The state is bordered by Rajasthan to the west, Haryana and Delhi to the northwest, Uttarakhand and the country of Nepal to the north, Bihar to the east, Jharkhand to the southeast, and Madhya Pradesh to the southwest. It covers 243,290 square kilometer , equal to 6.88% of the total area of India, and is the fifth largest Indian state by area. With over 200 million inhabitants as of 2011, it is the most populous state in the country as well as the most populous country subdivision in the whole world. Hindi is the official and most widely spoken language in its 75 districts. Uttar Pradesh is the fourth largest Indian state by economy, with a GDP of INR708000 crore (US$120 billion). Agriculture and service industries are the largest parts of the state's economy. The service sector comprises travel and tourism, hotel industry, real estate, insurance and financial consultancies.
Uttar Pradesh was home to powerful empires of ancient and medieval India, including Magadha, Nanda, Mauryan, Sunga, Kushan, Gupta, Gurjara, Rashtrakuta, Pala and Mughal empires. The two major rivers of the state, the Ganga and Yamuna, join at Allahabad and then flow as the Ganga further east. The state has several historical, natural, and religious tourist destinations, such as the Taj Mahal, Varanasi, Piprahwa, Kaushambi, Kanpur, Ballia, Shravasti, Kushinagar, Lucknow, Chitrakoot, Jhansi, Allahabad, Meerut and