Introduction

Introduction India is the seventh largest country in the world. It is separated by the Himalayas from the rest of the continent. India accounts for about . % of the total area of the world with an area of , , sq.km, many of the India states are larger than several countries of the world. India’s Land and Water Frontiers India shares its , km long land frontier with Pakistan and Afghanistan in the north-west, China, Nepal and Bhutan in the north and Bangladesh and Myanmar in the east. India’s longest border is with Bangladesh ( km)while the shortest border is with Afghanistan.( km) About , km long coastline of India is washed on three sides of the country by the Indian Ocean and its two arms namely the Arabian sea in the west and the Bay of Bengal in the east. The total length of the coast line of India including the islands is , . km. India and Sri Lanka are separated by a narrow and shallow sea called Palk Strait. India and the World The Indian land mass has a central location between, the East and the West Asia and the southward extension of the Asian continent. The Trans-Indian ocean routes which connect the countries of Europe in the west and the countries of East Asia provide a strategic central location to India. Thus, it helps India to establish close trade contact with West Asia, Africa and Europe from the western coast and with Southeast, East Asia from the eastern coast. India: A Subcontinent India along with the countries of Myanmar, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka is called a subcontinent. This region possesses a distinct continental characteristics in physiography, climate, natural vegetation, minerals, human resources etc. Hence India is known as ‘ subcontinent’ .