INTRODUCTION
India, also known as Bharat or Hindustan, is one of the world's most culturally and geographically diverse regions. India is the most populous democracy and is home to about 17.5% of the global population. However, 2.42 percent of the Earth's surface is covered by the country.
GEOGRAPHICAL POSITION
India is situated entirely on the Indian Plate, a subcontinental slab that extends from the larger Indo-Australian Plate. Its geographical coordinates indicate that it is located north of the equator (at 8°4′ – 37°6′ N, 68°7′ – 97°25′ E). The landmass of this country is 3,287,263 square kilometres, making it the eighth largest on Earth (1,269,219 sq miles).
India is 3,214 kilometres (1,997 miles) long from north to south and 2,993 kilometres (1,575 miles) wide (1,860 miles). It has a land border that is 15,200 km (9,445 mi) long and a coastline that is 7,517 km (4,662 km) long (4,671 miles). India is surrounded by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Bay of Bengal to the east, and the Indian Ocean to the south. Cape Comorin is the most southern point of the Indian peninsula and its point of narrowing entry into the Indian Ocean. The southernmost point of India is located at 6.45 degrees north latitude on the Andaman & Nicobar Islands at Indira Point. The island nations of the Maldives, Sri Lanka, and Indonesia lie to the south of India. Sri Lanka is separated from India by the Palk Strait and the Gulf of Mannar. Indian territorial waters are located outside of international waters beyond a 12-nautical-mile (or 13.8-mile; 22.2-km) radius from the baseline designated for this purpose.
Most of India's northern border with China, Bhutan, and Nepal is formed by the Himalayas. It has a western border with Pakistan over the Punjab Plain and the Thar Desert. The Indo-Gangetic Plain's watershed region—which includes the Khasi hills and the Mizo hills, both of which are located in India's far northeast—defines the political border between India and Bangladesh. India's largest river is the Ganges, which cuts through the country's huge Indo-Gangetic Plain. The Deccan Plateau dominates southern India, whereas the Ganges-Brahmaputra system is more important in northern, central, and eastern India. Its western border is formed by the Thar Desert, the seventh largest desert in the world. Despite its location in Gilgit-Baltistan, which is part of the disputed Kashmir area, K-2 is officially the highest peak in India, standing at 8,611 m (28,251 ft). The 8,598-meter (28,209-foot) Kanchanjunga in Sikkim is part of India's current borders. The climate of India ranges from tropical in the southernmost.