK 3.3%, CPI(M) 3.3%, TDP 2.6%, YSRC 2.5%, AAP 2.1%, SAD 1.8%, BJD 1.7%, SS 1.7%, NCP 1.6%, RJD 1.3%, TRS 1.3%, LJP 0.4%, other 15.9%, independent 3.0%; seats by party - BJP 282, INC 44, AIADMK 37, AITC 34, BJD 20, SS 18, TDP 16, TRS 11, CPI(M) 9, YSRC 9, LJP 6, NCP 6, SP 5, AAP 4, RJD 4, SAD 4, other 33, independent 3

highest court(s): Supreme Court (the chief justice and 25 associate justices)

judge selection and term of office: justices appointed by the president to serve until age 65

subordinate courts: High Courts; District Courts; Labour Court

note: in mid-2011, India's Cabinet approved the "National Mission for Justice Delivery and Legal Reform" to eliminate judicial corruption and reduce the backlog of cases

Aam Aadmi Party or AAP [Arvind KEJRIWAL]

All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam or AIADMK [Edappadi PALANISWAMY, Occhaathevar PANNEERSELVAM]

All India Trinamool Congress or AITC [Mamata BANERJEE]

Bahujan Samaj Party or BSP [MAYAWATI]

Bharatiya Janata Party or BJP [Amit SHAH]

Biju Janata Dal or BJD [Naveen PATNAIK]

Communist Party of India-Marxist or CPI(M) [Prakash KARAT]

Indian National Congress or INC [Rahul GANDHI]

Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) [Ram Vilas PASWAN]

Nationalist Congress Party or NCP [Sharad PAWAR]

Rashtriya Janata Dal or RJD [Lalu Prasad YADAV]

Samajwadi Party or SP [Akhilesh YADAV]

Shiromani Akali Dal or SAD [Parkash Singh BADAL]

Shiv Sena or SS [Uddhav THACKERAY]

Telegana Rashtra Samithi or TRS [K. Chandrashekar RAO]

Telugu Desam Party or TDP [Chandrababu NAIDU]

YSR Congress or YSRC [Jagan Mohan REDDY]

note: India has dozens of national and regional political parties

All Parties Hurriyat Conference in the Kashmir Valley (separatist group)

Bajrang Dal (militant religious organization)

Jamiat Ulema-e Hind [Mahmood MADANI] (religious organization)

Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh or RSS [Mohan BHAGWAT] (nationalist organization)

Vishwa Hindu Parishad [Pravin TOGADIA] (militant religious organization)

other: hundreds of social reform, anti-corruption, and environmental groups at state and local level; numerous religious or militant/chauvinistic organizations; various separatist groups seeking greater communal and/or regional autonomy

ADB, AfDB (nonregional member), Arctic Council (observer), ARF, ASEAN (dialogue partner), BIMSTEC, BIS, BRICS, C, CD, CERN (observer), CICA, CP, EAS, FAO, FATF, G-15, G-20, G-24, G-5, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LAS (observer), MIGA, MINURSO, MONUSCO, NAM, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, Pacific Alliance (observer), PCA, PIF (partner), SAARC, SACEP, SCO (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNISFA, UNITAR, UNMISS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

chief of mission: Ambassador Navtej Singh SARNA (since 18 January 2017)

chancery: 2107 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008; note - Consular Wing located at 2536 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008; telephone: [1](202) 939-7000

telephone: [1] (202) 939-7000

consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, New York, San Francisco

chief of mission: Ambassador Kenneth I. JUSTER (since 23 November 2017)

embassy: Shantipath, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi 110021

mailing address: use embassy street address

telephone: [91] (11) 2419-8000

consulate(s) general: Chennai (Madras), Hyderabad, Kolkata (Calcutta), Mumbai (Bombay)

three equal horizontal bands of saffron (subdued orange) (top), white, and green, with a blue chakra (24-spoked wheel) centered in the white band; saffron represents courage, sacrifice, and the spirit of renunciation; white signifies purity and truth; green stands for faith and fertility; the blue chakra symbolizes the wheel of life in movement and death in stagnation

note: similar to the flag of Niger, which has a small orange disk centered in the white band

the Lion Capital of Ashoka, which depicts four Asiatic lions standing back to back mounted on a circular abacus, is the official emblem; Bengal tiger; lotus flower; national colors: saffron, white, green

name: "Jana-Gana-Mana" (Thou Art the Ruler of the Minds of All People)

lyrics/music: Rabindranath TAGORE

note: adopted 1950; Rabindranath TAGORE, a Nobel laureate, also wrote Bangladesh's national anthem

Economy :: INDIA

India's diverse economy encompasses traditional village farming, modern agriculture, handicrafts, a wide range of modern industries, and a multitude of services. Slightly less than half of the workforce is in agriculture, but services are the major source of economic growth, accounting for nearly two-thirds of India's output but employing less than one-third of its labor force. India has capitalized on its large educated English-speaking population to become a major exporter of information technology services, business outsourcing services, and software workers. Nevertheless, per capita income remains below the world average.

India is developing into an open-market economy, yet traces of its past autarkic policies remain. Economic liberalization measures, including industrial deregulation, privatization of state-owned enterprises, and reduced controls on foreign trade and investment, began in the early 1990s and served to accelerate the country's growth, which averaged nearly 7% per year from 1997 to 2017. India's economic growth slowed in 2011 because of a decline in investment caused by high interest rates, rising inflation, and investor pessimism about the government's commitment to further economic reforms and about slow world growth. Rising macroeconomic imbalances in India and improving economic conditions in Western countries led investors to shift capital away from India, prompting a sharp depreciation of the rupee through 2016.

Growth rebounded in 2014 through 2016, exceeding 7% each year, but slowed in 2017. Investors' perceptions of India improved in early 2014, due to a reduction of the current account deficit and expectations of post-election economic reform, resulting in a surge of inbound capital flows and stabilization of the rupee. Since the election, the government has passed an important goods and services tax bill and raised foreign direct investment caps in some sectors, but most economic reforms have focused on administrative and governance changes largely because the ruling party remains a minority in India's upper house of Parliament, which must approve most bills. Despite a high growth rate compared to the rest of the world, India's government-owned banks faced mounting bad debt in 2015 and 2016, resulting in low credit growth and restrained economic growth.

The outlook for India's long-term growth is moderately positive due to a young population and corresponding low dependency ratio, healthy savings and investment rates, and increasing integration into the global economy. However, long-term challenges remain significant, including: India's discrimination against women and girls, an inefficient power generation and distribution system, ineffective enforcement of intellectual property rights, decades-long civil litigation dockets, inadequate transport and agricultural infrastructure, limited non-agricultural employment opportunities, high spending and poorly targeted subsidies, inadequate availability of quality basic and higher education, and accommodating rural-to-urban migration.

$9.447 trillion (2017 est.)

$8.852 trillion (2016 est.)

$8.265 trillion (2015 est.)

note: data are in 2017 dollars

$2.439 trillion (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2017 dollars

household consumption: 58.7%

government consumption: 11.6%

investment in fixed capital: 27.5%

investment in inventories: 4%

exports of goods and services: 18.4%

imports of goods and services: -20.2% (2017 est.)

services: 46.6% (2016 est.)

rice, wheat, oilseed, cotton, jute, tea, sugarcane, lentils, onions, potatoes; dairy products, sheep, goats, poultry; fish

textiles, chemicals, food processing, steel, transportation equipment, cement, mining, petroleum, machinery, software, pharmaceuticals

521.9 million (2017 est.)

services: 31% (FY 2014 est.)

highest 10%: 29.8% (2011 est.)

expenditures: $330.3 billion (2017 est.)

note: data cover central government debt, and exclude debt instruments issued (or owned) by government entities other than the treasury; the data include treasury debt held by foreign entities; the data exclude debt issued by subnational entities, as well as intra-governmental debt; intra-governmental debt consists of treasury borrowings from surpluses in the social funds, such as for retirement, medical care, and unemployment; debt instruments for the social funds are not sold at public auctions

6.25% (31 December 2017 est.)

7.75% (31 December 2016 est.)

note: this is the Indian central bank's policy rate - the repurchase rate

9.6% (31 December 2017 est.)

9.67% (31 December 2016 est.)

$429.3 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$294.4 billion (31 December 2016 est.)

$2.063 trillion (31 December 2017 est.)

$1.773 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)

$1.795 trillion (30 September 2017 est.)

$1.622 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)

$1.516 trillion (31 December 2015 est.)

$1.558 trillion (31 December 2014 est.)

$1.139 trillion (31 December 2013 est.)

$-33.68 billion (2017 est.)

$-15.23 billion (2016 est.)

$299.3 billion (2017 est.)

$268.6 billion (2016 est.)

petroleum products, precious stones, vehicles, machinery, iron and steel, chemicals, pharmaceutical products, cereals, apparel

US 16%, UAE 11.7%, Hong Kong 5.1% (2016)

$426.8 billion (2017 est.)

$376.1 billion (2016 est.)

crude oil, precious stones, machinery, chemicals, fertilizer, plastics, iron and steel

China 17%, US 5.8%, UAE 5.4%, Saudi Arabia 5.2%, Switzerland 4.2% (2016)

$407.2 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$359.7 billion (31 December 2016 est.)

$483.4 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$456.4 billion (31 December 2016 est.)

$367.5 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$318.5 billion (31 December 2016 est.)

$156.1 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$144.1 billion (31 December 2016 est.)

Indian rupees (INR) per US dollar -

Energy :: INDIA

population without electricity: 237,400,000

electrification - total population: 79%

electrification - urban areas: 98%

electrification - rural areas: 70% (2013)

1.289 trillion kWh (2015 est.)

1.048 trillion kWh (2015 est.)

5.15 billion kWh (2015 est.)

5.244 billion kWh (2015 est.)

308.8 million kW (30 November 2016 )

71.5% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)

1.6% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)

14.4% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)

14.6% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)

734,500 bbl/day (2017 est.)

3.789 million bbl/day (2016 est.)

4.621 billion bbl (2016 est.)

4.793 million bbl/day (2016 est.)

4.142 million bbl/day (2016 est.)

1.371 million bbl/day (2016 est.)

481,900 bbl/day (2016 est.)

31.24 billion cu m (2016 est.)

102.3 billion cu m (2016 est.)

270 million cu m (2015 est.)

18.67 billion cu m (2016 est.)

1.227 trillion cu m (1 January 2017 est.)

1.887 billion Mt (2016 est.)

Communications :: INDIA

total subscriptions: 24.404 million

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 2 (July 2016 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 88 (July 2016 est.)

general assessment: supported by recent deregulation and liberalization of telecommunications laws and policies, India has emerged as one of the fastest-growing telecom markets in the world; total telephone subscribership base exceeded 1 billion in 2015, an overall teledensity of roughly 80%, and subscribership is currently growing at roughly 5 million per month; urban teledensity now exceeds 100%, and rural teledensity has reached 50%

domestic: mobile cellular service introduced in 1994 and organized nationwide into four metropolitan areas and 19 telecom circles, each with multiple private service providers and one or more state-owned service providers; in recent years significant trunk capacity added in the form of fiber-optic cable and one of the world's largest domestic satellite systems, the Indian National Satellite system (INSAT), with 6 satellites supporting 33,000 very small aperture terminals (VSAT)

international: country code - 91; a number of major international submarine cable systems, including SEA-ME-WE-3 with landing sites at Cochin and Mumbai (Bombay), SEA-ME-WE-4 with a landing site at Chennai, Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe (FLAG) with a landing site at Mumbai (Bombay), South Africa - Far East (SAFE) with a landing site at Cochin, the i2i cable network linking to Singapore with landing sites at Mumbai (Bombay) and Chennai (Madras), and Tata Indicom linking Singapore and Chennai (Madras), provide a significant increase in the bandwidth available for both voice and data traffic; satellite earth stations - 8 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Inmarsat (Indian Ocean region); 9 gateway exchanges operating from Mumbai (Bombay), New Delhi, Kolkata (Calcutta), Chennai (Madras), Jalandhar, Kanpur, Gandhinagar, Hyderabad, and Ernakulam (2015)

Doordarshan, India's public TV network, operates about 20 national, regional, and local services; a large and increasing number of privately owned TV stations are distributed by cable and satellite service providers; in 2015, more than 230 million homes had access to cable and satellite TV offering more than 700 TV channels; government controls AM radio with All India Radio operating domestic and external networks; news broadcasts via radio are limited to the All India Radio Network; since 2000, privately owned FM stations have been permitted and their numbers have increased rapidly (2015)

percent of population: 29.5% (July 2016 est.)

Transportation :: INDIA

number of registered air carriers: 20

inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 485

annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 98,927,860

annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 1,833,847,614 mt-km (2015)

condensate/gas 9 km; gas 13,581 km; liquid petroleum gas 2,054 km; oil 8,943 km; oil/gas/water 20 km; refined products 11,069 km (2013)

broad gauge: 58,404 km 1.676-m gauge (23,654 electrified)

narrow gauge: 9,499 km 1.000-m gauge; 622 km 0.762-m gauge (2014)

note: includes 96,214 km of national highways and expressways, 147,800 km of state highways, and 4,455,010 km of other roads (2015)

14,500 km (5,200 km on major rivers and 485 km on canals suitable for mechanized vessels) (2012)

by type: bulk carrier 74, container ship 20, general cargo 571, oil tanker 126, other 883 (2017)

major seaport(s): Chennai, Jawaharal Nehru Port, Kandla, Kolkata (Calcutta), Mumbai (Bombay), Sikka, Vishakhapatnam

container port(s) (TEUs): Chennai (1,571,000), Jawaharal Nehru Port (4,492,000) (2015)

LNG terminal(s) (import): Dabhol, Dahej, Hazira

Military and Security :: INDIA

Army, Navy (includes naval air arm), Air Force, Coast Guard (2011)

16-18 years of age for voluntary military service (Army 17 1/2, Air Force 17, Navy 16 1/2); no conscription; women may join as officers, currently serve in combat roles as pilots, and will soon be allowed in all combat roles (2016)

Terrorism :: INDIA

aim(s): annex the state of Jammu and Kashmir to Pakistan

area(s) of operation: HM is an indigenous Kashmiri militant group that operates in Jammu and Kashmir

aim(s): establish Islamic rule in India and, ultimately, convert all non-Muslims to Islam; stated goal is to carry out terrorist attacks against Indians for perceived atrocities against Indian Muslims

area(s) of operation: formerly based in the western state of Maharashtra, India's third-largest and second-most populous state, and now probably operates mostly outside India

Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS):

aim(s): spread the ISIS caliphate by eliminating the Indian Government and, ultimately, unite Kashmir with Pakistan

area(s) of operation: maintains a recruitment presence in major cities (April 2018)

aim(s): overthrow the Indian Government and, ultimately, establish a pan-Islamic caliphate under a strict Salafi Muslim interpretation of Sharia

area(s) of operation: maintains an operational presence as al-Qa'ida in the Indian Subcontinent

al-Qa'ida in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS):

aim(s): establish an Islamic caliphate in the Indian subcontinent

area(s) of operation: targets primarily military and security personnel, especially in the states of Assam, Gujarat, and Jammu and Kashmir; present in large cities, including Delhi

Harakat ul-Jihad-i-Islami (HUJI):

aim(s): enhance its networks and operational capabilities in India

area(s) of operation: maintains an operational presence, especially in the south, including in Bangalore and Hubli

Harakat ul-Jihad-i-Islami/Bangladesh (HUJI-B):

aim(s): enhance its networks in India and, ultimately, install an Islamic state in Bangladesh

area(s) of operation: maintains a low-profile presence

Harakat ul-Mujahidin (HUM):

aim(s): enhance its networks and paramilitary training in India and, ultimately, annex Kashmir into Pakistan and establish an Islamic state in Kashmir

area(s) of operation: conducts attacks against Indian troops and civilians in Kashmir

aim(s): annex Jammu and Kashmir to Pakistan

area(s) of operation: operates primarily in Jammu and Kashmir State

aim(s): annex Jammu and Kashmir State to Pakistan and, ultimately, install Islamic rule throughout South Asia

area(s) of operation: operational throughout India, especially in the north in Jammu and Kashmir State, since at least 1993

note(s): continues to be one of the largest and most deadly of the anti-India-focused armed groups

Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE):

aim(s): enhance its networks in India and, ultimately, revive the movement to establish a Tamil homeland

area(s) of operation: maintains safe havens, transit routes, human trafficking, and an operational presence in an effort to revive the movement and conduct attacks (April 2018)

Transnational Issues :: INDIA

since China and India launched a security and foreign policy dialogue in 2005, consolidated discussions related to the dispute over most of their rugged, militarized boundary, regional nuclear proliferation, Indian claims that China transferred missiles to Pakistan, and other matters continue

Kashmir remains the site of the world's largest and most militarized territorial dispute with portions under the de facto administration of China (Aksai Chin), India (Jammu and Kashmir), and Pakistan (Azad Kashmir and Northern Areas)

India and Pakistan resumed bilateral dialogue in February 2011 after a two-year hiatus, have maintained the 2003 cease-fire in Kashmir, and continue to have disputes over water sharing of the Indus River and its tributaries

UN Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan has maintained a small group of peacekeepers since 1949; India does not recognize Pakistan's ceding historic Kashmir lands to China in 1964; to defuse tensions and prepare for discussions on a maritime boundary, India and Pakistan seek technical resolution of the disputed boundary in Sir Creek estuary at the mouth of the Rann of Kutch in the Arabian Sea; Pakistani maps continue to show its Junagadh claim in Indian Gujarat State; Prime Minister Singh's September 2011 visit to Bangladesh resulted in the signing of a Protocol to the 1974 Land Boundary Agreement between India and Bangladesh, which had called for the settlement of longstanding boundary disputes over undemarcated areas and the exchange of territorial enclaves, but which had never been implemented; Bangladesh referred its maritime boundary claims with Burma and India to the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea; Joint Border Committee with Nepal continues to examine contested boundary sections, including the 400 sq km dispute over the source of the Kalapani River; India maintains a strict border regime to keep out Maoist insurgents and control illegal cross-border activities from Nepal

refugees (country of origin): 110,098 (Tibet/China); 63,162 (Sri Lanka); 15,561 (Burma); 7,693 (Afghanistan) (2015)

IDPs: 806,000 (armed conflict and intercommunal violence) (2017)

world's largest producer of licit opium for the pharmaceutical trade, but an undetermined quantity of opium is diverted to illicit international drug markets; transit point for illicit narcotics produced in neighboring countries and throughout Southwest Asia; illicit producer of methaqualone; vulnerable to narcotics money laundering through the hawala system; licit ketamine and precursor production

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South Asia :: INDIA

Introduction :: INDIA

The Indus Valley civilization, one of the world's oldest, flourished during the 3rd and 2nd millennia B.C. and extended into northwestern India. Aryan tribes from the northwest infiltrated the Indian subcontinent about 1500 B.C.; their merger with the earlier Dravidian inhabitants created the classical Indian culture. The Maurya Empire of the 4th and 3rd centuries B.C. - which reached its zenith under ASHOKA - united much of South Asia. The Golden Age ushered in by the Gupta dynasty (4th to 6th centuries A.D.) saw a flowering of Indian science, art, and culture. Islam spread across the subcontinent over a period of 700 years. In the 10th and 11th centuries, Turks and Afghans invaded India and established the Delhi Sultanate. In the early 16th century, the Emperor BABUR established the Mughal Dynasty, which ruled India for more than three centuries. European explorers began establishing footholds in India during the 16th century.

By the 19th century, Great Britain had become the dominant political power on the subcontinent. The British Indian Army played a vital role in both World Wars. Years of nonviolent resistance to British rule, led by Mohandas GANDHI and Jawaharlal NEHRU, eventually resulted in Indian independence, which was granted in 1947. Large-scale communal violence took place before and after the subcontinent partition into two separate states - India and Pakistan. The neighboring nations have fought three wars since independence, the last of which was in 1971 and resulted in East Pakistan becoming the separate nation of Bangladesh. India's nuclear weapons tests in 1998 emboldened Pakistan to conduct its own tests that same year. In November 2008, terrorists originating from Pakistan conducted a series of coordinated attacks in Mumbai, India's financial capital. Despite pressing problems such as significant overpopulation, environmental degradation, extensive poverty, and widespread corruption, economic growth following the launch of economic reforms in 1991 and a massive youthful population are driving India's emergence as a regional and global power.

Geography :: INDIA

Southern Asia, bordering the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal, between Burma and Pakistan

slightly more than one-third the size of the US

Area comparison map:

border countries (6): Bangladesh 4,142 km, Bhutan 659 km, Burma 1,468 km, China 2,659 km, Nepal 1,770 km, Pakistan 3,190 km

exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin

varies from tropical monsoon in south to temperate in north

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 8,586 m

coal (fourth-largest reserves in the world), iron ore, manganese, mica, bauxite, rare earth elements, titanium ore, chromite, natural gas, diamonds, petroleum, limestone, arable land

arable land 52.8%; permanent crops 4.2%; permanent pasture 3.5%

with the notable exception of the deserts in the northwest, including the Thar Desert, and the mountain fringe in the north, a very high population density exists throughout most of the country; the core of the population is in the north along the banks of the Ganges, with other river valleys and southern coastal areas also having large population concentrations

droughts; flash floods, as well as widespread and destructive flooding from monsoonal rains; severe thunderstorms; earthquakes

volcanism: Barren Island (354 m) in the Andaman Sea has been active in recent years

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

party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, 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

dominates South Asian subcontinent; near important Indian Ocean trade routes; Kanchenjunga, third tallest mountain in the world, lies on the border with Nepal

People and Society :: INDIA

1,281,935,911 (July 2017 est.)

Indo-Aryan 72%, Dravidian 25%, Mongoloid and other 3% (2000)

Hindi 41%, Bengali 8.1%, Telugu 7.2%, Marathi 7%, Tamil 5.9%, Urdu 5%, Gujarati 4.5%, Kannada 3.7%, Malayalam 3.2%, Oriya 3.2%, Punjabi 2.8%, Assamese 1.3%, Maithili 1.2%, other 5.9%

note: English enjoys the status of subsidiary official language but is the most important language for national, political, and commercial communication; Hindi is the most widely spoken language and primary tongue of 41% 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 (2001 est.)

Hindu 79.8%, Muslim 14.2%, Christian 2.3%, Sikh 1.7%, other and unspecified 2% (2011 est.)

0-14 years: 27.34% (male 186,087,665/female 164,398,204)

15-24 years: 17.9% (male 121,879,786/female 107,583,437)

25-54 years: 41.08% (male 271,744,709/female 254,834,569)

55-64 years: 7.45% (male 47,846,122/female 47,632,532)

65 years and over: 6.24% (male 37,837,801/female 42,091,086) (2017 est.)

population pyramid:

total dependency ratio: 52.2

youth dependency ratio: 43.6

elderly dependency ratio: 8.6

potential support ratio: 11.7 (2015 est.)

female: 28.6 years (2017 est.)

19 births/1,000 population (2017 est.)

7.3 deaths/1,000 population (2017 est.)

0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2017 est.)

with the notable exception of the deserts in the northwest, including the Thar Desert, and the mountain fringe in the north, a very high population density exists throughout most of the country; the core of the population is in the north along the banks of the Ganges, with other river valleys and southern coastal areas also having large population concentrations

urban population: 33.5% of total population (2017)

rate of urbanization: 2.28% annual rate of change (2015-20 est.)

NEW DELHI (capital) 25.703 million; Mumbai 21.043 million; Kolkata 11.766 million; Bangalore 10.087 million; Chennai 9.62 million; Hyderabad 8.944 million (2015)

at birth: 1.12 male(s)/female

0-14 years: 1.13 male(s)/female

15-24 years: 1.13 male(s)/female

25-54 years: 1.06 male(s)/female

55-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.9 male(s)/female

total population: 1.08 male(s)/female (2017 est.)

174 deaths/100,000 live births (2015 est.)

total: 39.1 deaths/1,000 live births

male: 38 deaths/1,000 live births

female: 40.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2017 est.)

total population: 68.8 years

female: 70.1 years (2017 est.)

2.43 children born/woman (2017 est.)

0.76 physicians/1,000 population (2016)

0.7 beds/1,000 population (2011)

urban: 97.1% of population

rural: 92.6% of population

total: 94.1% of population

urban: 2.9% of population

rural: 7.4% of population

total: 5.9% of population (2015 est.)

urban: 62.6% of population

rural: 28.5% of population

total: 39.6% of population

urban: 37.4% of population

rural: 71.5% of population

total: 60.4% of population (2015 est.)

degree of risk: very high

food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A and E, and typhoid fever

vectorborne diseases: dengue fever, Japanese encephalitis, and malaria

water contact disease: leptospirosis

animal contact disease: rabies (2016)

definition: age 15 and over can read and write

female: 60.6% (2015 est.)

female: 11.6% (2012 est.)

Government :: INDIA

conventional long form: Republic of India

conventional short form: India

local long form: Republic of India/Bharatiya Ganarajya

local short form: India/Bharat

etymology: the English name derives from the Indus River; the Indian name "Bharat" may derive from the "Bharatas" tribe mentioned in the Vedas of the second millennium B.C.; the name is also associated with Emperor Bharata, the legendary conqueror of all of India

federal parliamentary republic

geographic coordinates: 28 36 N, 77 12 E

time difference: UTC+5.5 (10.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

29 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, Odisha, Puducherry*, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, West Bengal

note: although its status is that of a union territory, the official name of Delhi is National Capital Territory of Delhi

15 August 1947 (from the UK)

Republic Day, 26 January (1950)

history: previous 1935 (preindependence); latest draft completed 4 November 1949, adopted 26 November 1949, effective 26 January 1950

amendments: proposed by either the Council of States or the House of the People; passage requires majority participation of the total membership in each house and at least two-thirds majority of voting members of each house, followed by assent of the president of India; proposed amendments to the constitutional amendment procedures also must be ratified by at least one-half of the India state legislatures before presidential assent; amended many times, last in 2016 (2017)

common law system based on the English model; separate personal law codes apply to Muslims, Christians, and Hindus; judicial review of legislative acts

accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; non-party state to the ICCt

citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of India

dual citizenship recognized: no

residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years

18 years of age; universal

chief of state: President Ram Nath KOVIND (since 25 July 2017); Vice President M. Venkaiah NAIDU (since 11 August 2017)

head of government: Prime Minister Narendra MODI (since 26 May 2014)

cabinet: Union Council of Ministers recommended by the prime minister, appointed by the president

elections/appointments: president indirectly elected by an electoral college consisting of elected members of both houses of Parliament and state legislatures for a 5-year term (no term limits); election last held on 17 July 2017 (next to be held in July 2022); vice president indirectly elected by an electoral college consisting of elected members of both houses of Parliament and state legislatures for a 5-year term (no term limits); election last held on 5 August 2017 (next to be held in August 2022); following legislative elections, the prime minister is elected by parliamentary members of the majority party

election results: Ram Nath KOVIND elected president; percent of electoral college vote - Ram Nath KOVIND (BJP) 65.7% Meira KUMAR (INC) 34.3%; Mohammad Hamid ANSARI reelected vice president (2012 election); electoral college vote - Mohammad Hamid ANSARI 490, Jaswant SINGH 238

description: bicameral Parliament or Sansad consists of the Council of States or Rajya Sabha (245 seats; 233 members indirectly elected by state and territorial assemblies by proportional representation vote, and 12 members appointed by the president; members serve 6-year terms) and the House of the People or Lok Sabha (545 seats; 543 members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote and 2 appointed by the president; members serve 5-year terms)

elections: House of the People - last held April-May 2014 in 9 phases; (next must be held by May 2019)

election results: House of the People - percent of vote by party - BJP 31.0%, INC 19.3%, AITC 3.8%, SP 3.4%, AIADMK 3.3%, CPI(M) 3.3%, TDP 2.6%, YSRC 2.5%, AAP 2.1%, SAD 1.8%, BJD 1.7%, SS 1.7%, NCP 1.6%, RJD 1.3%, TRS 1.3%, LJP 0.4%, other 15.9%, independent 3.0%; seats by party - BJP 282, INC 44, AIADMK 37, AITC 34, BJD 20, SS 18, TDP 16, TRS 11, CPI(M) 9, YSRC 9, LJP 6, NCP 6, SP 5, AAP 4, RJD 4, SAD 4, other 33, independent 3

highest court(s): Supreme Court (the chief justice and 25 associate justices)

judge selection and term of office: justices appointed by the president to serve until age 65

subordinate courts: High Courts; District Courts; Labour Court

note: in mid-2011, India's Cabinet approved the "National Mission for Justice Delivery and Legal Reform" to eliminate judicial corruption and reduce the backlog of cases

Aam Aadmi Party or AAP [Arvind KEJRIWAL]

All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam or AIADMK [Edappadi PALANISWAMY, Occhaathevar PANNEERSELVAM]

All India Trinamool Congress or AITC [Mamata BANERJEE]

Bahujan Samaj Party or BSP [MAYAWATI]

Bharatiya Janata Party or BJP [Amit SHAH]

Biju Janata Dal or BJD [Naveen PATNAIK]

Communist Party of India-Marxist or CPI(M) [Prakash KARAT]

Indian National Congress or INC [Rahul GANDHI]

Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) [Ram Vilas PASWAN]

Nationalist Congress Party or NCP [Sharad PAWAR]

Rashtriya Janata Dal or RJD [Lalu Prasad YADAV]

Samajwadi Party or SP [Akhilesh YADAV]

Shiromani Akali Dal or SAD [Parkash Singh BADAL]

Shiv Sena or SS [Uddhav THACKERAY]

Telegana Rashtra Samithi or TRS [K. Chandrashekar RAO]

Telugu Desam Party or TDP [Chandrababu NAIDU]

YSR Congress or YSRC [Jagan Mohan REDDY]

note: India has dozens of national and regional political parties

All Parties Hurriyat Conference in the Kashmir Valley (separatist group)

Bajrang Dal (militant religious organization)

Jamiat Ulema-e Hind [Mahmood MADANI] (religious organization)

Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh or RSS [Mohan BHAGWAT] (nationalist organization)

Vishwa Hindu Parishad [Pravin TOGADIA] (militant religious organization)

other: hundreds of social reform, anti-corruption, and environmental groups at state and local level; numerous religious or militant/chauvinistic organizations; various separatist groups seeking greater communal and/or regional autonomy

ADB, AfDB (nonregional member), Arctic Council (observer), ARF, ASEAN (dialogue partner), BIMSTEC, BIS, BRICS, C, CD, CERN (observer), CICA, CP, EAS, FAO, FATF, G-15, G-20, G-24, G-5, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LAS (observer), MIGA, MINURSO, MONUSCO, NAM, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, Pacific Alliance (observer), PCA, PIF (partner), SAARC, SACEP, SCO (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNISFA, UNITAR, UNMISS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

chief of mission: Ambassador Navtej Singh SARNA (since 18 January 2017)

chancery: 2107 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008; note - Consular Wing located at 2536 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008; telephone: [1](202) 939-7000

telephone: [1] (202) 939-7000

consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, New York, San Francisco

chief of mission: Ambassador Kenneth I. JUSTER (since 23 November 2017)

embassy: Shantipath, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi 110021

mailing address: use embassy street address

telephone: [91] (11) 2419-8000

consulate(s) general: Chennai (Madras), Hyderabad, Kolkata (Calcutta), Mumbai (Bombay)

three equal horizontal bands of saffron (subdued orange) (top), white, and green, with a blue chakra (24-spoked wheel) centered in the white band; saffron represents courage, sacrifice, and the spirit of renunciation; white signifies purity and truth; green stands for faith and fertility; the blue chakra symbolizes the wheel of life in movement and death in stagnation

note: similar to the flag of Niger, which has a small orange disk centered in the white band

the Lion Capital of Ashoka, which depicts four Asiatic lions standing back to back mounted on a circular abacus, is the official emblem; Bengal tiger; lotus flower; national colors: saffron, white, green

name: "Jana-Gana-Mana" (Thou Art the Ruler of the Minds of All People)

lyrics/music: Rabindranath TAGORE

note: adopted 1950; Rabindranath TAGORE, a Nobel laureate, also wrote Bangladesh's national anthem

Economy :: INDIA

India's diverse economy encompasses traditional village farming, modern agriculture, handicrafts, a wide range of modern industries, and a multitude of services. Slightly less than half of the workforce is in agriculture, but services are the major source of economic growth, accounting for nearly two-thirds of India's output but employing less than one-third of its labor force. India has capitalized on its large educated English-speaking population to become a major exporter of information technology services, business outsourcing services, and software workers. Nevertheless, per capita income remains below the world average.

India is developing into an open-market economy, yet traces of its past autarkic policies remain. Economic liberalization measures, including industrial deregulation, privatization of state-owned enterprises, and reduced controls on foreign trade and investment, began in the early 1990s and served to accelerate the country's growth, which averaged nearly 7% per year from 1997 to 2017. India's economic growth slowed in 2011 because of a decline in investment caused by high interest rates, rising inflation, and investor pessimism about the government's commitment to further economic reforms and about slow world growth. Rising macroeconomic imbalances in India and improving economic conditions in Western countries led investors to shift capital away from India, prompting a sharp depreciation of the rupee through 2016.

Growth rebounded in 2014 through 2016, exceeding 7% each year, but slowed in 2017. Investors' perceptions of India improved in early 2014, due to a reduction of the current account deficit and expectations of post-election economic reform, resulting in a surge of inbound capital flows and stabilization of the rupee. Since the election, the government has passed an important goods and services tax bill and raised foreign direct investment caps in some sectors, but most economic reforms have focused on administrative and governance changes largely because the ruling party remains a minority in India's upper house of Parliament, which must approve most bills. Despite a high growth rate compared to the rest of the world, India's government-owned banks faced mounting bad debt in 2015 and 2016, resulting in low credit growth and restrained economic growth.

The outlook for India's long-term growth is moderately positive due to a young population and corresponding low dependency ratio, healthy savings and investment rates, and increasing integration into the global economy. However, long-term challenges remain significant, including: India's discrimination against women and girls, an inefficient power generation and distribution system, ineffective enforcement of intellectual property rights, decades-long civil litigation dockets, inadequate transport and agricultural infrastructure, limited non-agricultural employment opportunities, high spending and poorly targeted subsidies, inadequate availability of quality basic and higher education, and accommodating rural-to-urban migration.

$9.447 trillion (2017 est.)

$8.852 trillion (2016 est.)

$8.265 trillion (2015 est.)

note: data are in 2017 dollars

$2.439 trillion (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2017 dollars

household consumption: 58.7%

government consumption: 11.6%

investment in fixed capital: 27.5%

investment in inventories: 4%

exports of goods and services: 18.4%

imports of goods and services: -20.2% (2017 est.)

services: 46.6% (2016 est.)

rice, wheat, oilseed, cotton, jute, tea, sugarcane, lentils, onions, potatoes; dairy products, sheep, goats, poultry; fish

textiles, chemicals, food processing, steel, transportation equipment, cement, mining, petroleum, machinery, software, pharmaceuticals

521.9 million (2017 est.)

services: 31% (FY 2014 est.)

highest 10%: 29.8% (2011 est.)

expenditures: $330.3 billion (2017 est.)

note: data cover central government debt, and exclude debt instruments issued (or owned) by government entities other than the treasury; the data include treasury debt held by foreign entities; the data exclude debt issued by subnational entities, as well as intra-governmental debt; intra-governmental debt consists of treasury borrowings from surpluses in the social funds, such as for retirement, medical care, and unemployment; debt instruments for the social funds are not sold at public auctions

6.25% (31 December 2017 est.)

7.75% (31 December 2016 est.)

note: this is the Indian central bank's policy rate - the repurchase rate

9.6% (31 December 2017 est.)

9.67% (31 December 2016 est.)

$429.3 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$294.4 billion (31 December 2016 est.)

$2.063 trillion (31 December 2017 est.)

$1.773 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)

$1.795 trillion (30 September 2017 est.)

$1.622 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)

$1.516 trillion (31 December 2015 est.)

$1.558 trillion (31 December 2014 est.)

$1.139 trillion (31 December 2013 est.)

$-33.68 billion (2017 est.)

$-15.23 billion (2016 est.)

$299.3 billion (2017 est.)

$268.6 billion (2016 est.)

petroleum products, precious stones, vehicles, machinery, iron and steel, chemicals, pharmaceutical products, cereals, apparel

US 16%, UAE 11.7%, Hong Kong 5.1% (2016)

$426.8 billion (2017 est.)

$376.1 billion (2016 est.)

crude oil, precious stones, machinery, chemicals, fertilizer, plastics, iron and steel

China 17%, US 5.8%, UAE 5.4%, Saudi Arabia 5.2%, Switzerland 4.2% (2016)

$407.2 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$359.7 billion (31 December 2016 est.)

$483.4 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$456.4 billion (31 December 2016 est.)

$367.5 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$318.5 billion (31 December 2016 est.)

$156.1 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$144.1 billion (31 December 2016 est.)

Indian rupees (INR) per US dollar -

Energy :: INDIA

population without electricity: 237,400,000

electrification - total population: 79%

electrification - urban areas: 98%

electrification - rural areas: 70% (2013)

1.289 trillion kWh (2015 est.)

1.048 trillion kWh (2015 est.)

5.15 billion kWh (2015 est.)

5.244 billion kWh (2015 est.)

308.8 million kW (30 November 2016 )

71.5% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)

1.6% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)

14.4% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)

14.6% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)

734,500 bbl/day (2017 est.)

3.789 million bbl/day (2016 est.)

4.621 billion bbl (2016 est.)

4.793 million bbl/day (2016 est.)

4.142 million bbl/day (2016 est.)

1.371 million bbl/day (2016 est.)

481,900 bbl/day (2016 est.)

31.24 billion cu m (2016 est.)

102.3 billion cu m (2016 est.)

270 million cu m (2015 est.)

18.67 billion cu m (2016 est.)

1.227 trillion cu m (1 January 2017 es)

1.887 billion Mt (2016 est.)

Communications :: INDIA

total subscriptions: 24.404 million

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 2 (July 2016 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 89 (July 2016 est.)

general assessment: supported by recent deregulation and liberalization of telecommunications laws and policies, India has emerged as one of the fastest-growing telecom markets in the world; total telephone subscribership base exceeded 1 billion in 2015, an overall teledensity of roughly 80%, and subscribership is currently growing at roughly 5 million per month; urban teledensity now exceeds 100%, and rural teledensity has reached 50%

domestic: mobile cellular service introduced in 1994 and organized nationwide into four metropolitan areas and 19 telecom circles, each with multiple private service providers and one or more state-owned service providers; in recent years significant trunk capacity added in the form of fiber-optic cable and one of the world's largest domestic satellite systems, the Indian National Satellite system (INSAT), with 6 satellites supporting 33,000 very small aperture terminals (VSAT)

international: country code - 91; a number of major international submarine cable systems, including SEA-ME-WE-3 with landing sites at Cochin and Mumbai (Bombay), SEA-ME-WE-4 with a landing site at Chennai, Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe (FLAG) with a landing site at Mumbai (Bombay), South Africa - Far East (SAFE) with a landing site at Cochin, the i2i cable network linking to Singapore with landing sites at Mumbai (Bombay) and Chennai (Madras), and Tata Indicom linking Singapore and Chennai (Madras), provide a significant increase in the bandwidth available for both voice and data traffic; satellite earth stations - 8 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Inmarsat (Indian Ocean region); 9 gateway exchanges operating from Mumbai (Bombay), New Delhi, Kolkata (Calcutta), Chennai (Madras), Jalandhar, Kanpur, Gandhinagar, Hyderabad, and Ernakulam (2015)

Doordarshan, India's public TV network, operates about 20 national, regional, and local services; a large and increasing number of privately owned TV stations are distributed by cable and satellite service providers; in 2015, more than 230 million homes had access to cable and satellite TV offering more than 700 TV channels; government controls AM radio with All India Radio operating domestic and external networks; news broadcasts via radio are limited to the All India Radio Network; since 2000, privately owned FM stations have been permitted and their numbers have increased rapidly (2015)

percent of population: 29.5% (July 2016 est.)

Transportation :: INDIA

number of registered air carriers: 20

inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 485

annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 98,927,860

annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 1,833,847,614 mt-km (2015)

condensate/gas 9 km; gas 13,581 km; liquid petroleum gas 2,054 km; oil 8,943 km; oil/gas/water 20 km; refined products 11,069 km (2013)

broad gauge: 58,404 km 1.676-m gauge (23,654 electrified)

narrow gauge: 9,499 km 1.000-m gauge; 622 km 0.762-m gauge (2014)

note: includes 96,214 km of national highways and expressways, 147,800 km of state highways, and 4,455,010 km of other roads (2015)

14,500 km (5,200 km on major rivers and 485 km on canals suitable for mechanized vessels) (2012)

by type: bulk carrier 74, container ship 20, general cargo 571, oil tanker 126, other 883 (2017)

major seaport(s): Chennai, Jawaharal Nehru Port, Kandla, Kolkata (Calcutta), Mumbai (Bombay), Sikka, Vishakhapatnam

container port(s) (TEUs): Chennai (1,571,000), Jawaharal Nehru Port (4,492,000) (2015)

LNG terminal(s) (import): Dabhol, Dahej, Hazira

Military and Security :: INDIA

Army, Navy (includes naval air arm), Air Force, Coast Guard (2011)

16-18 years of age for voluntary military service (Army 17 1/2, Air Force 17, Navy 16 1/2); no conscription; women may join as officers, currently serve in combat roles as pilots, and will soon be allowed in all combat roles (2016)

Terrorism :: INDIA

aim(s): annex the state of Jammu and Kashmir to Pakistan

area(s) of operation: HM is an indigenous Kashmiri militant group that operates in Jammu and Kashmir

aim(s): establish Islamic rule in India and, ultimately, convert all non-Muslims to Islam; stated goal is to carry out terrorist attacks against Indians for perceived atrocities against Indian Muslims

area(s) of operation: formerly based in the western state of Maharashtra, India's third-largest and second-most populous state, and now probably operates mostly outside India

Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS):

aim(s): spread the ISIS caliphate by eliminating the Indian Government and, ultimately, unite Kashmir with Pakistan

area(s) of operation: maintains a recruitment presence in major cities (April 2018)

aim(s): overthrow the Indian Government and, ultimately, establish a pan-Islamic caliphate under a strict Salafi Muslim interpretation of Sharia

area(s) of operation: maintains an operational presence as al-Qa'ida in the Indian Subcontinent

al-Qa'ida in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS):

aim(s): establish an Islamic caliphate in the Indian subcontinent

area(s) of operation: targets primarily military and security personnel, especially in the states of Assam, Gujarat, and Jammu and Kashmir; present in large cities, including Delhi

Harakat ul-Jihad-i-Islami (HUJI):

aim(s): enhance its networks and operational capabilities in India

area(s) of operation: maintains an operational presence, especially in the south, including in Bangalore and Hubli

Harakat ul-Jihad-i-Islami/Bangladesh (HUJI-B):

aim(s): enhance its networks in India and, ultimately, install an Islamic state in Bangladesh

area(s) of operation: maintains a low-profile presence

Harakat ul-Mujahidin (HUM):

aim(s): enhance its networks and paramilitary training in India and, ultimately, annex Kashmir into Pakistan and establish an Islamic state in Kashmir

area(s) of operation: conducts attacks against Indian troops and civilians in Kashmir

aim(s): annex Jammu and Kashmir to Pakistan

area(s) of operation: operates primarily in Jammu and Kashmir State

aim(s): annex Jammu and Kashmir State to Pakistan and, ultimately, install Islamic rule throughout South Asia

area(s) of operation: operational throughout India, especially in the north in Jammu and Kashmir State, since at least 1993

note(s): continues to be one of the largest and most deadly of the anti-India-focused armed groups

Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE):

aim(s): enhance its networks in India and, ultimately, revive the movement to establish a Tamil homeland

area(s) of operation: maintains safe havens, transit routes, human trafficking, and an operational presence in an effort to revive the movement and conduct attacks (April 2018)

Transnational Issues :: INDIA

since China and India launched a security and foreign policy dialogue in 2005, consolidated discussions related to the dispute over most of their rugged, militarized boundary, regional nuclear proliferation, Indian claims that China transferred missiles to Pakistan, and other matters continue

Kashmir remains the site of the world's largest and most militarized territorial dispute with portions under the de facto administration of China (Aksai Chin), India (Jammu and Kashmir), and Pakistan (Azad Kashmir and Northern Areas)

India and Pakistan resumed bilateral dialogue in February 2011 after a two-year hiatus, have maintained the 2003 cease-fire in Kashmir, and continue to have disputes over water sharing of the Indus River and its tributaries

UN Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan has maintained a small group of peacekeepers since 1949; India does not recognize Pakistan's ceding historic Kashmir lands to China in 1964; to defuse tensions and prepare for discussions on a maritime boundary, India and Pakistan seek technical resolution of the disputed boundary in Sir Creek estuary at the mouth of the Rann of Kutch in the Arabian Sea; Pakistani maps continue to show its Junagadh claim in Indian Gujarat State; Prime Minister Singh's September 2011 visit to Bangladesh resulted in the signing of a Protocol to the 1974 Land Boundary Agreement between India and Bangladesh, which had called for the settlement of longstanding boundary disputes over undemarcated areas and the exchange of territorial enclaves, but which had never been implemented; Bangladesh referred its maritime boundary claims with Burma and India to the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea; Joint Border Committee with Nepal continues to examine contested boundary sections, including the 400 sq km dispute over the source of the Kalapani River; India maintains a strict border regime to keep out Maoist insurgents and control illegal cross-border activities from Nepal

refugees (country of origin): 110,098 (Tibet/China); 63,162 (Sri Lanka); 15,561 (Burma); 7,693 (Afghanistan) (2015)

IDPs: 796,000 (armed conflict and intercommunal violence) (2016)

world's largest producer of licit opium for the pharmaceutical trade, but an undetermined quantity of opium is diverted to illicit international drug markets; transit point for illicit narcotics produced in neighboring countries and throughout Southwest Asia; illicit producer of methaqualone; vulnerable to narcotics money laundering through the hawala system; licit ketamine and precursor production

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They traded rice,and food or jewelry and goods like vases and pottery.That are the trades in China.

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GDP - composition, by end use:

household consumption: 58.7%

government consumption: 11.6%

investment in fixed capital: 27.5%

investment in inventories: 4%

exports of goods and services: 18.4%

imports of goods and services: -20.2% (2017 est.)

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South Asia :: INDIA

Introduction :: INDIA

The Indus Valley civilization, one of the world's oldest, flourished during the 3rd and 2nd millennia B.C. and extended into northwestern India. Aryan tribes from the northwest infiltrated the Indian subcontinent about 1500 B.C.; their merger with the earlier Dravidian inhabitants created the classical Indian culture. The Maurya Empire of the 4th and 3rd centuries B.C. - which reached its zenith under ASHOKA - united much of South Asia. The Golden Age ushered in by the Gupta dynasty (4th to 6th centuries A.D.) saw a flowering of Indian science, art, and culture. Islam spread across the subcontinent over a period of 700 years. In the 10th and 11th centuries, Turks and Afghans invaded India and established the Delhi Sultanate. In the early 16th century, the Emperor BABUR established the Mughal Dynasty, which ruled India for more than three centuries. European explorers began establishing footholds in India during the 16th century.

By the 19th century, Great Britain had become the dominant political power on the subcontinent. The British Indian Army played a vital role in both World Wars. Years of nonviolent resistance to British rule, led by Mohandas GANDHI and Jawaharlal NEHRU, eventually resulted in Indian independence, which was granted in 1947. Large-scale communal violence took place before and after the subcontinent partition into two separate states - India and Pakistan. The neighboring nations have fought three wars since independence, the last of which was in 1971 and resulted in East Pakistan becoming the separate nation of Bangladesh. India's nuclear weapons tests in 1998 emboldened Pakistan to conduct its own tests that same year. In November 2008, terrorists originating from Pakistan conducted a series of coordinated attacks in Mumbai, India's financial capital. Despite pressing problems such as significant overpopulation, environmental degradation, extensive poverty, and widespread corruption, economic growth following the launch of economic reforms in 1991 and a massive youthful population are driving India's emergence as a regional and global power.

Geography :: INDIA

Southern Asia, bordering the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal, between Burma and Pakistan

slightly more than one-third the size of the US

Area comparison map:

border countries (6): Bangladesh 4,142 km, Bhutan 659 km, Burma 1,468 km, China 2,659 km, Nepal 1,770 km, Pakistan 3,190 km

exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin

varies from tropical monsoon in south to temperate in north

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 8,586 m

coal (fourth-largest reserves in the world), iron ore, manganese, mica, bauxite, rare earth elements, titanium ore, chromite, natural gas, diamonds, petroleum, limestone, arable land

arable land 52.8%; permanent crops 4.2%; permanent pasture 3.5%

with the notable exception of the deserts in the northwest, including the Thar Desert, and the mountain fringe in the north, a very high population density exists throughout most of the country; the core of the population is in the north along the banks of the Ganges, with other river valleys and southern coastal areas also having large population concentrations

droughts; flash floods, as well as widespread and destructive flooding from monsoonal rains; severe thunderstorms; earthquakes

volcanism: Barren Island (354 m) in the Andaman Sea has been active in recent years

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; preservation and quality of forests; biodiversity loss

party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, 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

dominates South Asian subcontinent; near important Indian Ocean trade routes; Kanchenjunga, third tallest mountain in the world, lies on the border with Nepal

People and Society :: INDIA

1,281,935,911 (July 2017 est.)

Indo-Aryan 72%, Dravidian 25%, Mongoloid and other 3% (2000)

Hindi 41%, Bengali 8.1%, Telugu 7.2%, Marathi 7%, Tamil 5.9%, Urdu 5%, Gujarati 4.5%, Kannada 3.7%, Malayalam 3.2%, Oriya 3.2%, Punjabi 2.8%, Assamese 1.3%, Maithili 1.2%, other 5.9%

note: English enjoys the status of subsidiary official language but is the most important language for national, political, and commercial communication; Hindi is the most widely spoken language and primary tongue of 41% 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 (2001 est.)

Hindu 79.8%, Muslim 14.2%, Christian 2.3%, Sikh 1.7%, other and unspecified 2% (2011 est.)

0-14 years: 27.34% (male 186,087,665/female 164,398,204)

15-24 years: 17.9% (male 121,879,786/female 107,583,437)

25-54 years: 41.08% (male 271,744,709/female 254,834,569)

55-64 years: 7.45% (male 47,846,122/female 47,632,532)

65 years and over: 6.24% (male 37,837,801/female 42,091,086) (2017 est.)

population pyramid:

total dependency ratio: 52.2

youth dependency ratio: 43.6

elderly dependency ratio: 8.6

potential support ratio: 11.7 (2015 est.)

female: 28.6 years (2017 est.)

19 births/1,000 population (2017 est.)

7.3 deaths/1,000 population (2017 est.)

0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2017 est.)

with the notable exception of the deserts in the northwest, including the Thar Desert, and the mountain fringe in the north, a very high population density exists throughout most of the country; the core of the population is in the north along the banks of the Ganges, with other river valleys and southern coastal areas also having large population concentrations

urban population: 33.5% of total population (2017)

rate of urbanization: 2.28% annual rate of change (2015-20 est.)

NEW DELHI (capital) 25.703 million; Mumbai 21.043 million; Kolkata 11.766 million; Bangalore 10.087 million; Chennai 9.62 million; Hyderabad 8.944 million (2015)

at birth: 1.12 male(s)/female

0-14 years: 1.13 male(s)/female

15-24 years: 1.13 male(s)/female

25-54 years: 1.06 male(s)/female

55-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.9 male(s)/female

total population: 1.08 male(s)/female (2017 est.)

174 deaths/100,000 live births (2015 est.)

total: 39.1 deaths/1,000 live births

male: 38 deaths/1,000 live births

female: 40.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2017 est.)

total population: 68.8 years

female: 70.1 years (2017 est.)

2.43 children born/woman (2017 est.)

0.76 physicians/1,000 population (2016)

0.7 beds/1,000 population (2011)

urban: 97.1% of population

rural: 92.6% of population

total: 94.1% of population

urban: 2.9% of population

rural: 7.4% of population

total: 5.9% of population (2015 est.)

urban: 62.6% of population

rural: 28.5% of population

total: 39.6% of population

urban: 37.4% of population

rural: 71.5% of population

total: 60.4% of population (2015 est.)

degree of risk: very high

food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A and E, and typhoid fever

vectorborne diseases: dengue fever, Japanese encephalitis, and malaria

water contact disease: leptospirosis

animal contact disease: rabies (2016)

definition: age 15 and over can read and write

female: 60.6% (2015 est.)

female: 11.6% (2012 est.)

Government :: INDIA

conventional long form: Republic of India

conventional short form: India

local long form: Republic of India/Bharatiya Ganarajya

local short form: India/Bharat

etymology: the English name derives from the Indus River; the Indian name "Bharat" may derive from the "Bharatas" tribe mentioned in the Vedas of the second millennium B.C.; the name is also associated with Emperor Bharata, the legendary conqueror of all of India

federal parliamentary republic

geographic coordinates: 28 36 N, 77 12 E

time difference: UTC+5.5 (10.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

29 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, Odisha, Puducherry*, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, West Bengal

note: although its status is that of a union territory, the official name of Delhi is National Capital Territory of Delhi

15 August 1947 (from the UK)

Republic Day, 26 January (1950)

history: previous 1935 (preindependence); latest draft completed 4 November 1949, adopted 26 November 1949, effective 26 January 1950

amendments: proposed by either the Council of States or the House of the People; passage requires majority participation of the total membership in each house and at least two-thirds majority of voting members of each house, followed by assent of the president of India; proposed amendments to the constitutional amendment procedures also must be ratified by at least one-half of the India state legislatures before presidential assent; amended many times, last in 2016 (2017)

common law system based on the English model; separate personal law codes apply to Muslims, Christians, and Hindus; judicial review of legislative acts

accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; non-party state to the ICCt

citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of India

dual citizenship recognized: no

residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years

18 years of age; universal

chief of state: President Ram Nath KOVIND (since 25 July 2017); Vice President M. Venkaiah NAIDU (since 11 August 2017)

head of government: Prime Minister Narendra MODI (since 26 May 2014)

cabinet: Union Council of Ministers recommended by the prime minister, appointed by the president

elections/appointments: president indirectly elected by an electoral college consisting of elected members of both houses of Parliament and state legislatures for a 5-year term (no term limits); election last held on 17 July 2017 (next to be held in July 2022); vice president indirectly elected by an electoral college consisting of elected members of both houses of Parliament and state legislatures for a 5-year term (no term limits); election last held on 5 August 2017 (next to be held in August 2022); following legislative elections, the prime minister is elected by parliamentary members of the majority party

election results: Ram Nath KOVIND elected president; percent of electoral college vote - Ram Nath KOVIND (BJP) 65.7% Meira KUMAR (INC) 34.3%; Mohammad Hamid ANSARI reelected vice president (2012 election); electoral college vote - Mohammad Hamid ANSARI 490, Jaswant SINGH 238

description: bicameral Parliament or Sansad consists of the Council of States or Rajya Sabha (245 seats; 233 members indirectly elected by state and territorial assemblies by proportional representation vote, and 12 members appointed by the president; members serve 6-year terms) and the House of the People or Lok Sabha (545 seats; 543 members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote and 2 appointed by the president; members serve 5-year terms)

elections: House of the People - last held April-May 2014 in 9 phases; (next must be held by May 2019)

election results: House of the People - percent of vote by party - BJP 31.0%, INC 19.3%, AITC 3.8%, SP 3.4%, AIADMK 3.3%, CPI(M) 3.3%, TDP 2.6%, YSRC 2.5%, AAP 2.1%, SAD 1.8%, BJD 1.7%, SS 1.7%, NCP 1.6%, RJD 1.3%, TRS 1.3%, LJP 0.4%, other 15.9%, independent 3.0%; seats by party - BJP 282, INC 44, AIADMK 37, AITC 34, BJD 20, SS 18, TDP 16, TRS 11, CPI(M) 9, YSRC 9, LJP 6, NCP 6, SP 5, AAP 4, RJD 4, SAD 4, other 33, independent 3

highest court(s): Supreme Court (the chief justice and 25 associate justices)

judge selection and term of office: justices appointed by the president to serve until age 65

subordinate courts: High Courts; District Courts; Labour Court

note: in mid-2011, India's Cabinet approved the "National Mission for Justice Delivery and Legal Reform" to eliminate judicial corruption and reduce the backlog of cases

Aam Aadmi Party or AAP [Arvind KEJRIWAL]

All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam or AIADMK [Edappadi PALANISWAMY, Occhaathevar PANNEERSELVAM]

All India Trinamool Congress or AITC [Mamata BANERJEE]

Bahujan Samaj Party or BSP [MAYAWATI]

Bharatiya Janata Party or BJP [Amit SHAH]

Biju Janata Dal or BJD [Naveen PATNAIK]

Communist Party of India-Marxist or CPI(M) [Prakash KARAT]

Indian National Congress or INC [Rahul GANDHI]

Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) [Ram Vilas PASWAN]

Nationalist Congress Party or NCP [Sharad PAWAR]

Rashtriya Janata Dal or RJD [Lalu Prasad YADAV]

Samajwadi Party or SP [Akhilesh YADAV]

Shiromani Akali Dal or SAD [Parkash Singh BADAL]

Shiv Sena or SS [Uddhav THACKERAY]

Telegana Rashtra Samithi or TRS [K. Chandrashekar RAO]

Telugu Desam Party or TDP [Chandrababu NAIDU]

YSR Congress or YSRC [Jagan Mohan REDDY]

note: India has dozens of national and regional political parties

All Parties Hurriyat Conference in the Kashmir Valley (separatist group)

Bajrang Dal (militant religious organization)

Jamiat Ulema-e Hind [Mahmood MADANI] (religious organization)

Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh or RSS [Mohan BHAGWAT] (nationalist organization)

Vishwa Hindu Parishad [Pravin TOGADIA] (militant religious organization)

other: hundreds of social reform, anti-corruption, and environmental groups at state and local level; numerous religious or militant/chauvinistic organizations; various separatist groups seeking greater communal and/or regional autonomy

ADB, AfDB (nonregional member), Arctic Council (observer), ARF, ASEAN (dialogue partner), BIMSTEC, BIS, BRICS, C, CD, CERN (observer), CICA, CP, EAS, FAO, FATF, G-15, G-20, G-24, G-5, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LAS (observer), MIGA, MINURSO, MONUSCO, NAM, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, Pacific Alliance (observer), PCA, PIF (partner), SAARC, SACEP, SCO (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNISFA, UNITAR, UNMISS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

chief of mission: Ambassador Navtej Singh SARNA (since 18 January 2017)

chancery: 2107 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008; note - Consular Wing located at 2536 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008; telephone: [1](202) 939-7000

telephone: [1] (202) 939-7000

consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, New York, San Francisco

chief of mission: Ambassador Kenneth I. JUSTER (since 23 November 2017)

embassy: Shantipath, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi 110021

mailing address: use embassy street address

telephone: [91] (11) 2419-8000

consulate(s) general: Chennai (Madras), Hyderabad, Kolkata (Calcutta), Mumbai (Bombay)

three equal horizontal bands of saffron (subdued orange) (top), white, and green, with a blue chakra (24-spoked wheel) centered in the white band; saffron represents courage, sacrifice, and the spirit of renunciation; white signifies purity and truth; green stands for faith and fertility; the blue chakra symbolizes the wheel of life in movement and death in stagnation

note: similar to the flag of Niger, which has a small orange disk centered in the white band

the Lion Capital of Ashoka, which depicts four Asiatic lions standing back to back mounted on a circular abacus, is the official emblem; Bengal tiger; lotus flower; national colors: saffron, white, green

name: "Jana-Gana-Mana" (Thou Art the Ruler of the Minds of All People)

lyrics/music: Rabindranath TAGORE

note: adopted 1950; Rabindranath TAGORE, a Nobel laureate, also wrote Bangladesh's national anthem

Economy :: INDIA

India's diverse economy encompasses traditional village farming, modern agriculture, handicrafts, a wide range of modern industries, and a multitude of services. Slightly less than half of the workforce is in agriculture, but services are the major source of economic growth, accounting for nearly two-thirds of India's output but employing less than one-third of its labor force. India has capitalized on its large educated English-speaking population to become a major exporter of information technology services, business outsourcing services, and software workers. Nevertheless, per capita income remains below the world average.

India is developing into an open-market economy, yet traces of its past autarkic policies remain. Economic liberalization measures, including industrial deregulation, privatization of state-owned enterprises, and reduced controls on foreign trade and investment, began in the early 1990s and served to accelerate the country's growth, which averaged nearly 7% per year from 1997 to 2017. India's economic growth slowed in 2011 because of a decline in investment caused by high interest rates, rising inflation, and investor pessimism about the government's commitment to further economic reforms and about slow world growth. Rising macroeconomic imbalances in India and improving economic conditions in Western countries led investors to shift capital away from India, prompting a sharp depreciation of the rupee through 2016.

Growth rebounded in 2014 through 2016, exceeding 7% each year, but slowed in 2017. Investors' perceptions of India improved in early 2014, due to a reduction of the current account deficit and expectations of post-election economic reform, resulting in a surge of inbound capital flows and stabilization of the rupee. Since the election, the government has passed an important goods and services tax bill and raised foreign direct investment caps in some sectors, but most economic reforms have focused on administrative and governance changes largely because the ruling party remains a minority in India's upper house of Parliament, which must approve most bills. Despite a high growth rate compared to the rest of the world, India's government-owned banks faced mounting bad debt in 2015 and 2016, resulting in low credit growth and restrained economic growth.

The outlook for India's long-term growth is moderately positive due to a young population and corresponding low dependency ratio, healthy savings and investment rates, and increasing integration into the global economy. However, long-term challenges remain significant, including: India's discrimination against women and girls, an inefficient power generation and distribution system, ineffective enforcement of intellectual property rights, decades-long civil litigation dockets, inadequate transport and agricultural infrastructure, limited non-agricultural employment opportunities, high spending and poorly targeted subsidies, inadequate availability of quality basic and higher education, and accommodating rural-to-urban migration.

$9.447 trillion (2017 est.)

$8.852 trillion (2016 est.)

$8.265 trillion (2015 est.)

note: data are in 2017 dollars

$2.439 trillion (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2017 dollars

household consumption: 58.7%

government consumption: 11.6%

investment in fixed capital: 27.5%

investment in inventories: 4%

exports of goods and services: 18.4%

imports of goods and services: -20.2% (2017 est.)

services: 46.6% (2016 est.)

rice, wheat, oilseed, cotton, jute, tea, sugarcane, lentils, onions, potatoes; dairy products, sheep, goats, poultry; fish

textiles, chemicals, food processing, steel, transportation equipment, cement, mining, petroleum, machinery, software, pharmaceuticals

521.9 million (2017 est.)

services: 31% (FY 2014 est.)

highest 10%: 29.8% (2011 est.)

expenditures: $330.3 billion (2017 est.)

note: data cover central government debt, and exclude debt instruments issued (or owned) by government entities other than the treasury; the data include treasury debt held by foreign entities; the data exclude debt issued by subnational entities, as well as intra-governmental debt; intra-governmental debt consists of treasury borrowings from surpluses in the social funds, such as for retirement, medical care, and unemployment; debt instruments for the social funds are not sold at public auctions

6.25% (31 December 2017 est.)

7.75% (31 December 2016 est.)

note: this is the Indian central bank's policy rate - the repurchase rate

9.6% (31 December 2017 est.)

9.67% (31 December 2016 est.)

$429.3 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$294.4 billion (31 December 2016 est.)

$2.063 trillion (31 December 2017 est.)

$1.773 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)

$1.795 trillion (30 September 2017 est.)

$1.622 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)

$1.516 trillion (31 December 2015 est.)

$1.558 trillion (31 December 2014 est.)

$1.139 trillion (31 December 2013 est.)

$-33.68 billion (2017 est.)

$-15.23 billion (2016 est.)

$299.3 billion (2017 est.)

$268.6 billion (2016 est.)

petroleum products, precious stones, vehicles, machinery, iron and steel, chemicals, pharmaceutical products, cereals, apparel

US 16%, UAE 11.7%, Hong Kong 5.1% (2016)

$426.8 billion (2017 est.)

$376.1 billion (2016 est.)

crude oil, precious stones, machinery, chemicals, fertilizer, plastics, iron and steel

China 17%, US 5.8%, UAE 5.4%, Saudi Arabia 5.2%, Switzerland 4.2% (2016)

$407.2 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$359.7 billion (31 December 2016 est.)

$483.4 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$456.4 billion (31 December 2016 est.)

$367.5 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$318.5 billion (31 December 2016 est.)

$156.1 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$144.1 billion (31 December 2016 est.)

Indian rupees (INR) per US dollar -

Energy :: INDIA

population without electricity: 237,400,000

electrification - total population: 79%

electrification - urban areas: 98%

electrification - rural areas: 70% (2013)

1.289 trillion kWh (2015 est.)

1.048 trillion kWh (2015 est.)

5.15 billion kWh (2015 est.)

5.244 billion kWh (2015 est.)

308.8 million kW (30 November 2016 )

71.5% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)

1.6% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)

14.4% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)

14.6% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)

734,500 bbl/day (2017 est.)

3.789 million bbl/day (2016 est.)

4.621 billion bbl (2016 est.)

4.793 million bbl/day (2016 est.)

4.142 million bbl/day (2016 est.)

1.371 million bbl/day (2016 est.)

481,900 bbl/day (2016 est.)

31.24 billion cu m (2016 est.)

102.3 billion cu m (2016 est.)

270 million cu m (2015 est.)

18.67 billion cu m (2016 est.)

1.227 trillion cu m (1 January 2017 est.)

1.887 billion Mt (2016 est.)

Communications :: INDIA

total subscriptions: 24.404 million

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 2 (July 2016 est.)

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 88 (July 2016 est.)

general assessment: supported by recent deregulation and liberalization of telecommunications laws and policies, India has emerged as one of the fastest-growing telecom markets in the world; total telephone subscribership base exceeded 1 billion in 2015, an overall teledensity of roughly 80%, and subscribership is currently growing at roughly 5 million per month; urban teledensity now exceeds 100%, and rural teledensity has reached 50%

domestic: mobile cellular service introduced in 1994 and organized nationwide into four metropolitan areas and 19 telecom circles, each with multiple private service providers and one or more state-owned service providers; in recent years significant trunk capacity added in the form of fiber-optic cable and one of the world's largest domestic satellite systems, the Indian National Satellite system (INSAT), with 6 satellites supporting 33,000 very small aperture terminals (VSAT)

international: country code - 91; a number of major international submarine cable systems, including SEA-ME-WE-3 with landing sites at Cochin and Mumbai (Bombay), SEA-ME-WE-4 with a landing site at Chennai, Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe (FLAG) with a landing site at Mumbai (Bombay), South Africa - Far East (SAFE) with a landing site at Cochin, the i2i cable network linking to Singapore with landing sites at Mumbai (Bombay) and Chennai (Madras), and Tata Indicom linking Singapore and Chennai (Madras), provide a significant increase in the bandwidth available for both voice and data traffic; satellite earth stations - 8 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Inmarsat (Indian Ocean region); 9 gateway exchanges operating from Mumbai (Bombay), New Delhi, Kolkata (Calcutta), Chennai (Madras), Jalandhar, Kanpur, Gandhinagar, Hyderabad, and Ernakulam (2015)

Doordarshan, India's public TV network, operates about 20 national, regional, and local services; a large and increasing number of privately owned TV stations are distributed by cable and satellite service providers; in 2015, more than 230 million homes had access to cable and satellite TV offering more than 700 TV channels; government controls AM radio with All India Radio operating domestic and external networks; news broadcasts via radio are limited to the All India Radio Network; since 2000, privately owned FM stations have been permitted and their numbers have increased rapidly (2015)

percent of population: 29.5% (July 2016 est.)

Transportation :: INDIA

number of registered air carriers: 20

inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 485

annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 98,927,860

annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 1,833,847,614 mt-km (2015)

condensate/gas 9 km; gas 13,581 km; liquid petroleum gas 2,054 km; oil 8,943 km; oil/gas/water 20 km; refined products 11,069 km (2013)

broad gauge: 58,404 km 1.676-m gauge (23,654 electrified)

narrow gauge: 9,499 km 1.000-m gauge; 622 km 0.762-m gauge (2014)

note: includes 96,214 km of national highways and expressways, 147,800 km of state highways, and 4,455,010 km of other roads (2015)

14,500 km (5,200 km on major rivers and 485 km on canals suitable for mechanized vessels) (2012)

by type: bulk carrier 74, container ship 20, general cargo 571, oil tanker 126, other 883 (2017)

major seaport(s): Chennai, Jawaharal Nehru Port, Kandla, Kolkata (Calcutta), Mumbai (Bombay), Sikka, Vishakhapatnam

container port(s) (TEUs): Chennai (1,571,000), Jawaharal Nehru Port (4,492,000) (2015)

LNG terminal(s) (import): Dabhol, Dahej, Hazira

Military and Security :: INDIA

Army, Navy (includes naval air arm), Air Force, Coast Guard (2011)

16-18 years of age for voluntary military service (Army 17 1/2, Air Force 17, Navy 16 1/2); no conscription; women may join as officers, currently serve in combat roles as pilots, and will soon be allowed in all combat roles (2016)

Terrorism :: INDIA

aim(s): annex the state of Jammu and Kashmir to Pakistan

area(s) of operation: HM is an indigenous Kashmiri militant group that operates in Jammu and Kashmir

aim(s): establish Islamic rule in India and, ultimately, convert all non-Muslims to Islam; stated goal is to carry out terrorist attacks against Indians for perceived atrocities against Indian Muslims

area(s) of operation: formerly based in the western state of Maharashtra, India's third-largest and second-most populous state, and now probably operates mostly outside India

Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS):

aim(s): spread the ISIS caliphate by eliminating the Indian Government and, ultimately, unite Kashmir with Pakistan

area(s) of operation: maintains a recruitment presence in major cities (April 2018)

aim(s): overthrow the Indian Government and, ultimately, establish a pan-Islamic caliphate under a strict Salafi Muslim interpretation of Sharia

area(s) of operation: maintains an operational presence as al-Qa'ida in the Indian Subcontinent

al-Qa'ida in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS):

aim(s): establish an Islamic caliphate in the Indian subcontinent

area(s) of operation: targets primarily military and security personnel, especially in the states of Assam, Gujarat, and Jammu and Kashmir; present in large cities, including Delhi

Harakat ul-Jihad-i-Islami (HUJI):

aim(s): enhance its networks and operational capabilities in India

area(s) of operation: maintains an operational presence, especially in the south, including in Bangalore and Hubli

Harakat ul-Jihad-i-Islami/Bangladesh (HUJI-B):

aim(s): enhance its networks in India and, ultimately, install an Islamic state in Bangladesh

area(s) of operation: maintains a low-profile presence

Harakat ul-Mujahidin (HUM):

aim(s): enhance its networks and paramilitary training in India and, ultimately, annex Kashmir into Pakistan and establish an Islamic state in Kashmir

area(s) of operation: conducts attacks against Indian troops and civilians in Kashmir

aim(s): annex Jammu and Kashmir to Pakistan

area(s) of operation: operates primarily in Jammu and Kashmir State

aim(s): annex Jammu and Kashmir State to Pakistan and, ultimately, install Islamic rule throughout South Asia

area(s) of operation: operational throughout India, especially in the north in Jammu and Kashmir State, since at least 1993

note(s): continues to be one of the largest and most deadly of the anti-India-focused armed groups

Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE):

aim(s): enhance its networks in India and, ultimately, revive the movement to establish a Tamil homeland

area(s) of operation: maintains safe havens, transit routes, human trafficking, and an operational presence in an effort to revive the movement and conduct attacks (April 2018)

Transnational Issues :: INDIA

since China and India launched a security and foreign policy dialogue in 2005, consolidated discussions related to the dispute over most of their rugged, militarized boundary, regional nuclear proliferation, Indian claims that China transferred missiles to Pakistan, and other matters continue

Kashmir remains the site of the world's largest and most militarized territorial dispute with portions under the de facto administration of China (Aksai Chin), India (Jammu and Kashmir), and Pakistan (Azad Kashmir and Northern Areas)

India and Pakistan resumed bilateral dialogue in February 2011 after a two-year hiatus, have maintained the 2003 cease-fire in Kashmir, and continue to have disputes over water sharing of the Indus River and its tributaries

UN Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan has maintained a small group of peacekeepers since 1949; India does not recognize Pakistan's ceding historic Kashmir lands to China in 1964; to defuse tensions and prepare for discussions on a maritime boundary, India and Pakistan seek technical resolution of the disputed boundary in Sir Creek estuary at the mouth of the Rann of Kutch in the Arabian Sea; Pakistani maps continue to show its Junagadh claim in Indian Gujarat State; Prime Minister Singh's September 2011 visit to Bangladesh resulted in the signing of a Protocol to the 1974 Land Boundary Agreement between India and Bangladesh, which had called for the settlement of longstanding boundary disputes over undemarcated areas and the exchange of territorial enclaves, but which had never been implemented; Bangladesh referred its maritime boundary claims with Burma and India to the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea; Joint Border Committee with Nepal continues to examine contested boundary sections, including the 400 sq km dispute over the source of the Kalapani River; India maintains a strict border regime to keep out Maoist insurgents and control illegal cross-border activities from Nepal

refugees (country of origin): 110,098 (Tibet/China); 63,162 (Sri Lanka); 15,561 (Burma); 7,693 (Afghanistan) (2015)

IDPs: 806,000 (armed conflict and intercommunal violence) (2017)

world's largest producer of licit opium for the pharmaceutical trade, but an undetermined quantity of opium is diverted to illicit international drug markets; transit point for illicit narcotics produced in neighboring countries and throughout Southwest Asia; illicit producer of methaqualone; vulnerable to narcotics money laundering through the hawala system; licit ketamine and precursor production

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The Office of Public Affairs (OPA) is the single point of contact for all inquiries about the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). We read every letter, fax, or e-mail we receive, and we will convey your comments to CIA officials outside OPA as appropriate.

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Oil and crude oil makes up a fair bit of the American trades. Without Oil, the US trades and market cannot flourish. One third of the leading exports are capital goods, and another 10 percent is automobiles and vehicles.

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As is happening across the entire fashion sector in Brazil, the footwear industry is presenting a growth in production, driven especially by the domestic market. In this article, we will take a look at the footwear industry in Brazil.

Historical Overview

Brazilian footwear production originated in the 1820s in the Southern and Southeastern states of Brazil, with German and Italian immigrants coming to Brazil and bringing with them their culture of leather craftsmanship. But it was not until the late 1800s that a consumer market for shoes was really created, when the first tanneries and machinery manufacturing businesses started to appear, thus enabling the manufacturing process to become more industrialized.

The first shoe factory in Brazil was opened in the state of Rio Grande do Sul in 1888. The consumers demand for shoes from that state grew annually, eventually leading to the formation of what is currently one of the largest industrial clusters in the footwear industry in the world.

Between the 1920s and the 1960s, the footwear industry in Brazil stagnated its production. Despite this, in the 1960s, shoe sales were dramatically expanded by exports to overseas markets, with the first large-scale Brazilian export sales involving shipments to the United States. Brazilian domestic production during this decade was around 80 million pairs of shoes per year.

It was also after the 1960s that the region of Vale dos Sinos in the Rio Grande do Sul state started concentrating on the production of women shoes, while the region of Franca in the state of São Paulo started concentrating on the production of mens footwear. Both regions benefited from a large supply of raw leather.

Market size for footwear in Brazil

Brazil has, as of 2014, the third largest footwear industry in the world, trailing behind China and India. Even though its production was impacted by the Chinese industry and changes in the United Statesmarket, Brazil is still the most important footwear producer outside of Asia. It is responsible for 4,6% of the worlds production, which amounted to production of nearly 900 million pairs in 2013. For the sake of comparison, China produced 13 billion pairs and India produced 1,2 billion. Brazil's footwear industry solid base is maintained by:

Its world renowned reputation, especially relating to the high quality and relatively cheap leather

Price of Asian footwear is gradually rising

Expansion of Brazilian footwear market to new countries

In 2013, the entire Brazilian footwear industry accounted for BRL 26,8 billion, a growth of more than 10% when compared to 2012. Its national production is divided as follows:

Slippers and sandals - 56,5%

Synthetic fibres - 15,2%

Leather footwear - 12,6%

Sport shoes - 8,5%

Shoes made of other materials - 7,2%

Analyzing the Brazilian footwear production in 2013 by gender, women footwear accounted for 57,1% of the total production, whilst men footwear accounted for 21,8% and baby footwear for 21,1%.

The Brazilian footwear industry consists of more than 600 companies, responsible for directly employing over 350.000 people.

Main footwear producing areas

The largest footwear clusters are located in the following states:

Rio Grande do Sul

Santa Catarina

São Paulo

Minas Gerais

Ceará

The largest producer of shoes is in the Northeastern region of the country, where the production of slippers and sandals is concentrated. This region also accounts for 71% of Brazilian footwear intended for exports. Other key clusters of footwear production in Brazil are the region of Vale dos Sinos in the Rio Grande do Sul state and the region of Franca in the state of São Paulo.

Import and Export of footwear

Brazilian footwear is highly sought after worldwide, as a result of the low prices, high quality and unique design. Because of this, Brazilian footwear is exported to more than 150 countries, generating around USD 1,1 billion of sales in 2013, a growth of 8,5% in number of pairs when compared to 2012, despite not having a significant growth in revenue. The United States, Argentina and France are the top destinations for Brazilian footwear exports. Imports of footwear to Brazil accounted for USD 572 million and the main exporters of footwear to Brazil are Vietnam, Indonesia and Italy. Imports of Chinese footwear fell, as a result of Brazil's anti dumping measures.

Brazilian exports of footwear are aided by the Brazilian Footwear program. It is an initiative by the Brazilian Association of Footwear Industries (Abicalçados) in partnership with the Brazilian Agency for Promotion of Exports and Investments ( Apex-Brasil) created for exporting Brazilian footwear to new markets and promoting them. The Brazilian Footwear program was created in October 2000 and its main target markets are:

China

Colombia

France

Italy

Russia

South Africa

United Arab Emirates

United States of America

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As is happening across the entire fashion sector in Brazil, the footwear industry is presenting a growth in production, driven especially by the domestic market. In this article, we will take a look at the footwear industry in Brazil.

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Brazil: Livestock and Products Annual | USDA Foreign Agricultural Service

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Post forecasts both beef and pork production to continue to increase in 2017 to 9.5 million metric tons and 3.8 million metric tons, respectively. The increase in production is driven by higher exports, mostly to Asian markets, and a small reaction in domestic demand for animal protein supported by the recovery of the Brazilian economy.