Indias Government

With more than a billion people, India is the worlds largest democracy. It is a federal republic, and the power is shared between the national and state governments. When the powers of the national and state governments overlap, the national law must be followed.

Indias Government (cont.)

India has 28 states, some of which are dominated by a particular ethnic or religious group or language.
India has seven union territories, small political areas directly under the control of the national government. The state governments carry out energy policies in India.

Indias Government (cont.)

Indias national government has three branchesexecutive, legislative, and judicialthat operate under the principle of separation of powers. Each branch of government has specific rights and responsibilities that the other branches cannot interfere with.

The smaller house of India legislature is Council of States, and the larger house is the Peoples Assembly.

Indias Government (cont.)

Indias head of state is a president, but the duties of that position are mainly ceremonial.
Executive power lies with the prime minister, who leads the government and sets policy. Jawaharlal Nehru was the first Prime Minister of India.

Indias Government (cont.)

Indias Supreme Court interprets laws to see if they uphold the countrys constitution.
Indias constitution is one of the longest and most detailed in the world.

It guarantees all citizens certain fundamental and general rights and also lists citizens duties.

Indias Economy
India has one of the worlds most rapidly growing economies, but with such a large population, not enough jobs exist and many residents remain poor. Nearly 75 percent of Indian workers are farmers, and more than half of Indias land is used for raising such crops as rice, wheat, cotton, tea, sugarcane, and jute.

Indias Economy (cont.)

India produces most of the food it needs, having benefited from the green revolution, a set of changes that modernized agriculture and greatly increased food production in the 1970s. New strains of wheat and rice were developed. India ranks as one of the worlds top coal producers and also mines iron ore, manganese, bauxite, and diamonds.

Indias Economy (cont.)

Outsourcing work to India is popular because wages there are low and because the country has large numbers of workers who are educated, skilled, and fluent in English.
Bengalaru (Bangalore) is a city that provides outsourced computer software services.

Pakistan
Pakistan is a long, wide country wedged between Afghanistan, Iran, and India. Mountains rise in the far north, and the Indus River valley is located to the south.
This area provides the fertile land Pakistan needs to support its growing population.

Pakistan (cont.)
In the 1970s, Pakistans industries were nationalized, or put under government control.
Since the 1990s, however, many government-owned industries have been sold to private owners. Some of the government-controlled industries include banks, hospitals, and transportation.

Pakistan (cont.)
Pakistan is a federal republic, but democracy is limited. Since independence, the military has often forced elected leaders out of office and seized power as in 1999, when General Pervez Musharraf took over the government.

In 2001, he helped the United States overthrow the Taliban in Afghanistan.

Pakistan (cont.)
Pakistan and India each claim the territory of Kashmir, and they have fought two wars for control of the area.
Each country occupies a part of Kashmir and keeps troops there.

Bangladesh
With a large population and few resources, Bangladesh, established in 1971, is struggling for success as an independent nation.
Bangladesh sits surrounded by India on three sides, with the Bay of Bengal to the south.

Bangladesh (cont.)
In area, the country is slightly larger than Wisconsin, but holds 144 million people, making it one of the most densely populated countries in the world.

Bangladesh (cont.)
Bangladeshs people are largely Muslim and are overwhelmingly poor.
About 75 percent of the people live in rural villages, but many people have moved to crowded urban areas, such as Dhaka, the capital and major port, to find work in factories.

Bangladesh (cont.)
Despite good growing conditions, Bangladesh cannot produce enough food for its people. Farmers have few modern tools, and they use outdated farming methods.
For these reasons, may people are affected by malnutrition.

Bangladesh (cont.)
Bangladesh has a thriving clothing industry that accounts for a large share of exports.
The clothing industry provides jobs to nearly 2 million people, mainly women. In the past, children also worked in this industry, but the government has moved to end child labor.

Bangladesh (cont.)
Large reserves of natural gas were recently discovered in Bangladesh, but the government has not yet decided whether to use these reserves to meet the countrys own energy needs or to earn money by selling the resource abroad.

Bangladesh (cont.)
Bangladesh takes pride in peacekeeping.
About 10,000 soldiers from Bangladesh serve as United Nations peacekeepers in twelve countries.

Nepal and Bhutan

More than 85 percent of Nepals many ethnic groups live in rural villages.
Kathmandu, the capital, is the only major city. Hinduism is Nepals official religion, but Buddhism is practiced as well.

Nepal and Bhutan (cont.)

In the past, Nepal has been torn by political conflict.
Democracy groups and communist rebels ended the monarchy in 2008. This instability has made it difficult for Nepal to strengthen its economy, so even with foreign aid, the country remains desperately poor.

Nepal and Bhutan (cont.)

Bhutan is struggling economically. Most of the people live in remote rural villages and are subsistence farmers.
With Indias help, though, Bhutan has built hydroelectric plants to create electricity from rushing mountain waters.

Tourism is a growing industry, but the government limits the number of tourists to protect Bhutans cultural traditions.

Nepal and Bhutan (cont.)

Most of Bhutans people belong to the Bhutia ethnic group and are faithful Buddhists.
There is a small Nepali group, which is mostly Hindu and complains of discrimination during the years of rule by powerful Buddhist kings.

Recently, though, Bhutan has moved toward democracy.

Island Republics
Sri Lanka lies off the southeastern coast of India. Much of the country is rolling lowlands, with white sandy beaches, but highlands cover the center of the country. The beaches and highlands attract tourists.

At higher elevations are large plantations of rubber trees, coconut palms, and the Ceylon tea that is a famous export. Also exported are gemstones such as sapphires and rubies.

Island Republics
Sri Lankas people are the Sinhalese, who form about 74 percent of the population and are mostly Buddhist, and the Tamils, who make up about 17 percent of the population and are mainly Hindu.