India

INDIA is a large country in southern Asia. It is the second largest country in the world in population. Only China, its neighbor to the north, has more people. About one out of every six people in the world lives in India. The river valleys of northeastern India are among the most densely populated places in the world. India is one of the largest countries in the world in area.

India has great varieties and differences in both its land and its people. The land includes a desert, jungles, and one of the world's rainiest areas. India also has broad plains, mighty rivers, the tallest mountain system in the world, and tropical lowlands. The people of India belong to many different ethnic groups and religions. They speak 16 major languages and more than 1,000 minor languages and dialects. Some Indians have great wealth. But many others can spend only a few cents a day for the bare necessities of life. Some cannot afford shelter and must sleep in the streets. Some Indians are college graduates, but many others have never gone to school at all.

Many ways of life in India have stayed the same for hundreds of years. These ancient customs may be seen side by side with the latest advances of civilization and science. For example, many workers in modern Indian factories wear traditional costumes and carry supplies in woven baskets on their heads. Cows, which India's millions of Hindus consider sacred, often roam freely in modern business districts.

For hundreds of years, India meant mystery, wealth, and excitement to people of the Western world. Early European explorers, traders, and adventurers traveled to India for jewels, rugs, silks, spices, and other valuable articles. Christopher Columbus was looking for an easier route to India when he arrived in America.

India no longer ranks among the wealthy nations of the world. India has great natural resources, including farmland and ores, but most of them have not been sufficiently developed. As a result, the country has a low standard of living. Living conditions are overcrowded in many parts of India. The overcrowding gets worse every year because India's huge population keeps growing steadily.

India was a British colony from the late 1700's until it became an independent country in 1947. Since then, the Indian government has been trying to develop the country's resources and improve the standard of living. For example, the development of new varieties of seeds and the improved use of fertilizer and irrigation have helped the country's agricultural production to grow more rapidly than its population. As a result, there has been no major famine in India since independence and life expectancy has risen by about 25 years.