25 states and 7 union territories*; Andaman and Nicobar Islands*, Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chandigarh*, Dadra and Nagar Haveli*, Daman and Diu*, Delhi*, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Kerala, Lakshadweep*, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Orissa, Pondicherry*, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal

Independence:

15 August 1947 (from UK)

National holiday:

Anniversary of the Proclamation of the Republic, 26 January (1950)

Constitution:

26 January 1950

Legal system:

based on English common law; limited judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

Suffrage:

18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:

chief of state:

President Kicheril Raman NARAYANAN

head of government:

Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee

cabinet:

Council of Ministers; appointed by the president on recommendation of the prime minister

Legislative branch:

bicameral Parliament (Sansad)

Council of States (Rajya Sabha):

body consisting of not more than 250 members, up to 12 appointed by the president, the remainder chosen by the elected members of the state and territorial assemblies

People's Assembly (Lok Sabha)

Women's Share of Seats in Parliament:

Judicial branch:

Supreme Court

Political parties and leaders:

Congress (I) Party, P. V. Narasimha RAO, president; Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), L.K. ADVANI; Janata Dal Party, S.R. BOMMAI; Janata Dal (Ajit), Ajit SINGH; Janata Dal (Ex-Ajit), leader NA; Communist Party of India/Marxist (CPI/M), Harkishan Singh SURJEET; Communist Party of India (CPI), Indrajit GUPTA; Telugu Desam (a regional party in Andhra Pradesh), N. T. Rama RAO; All-India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazagham (AIADMK; a regional party in Tamil Nadu), Jayaram JAYALALITHA; Samajwadi Party (SP), Mulayam Singh YADAV (President), Om Prakash CHAUTALA, Devi LAL; Shiv Sena, Bal THACKERAY; Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP), Tridip CHOWDHURY; Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Kanshi RAM; Congress (S) Party, leader NA; Communist Party of India/Marxist-Leninist (CPI/ML), Vinod MISHRA; Dravida Munnetra Kazagham (a regional party in Tamil Nadu), M. KARUNANIDHI; Akali Dal factions representing Sikh religious community in the Punjab; National Conference (NC; a regional party in Jammu and Kashmir), Farooq ABDULLAH; Bihar Peoples Party, Lovely ANAND; Samta Party (formerly Janata Dal members), Natish KUMAR; Indian National League, Suliaman SAIT; Kerala Congress (Mani faction), K.M. MANI; All India Forward Bloc (AIFB), Prem Dutta PALIWAL (Chairman), Chitta BASU (General Secretary)

Other political or pressure groups:

various separatist groups seeking greater communal and/or regional autonomy; numerous religious or militant/chauvinistic organizations, including Adam Sena, Ananda Marg, Vishwa Hindu Parishad, and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh

Member of:

AfDB, AG (observer), AsDB, C, CCC, CP, ESCAP, FAO, G- 6, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), PCA, SAARC, UN, UNAVEM II, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNOMIL, UNOMOZ, UNOSOM, UNU, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in US:

chief of mission:

Ambassador Siddhartha Shankar RAY

chancery:

2107 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:

[1] (202) 939-7000

consulate(s) general:

Chicago, New York, and San Francisco

US diplomatic representation:

chief of mission:

Ambassador Frank G. WISNER

embassy:

Shanti Path, Chanakyapuri 110021, New Delhi

mailing address:

use embassy street address

telephone:

[91] (11) 600651

FAX:

[91] (11) 6872028

consulate(s) general:

Bombay, Calcutta, Madras

Flag:

three equal horizontal bands of orange (top), white, and green with a blue chakra (24-spoked wheel) centered in the white band; similar to the flag of Niger, which has a small orange disk centered in the white band