India is my country and I am an Indian. It is the seventh largest country in the world and the second most populated country in the world. India is called by names Bharat and Hindustan. It is a peninsula, surrounded by the Bay of Bengal in the east, the Arabian Sea in the west and the Indian Ocean in the south.
Tiger is the national animal of India and peacock the national bird. The lotus in all its uniqueness is India’s national flower. The mango is the national fruit, which is cultivated from time unmemorable. Tricolor saffron – purity, white- peace and green – fertility with the Ashok Chakra in middle is the revered flag of India. ‘Jana Gana Mana’ is the national anthem sung with pride. Hockey is considered officially the National Sport although people are drawn into cricket these days.
India is a country with many entities like many languages, castes, religions, cultures and local histories but it is rich in unity in diversity, which makes it a single democratic nation.
India is known as land of spirituality and philosophy. Ancient religions like Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism molders of the country. There are other religions like Sikhism, Islam and Christianity, Judaism that emerged later. In ancient India, society was divided on the basis of caste system, which still persists in the modern India as well.
In different parts of India, different languages are spoken. Most of the languages of India belong to two families, Aryan and Dravidian. After Independence the central government decided to keep Hindi as the official language. The different states of India have different official languages, some of them not recognized by the central government. Some states have more then one official language. Now the second official language is English.
India is a land of agriculture and farming is done for decades till today. Villages and agriculture form the backbone of the country. India produces its own food grains and fruits. It has a rich source of