India consists of 28 states (Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Orissa, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and West Bengal) and 7 union territories (Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Chandigarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu, Lakshadweep, Delhi and Puducherry) with a parliamentary system of democracy. Each state and union territory is further divided into districts and the districts in turn are further divided into tehsils and tehsils into villages.
The preamble of the constitution defines India as a sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic republic. India has a bicameral parliament operating under a Westminster-style parliamentary system. The President of India is the Head of the State. The Prime Minister is the Head of the Government, and runs office with the support of the Council of Ministers who forms the Cabinet Ministry. The Indian Legislature comprises of the Lok Sabha (House of the People) and the Rajya Sabha (Council of States) forming both the Houses of the Parliament. Lok Sabha has 545 members out of which 543 are elected by people for five year term and the other two are nominated from Anglo-Indian community by the President. The Rajya Sabha has 245 members indirectly elected by the state legislatures in proportion to the state's population for six year term.
The Supreme Court of India headed by the Chief Justice of India is the apex body of the Indian legal system.The Supreme court of India is followed by other High Courts and subordinate Courts. The Supreme Court has original jurisdiction over cases involving fundamental rights and over disputes between states and the Centre, and appellate jurisdiction over the High Courts.[
India's population as on 1st March 2001 was 1,028 million and by 2010 it is estimated to 1,177 million. There are 22 National Languages that have been recognized by Consititution of India. English and Hindi are recognized has official languages. In fact 844 dialects are used in India. Life expectancy rate for males is 63.9 years and for females is 66.9 years as of Sep 2005. As of 2001 census India's literary rate stands at 64.84 per cent.
The economy of India is among the fastest growing in the world. India is the twelfth largest economy in the world by nominal value and the fourth largest by Purchasing Power Parity(PPP). India has an average annual GDP growth rate of 6.7%. Agriculture is the major occupation practised in India and the major agricultural products are rice, wheat, oilseed, cotton, jute, tea, sugarcane and potatoes. Textiles, chemicals, food processing, steel, transport equipment, cement, mining, petroleum, machinery and software are the major industries. India imports crude oil, machinery, fertilizer, chemicals and exports textile goods, gems, jewelry, software, petroleum products and leather goods. United States of America is one of the main import and export partners.
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