India

Present Day

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Government

• Federal Republic – power is shared between the national government & various state governments (Like the US)

• India is the world’s largest democracy

• Has 28 states and 7 union territories

• Government is based on Britain's parliamentary system (I wonder why? You better know this!)

Executive Branch

• India has a President & Vice President

• However, main power is held by the Prime Minister

• Prime Minister leads the government & sets policy

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Prime Minister Manmohan Singh of India

Legislative Branch

• Parliament– Council of States– People’s Assembly

Members of both groups are elected by the people

Judicial Branch

• Supreme Court– Interprets laws – Judges appointed by the President & remain

in office until they are 65

Indian Constitution

• One of the world’s longest & most detailed

• Guarantees all citizens basic rights (Like the US Bill of Rights)

• Also states that citizens must:– Defend the country when necessary– Promote harmony among ethnic & religious

groups

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Economy

• Mixture of traditional & modern• 1970’s – India began moving to a Free Market

economy – reducing gov’t control & ownership of industries

• Ranked in the world’s top 10 industrial countries• Labor Force

– 60% Agriculture– 12% Industry– 28% Service

Industries

• Include: textiles, jewelry, cars, oil products, chemicals, food processing, electronics

• One of the world’s top coal producers

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Service Industries

Outsourcing – hiring workers in other countries to do a set of jobs– Popular in India because:

• Low wages• Large #’s of workers who are educated, skilled, &

fluent in English

Outsourcing

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Bollywood

• Movie industry is one of the world’s largest

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Agriculture (Farming)

• More than ½ of India’s land is used for farming

• Most farms are small – less than 2.5 acres (Subsistence Agriculture)

• Leading crops include rice, wheat, cotton, tea, sugarcane, jute

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Green Revolution

• A program begun by the Indian government in the 1970’s to encourage farmers to modernize their methods to produce more food– Include greater use of fertilizers, pesticides– (+)Crop yields increased– (-)Pollution

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Population

• More than 2/3’s live in rural areas

• Urban areas are very crowded (India has 3 cities larger than New York City)

Daily Life

• Family life is very important• Marriage

– Viewed as joining 2 families– Arranged marriages still exists

• Several generations often live together in the same house

• Housing: – Rural – mud huts– Urban

• Middle Class - houses, high rise apartments• Poor – Slums – shacks

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Challenges

• Not enough jobs

• 25% of population live in poverty

• Population growth

• Environmental challenges