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Basic of India
Location of the sub-continent
- Mainland of the Indian subcontinent comprising India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan extends between 8°4’N and 37°6’N latitudes and between 68°7°E and 97°25°E longitudes.
- The Tropic of Cancer (23½°N) passes through the middle of India.
- Size and Extent of Subcontinent
- Total area of the Indian subcontinent is 44.9 lakh sq. km i.e.
- India – 32, 87,263 sq.km
- Pakistan – 7, 96,095 sq. km
- Bangladesh – 1, 48, 393 sq.km
- Nepal 1, 47, 181 sq.km
- Bhutan – 46, 500 sq.km
- Sri Lanka - 65,610 sq.km
- North to south this subcontinent stretches over 3,200 km and from east to west it is 2,933 km. 82°30’E longitude also known as “standard Meridian of India” helps in calculating the Indian Standard Time (IST).
Position and Extent of India
- It is located on one of the peninsulas of Southern Asia. The country extends from Kashmir in north to Kanyakumari in the south.
- The Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal are situated on western and eastern side of peninsular India respectively
- The latitudinal extent of the country is from 8°4’ north to 37°6’ north
- The Tropic of Cancer (23½N) which passes through the middle of the country measures from 68°7’ to 97°25’E.
- The location of the country is in the northern and the eastern hemispheres
- The importance of location of India is that it is located on the world’s major sea routes.
Size of India
- India is the seventh largest country in the world
- Total area is about 3.28 million sq.km
- The area of India is nearly equal to the area of the continent of Europe excluding Russia.
- India is eight times as large as Japan.
- India ranks as the second largest country in terms of population after china.
- India contains about one sixth of the total population of the world
Important Points
- Easternmost longitude of India?
Ans. 97°25’ E.
- Western most longitude of India?
Ans. 68°7’ E.
- Northern most latitude of India?
Ans. 37°4’ N.
- Southernmost latitude of India?
Ans. 8°4’ 4.
- Southern most point of India?
Ans. Indira Point.
- The southernmost tip of main land of India?
Ans. Kanyakumari
- The area wise largest state of India?
Ans. Rajasthan.
- Area wise smallest state of India?
Ans. Goa. 9.
- Length of Indian coastline?
Ans. 7516 Km.
- Percent of world’s land area is with India?
Ans. 2.4%.
- The water body that separate Sri Lanka from India?
Ans. Palk Strait.
- Two states of India that shares international boundaries.
Ans. Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir.
- India is located in hemisphere?
Ans. Northern Hemisphere.
- The group of islands lying in the Arabian Sea.
Ans. Lakshadweep Island.
- Uttar Pradesh border maximum number of states: - 8
(Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Rajasthan, MP, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Bihar)
- Tropic of Cancer passes through 8 (Eight) states:-
Gujarat, Rajasthan, MP, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Tripura and Mizoram.
- India standard Meridian (82° 30’ E meridian) passes through:-
UP, MP, Chhattisgarh, Orissa and Andhra Pradesh.
States with international boundaries
Border with | States |
Pakistan | Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan and Gujrat |
China | Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh |
Nepal | Bihar, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Sikkim and West Bengal |
Bangladesh | West Bengal, Mizoram, Meghalaya, Tripura and Assam |
Bhutan | West Bengal, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh and Assam |
Myanmar | Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur and Mizoram |
Afghanistan | Jammu and Kashmir (Pakistan-Occupied Area). |
Important Straits
S.no | Name of the Straits | Joins of Strait
| Point of Meeting |
1 | Malacca Strait | The Andaman Sea & South China Sea | Indonesia – Malaysia |
2 | Palk Strait | Palk Bay & Bay of Bengal | India-Sri Lanka |
3 | Sunda Strait | The Java Sea & Indian Ocean | Indonesia |
4 | Yucatan Strait | The Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea | Mexico-Cuba |
5 | Mesina Strait | Mediterranean Sea | Italy-Sicily |
6 | Otranto Strait | The Adriatic Sea & Ionian Sea | Italy-Albania |
7 | Bab-el-Mandeb Strait | Red Sea & Gulf of Aden | Yemen-Djibouti |
8. | Cook Strait | South Pacific Ocean | New Zealand (N & S islands) |
9 | Mozambique Strait | Indian Ocean | Mozambique – Malagasy |
10 | North Channel | The Irish Sea & Atlantic Ocean | Ireland-England |
11 | Taurus Strait | Arafura Sea & Gulf of Papua | Papua New Guinea – Australia |
12 | Bass strait | The Tasman Sea & South Sea | Australia |
13 | Bering Strait | The Bering Sea & Chukchi Sea | Alaska-Russia |
14 | Bonne-Fazio Strait | Mediterranean Sea | Corsica-Sardinia |
15 | Bosporus Strait | The Black Sea and the Marmara Sea | Turkey |
16 | Dardenleez Strait | The Marmara Sea and Agean Sea | Turkey |
17 | Davis strait | The Baffin Bay & Atlantic Ocean | Greenland-Canada |
18 | Denmark strait | North Atlantic and the Arctic Ocean | Greenland-Iceland |
19 | Dover strait | The English Channel & North Sea
| England-France |
20 | Florida Strait | Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean
| USA-Cuba |
21 | Hormuz strait | Gulf of Persia & Gulf of Oman
| Oman-Iran |
22 | Hudson strait | Gulf of Hudson & Atlantic Ocean
| Canada |
23 | Gibraltar Strait | The Mediterranean Sea & Atlantic Ocean
| Spain-Morocco |
24 | Magellan strait | Pacific and South Atlantic Ocean
| Chile |
25 | Makassar Strait | The Java Sea & Celebes Sea
| Indonesia |
26 | Tsugaru Strait | Japan Sea and the Pacific Ocean | Japan (Hokkaido-Honshu island) |
27 | Tatar Strait | Japan Sea & Okhotsk Sea | Russia (E Russia-Sakhalin Island) |
States and Capitals
There are 29 states and 8 Union Territories
S.no | States | Capitals | Founded Year | Languages |
Andhra Pradesh | Amaravati, Hyderabad | 1. Oct. 1953 | Telugu | |
Arunachal Pradesh | Itanagar | 20. Feb. 1987 | English | |
Assam | Dispur | 26. Jan. 1950 | Assamese | |
Bihar | Patna | 26. Jan. 1950 | Hindi, Urdu | |
Chhattisgarh | Naya Raipur | 1. Nov. 2000 | Hindi
| |
Goa | Panaji | 30. May. 1987 | Konkani, Marathi | |
Gujarat | Gandhinagar | 1. May. 1960 | Gujarati | |
Haryana | Chandigarh | 1. Nov. 1966 | Hindi, Punjabi
| |
Himachal Pradesh | Shimla | 25. Jan. 1971 | Hindi, English | |
Jammu and Kashmir | Srinagar (Summer), Jammu (Winter) | From 31 Oct 2019 | Urdu | |
Jharkhand | Ranchi | 15. Nov. 2000 | Hindi, Urdu | |
Karnataka | Bangalore | 1. Nov. 1956 | Kannada
| |
Kerala | Thiruvananthapuram | 1. Nov. 1956 | Malayalam
| |
Madhya Pradesh | Bhopal | 1. Nov. 1956 | Hindi | |
Maharashtra | Mumbai | 1. May. 1960 | Marathi | |
Manipur | Imphal | 21. Jan. 1972 | Meitei, English | |
Meghalaya | Shillong | 2. April. 1970 | English, Khasi | |
Mizoram | Aizawl | 20. Feb. 1987 | English, Hindi, Mizo | |
Nagaland | Kohima | 1. Dec. 1963 | English
| |
Odisha | Bhubaneswar | 1. Nov. 1956 | Odia
| |
Punjab | Chandigarh | 26. Jan. 1950 | Punjabi | |
Rajasthan | Jaipur | 1. Nov. 1956 | Hindi, English
| |
Sikkim | Gangtok | 16. May. 1975 | English, Bhutia, Gurung, Lepcha, Limbu, Manggar, Mukhia, Newari, Rai, Sherpa, Tamang | |
Tamil Nadu | Chennai | 26. Jan. 1950 | Tamil, English | |
Telangana | Hyderabad | 2. Jun. 2014 | Telugu, Urdu[38]
| |
Tripura | Agartala | 21. Jan. 1972 | Bengali, Kokborok, English | |
Uttar Pradesh | Lucknow | 26. Jan. 1950 | Hindi, Urdu
| |
Uttarakhand | Dehradun | 9. Nov. 2000 | Hindi, Sanskrit
| |
West Bengal | Kolkata | 1. Nov. 1956 | Bengali, Nepali, Hindi, Urdu, Santali, Odia and Punjabi |
Union Territories and Capitals
S.no | Union Territories | Capitals | Founded Year | Language |
Andaman and Nicobar Islands | Port Blair | 1. Nov. 1956 | Hindi, English | |
Chandigarh | Chandigarh | 1. Nov. 1966 | English
| |
Dadra and Nagar Haveli | Silvassa | 11. Aug. 1961 | Gujarati, Hindi | |
Daman and Diu | Daman | 30. May. 1987 | English, Gujarati, Hindi, Konkani | |
Delhi | New Delhi | 9. May. 1905 | Hindi, Punjabi, Urdu | |
Lakshadweep | Kavaratti | 1. Nov. 1956 | English, Hindi | |
Puducherry | Pondicherry | 7. Jan. 1963 | English, Tamil, Malayalam, Telugu | |
Ladakh | Leh | From 31 Oct 2019 | Bhoti
|
