About 1 billion. At current rates the population will grow to 1.5 billion within 30 years.

India has 23 official languages, with Hindi and English serving as the major lingua francas. There are an estimated 1,652 dialects spoken throughout the country.

Parliamentary Democracy. State governments are highly independent, making for a diversity of political environments throughout the country. For example, the government in the southern state of Kerala is socialist, while that of the northern state of Bihar closely resembles a feudal system. At the national level the Hindu Nationalist BJP lost power to the more moderate Congress Party in 2004. Voter turnout for that election was about 60%, comparable to turnout in the US's 2004 Presidential election. India ranks low on the 2008 Corruption Perceptions Index, coming in at number 85 out of 180 rankings

Within India's 80% Hindu population there are millions of sects, whose practices, beliefs and levels of orthodoxy vary widely. Though India's Muslims make up only 13% of the population, the country is home to one of the largest populations of Muslims in the world. Other significant religious groups include Christians (2.3%) and Sikhs (1.9%) - including current Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. There are also Jains, Buddhists, Zoroastrians, Bahais, and believers in tribal animist religions. While ethnic tensions between Muslims and Hindus have sometimes erupted in violence and the two groups live largely segregated from each other, recent years have seen a decline in conflicts.

Sixty percent of India's population is literate; the rate falls to just under 50% for the female population. Abortion is legal, and 43% of women of childbearing age use a modern method of contraception. Maternal mortality is high, with 540 deaths per 100,000 births - 31 times that of the United States. HIV and AIDS prevalence among the adult population is reported at 0.9% - one and a half times that of the United States. Life expectancy is 69 years

India’s vast and growing population influences environmental and resource issues on many levels from air and water pollution - tap water is not potable throughout the country - to soil erosion and desertification.

Textiles, chemicals, food processing, steel, transportation equipment (it is interesting to note that India's service and software industries often make the news).

25% of the population lives below the official poverty line. The official poverty line is based on a minimum amount of calories necessary for survival. When converted to a dollar amount the line is defined between 7 and 10 dollars per person, per month.