About This Region
The Republic of India, commonly known as India, is the largest country in the South Asian subcontinent. In the northeast, it borders China, Nepal, and Bhutan; Bangladesh lies between its northeastern territories; to the east, it neighbors Myanmar; to the southeast, it faces Sri Lanka across the sea; and to the northwest, it borders Pakistan. It faces the Bay of Bengal to the east and the Arabian Sea to the west, with a coastline of 5,560 kilometers.India is the world's second most populous country, one of today's BRICS nations, and one of the fastest-growing countries in the world. India's economy is diversified, covering agriculture, handicrafts, textiles, and services. India is also an important global exporter of services such as software and finance. However, it is also a developing country with extremely uneven distribution of social wealth, and the caste system remains a relatively acute issue.In terms of water transport, there are 12 major ports, including Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai (formerly Madras), Kochi, and Goa, which handle three-quarters of freight volume. Mumbai is the largest port, through which one-fifth of maritime shipping and one-half of container transport pass. Its maritime capacity ranks 18th in the world.India's main export commodities are: manufactured goods mainly including textiles, jewelry, machinery products, chemical products, leather, and handicrafts; primary products mainly including agricultural products and mineral products; petroleum products mainly including refined oil, crude oil, and petroleum products.India's main import commodities are: petroleum products, electronic products, gold and silver, machinery, and chemical products.The United States is the largest trading partner. China ranks second. Other major trading partners include Germany, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, France, Iran, Japan, Hong Kong, China, and others.