COUNTRY PROFILE: INDIA
December 2004
COUNTRY
Formal Name: Republic of India (The official, Sanskrit
name for India is Bharat, the name of the legendary king
in the Mahabharata).
Short Form: India.
Term for Citizen(s): Indian(s).
Capital: New Delhi (formally called the National Capital
Territory of Delhi).
Other Major Cities: India has 35 cities and urban agglomerations with more than 1 million persons. The most populous cities are Mumbai (Bombay) with 16.4 million people, Kolkata (Calcutta, 13.2 million), New Delhi (12.8 million), Chennai (Madras, 6.4 million), Bangalore (5.7 million), Hyderabad (5.5 million), and Ahmadabad (4.5 million).
Date of Independence: Proclaimed August 15, 1947, from Britain.
NATIONAL Public Holidays: Makar Sakranti (January 14); Republic Day (signing of national constitution, January 26); Id-ul-Juha (movable date); Muharram (Islamic New Year, movable date); Holi (movable date in March); Ramnavami (birthday of Rama, movable date in March or April); Mahavir Jayanti (Birthday of Mahavir, movable date in April); Good Friday (movable date in March or April); Milad un Nabi (birthday of Prophet Muhammad, movable date); Buddha Poornima (birthday of Buddha, movable date in April or May); Independence Day (August 15); Mahatma Gandhi’s Birthday (October 2); Dussehra (also known as Vijaya Dashmi, movable set of 10 days in September or October); Deepawali (also known as Diwali, movable set of five days in October or November); Id-ul-Fitr (end of Ramadan, movable date); Guru Nanak Jayanti (Birthday of Guru Nanak, November 26); Christmas Day (December 25). Many of these holidays are observed only by particular religions or in specific regions. The three holidays that are observed nationwide are Republic Day, Independence Day, and Mahatma Gandhi’s Birthday.
Flag:
India’s national flag has three horizontal bands. The upper band
is orange/saffron in color, the lower is green, and the middle is
white with a 24-spoke dark blue wheel in its center. The saffron
symbolizes courage, sacrifice, and renunciation; the white
represents purity and truth; and the green signifies faith and fertility.
The wheel is the Dharma Chakra, an ancient Buddhist symbol used
by the Indian king Ashoka to represent a “wheel of law.”