Hinduism in India
Encyclopedia
Hinduism
is a religious tradition
of India
, with 80.5% of the population identifying themselves as Hindus. The vast majority of Hindus in India belong to Vaishnavite
and Shaivite
denominations
.
The Vedic culture
originated in India between 2000 and 1500 BC. As a consequence, Hinduism, considered to be the successor of Vedic religion
, has had a profound impact on India's history
, culture
and philosophy
. The name India itself is derived from Greek Ἰνδία for Indus
, which is derived from the Old Persian word Hindu, from Sanskrit
Sindhu, the historic local appellation for the Indus River. Another popular alternative name of India
is Hindustān
, meaning the "land of Hindus".
and Christian British
rule , Hinduism in India and abroad (like Guyana
and Suriname
) underwent a series of reforms, the spearheading organisations being Brahmo Samaj
, Arya Samaj
. Religious leaders like Swami Vivekananda
, Dayanand Saraswati
, Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Sri Aurobindo
and political leaders like Gandhi called for reform and complete turnover of the social structuring. Tulsidas, Sant Kabeer Das, Raidas, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu etc were pioneer of the bhakti movement for the social reformation.
India saw Muslim and later Christian rule; yet the country remains dominated by Hindus. Some account the strength of Hinduism for the flexible and open nature of the religion, in that to worship Jesus Christ or Allah
does not necessarily contradict Hinduism. This religion has polytheistic tendencies, so considering another conception of God another form or avatar
of the ultimate reality or creator is certainly possible. While most Hindus do not worship non Hindu God(s), it is possible in the explanation.
Another reason could be like Buddhism
, Hinduism is an ancient religion with well established traditions that cut deeply into Indian daily life. Unlike indigenous American or African religions, which vary from tribe to tribe, these Indian religions spread across the vast entity that was the Indian subcontinent, generally accepted by a majority of Indian ethnic and tribal groups. Perhaps when Muslim and Christian imperialists encountered other religions, they succeeded because they were forceful and brutal religions. This is in contrast to Buddhism and Hinduism, which had existed basically the same across South and Southeast Asia.
, as well as Hindu nationalism fueled these reforms. Hindu nationalism was aggressively promoted by freedom fighters like:
Others include: Syama Prasad Mookerjee
, K.B. Hedgewar.
The 1947 Partition of India
gave rise to bloody rioting and indiscriminate killing of Hindus and Muslims. Around 7.5 million Muslims left for Pakistan and 7.2 million Hindus left for India. This was a major factor in fueling Hindu-Muslim animosity. What followed over the years was the laying of secular principles in the Indian Constitution. The last 60 years have been relatively peaceful in most parts of the country except with the notable exception of communal riots in 1992
and 2002. A recent example of Hindu nationalism was the destruction of the Babri Mosque
in 1992. Hindu nationalists claimed this was the site of the birthplace of the God King Rama and this former shrine desecrated by Muslim warriors. The Babri Mosque was built in its place. To reconcile this, Hindu mobs destroyed the mosque
to avenge the legacy of Islamic imperialism in India.
Political support to Hindu Nationalism has been given by a number of national and regional political parties in India, most notable amongst them being the Bharatiya Janata Party
, the party which led the National Democratic Alliance
which ruled the country from 1998-2004.
Numerous state governments have also lent their support to Hindu Nationalism by bringing out legislations to ban cow slaughter. Hindus respect cows and beef consumption is a social taboo.
When allegations started that Christian missionaries were trying to lure the poorer sections of Hindus to convert to Christianity by offering them money, jobs and other monetary benefits, many state governments introduced laws to check the forced conversions, whose victims were mostly tribal and poor people who were tempted by the monetary benefits offered to them by the missionaries.
.
Hinduism
Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...
is a religious tradition
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
of India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, with 80.5% of the population identifying themselves as Hindus. The vast majority of Hindus in India belong to Vaishnavite
Vaishnavism
Vaishnavism is a tradition of Hinduism, distinguished from other schools by its worship of Vishnu, or his associated Avatars such as Rama and Krishna, as the original and supreme God....
and Shaivite
Shaivism
Shaivism is one of the four major sects of Hinduism, the others being Vaishnavism, Shaktism and Smartism. Followers of Shaivism, called "Shaivas," and also "Saivas" or "Saivites," revere Shiva as the Supreme Being. Shaivas believe that Shiva is All and in all, the creator, preserver, destroyer,...
denominations
Hindu denominations
Hinduism comprises numerous sects or denominations. The denominations are roughly comparable to different religions. The main divisions in current Hinduism are Shaivism, Shaktism, Vaishnavism, and Smartism...
.
The Vedic culture
Vedic period
The Vedic period was a period in history during which the Vedas, the oldest scriptures of Hinduism, were composed. The time span of the period is uncertain. Philological and linguistic evidence indicates that the Rigveda, the oldest of the Vedas, was composed roughly between 1700–1100 BCE, also...
originated in India between 2000 and 1500 BC. As a consequence, Hinduism, considered to be the successor of Vedic religion
Vedic religion
Vedic religion may refer to:*the historical Vedic religion- Vedic Hinduism **Vedic mythology*Shrauta, surviving conservative traditions within HinduismIn wider meanings of the term "Vedic"*Vedanta*Hinduism in general...
, has had a profound impact on India's history
History of India
The history of India begins with evidence of human activity of Homo sapiens as long as 75,000 years ago, or with earlier hominids including Homo erectus from about 500,000 years ago. The Indus Valley Civilization, which spread and flourished in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent from...
, culture
Culture of India
India's languages, religions, dance, music, architecture, food and customs differ from place to place within the country, but nevertheless possess a commonality....
and philosophy
Indian philosophy
India has a rich and diverse philosophical tradition dating back to ancient times. According to Radhakrishnan, the earlier Upanisads constitute "...the earliest philosophical compositions of the world."...
. The name India itself is derived from Greek Ἰνδία for Indus
Indus River
The Indus River is a major river which flows through Pakistan. It also has courses through China and India.Originating in the Tibetan plateau of western China in the vicinity of Lake Mansarovar in Tibet Autonomous Region, the river runs a course through the Ladakh district of Jammu and Kashmir and...
, which is derived from the Old Persian word Hindu, from Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
Sindhu, the historic local appellation for the Indus River. Another popular alternative name of India
Names of India
The name India may refer to either the region of Greater India , or to the contemporary Republic of India contained therein....
is Hindustān
Hindustan
Hindustan or Indostan, literal translation "Land of River Sindhu ", is one of the popular names of South Asia. It can also mean "the land of the Hindus"...
, meaning the "land of Hindus".
History
Reform movements
In response to the high rate of conversions during the Muslim MughalMughal Empire
The Mughal Empire , or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...
and Christian British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
rule , Hinduism in India and abroad (like Guyana
Guyana
Guyana , officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, previously the colony of British Guiana, is a sovereign state on the northern coast of South America that is culturally part of the Anglophone Caribbean. Guyana was a former colony of the Dutch and of the British...
and Suriname
Suriname
Suriname , officially the Republic of Suriname , is a country in northern South America. It borders French Guiana to the east, Guyana to the west, Brazil to the south, and on the north by the Atlantic Ocean. Suriname was a former colony of the British and of the Dutch, and was previously known as...
) underwent a series of reforms, the spearheading organisations being Brahmo Samaj
Brahmo Samaj
Brahmo Samaj is the societal component of the Brahmo religion which is mainly practiced today as the Adi Dharm after its eclipse in Bengal consequent to the exit of the Tattwabodini Sabha from its ranks in 1859. It was one of the most influential religious movements responsible for the making of...
, Arya Samaj
Arya Samaj
Arya Samaj is a Hindu reform movement founded by Swami Dayananda on 10 April 1875. He was a sannyasi who believed in the infallible authority of the Vedas. Dayananda emphasized the ideals of brahmacharya...
. Religious leaders like Swami Vivekananda
Swami Vivekananda
Swami Vivekananda , born Narendranath Dutta , was the chief disciple of the 19th century mystic Ramakrishna Paramahansa and the founder of the Ramakrishna Math and the Ramakrishna Mission...
, Dayanand Saraswati
Swami Dayananda Saraswati
Maharishi Dayanand Saraswati was an important Hindu religious scholar, reformer, and founder of the Arya Samaj, a Hindu reform movement. He was the first to give the call for Swarajya – "India for Indians" – in 1876, later taken up by Lokmanya Tilak...
, Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Sri Aurobindo
Sri Aurobindo
Sri Aurobindo , born Aurobindo Ghosh or Ghose , was an Indian nationalist, freedom fighter, philosopher, yogi, guru, and poet. He joined the Indian movement for freedom from British rule and for a duration became one of its most important leaders, before developing his own vision of human progress...
and political leaders like Gandhi called for reform and complete turnover of the social structuring. Tulsidas, Sant Kabeer Das, Raidas, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu etc were pioneer of the bhakti movement for the social reformation.
India saw Muslim and later Christian rule; yet the country remains dominated by Hindus. Some account the strength of Hinduism for the flexible and open nature of the religion, in that to worship Jesus Christ or Allah
Allah
Allah is a word for God used in the context of Islam. In Arabic, the word means simply "God". It is used primarily by Muslims and Bahá'ís, and often, albeit not exclusively, used by Arabic-speaking Eastern Catholic Christians, Maltese Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox Christians, Mizrahi Jews and...
does not necessarily contradict Hinduism. This religion has polytheistic tendencies, so considering another conception of God another form or avatar
Avatar
In Hinduism, an avatar is a deliberate descent of a deity to earth, or a descent of the Supreme Being and is mostly translated into English as "incarnation," but more accurately as "appearance" or "manifestation"....
of the ultimate reality or creator is certainly possible. While most Hindus do not worship non Hindu God(s), it is possible in the explanation.
Another reason could be like Buddhism
Buddhism
Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...
, Hinduism is an ancient religion with well established traditions that cut deeply into Indian daily life. Unlike indigenous American or African religions, which vary from tribe to tribe, these Indian religions spread across the vast entity that was the Indian subcontinent, generally accepted by a majority of Indian ethnic and tribal groups. Perhaps when Muslim and Christian imperialists encountered other religions, they succeeded because they were forceful and brutal religions. This is in contrast to Buddhism and Hinduism, which had existed basically the same across South and Southeast Asia.
Hindu nationalism
The cause of civices Indian nationalismIndian nationalism
Indian nationalism refers to the many underlying forces that molded the Indian independence movement, and strongly continue to influence the politics of India, as well as being the heart of many contrasting ideologies that have caused ethnic and religious conflict in Indian society...
, as well as Hindu nationalism fueled these reforms. Hindu nationalism was aggressively promoted by freedom fighters like:
- Vinayak Damodar SavarkarVinayak Damodar SavarkarVināyak Dāmodar Sāvarkar was an Indian freedom fighter, revolutionary and politician. He was the proponent of liberty as the ultimate ideal. Savarkar was a poet, writer and playwright...
- for the formation of Akhand BharatGreater IndiaGreater India is a term that refers to the historical spread of the culture of India beyond the Indian subcontinent... - Purushottam Das TandonPurushottam Das TandonPurushottam Das Tandon पुरुषोत्तम दास टंडन , was a freedom fighter from Uttar Pradesh in India, of Punjabi Khatri descent. He is widely remembered for his efforts in achieving the Official Language of India status for Hindi. He was customarily given the title Rajarshi...
- promoted HindiHindiStandard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...
as the national language of India
Others include: Syama Prasad Mookerjee
Syama Prasad Mookerjee
Dr. Shyama Prasad Mookerjee was a minister in Jawaharlal Nehru's Cabinet as a Minister for Industry and Supply....
, K.B. Hedgewar.
The 1947 Partition of India
Partition of India
The Partition of India was the partition of British India on the basis of religious demographics that led to the creation of the sovereign states of the Dominion of Pakistan and the Union of India on 14 and 15...
gave rise to bloody rioting and indiscriminate killing of Hindus and Muslims. Around 7.5 million Muslims left for Pakistan and 7.2 million Hindus left for India. This was a major factor in fueling Hindu-Muslim animosity. What followed over the years was the laying of secular principles in the Indian Constitution. The last 60 years have been relatively peaceful in most parts of the country except with the notable exception of communal riots in 1992
Bombay Riots
The Bombay Riots usually refers to the riots in Mumbai, in December 1992 and January 1993, in which around 900 people died. An estimated 575 Muslims and 275 Hindus died, and 2,000 people were injured in the riots. . An investigative commission was formed under Justice B.N. Srikrishna, but the...
and 2002. A recent example of Hindu nationalism was the destruction of the Babri Mosque
Babri Mosque
The Babri Mosque , was a mosque in Ayodhya, a city in the Faizabad district of Uttar Pradesh, on Ramkot Hill . It was destroyed in 1992 when a political rally developed into a riot involving 150,000 people, despite a commitment to the Indian Supreme Court by the rally organisers that the mosque...
in 1992. Hindu nationalists claimed this was the site of the birthplace of the God King Rama and this former shrine desecrated by Muslim warriors. The Babri Mosque was built in its place. To reconcile this, Hindu mobs destroyed the mosque
Mosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...
to avenge the legacy of Islamic imperialism in India.
Political support to Hindu Nationalism has been given by a number of national and regional political parties in India, most notable amongst them being the Bharatiya Janata Party
Bharatiya Janata Party
The Bharatiya Janata Party ,; translation: Indian People's Party) is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Indian National Congress. Established in 1980, it is India's second largest political party in terms of representation in the parliament...
, the party which led the National Democratic Alliance
National Democratic Alliance
The National Democratic Alliance is a name used by political parties of several countries:* National Democratic Alliance for Egypt* National Democratic Alliance * National Democratic Alliance * National Democratic Alliance...
which ruled the country from 1998-2004.
Numerous state governments have also lent their support to Hindu Nationalism by bringing out legislations to ban cow slaughter. Hindus respect cows and beef consumption is a social taboo.
When allegations started that Christian missionaries were trying to lure the poorer sections of Hindus to convert to Christianity by offering them money, jobs and other monetary benefits, many state governments introduced laws to check the forced conversions, whose victims were mostly tribal and poor people who were tempted by the monetary benefits offered to them by the missionaries.
Census of 2001
The Hindu population of India according to the official 2001 census is given below. Most drastic decrease in 1991-2001 period is observed in Manipur, from 57% to 46%, where there has been a resurgence of the indigenous Sanamahi religion. Except for Punjab(Sikh majority), Meghalaya, Mizoram & Nagaland (Christian majority. North Eastern India as a whole is Hindu majority since the bigger states of Assam & Tripura are predominantly Hindu) and Kashmir & Lakshwadeep(muslim majority), all other Indian states and union territories have an overwhelming majority of Hindus. For more detailed figures from 2001 census, see this tableHindus by district in India
The data is taken from the 2001 census, which excludes the following groups: A part of the nomadic Hindu population, Hindu refugees of Lhotsam ethnic group from Bhutan, Hindu refugees of Tamil ethnic group from Sri Lanka, Hindu immigrants from Bangladesh and Nepal, Stateless Hindus from Burma and...
.
| Region | Hindus | Total | % Hindus |
| India | 827,578,868 | 1,028,610,328 | 80.46% |
| Chhattisgarh Chhattisgarh Chhattisgarh is a state in Central India, formed when the 16 Chhattisgarhi-speaking South-Eastern districts of Madhya Pradesh gained separate statehood on 1 November 2000.... |
19,729,670 | 20,833,803 | 96.30% |
| Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh is a state in Northern India. It is spread over , and is bordered by the Indian states of Jammu and Kashmir on the north, Punjab on the west and south-west, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh on the south, Uttarakhand on the south-east and by the Tibet Autonomous Region on the east... |
5,800,222 | 6,077,900 | 95.43% |
| Orissa Orissa Orissa , officially Odisha since Nov 2011, is a state of India, located on the east coast of India, by the Bay of Bengal. It is the modern name of the ancient nation of Kalinga, which was invaded by the Maurya Emperor Ashoka in 261 BC. The modern state of Orissa was established on 1 April... |
34,726,129 | 36,804,660 | 94.35% |
| Dadra and Nagar Haveli | 206,203 | 220,490 | 93.52% |
| Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh , often called the Heart of India, is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and Indore is the largest city.... |
55,004,675 | 60,348,023 | 91.15% |
| Daman and Diu | 141,901 | 158,204 | 89.69% |
| Gujarat | 45,143,074 | 50,671,017 | 89.09% |
| Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third... |
67,836,651 | 76,210,007 | 89.01% |
| Rajasthan Rajasthan Rājasthān the land of Rajasthanis, , is the largest state of the Republic of India by area. It is located in the northwest of India. It encompasses most of the area of the large, inhospitable Great Indian Desert , which has an edge paralleling the Sutlej-Indus river valley along its border with... |
50,151,452 | 56,507,188 | 88.75% |
| Haryana Haryana Haryana is a state in India. Historically, it has been a part of the Kuru region in North India. The name Haryana is found mentioned in the 12th century AD by the apabhramsha writer Vibudh Shridhar . It is bordered by Punjab and Himachal Pradesh to the north, and by Rajasthan to the west and south... |
18,655,925 | 21,144,564 | 88.23% |
| Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh... |
54,985,079 | 62,405,679 | 88.11% |
| Pondicherry | 845,449 | 974,345 | 86.77% |
| Tripura Tripura Tripura is a state in North-East India, with an area of . It is the third smallest state of India, according to area. Tripura is surrounded by Bangladesh on the north, south, and west. The Indian states of Assam and Mizoram lie to the east. The capital is Agartala and the main languages spoken are... |
2,739,310 | 3,199,203 | 85.62% |
| Uttarakhand Uttarakhand Uttarakhand , formerly Uttaranchal, is a state in the northern part of India. It is often referred to as the Land of Gods due to the many holy Hindu temples and cities found throughout the state, some of which are among Hinduism's most spiritual and auspicious places of pilgrimage and worship... |
7,212,260 | 8,489,349 | 84.96% |
| Karnataka Karnataka Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava... |
44,321,279 | 52,850,562 | 83.86% |
| Bihar Bihar Bihar is a state in eastern India. It is the 12th largest state in terms of geographical size at and 3rd largest by population. Almost 58% of Biharis are below the age of 25, which is the highest proportion in India.... |
69,076,919 | 82,998,509 | 83.23% |
| Delhi Delhi Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census... |
11,358,049 | 13,850,507 | 82.00% |
| Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity... |
133,979,263 | 166,197,921 | 80.61% |
| Maharashtra Maharashtra Maharashtra is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India... |
77,859,385 | 96,878,627 | 80.37% |
| Chandigarh Chandigarh Chandigarh is a union territory of India that serves as the capital of two states, Haryana and Punjab. The name Chandigarh translates as "The Fort of Chandi". The name is from an ancient temple called Chandi Mandir, devoted to the Hindu goddess Chandi, in the city... |
707,978 | 900,635 | 78.61% |
| West Bengal West Bengal West Bengal is a state in the eastern region of India and is the nation's fourth-most populous. It is also the seventh-most populous sub-national entity in the world, with over 91 million inhabitants. A major agricultural producer, West Bengal is the sixth-largest contributor to India's GDP... |
58,104,835 | 80,176,197 | 72.47% |
| Andaman and Nicobar Islands | 246,589 | 356,152 | 69.24% |
| Jharkhand Jharkhand Jharkhand is a state in eastern India. It was carved out of the southern part of Bihar on 15 November 2000. Jharkhand shares its border with the states of Bihar to the north, Uttar Pradesh and Chhattisgarh to the west, Orissa to the south, and West Bengal to the east... |
18,475,681 | 26,945,829 | 68.57% |
| Goa Goa Goa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its... |
886,551 | 1,347,668 | 65.78% |
| Assam Assam Assam , also, rarely, Assam Valley and formerly the Assam Province , is a northeastern state of India and is one of the most culturally and geographically distinct regions of the country... |
17,296,455 | 26,655,528 | 64.89% |
| Sikkim Sikkim Sikkim is a landlocked Indian state nestled in the Himalayan mountains... |
329,548 | 540,851 | 60.93% |
| Kerala Kerala or Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions.... |
17,883,449 | 31,841,374 | 56.16% |
| Manipur Manipur Manipur is a state in northeastern India, with the city of Imphal as its capital. Manipur is bounded by the Indian states of Nagaland to the north, Mizoram to the south and Assam to the west; it also borders Burma to the east. It covers an area of... |
996,894 | 2,166,788 | 46.01% |
| Arunachal Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh is a state of India, located in the far northeast. It borders the states of Assam and Nagaland to the south, and shares international borders with Burma in the east, Bhutan in the west, and the People's Republic of China in the north. The majority of the territory is claimed by... |
379,935 | 1,097,968 | 34.60% |
| Punjab Punjab (India) Punjab ) is a state in the northwest of the Republic of India, forming part of the larger Punjab region. The state is bordered by the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh to the east, Haryana to the south and southeast and Rajasthan to the southwest as well as the Pakistani province of Punjab to the... |
8,997,942 | 24,358,999 | 31.04% |
| Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir is the northernmost state of India. It is situated mostly in the Himalayan mountains. Jammu and Kashmir shares a border with the states of Himachal Pradesh and Punjab to the south and internationally with the People's Republic of China to the north and east and the... |
3,005,349 | 10,143,700 | 29.63% |
| Meghalaya Meghalaya Meghalaya is a state in north-eastern India. The word "Meghalaya" literally means the Abode of Clouds in Sanskrit and other Indic languages. Meghalaya is a hilly strip in the eastern part of the country about 300 km long and 100 km wide, with a total area of about 8,700 sq mi . The... |
307,822 | 2,318,822 | 13.27% |
| Nagaland Nagaland Nagaland is a state in the far north-eastern part of India. It borders the state of Assam to the west, Arunachal Pradesh and part of Assam to the north, Burma to the east and Manipur to the south. The state capital is Kohima, and the largest city is Dimapur... |
153,162 | 1,990,036 | 7.70% |
| Lakshadweep Lakshadweep Lakshadweep , formerly known as the Laccadive, Minicoy, and Amindivi Islands, is a group of islands in the Laccadive Sea, 200 to 440 km off the coast of the South West Indian state of Kerala... |
2,221 | 60,650 | 3.66% |
| Mizoram Mizoram Mizoram is one of the Seven Sister States in North Eastern India, sharing borders with the states of Tripura, Assam, Manipur and with the neighbouring countries of Bangladesh and Burma. Mizoram became the 23rd state of India on 20 February 1987. Its capital is Aizawl. Mizoram is located in the... |
31,562 | 888,573 | 3.55% |