Interesting Facts about India

Whenever we look at India at a glance, the first thing we notice is its rich culture and unique diversity.
"India is the cradle of the human race, the birthplace of human speech, the mother of history, the grandmother of legend, and the great grand mother of tradition. Our most valuable and most astrictive materials in the history of man are treasured up in India only!"
- By Mark Twain


1. India is the world's largest, oldest, continuous civilization.
2. India never invaded any country in her last 100000 years of history. India is one of the few countries in the World, which gained independence without violence.
3. The name 'India' is derived from the River Indus, the valleys around which were the home of the early settlers. The Aryan worshippers referred to the river Indus as the Sindhu.
4. UNESCO voted the Indian national Anthem "Jana Gana Mana" as the top national anthem in the world.
5. Chess, Algebra, Trigonometry and Calculus originated in India. The 'Place Value System' and the 'Decimal System' were developed in India in 100 B.C.
6. India has the largest number of Post Offices in the world.
7. Indian Railway is world’s largest employer with 1,646,704 staff
8. Ayurveda is the earliest school of medicine known to mankind.
9. Islam is India's and the world's second largest religion. There are 300,000 active mosques in India, more than in any other country, including the Muslim world.
10. India provides safety for more than 300,000 refugees originally from Sri Lanka, Tibet, Bhutan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh, who escaped to flee religious and political persecution.
11. Martial Arts were first created in India, and later spread to Asia by Buddhist missionaries. Yoga has its origins in India and has existed for over 5,000 years.
12. IEEE has proved what has been a century old suspicion in the world scientific community that the pioneer of wireless communication was Prof. Jagdish Bose and not Marconi.
13. The earliest reservoir and dam for irrigation was built in Saurashtra.
14. India is one of the few countries in the World, which gained independence without violence.
15. India has the second largest pool of Scientists and Engineers in the World.
16. India is the largest English speaking nation in the world.
17. India is the only country other than US and Japan, to have built a super computer indigenously.
18. The co-founder of Sun Microsystems is Vinod Khosla
19. According to the latest report on Fortune Magazine the third richest man on the world, is Azim Premji the CEO of Wipro Industries
20. Indians are the wealthiest among all ethnic groups in America and there are 3.22 million Indians in USA (1.5% of population).
Websites of interest
1. India-Resource - a web resource for India-related non-profit or non-commercial sites featuring Indian history, it's cultural legacy, news and analysis, and progressive activism.
2. Good News India - of positive action, steely endeavour and quiet triumphs - news that is little known.
3. Department of Tourism - Ministry of Tourism and Culture, India.