Facts about India
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Facts about India

India is the most amazing country in the World. Be it any facts, geographical facts, biodiversity facts, historical, military strength, religious facts etc, India is incredible in every aspects. Here’s a collections of some incredible facts from around India.

Geographical Facts

  • More than 100 million years ago, India was an island. You can still find sea shell fossils high in the Himalayan mountains.
  • The political boundaries of the nation stretch over 15, 106.70 km area. More details about area covered by the different parts of the national border of India can be gathered from the information provided below:
       Border with Bangladesh : 4,096.70 km
       Border with Bhutan     : 6,99 km
       Border with China (PRC)  : 3,488 km
       Border with Myanmar   : 1,643 km
       Border with Nepal       : 1,751 km
       Border with Pakistan     : 3,323 km
  • Indian coastline is 7516 km long.
  • Being a peninsular country, India is bordered mostly by water bodies of Arabian Sea towards its southwest, Bay of Bengal towards its southeast and Indian Ocean towards its south. However, the countries bordering the nation towards its north are Bhutan, China and Nepal, towards its east are Burma and Bangladesh, and towards west is Pakistan.
  • One Billion-Year-Old fossil prove life began in India: AFP Washington reports in Science Magazine that German Scientist Adolf Seilachar and Indian Scientist P.K. Bose have unearthed fossil in Churhat a town in Madhya Pradesh, India which is 1.1 billion years old and has rolled back the evolutionary clock by more than 500 million years.

Biodiversity Facts

Biodiversity found

  • The two biodiversity hotspots present in India are the Western Ghats and the East Himalayan region.
  • 423 species of mammals are present in India.
  • In the country there are 1331 species of birds.
  • 408 species of reptiles inhabit India.
  • India has 198 species of Amphibians.
  • 2546 species of fishes are found in India.
  • 11 percent of plant biodiversity in the world is found in India.
  • There are 15,000 species of flowering plants in India.
  • There are 50,000 varieties of rice alone found in the country, making it the biggest reservoir of rice on earth.

Endemic species

  • 44 species of mammals are endemic to India like the Nilgiri Tahr, Wild Ass, and the Lion tailed Macaque.
  • 55 species of birds are endemic to India found mostly in Western Ghats, eastern India along the mountain chains and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
  • There are around 187 endemic reptiles, and 110 endemic amphibian species in India.
  • Among plants 33 percent of the species are endemic to India, which means they are found nowhere else in the world.

Life under Threat

  • 929 species of animals in India are threatened today.
  • Four animals – the cheetah, Lesser Indian Rhinoceros, Pink-headed duck, and the Himalayan Mountain Quail – have become extinct in the last century.
  • Pink headed Duck became Extinct in the Last Century.
  • Only 1 percent of India’s vast coastline is protected. The rest is vanishing thanks to unplanned development work, fishery and projects like power plants and ports.

Demographic Facts

  • India is the 7th largest Country in the world.
  • Indus Valley Civilisation is the world’s oldest civilisation.
  • India, hence, is the world’s oldest and continuous civilisation.
  • At present, India has the 2nd largest population in the world.
  • India is expected to be the world’s most populous country by 2050. With 1.6 billion people, it will almost equal the U.S. and China’s population combined.
  • India is the world’s largest democracy, with 1.28 billion people.
  • More than a thousand different languages exist in india, making it the most linguistically diverse large country on the globe.
  • India has the world’s lowest meat consumption per person.
  • Indian housewives hold 11% of the World’s Gold. That is more than the reserves of the U.S., IMF, Switzerland and Germany put together.
  • 74% of young Indians prefer an arranged marriage over a free-choice one, a 2013 survey found.
  • Only about 1 in 100 marriages in India end in divorce, one of the lowest rates in the world.
  • India has more people using the internet than the entire population of the U.S.
  • India has the largest number of Post Offices in the world.

Historical Facts

  • The name ‘India’ is derived from the River Indus, the valleys around which were the home of the early settlers. The Aryan worshippers referred to the river Indus as the Sindhu.
  • The term Hindu implied a geographic, ethnic or cultural identifier for people living in Indian subcontinent around or beyond Sindhu (Indus) river. The Persian invaders pronounced ‘Sindhu’ as ‘Hindu’. The name ‘Hindustan’ combines Sindhu and Hindu and thus refers to the land of the Hindus.
  • India was one of the richest countries till the time of British rule in the early 17th Century. Christopher Columbus, attracted by India’s wealth, had come looking for a sea route to India when he discovered America by mistake.
  • Diamonds are thought to have been first recognized and mined in India, where significant alluvial deposits of the stone could be found many centuries ago along the rivers Penner, Krishna and Godavari. Diamonds have been known in India for at least 3,000 years but most likely 6,000 years.
  • The World’s first university was established in Takshila in 700BC. More than 10,500 students from all over the world studied more than 60 subjects.
  • The University of Nalanda built in the 4th century BC was one of the greatest achievements of ancient India in the field of education.
  • The art of Navigation was born in the river Sindh 6000 years ago. The very word Navigation is derived from the Sanskrit word NAVGATIH. The word navy is also derived from Sanskrit ‘Nou’.
  • The earliest reservoir and dam for irrigation was built in Saurashtra.
  • India is first democracy to elect a woman Prime Minister.
  • Chandragupta Maurya (340-290 B.C.), a leader in India who established the Mauryan Empire (321-185 B.C.), was guarded by a band of women on horseback, armed with bow & arrow.

Military Strength – Facts

General

  • India is the world’s largest importer of arms.
  • India is the 7th nuclear power in the world.
  • India is the 4th nation in the world to have developed /or developing a nuclear submarine.
  • India is the 4th nation in the world to develop or nearly to ICBM’s can travel up to 14,000km.
  • India is the 3rd nation in the world, to be able to develop land based and sea based cruise missiles.
  • India controls the highest battlefield in the world, the Siachen glacier, at 5000 metres above Mean Sea Level (MSL)
  • India is one of only 3 remaining countries in the world to have a horsed cavalry regiment.
  • Special Forces of India’ is referred to those units which are under the direct command of the Indian military and specifically organised, trained, and are equipped to conduct and support special operations.
       Para (Indian Special Forces) – Created in 1966 by the Indian Army.
       MARCOS – Created in 1987 by the Indian Navy.
       Garud Commando Force – Created in 2004 by the Indian Air Force.
  • The Para Commandos of Indian Armed Forces is considered to be one of the best in world. They are trained to be lethal killers and they excel in covert operations. Not much is known about them and they are among the most feared armed forces all around the world.
  • The only other Indian force to use the most advanced weapons is the Para Commandoes.

Indian Army

  • Indian Army is the largest volunteer force in the entire world. This simply means that Indian Army consists of the largest number of willing soldiers in the entire world. Indian Constitution actually has the option of military conscription but never needed to implement it.
  • Indian Army is the third largest army in the world. First and second positions are occupied by China and USA respectively.
  • The largest contributor to United Nations peace making operations is Indian Army.
  • When it comes to jungle and high altitude mountain warfare, Indian Army has no match in this world. Russia, UK, USA and several other countries send their armies to Gulmarg based High Altitude Warfare School for training. Similarly, the Counter-insurgency and Jungle Warfare School is also frequently visited by armed forces from those countries for training.
  • World’s highest battlefield is controlled by Indian Army. It is the Siachen Glacier located 5000 meters above mean sea level (MSL). 3000 soldiers are deployed in the area because it falls under LOC (Line of Control).
  • Indian Army has never been involved in a military coup and has never initiated first attack in any warfare.
  • In Indian Army, there is absolutely no provision for recruitment based on religion, caste or creed. Soldiers are always recruited based on their fitness and merits.
  • Indian military holds the credit of accepting the largest ever military surrender in world. In 1971, 93,000 Pakistani soldiers surrendered to Indian Army. It was the first conventional war in which Indian Army was directly engaged. The opponent was Pakistan. It was during this war that India liberated Bangladesh as a free country in 13 days and installed a democratic government, which is functional till date.
  • The Bailey Bridge – world’s highest bridge is actually built by Indian Army. It is located between the Suru and Dras rivers in Ladakh Valley in Himalayan Mountains. The bridge was built back in 1982.
  • Indian military’s MES or Military Engineering Services is one of the biggest construction agencies in entire India.
  • The highest military honor in India is the Param Veer Chakra. 21 Indian soldiers have received Param Veer Chakra till date among which 14 received the award posthumously.
  • There are 9 Army Bases and 53 Cantonments of Indian Army throughout India.

Indian Navy

  • The Indian Navy is among the top ten naval forces of the world.
  • The Ezhimala Naval Academy in Kerala is the largest naval academy in Asia.
  • MARCOS or Marine Commandos, nicknamed magarmach, are the special operations (very secretive) unit of the Indian Navy.
  • The MARCOS are given rigourous training that they can undertake operation on any terrain. They face a 90% drop-out rate during training and recruitment.
  • There are only two naval aerobatic teams in the world and one of them is Indian navy. It is known as Saagar Pawan .
  • The Indian Navy has successfully completed an expedition to the North Pole and the South Pole.
  • Indian Navy was the first navy to send a submariner on an expedition to Mt. Everest!
  • Indian Navy has a specially trained commando force known as MACROS. MACROS is one of the very few units in this world capable of jumping into water and jumping out of aircrafts with complete combat load. They also use the most advanced weapons in entire Indian Armed Forces.
  • The only navy to operate more than one (actually two) completely functional aircraft carriers in waters surrounding the Indian Subcontinent is India.
  • The only country in entire world to be operating submarine launched supersonic cruise missiles is India.

Indian Air Force

  • Indian Air Force (IAF) is one of the strongest air forces in world with 170,000 active personnel, 1,130 active and in-service combat aircrafts, 158 trainer aircrafts, 133 transport aircrafts,156 transport helicopters, 33 attack helicopters, 200 UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) and 155 utility helicopters. Apart from that IAF has 1,700 active and in-service not-combat aircrafts. Sukhoi Su-30MKI is the most advanced of all fighter planes and these are to be upgraded to Super Sukhoi (5th generation fighters).
  • Indian Air Force is the 4th largest air force in world , after USA, Russia and China.
  • The IAF destroyed more than 29 Pakistani tanks, 40 APCs and a railway train during the Battle of Longewala in the 1971 Indo-Pak War besides a number of critical installations. By the time Pakistani forces surrendered, the IAF claimed that 94 PAF aircraft, including 54 F-86 Sabres had been shot down.
  • The Air Force has over 60 air bases spread all over India.
  • India is building the 5th generation Sukhoi/HAL FGFA in collaboration with Russia.
  • At 22,000 ft (or 6,706 m), Siachen Glacier AFS is the highest Air Force Station of the IAF.
  • The IAF created a world record by performing the highest landing of a C-130J at the Daulat Beg Oldi airstrip in Ladakh at the height of 16614 feet (5065 meters).
  • The Tejas is the second supersonic Light Combat Aircraft developed by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).
  • The IAF is the only air force that operates C-17 Globemaster III, C-130J Super Hercules, and Il-76 – the three largest transport aircrafts.

India Pre-Independence (1947)

  • Indian Army was born in 1776. It was East India Company Government in Kolkata that formed the Indian Army.
  • The Battle of Saragarhi is yet another example of valor of Indian Army. Fought in 1897 on 12th of September, it was a battle fought between 21 Sikh soldiers against 10,000 Afghan soldiers. Afghans lost 180 soldiers while all 21 Sikhs died on battlefield. It is considered by some military historians as one of history’s great last-stands.
  • Indian Royal Army was the largest volunteering army by end of WWII with 2.5 million volunteers serving in naval, air force and infantry regiments posted in Europe, Asia and Africa. Of the total volunteers, 36,000 lost their lives, 34,354 were wounded and 67,340 were captured as prisoners.
  • “The President’s Bodyguards” is Indian Army’s oldest armored regiment. It was formed back in 1776.
  • The oldest parliamentary force of Indian Armed Forces is that Assam Rifles. Assam Rifles was formed in 1835.
  • At the age of 19, Royal Indian Army’s Sepoy Kamal Ram received the Victoria Cross for valor after WWII, making him the youngest Indian to ever receive that honor.

India Post-Independence

  • One of the first wars that Free India fought was known as Operation Polo. It was actually a battle fought for maintaining the integrity of Indian Union and avoid its breakup. Hyderabad, one of the biggest kingdoms in India actually refused to become a part of Indian Union and demanded that it be recognized as a separate nation. It was fought in 1948 in which Indian Armed Forces annexed the state of Hyderabad and overthrew the Nizam.
  • Operation Polo, which was actually known as “Police Action” was fought between 3500 Indian Armed Forces on one side and 22,000 Hyderabad State Forces and 200,000 irregular forces known as Razakars on the other side. The operation was over in 5 days with Indian Army taking a casualty of 32 soldiers and 97 wonded. On the Nizam’s side 807 Hyderabad State Forces soldiers were killed, 1647 were taken as POWs and 1373 Razakars were killed with 1911 Razakars captured.
  • Post Independence, Goa was still under the control of Portuguese till 1961. The locals did not want the Portuguese rule and were resiting them. After several diplomatic attempts of sending back Portuguese failed, Indian Army annexed Goa, outnumbering Portuguese force in a ratio 10:1.
  • The only war lost by Indian Army was in 1962 when India fought China. The loss was not a result of negligence on part of the Indian Army. It was rather the defense minister and PM who made mistakes in an attempt to micromanage the war using political routes. Complete freedom of operational control was not given to Indian Army and they were even denied of air support. A top ranking Chinese general eventually admitted that if there was anything that the Indian Army did not lack then it was determination and courage.
  • The famous Bollywood movie ‘Border’ was based on the Battle of Longewala. The battle was fought between India and Pakistan in which 120 Indian soldiers were up against 2000 Pakistani soldiers. Indians had only one recoilless jeep-mounted M40 rifle while Pakistanis came with one mobile infantry and 45 tanks. Indian soldiers still managed to hold their ground till morning when Indian Air Force came in for aid completely destroyed the Pakistani forces.

Weapons & Technology

  • India’s most famous missile series named AGNI had its fair share of ridicule after the first two tests of AGNI-I failed. Countries like Pakistan, USA and UK were the top countries to make fun of AGNI.
  • Today AGNI is not only a feared missile because of its accurate targeting but also AGNI-V has actually put India in the elite club consisting of Russia, China, USA and France. AGNI-V is a nuclear-capable Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile and has been designed and developed completely in India.
  • With AGNI-VI (another Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile), which is currently under development, Indian Armed Forces will have the power of hitting almost anywhere in the world (except for small parts of North America and South America) sitting right in India. AGNI-VI will have a range of 10,000 kilometers.
  • Another indigenous nuclear-capable ballistic missile series is the Prithvi series. Capable of hitting within 50m of target coordinates, Prithvi is highly devastating even when fired with smaller payloads. Today AGNI and Prithvi are among world’s most accurate missile systems.
  • And then Indian Army has another missile system known as NIRBHAYA. Unique in its design, this low-range sub-sonic cruise missile is all about defying anti-missile systems. Once the missile blasts off, it takes the shape of a plane with well-defined wings and tail fins.
  • NIRBHAYA can be maneuvered at tree-top level, making it completely undetectable to radars and once it is close to its target, it hovers above it and strikes at will from any possible direction. Because of its random striking procedure, it is safe against anti-missile systems. NIRBHAYA is even capable of carrying nuclear warhead and it has been developed for Army, Air Force and Navy.
  • Together with Russia, India is developing the BrahMos-2 missile. BrahMos (Brah for Brahmaputra and Mos for Moscow) is world’s fastest missile capable of traveling at a speed of Mach 7. BrahMos-1 on the other hand is already available and has 13 variants. BrahMos-1 is available for Army, Air Force and Navy.
  • Arjun and Arjun MK II tanks indigenously developed in India are among the most advanced tanks in the world with highly accurate targeting of stationary and moving targets. They are capable of operating during day and night and can travel cross country at a speed of 40kmph and can achieve the maximum speed of 47kmph.
  • Futuristic Main Battle Tank (FMBT) is currently in a conceptual and design phase with DRDO (Defence Research and Development Organization) conducting a feasibility study of implementing Weapons Management System and Digital Cockpit of fighter aircraft. The tank is envisioned to be a lightweight fighting machine with a weight of less than 50 tons and fully automatic gunner/loader roles. This will reduce the conventional 4-member crew of Arjun tanks to 2-member crew with only Driver and Commander onboard.
  • Old communication system of Indian Air Force was replaced by Afnet in 2010. Afnet was developed by IAF in collaboration with BSNL (Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited) and HCL Infosystems Ltd. at a cost of 1,077 crores. It is a state-of-the-art reliable and fully secured network and gigabyte digital information grid.
  • Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) is known for manufacturing HF-24 Marut which is India’s first indigenous fighter bomber. HAL is the largest aerospace company in entire Asia.
  • India has indigenously developed INS Arihant – a nuclear powered ballistic missile submarine. INS Arihant is capable of shooting nuclear warhead fitted missiles from a depth of 0.5 km under water. With INS Arihant, India became the 6th country in the world with the ability to design, build and operate its very own nuclear submarine.
  • It is being said that India is currently developing Surya series of missiles that are based on PSLV (Polar Space Launch Vehicle) model developed by ISRO (Indian Space Research Organization). Surya I is said to have a range of 10,000 kilometers and Surya II is said to have a range of 20,000 kilometers.
  • The Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM), also called Mangalyaan, is a space probe orbiting Mars since 24 September 2014. It was launched on 5 November 2013 by the ISRO. It is India’s first interplanetary mission and ISRO has become the fourth space agency to reach Mars, after the Soviet space program, NASA, and the European Space Agency. It is the first Asian nation to reach Mars orbit, and the first nation in the world to do so in its first attempt.
  • ISRO’s PSLV XL rocket launched 104 satellites into orbit on 15th February 2017. Its a world record for highest number of satellites sent in single mission overtaking Russia’s feat of launching 37 satellites.

Great Rescue Operations

  • July–August 1971 – 18 million people migrated from Bangladesh (then known as East Pakistan) to India to escape the military forces of Pakistan (then known as West Pakistan). This was the largest and bloodiest exodus in human history, with 4 million dead.
  • 13 August to 11 October 1990 – During the 1990 airlift of Indians from Kuwait Air India entered the Guinness Book of World Records for the most people evacuated by a civil airliner. Over 170,000 people were evacuated from Amman to Mumbai– a distance of 4,117 km- via 488 flights operated by Indian Airlines. The operation was carried out during the Persian Gulf War to evacuate Indian expatriates from Kuwait and Iraq.
  • June 2013 – Nearly 1,000,000 people evacuated in 12 days from Uttarakhand, India due to a flash flood and landslide. This operation was completed by the Indian Air Force, ITBP, NDRF, and local authorities. Helicopters were widely used because road networks were severely damaged.
  • October 2013 – Nearly 850,000 people were evacuated in 3 days from the coastal areas of Odisha (more than 750,000) and Andhra Pradesh (nearly 90,000) in the face of Cyclone Phailin. This operation was completed by the Indian Air Force, ITBP, NDRF, and local authorities
  • April 2015 – Operation Maitri was carried out by India to evacuate stranded Indian citizens and foreigners from Nepal during the Nepal earthquake of magnitude 8.8.
  • April 2015 – Operation Raahat was carried out by India to evacuate stranded Indian citizens from Yemen. A total of 4640 Indian citizens and 960 foreign nationals were rescued.

Defense co-operation with other countries

  • 1) QATAR
       India signed defense co-operation and security and law enforcement agreements with Qatar in 2008.
       These agreements are significant and also because it gives the indian navy access to operate in the region to ensure security of sea lanes.
  • 2) OMAN
       Oman is the first gulf nation to have formalized defense relationship with India, oman has signed a defense agreements with India in 2008.
       Indian navy has berthing rights in Oman and has been utilizing oman’s ports bases for conducting anti-piracy operation in the Gulf of Aden.
  • 3) Mozambique
       Indian Navy took charge of Mozambique’s sea security during African union summit there in 2003 and during World economic Forum Summit.
  • 4) Madagascar
       India has made a key monitoring station in nothern Madagascar to keep an eye on ship movements in India ocean.
       It is equipment with radars and surveillance gear to intercept maritime communication as India navy’s strategy to protect the country’s sea lanes of commerce.
  • 5) Seychelles
       India helps Seychelles by playing an important role in its fight against piracy.
       India has supported Seychelles monetarily and equipment such as Dornier DO 228s and Chetak helicopter for meeting its defense needs.
  • 6) Vietnam
       Both nations maintain a strong military relationship and Vietnam has invited india for its naval presence in the south China sea through access to the Cam Ranh Bay naval and air base.
  • 7) Maldives
       Maldives is under india’s security grid . Indian navy monitors nation’s exclusive economic zones as well as ward off piracy threats in the waters.
  • 8) Bhutan
       Indian army has a base in Bhutanese town of Paro in the direction of the border with Chinese controlled Tibet.
  • 9) Nepal
       India has maintained a long tie with its Himlayan neighbor Nepal .
       India claims any attack on Nepal will be considered as an attack on India.
  • 10)Tajikistan
       Farkhor Air base is a military air base located near the town of Farkhor in Tajikistan operated by Indian air force.
       Farkhor is India’s first and only air base outside its territory.

Economy – Facts

  • Today, India is the world’s third largest economy.
  • India is the world’s largest producer of dried beans, such as kidney beans and chickpeas. It also leads the world in banana exports; Brazil is second.
  • India is the world’s largest tea producer, and tea (chai) is its most popular beverage.
  • India is the largest milk producer in the world.
  • India is among the top five producers of sugar, cotton, coffee, spices, rubber, silk, and fish.
  • India was the first country in the world to produce steel
  • 70% of all the world’s spices come from India.
  • India is the largest producer of films in the world and second oldest film industry in the world which originated around about 103 years ago. The term ‘Bollywood’ is used only for the hindi-language film industry based in Mumbai, not whole of Indian cinema. Indian film industry is Multi-Lingual.
  • The Bombay stock exchange lists more than 6,600 companies only after NYSE.
  • The world’s largest road network is in India—over 1.9 million miles of roads cover the country.
  • India exports software to 90 countries.

Religion & Spirtual – Facts

  • The World’s First Granite Temple is the Brihadeswara Temple at Tanjavur, Tamil Nadu. The shikhara of the temple is made from a single 80-tonne piece of granite. This magnificent temple was built in just five years, (between 1004 AD and 1009 AD) during the reign of Rajaraja Chola.
  • The Vishnu Temple in the city of Tirupathi built in the 10th century, is the world’s largest religious pilgrimage destination. Larger than either Rome or Mecca, an average of 30,000 visitors donate $6 million (US) to the temple everyday.
  • The Tirupati Balaji temple and the Kashi Vishwanath Temple both, receive more visitors than the Vatican City and Mecca combined.
  • Jainism and Buddhism were founded in India in 600 B.C. and 500 B.C. respectively.
  • Sikhism originated in the Holy city of Amritsar in Punjab. Famous for housing the Golden Temple, the city was founded in 1577.
  • Judaism arrived in the city of Cochin, Kerala, in 562 BCE, and that more Jews came as exiles from Israel in the year 70 CE. There is no recorded instances of anti-Semitism from the local populace ever since.
  • Christianity was introduced to India by Thomas the Apostle, who visited Muziris in Kerala in AD 52.
  • The oldest European church and synagogue in India are in the city of Cochin. They were built in 1503 and 1568 respectively.
  • Islam is India’s and the world’s second largest religion.
  • There are 300,000 active mosques in India, more than in any other country, including the Muslim world.
  • India provides safety for more than 300,000 refugees originally from Sri Lanka, Tibet, Bhutan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh, who escaped to flee religious and political persecution.
  • His Holiness, the Dalai Lama, the exiled spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhists, runs his government in exile from Dharmashala in northern India.
  • Martial Arts were first created in India, and later spread to Asia by Buddhist missionaries.
  • Varanasi, also known as Benaras, was called “the Ancient City” when Lord Buddha visited it in 500 B.C., and is the oldest, continuously inhabited city in the world today.
  • The residents of some Indian villages rely solely on Sanskrit to communicate with each other. These include the villages of Mathur in Karnataka, Jhiri in Madhya Pradesh and Khada in Rajasthan.
  • Every 12 years, a religious gathering called the Kumbh Mela occurs in India. It is the world’s largest gathering of people. The gathering is so large that the Kumbh Mela is visible from the space.
  • To avoid polluting the elements (fire, earth, water, air, followers of Zoroastrianism in India don’t bury their dead, but instead leave bodies in buildings called “Towers of Silence” for the vultures to pick clean. After the bones dry, they are swept into a central well.
  • India has the largest amount of vegetarians in the world.
  • Pizza Hut had to open their first pure vegetarian restaurant in the country and KFC had to introduce a “vegetarian” menu for India.
  • India gave the world Yoga, that has existed for more than 5,000 years.

Amazing – Facts

  • Two million people of Indian origin live in the U.S. Indian-born Americans are among the most affluent and best educated of the recent immigrant groups in the U.S.
  • The largest school in terms of pupils is the City Montessori School in Lucknow, India, which had a record enrolment of 39,437 pupils on 9 August 2010 for the 2010-2011 academic year. The current student strength is over 50,000 pupils.
  • India has the second largest pool of Scientist and Engineers in the World.
  • India has the largest English speaking population in the world.
  • More than 54 crore people voted in the 2014 General Election – more people than the population of USA, UK, Australia and Japan combined.
  • At an estimate, 25% of the total workforce of the world’s population will be from India in the next year or so.
  • India grows 1.2 million tons of mangoes every year. India grows forty percent of the world’s supply and consumes almost as much.
  • India has the world’s largest film industry with one thousand films released per year. That’s twice the output of Hollywood.
  • The Baily Bridge is the highest bridge in the world. It is located in the Ladakh valley between the Dras and Suru rivers in the Himalayan mountains. It was built by the Indian Army in August 1982.
  • One of the largest employer in the world is the Indian Railways , employing over a million people
  • Viswanathan Anand is the first player in chess history to have won the World Championship in three different formats: knockout, tournament, and match.
  • The world’s highest cricket ground is in Chail, Himachal Pradesh. Built in 1893 after leveling a hilltop, this cricket pitch is 2444 meters above sea level
  • The India-Pakistan World Cup semi-final match in Mohali drew 150 million viewers worldwide.
  • The richest man in India, Mukesh Ambani, built a home valued at US$1 billion. It’s a 27-story building with 3 helipads, a 6-floor car park, a staff of 600, a 4-storey hanging garden and a cinema.

Interesting – Facts

  • According to the Guinness Book of World Records, India ranks third behind the USA and the UK in the number of records claimed each year.
  • An Indian man claims he hasn’t eaten or drunk for 70 years. After many tests, doctors still don’t know how it’s possible.
  • India has more mobile phones than toilets.
  • Sex toys are illegal in India.
  • The people of North Sentinel Island, India, are among the last people to remain virtually untouched by modern civilization.
  • There’s an experimental township in India founded in 1968 and called Auroville, where citizens are from all over the world and there’s no money or religion.
  • The village of Shani Shingnapur, India, had no doors, locks or crime for over 400 years until 2010.
  • From July to September 2001, heavy downpours of red-coloured rain fell sporadically on the state of Kerala, India.
  • The world’s biggest family lives together in India. Ziona Chana from Mizoram has 39 wives, 94 children, and 33 grandchildren, who live together as one big happy family in the same house!
  • There where no plastic bags in India before 1985.
  • The only country in the world that has a Bill of Rights for Cows is India.
  • The longest station name on the Indian Railways is Venkatanarasimharajuvariapeta.
  • Number of births in India every year is more than the total population of Australia, and many other nations.
  • In 2004, 200 women took law in their own hands and came to the court armed with vegetable knives and chilli powder and murdered on the court floor a serial rapist – Akku Yadav. Then every woman claimed responsibility for the murder.
  • In a village called Shani Shingnapur in Maharashtra, people have been living in houses with no doors for generations. This is because they believe that whoever steals anything from this place will incur the wrath of Shani God and will have to pay for his/her sins very dearly. There is no police station in this village either.
  • Magnetic Hill is a gravity hill located near Leh in Ladakh, India. The hill is alleged to have magnetic properties strong enough to pull cars uphill and force passing aircraft to increase their altitude in order to escape magnetic interference.
  • Karmanasa River in India is considered to be a cursed river and it is believed that touching its water would ruin one’s plans. There’s hardly any development along this river. People around this river just eat dry fruits because cooking food would require water!
  • There’s a village in India that produces most bouncers and bodyguards of New Delhi’s nightclubs.
  • The Khasi people in Meghalaya, India, grow living bridges with tree roots.

Biggest, Highest and Largest in India


Biggest Cave temple Ellora
Biggest Hotel Oberai-Sheraton (Mumbai)
Biggest functioning- Hindu Temple “Ranganathaswamy Temple”, Srirangam. 631,000 square metres (6,790,000 sq ft) with a perimeter of 4 km (10,710 ft).
Angkor Wat is bigger but non-functioning.
Biggest Mosque Jama Masjid at Delhi
Biggest Stadium Yuva Bharti (Salt Lake) Stadium, Kolkata
Deepest River Valley Bhagirathi & Alaknanda
Densest Populated State West Bengal
Fastest Train Shatabadi Express running between New Delhi and Bhopal
Highest Airport Leh (Laddakh)
Highest Award Bharat Ratna
Highest Battle Field Siachin Glacier
Highest Dam Tehri Dam ( 260 meters , 850 ft )
Highest Gallantry Award Param Vir Chakra
Highest Gateway Buland Darwaza at Fatehpur Sikri (53.6 meters high)
Highest Lake Devtal Lake, Gadhwal (Uttarakhand)
Highest Peak Karkoram-2 of K-2(8,611 meters) Highest Peak in the world is Mount Everest which is in Nepal
Highest Railway Station Ghum (West Bengal)
Highest rainfall Cherrapunhi (426 inches per annum)
Highest Road Road at Khardungla,(in Leh-Manali Sector)
Highest Tower Kutab Minar at Delhi (88.4 meters high)
Highest Watefall Nohkalikai Falls (335 meters, 1100 ft high) in Shora
Largest Animal Fair Sonepur (Bihar)
Largest Auditorium Sri Shanmukhanand Hall (Mumbai)
Largest Cave Amarnath (J&K)
Largest Cave Temple Kailash Temple, Ellora (Maharastra)
Largest Church Saint Cathedral (Goa)
Largest Delta Sunderbans Delta
Largest Desert Thar (Rajasthan)
Largest District Kutch district
Largest Dome Gol Gumbaz at Bijapur
Largest Fresh Water Lake Kolleru Lake (Andhra Pradesh)
Largest Gurudwara Golden Temple, Amritsar
Largest Lake Wular Lake, Kashmir
Largest Lake (Saline Water) Chilka Lake, Orrisa
Largest Man-Made Lake Govind Vallabh Pant Sagar (Rihand Dam)
Largest Museum Indian Museum at Kolkata
Largest Planetarium Birla Planetarium (Kolkata)
Largest Populated City Mumbai
Largest Port Mumbai
Largest Public Sector Bank State Bank of India
Largest River Island Majuli (Brahmaputra River, Asom)
Largest River without Delta Narmada and Tapti
Largest State (Area) Rajasthan
Largest State (Population) Uttar Pradesh
Largest State(Area) Rajasthan
Largest State(Population) Uttar Pradesh
Largest Zoo Zoological Garden at Alipur (Kolkata)
Longest Beach Marina Beach, Chennai
Longest Canal Indira Gandhi Canal or Rajasthan Canal (Rajasthan)
Longest Cantilever Span bridge Howrah Bridge
Longest Dam Hirakud Dam (Orrisa)
Longest Electric Railway Line From Delhi to Kolkata via Patna
Longest Highway NH-44 (NH-7) which turns from Varanasi to Kanyakumari
Longest Railway Platform Kharagpur (West Bengal) 833 meters in Length. It is also the longest railway station in world
Longest Railway Route From Assam to Kanyakumari
Longest River Ganga (2640 km long)
Longest River Bridge Mahatma Gandhi Setu, Patna
Longest River in India The Ganges
Longest Road Grand Trunk Road
Longest Tributary river of India Yamuna
Longest Tunnel Jawahar tunnel (Jammu & Kashmir)
Oldest Church St. Thomas Church at Palayar, Trichur (Kerala)
Sambhar lake Largest inland salt lake
Smallest State (Area) Goa
Smallest State (Population) Sikkim
State wise largest area under forest Madhya Pradesh
State with longest coastline Gujarat
State with longest coastline of South India Andhra Pradesh
Tallest Statue Veera Abhaya Anjaneya Hanuman Swami, Vijayawada. Height 41m (135 ft)
World’s Biggest Monolithic Statue Statue of Gomateshwar, Karnataka (17 meters high)

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