Voters wait in line to make their mark in recent elections.
It borders China, Nepal and Bhutan to the north; Afghanistan and Pakistan to the north-west; Myanmar and Bangladesh to the east; and Sri Lanka to the south.
India has a young population with approximately 65% in the age group of 15 to 64 years. The median age in the country is around 26.2 years, which is lower than many countries in the world.
India is a secular state and the largest democracy in the world with a parliamentary form of government. The Government of India (GoI), officially known as the Union Government, was established by the Constitution of India in 1950. The GoI is divided into three distinct but interrelated branches — the legislative, executive and judiciary.
Legislative branch
At the central level, India has a bicameral parliament comprising the Rajya Sabha (Council of States) and the Lok Sabha (House of the People). The primary function of the parliament is to pass laws on matters specified in the constitution to be under its jurisdiction.
At the state level, some states operate through a single Legislative Assembly while others have a bicameral structure and operate through a Legislative Assembly and a Legislative Council.
Executive branch
The executive arm comprises the president, the vice president and the Council of Ministers, headed by the prime minister.
The president of India is the head of the state and the commander-in-chief of the armed forces. The role of the president is primarily ceremonial in nature and he/she acts in accordance with the advice of the Council of Ministers. The current president of India is Pranab Mukherjee.
The vice president is the ex officio chairman of the Rajya Sabha and acts as the president when the latter is unable to discharge his/her duties. The current vice president of India is Mohammad Hamid Ansari. The real executive power of running the central government lies with the Council of Ministers led by the prime minister of India (collectively known as the Union Cabinet).
The prime minister is appointed by the president after the Lok Sabha elections, which take place every five years. The current prime minister of India is Dr Manmohan Singh.
Judicial branch
The Indian judiciary is independent of the executive. The Supreme Court is the top body in the judiciary branch and comprises the chief justice of India and 25 associate judges.
Apart from the Supreme Court, the judiciary consists of high courts at the state level and district courts at the district level.
Political parties
Major political parties in India include the Indian National Congress, the Bhartiya Janata Party, Janata Dal, Nationalist Congress Party, the All India Trinamool Congress, the Communist Party of India and the Samajwadi Party.
Transition
India has seen a systematic transition from being a closed door economy to an open economy since the beginning of economic reforms in the country in 1991. These reforms have had a far-reaching impact and have helped India unleash its enormous growth potential.
Today, the Indian economy is characterised by a liberalised foreign investment and trade policy, a significant role being played by the private sector and deregulation.
India has grown to become a trillion dollar economy with a largely self-sufficient agricultural sector, a diversified industrial base and stable financial and services sectors. India now ranks as the tenth-largest economy in the world and third-largest in terms of GDP on PPP basis.
Economy
India is well placed on the global map in terms of GDP growth. The country's GDP has been growing at an average rate of 8.5% for the last five years, higher than the world's real GDP growth rate, which averaged 4.3%.
However, real GDP growth declined in FY12 to 6.5% due to reduction in demand and fall in business confidence on account of the global economic slowdown. According to CMIE, the GDP in FY13 is expected to witness a revival and is projected to grow at 7.3%.
India continues to benefit from growing domestic demand from a young population, whose consumption is driving the formation of the expanding middle class. By 2025, India is expected to become the world's fifth-largest consuming country from its twelfth position in 2010.
Compared to other countries, India has been and continues to be relatively insulated from external shocks due to its strong domestic consumption pattern and savings culture. Savings as a percentage of GDP increased to 32.3% in FY11 from 23.5% in FY02.
Urbanisation and innovation have brought about a remarkable change in the lifestyles and consumption pattern of Indians. Private domestic consumption accounts for approximately 55% of the country's GDP and is one of the key factors driving international investments in the country.
India's economy has strong fundamentals and is host to several eminent global corporate giants that are leaders in their respective fields. According to the Global Competitiveness Report 2011-2012, India ranks at 56 among 142 countries.
The country ranks higher than many countries in key parameters such as market size (third) and innovation (38th). It also has a sound financial market, which ranks 21st in the world.
According to UNCTAD's World Investment Prospects Survey 2012–2014, India is the third-most attractive destination for foreign direct investment (FDI) in the world after China and the United States. Indian markets have significant potential and offer prospects of high profitability and a favourable regulatory regime for investors.
The services sector attracts the highest amount of foreign capital in India, totalling $32.8-billion between April 2000 and April 2012. Mauritius has been the largest source of FDI inflows into India for many years. Since April 2000, cumulative FDI inflows from Mauritius reached $64.8-billion in April 2012.
Other top investors in the country include the nations from the developed world such as the US, the United Kingdom, Singapore, Japan, Germany and the Netherlands. The country's foreign exchange reserves stood at $287.4-billion in June 2012.
Industrial contribution to GDP in India stood at $452-billion in FY12, up from $424-billion in FY11. The Industrial sector witnessed a growth of 1.9% in 4Q12. Industrial output is expected to grow by 5.8% in FY13 driven by a revival of mining output and acceleration in the growth of electricity generation.
India maintained an average gross domestic capital formation as a percentage of GDP at approximately 32% between FY02 and FY11. India has a robust, transparent and stable financial market, which has gradually transformed from a highly controlled system to one that is liberalised.
The RBI, established in 1935, is the central bank of India. The RBI regulates the credit market, the money market and the foreign exchange market in India.
It is responsible for formulating the monetary policy, issuing currency, prescribing exchange control norms and acting as a banker to other banks.
India has a strong credit market with a wide range of financial institutions such as commercial banks, regional rural banks, co-operative banks and non-banking financial corporations.
Indian commercial banks have outstanding advances of approximately 46.1-trillion Indian rupees (INR) and deposits of more than INR60.7-trillion, as of March 23 2012.
Although this article has been made possible by the Mail & Guardian's advertisers, content and photographs were sourced independently by the M&G supplements editorial team. It forms part of a larger supplement.