India By Arjun Neil Gupta Flag of India

India By: Arjun Neil Gupta

Flag of India Saffron – signifies sacrifice and patriotism White – stands for truth in word and actions and purity in our thoughts Green – stands for life and prosperity Blue Wheel – also called Ashoka Chakra; stands for progress

Indus Valley Civilization • Home of one of the first four civilizations in the world. • Well-planned cities – wide, long, straight main streets linked by smaller lanes. Divided into twelve rectangular blocks. Covered drains ran down the main streets. Very modern method of sanitation and sewage so the city was dry and clean.

Indus Valley Civilization • Houses made of either baked mud or wood bricks around a courtyard. Each house had a well drained bathroom and a well. • It was an equal society – no kings, priests, armies or palaces. • First cotton growers in the world.

Government • Democratic – Government of the people, by the people, for the people. • Federal Republic – One national government over several smaller state governments. • Branches of Government – Executive, Legislative, Judicial.

Government President – Head of the country Dr. Pranab Mukherjee Prime Minister – Head of the government Mr. Narendra Modi

Interesting facts • Capital - New Delhi • Population – 1. 252 billion (2013) – second most populated • India is a subcontinent. • In 2015, India’s economy was the world’s seventh largest by gross domestic production and third largest by purchasing power parity.

Language Home to several Hundred languages but national language Is Hindi and official or business language is English.

Clothes Dress varies from region to region but most men/boy wear kurta-pyjama and most women/girl wear sari or salwar-kameez.

Food

Currency Indian Rupee – Bills are called Rupee and coins paise $ 1 = 66. 94 Price of 2 -litre Coke on average USA - $ 2. 34 India – Rs 79

Religion Secular Country – Land of multiple religions, all religions are equal and present. Unity in Diversity is the motto! Temple, church and mosque in same compound in Delhi

Religion Temple and mosque in same compound in West Bengal Everybody has freedom to follow any or multiple religions.

Main Religious Festivals • Holi – Festival of colors • Easter • Navroze – Parsi new year • Christmas

Main Religious Festivals • Durga Puja – Hindu holiday • Guru Nanak Jayanti – Birthday of Guru Nanak – Founder of Sikh Religion • Eid ul-Fitr – Muslim holiday

Main Religious Festivals • Diwali – Festival of light

National Festivals Republic Day – 26 January Independence Day – 15 August Gandhi Jayanti – 2 October – birthday of Mahatma Gandhi – Father of the Nation.

Few of the Many Contributions of India to the World • Aryabhata discovered the position of the nine planets and stated that they revolve around the sun. He also discovered the right number of days in the year which is 365 days. • Bhramagupta introduced zero in Mathematics.

Few of the Many Contributions of India to the World • Sushruta is known as the father of surgery because of his numerous contributions to the science and art of surgery. • Bhāskara was the one who declared that any number divided by zero is infinity and that the sum of any number and infinity is also infinity.

Few Nobel Prize Winners • Rabindranath Tagore – for literature • C. V. Raman – for Physics (For his work on the scattering of light and for the discovery of the effect named after him. )

Few Nobel Prize Winners • Amartya Sen – for his work in welfare economics. • Kailash Satyarthi – for his work in education for children. Won Nobel Peace Prize

Most Popular Sports • Cricket • Football (soccer) • Chess – some say it originated in China and some say in India. There have been 44 grandmasters from India. Vishwanathan Anand is world number 2 and Koneru Humpy is female world number 3.

Most Popular Sports • Kabbadi • Field Hockey • Tennis • Badminton

Bollywood One of the biggest film industries in the world in terms of the number of people employed and the number of films produced and the number of tickets sold.

The End