India

India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area; the most populous country in the world and, since its independence in 1947, the world's most populous democracy. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the southwest, and the Bay of Bengal on the southeast, it shares land borders with Pakistan to the west; China, Nepal and Bhutan to the north; Bangladesh and Myanmar to the east.

India is the largest country in South Asia, has many of the world's highest mountains, most populated cities, and longest rivers. As one of the great civilisations of the ancient world, once revered as 'the golden bird', India's heritage and culture are a rich amalgam of the past and present. This vast country, the most populous in the world, offers the traveller a view of fascinating religions and ethnography, a smorgasbord of languages, diverse food, and architectural masterpieces that were built millennia ago and remain intact today.