India is the largest country in the Indian Subcontinent. It is the seventh largest country in the world by area and, with over a billion people, is second only to China in population. It´s an extremely diverse country, with vast differences in geography, climate, culture, language and ethnicity across its expanse, and prides itself on being the largest democracy on Earth.
India is administratively divided into 28 states and 7 union territories. These states and union territories are grouped by convention into the following regions:
Himalayan North - Mountainous and beautiful, a tourist destination for the adventurous and the spiritual. This region contains some of India´s most visited hill-stations and religious places. Also includes the exquisitely scenic states of Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Jammu and Kashmir.
The Plains - The country´s capital New Delhi is here. The river Ganga and Yamuna flows through this plain. Many of the events that shaped India´s history took place in this region.
Western India - Miles and miles of the Thar Desert. Home to the colorful palaces, forts and cities of Rajasthan, the country´s most vibrant and biggest city Mumbai (formerly known as Bombay), wonderful beaches and pristine forests of Goa and Bollywood (Indian film industry in Bombay).
Southern India - A strong bastion of indigenous culture, South India features famous and historical temples, tropical forests, backwaters in Kerala, beautiful hill stations in Tamil Nadu, beaches and cosmopolitan cities in Pondicherry, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh and the wonderful lush island groups of Andaman & Nicobar (on the east) and Lakshadweep on the west.
Eastern India - India´s mostly rural region, its largest city is Kolkata (formerly known as Calcutta), the temple cities of Puri of Lord Jagannath fame and Bhubaneswar are both in Orissa.
North-Eastern India - remote and sensitive, the country´s tribal corner, with beautiful landscapes and famous for Tea Gardens. Consists of seven tiny states (by Indian standards, some of them are larger than Switzerland or Austria) popularly nicknamed as the Seven Sisters.