India shares land borders with Pakistan, China, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal and Myanmar. India is a federation composed of 28 states and 7 union territories. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the south-west, and the Bay of Bengal on the south-east, coastline runs 7,517 kilometres (4,700 mi) in length.
India has varied landscapes from the majestic Himalaya and in north to the deciduous jungles of Central India, while arid Thar Desert covers much of Western India; from evergreen jungles and beaches of south to the wettest places on earth in northeast.

India is a big tropical country and is famous for its diverse climatic features. The seasons in India can be broadly categorized into the following:

For detail information on climate of India, click here.

India contains a great wealth of biological diversity in its forests, its wetlands and in its marine areas. This richness is shown in absolute numbers of species and the proportion they represent of the world total.

Religion and ritual pervade almost every aspect of life in India. Hinduism is the majority religion with 80.5% of the population, Islam (13.4%), Christianity (2.3%), Sikhism (1.9%), Buddhism (0.8%) and Jainism (0.4%) are the religions followed by the people of India. Apart from the original Animism, or nature worship, the diversity of religious belief systems existing in India today is a result of - besides existence and birth of native religions - the assimilation and social integration of religions brought to the region by traders, travelers, immigrants, and even invaders and conquerors.

India is possibly THE most linguistically diverse of nations in the world, with 17 major regional languages and literally hundreds of dialects. Hindi is the official language, spoken by the largest number of people across the country. The English language is among the lasting legacies of British era in India. It is spoken mainly by pan-Indian elite, widely used as a link language, and is the surest passport to upward mobility.