Talk:India/Demographics
Demographics[edit]
With an estimated population of 1.12 billion,[1] India is the world's second most populous country and is expected to be the most populous by 2040.[2] Almost 70% of Indians reside in rural areas,[3] although in recent decades migration to larger cities has led to a dramatic increase in the country's urban population. India's largest cities are Mumbai (formerly Bombay), Delhi, Kolkata (formerly Calcutta), Chennai (formerly Madras), Bangalore, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad.[4] The national gender ratio is 944 females per 1,000 males.[3] India's median age is 24.9, and the population growth rate of 1.38% per annum; there are 22.01 births per 1,000 people per year.[1]
Language[edit]
India is the second most culturally, linguistically and genetically diverse geographical entity after the African continent.[5] India is home to two major linguistic families: Indo-Aryan (spoken by about 74% of the population) and Dravidian (spoken by about 24%). Other languages spoken in India come from the Austro-Asiatic and Tibeto-Burman linguistic families. Hindi, with the largest number of speakers,[6] is the official language of India.[7] English, which is extensively used in business and administration, has the status of a 'subsidiary official language'.[8] The constitution also recognises in particular 21 other languages that are either abundantly spoken or have classical status. The number of dialects in India is as high as 1,652.[9]
Religion[edit]
Over 800 million Indians, or about 80.5% of the country's population, are Hindu. The next-largest religious group are Muslims, who make up 13.4% of the population. Other religious groups include Christians (2.3%), Sikhs (1.9%), Buddhists (0.8%), Jains (0.4%), Jews, Zoroastrians, Bahá'ís and others.[10] Tribals constitute 8.1% of the population.[11]
Education and health[edit]
At the time of India's independence in 1947, its literacy rate was 12.2%.[12] Since then, it has increased to 64.8% (53.7% for females and 75.3% for males). The state of Kerala has the highest literacy rate (91%); Bihar has the lowest (47%).[3]
India has higher rate of malnutrition among children under the age of three (46% in year 2007) than any other country in the world.[13][14]
Notes[edit]
- ^ a b "CIA Factbook: India". CIA Factbook. Retrieved 2007-03-10.
- ^ Concise Encyclopedia. Dorling Kindersley Limited. 1997. pp. p. 332. ISBN 0-7513-5911-4.
{{cite book}}:|pages=has extra text (help) - ^ a b c "Census of India 2001". Census of India. Retrieved April 12, 2007.
- ^ "Country Profile: India" (PDF). Library of Congress - Federal Research Division. December 2004. Retrieved 2007-06-24.
- ^ India, a Country Study,United States Library of Congress, Note on Ethnic groups
- ^ "Languages by number of speakers according to 1991 census". Central Institute of Indian Languages. Retrieved August 2, 2007.
- ^ Mallikarjun, B. (Nov., 2004), Fifty Years of Language Planning for Modern Hindi–The Official Language of India, Language in India, Volume 4, Number 11. ISSN 1930-2940.
- ^ "Notification No. 2/8/60-O.L. (Ministry of Home Affairs), dated 27th April, 1960". Retrieved July 4, 2007.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|1=(help) - ^ Matthew, K.M. (2006). Manorama Yearbook 2003. Malayala Manorama. pp. pg 524. ISBN 81-89004-07-7.
{{cite book}}:|pages=has extra text (help) - ^ "Census of India 2001, Data on Religion". Census of India. Retrieved April 12, 2007.
- ^ "Tribes: Introduction". Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Government of India. Retrieved April 12, 2007.
- ^ Nurullah, Syed (1964). A Students' History of Education in India: 1800–1965. Macmillan.
{{cite book}}: Unknown parameter|coauthors=ignored (|author=suggested) (help) - ^ ""Inclusive Growth and Service delivery: Building on India's Success"" (PDF). World Bank. 2006. Retrieved 2007-04-28.
- ^ Page, Jeremy (February 22, 2007). ""Indian children suffer more malnutrition than in Ethiopia"". The Times. Retrieved 2007-04-28.
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