2. ECONOMIC CONDITIONS OF INDIA
India is one of world’s fastest growing economies. Apart from
China, no other country has as high an economic growth rate as India.
This country offers several economic advantages to its nationals as
well as foreign investors. India’s economic boom has been made
possible mainly through its information technology and outsourcing
business. India’s rise as an Asian economic powerhouse has been quite
remarkable. Economic conditions in India are now favorable for a
wider cross section of people.
India GDP (purchasing power parity) stood at around $2965 billion, as
per CIA’s 2007 estimates, of which services accounted for maximum
percentage, followed by industry and agriculture. As per CIA
estimates, total Indian exports totaled $140.8 billion and total
imports totaled about $224 billion.
With economic liberalization of India in 1990s, this nation began to
generate a lot of interest among foreign investors. A rapidly
developing economy coupled with national government’s favorable
attitude towards foreign investors , have generated a lot of revenue
for India foreign direct investments.
3. NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS IN INDIA
• Nuclear power is the fourth-largest source of electricity in India after thermal,
hydro and renewable sources of electricity. As of 2010, India has 19 nuclear power
plants in operation generating 4,560 MW while 4 other are under construction and
are expected to generate an additional 2,720 MW. India is also involved in the
development of fusion reactors through its participation in the ITER project.
• Since early 1990s, Russia has been a major source of nuclear fuel to India Due to
dwindling domestic uranium reserves, electricity generation from nuclear power in
India declined by 12.83% from 2006 to 2008.Following a waiver from the Nuclear
Suppliers Group in September 2008 which allowed it to commence international
nuclear trade, India has signed nuclear deals with several other countries including
France, United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Namibia, Mongolia, Argentina,
Kazakhstan. In February 2009, India also signed a US$700 million deal with Russia
for the supply of 2000 tons nuclear fuel.
• India now envisages to increase the contribution of nuclear power to overall
electricity generation capacity from 4.2% to 9% within 25 years. In 2010, India's
installed nuclear power generation capacity will increase to 6,000 MW. As of 2009,
India stands 9th in the world in terms of number of operational nuclear power
reactors and is constructing 9 more, including two EPRs being constructed by
France's Arena. Indigenous atomic reactors include TAPS-3, and -4, both of which
are 540 MW reactors. India's US$717 million fast breeder reactor project is
expected to be operational by 2010.
4. INDIAN ARMED FORCES
• The Indian Armed Forces are the military forces of the Republic of India
encompassing the Indian Army, the Indian Navy, the Indian Air Force and
various other inter-service institutions.
• The Indian military currently employs some 1,325,000 Regular
troops, 1,155,000 Reserve troops and 1,293,300 Paramilitary troops (total of
3,773,300 troops), thus giving India the third-largest standing military in the
world as of 2006 after the People's Republic of China. Auxiliary services
include the Indian Coast Guard, the Central Paramilitary Forces (CPF) and the
Strategic Forces Command. India's official defense budget stands at US$32
billion but the actual spending on the armed forces is estimated to be much
higher than that Undergoing rapid expansion and modernization the Indian
Armed Forces plans to have an active military space program and is currently
developing a missile defense shield and nuclear triad capability. The Armed
Forces of India possess nuclear weapons and operate short and intermediate-
range ballistic missiles as well as nuclear-capable aircraft, and naval vessels.
• India is moving to build a 9,970.16 crore (US$2.2 billion) dedicated, highly
secure and state-of-the-art optical fiber cable (OFC) network for the
Army, Navy and Air Force. This will be one of the world's largest, closed user
group (CUG) networks for exclusive use by the million-plus personnel of the
Indian armed forces.
5. EDUCATION IN INDIA
• Education in India is mainly provided by the public sector, with control and funding coming from
three levels: federal, state, and local. Child education is compulsory. The Nalanda University was
the oldest university-system of education in the world. Western education became ingrained into
Indian society with the establishment of the British Raj. Education in India falls under the control of
both the Union Government and the states, with some responsibilities lying with the Union and
the states having autonomy for others. The various articles of the Indian Constitution provide for
education as a fundamental right. Most universities in India are Union or State Government
controlled.
• India has made a huge progress in terms of increasing primary education attendance rate and
expanding literacy to approximately two thirds of the population. India's improved education
system is often cited as one of the main contributors to the economic rise of India Much of the
progress in education has been credited to various private institutions. The private education
market in India is estimated to be worth $40 billion in 2008 and will increase to $68 billion by 2012
However, India continues to face stern challenges. Despite growing investment in education, 35%
of its population is still illiterate; only 15% of Indian students reach high school, and just 7%
graduate. As of 2008, India's post-secondary high schools offer only enough seats for 7% of India's
college-age population, 25% of teaching positions nationwide are vacant, and 57% of college
professors lack either a master's or PhD degree As of 2007, there are 1522 degree-granting
engineering colleges in India with an annual student intake of 582,000 plus 1,244 polytechnics with
an annual intake of 265,000. However, these institutions face shortage of faculty and concerns
have been raised over the quality of education
6. PROBLEMS FACING INDIA TODAY:-
OVERPOPULATION, ILLITERACY, CORRUPTION
India is one of the most poorest countries in the world. A new
multidimensional poverty Index shows that India is far poorer than Africa
in both intensity and in number. The Multidimensional Poverty Index
developed by Oxford University (which will appear in the upcoming UNDP
human development report) shows that India is far poorer than Africa not
just in number but also in intensity. The new poverty measure shows that 8
states in India have more poor people than 26 poorest African countries
combined. The Multidimensional poverty index views poverty from several
different angles instead of just GDP figures. India like any other developing
country is crippled by so many problems. For example, India's population
growth rate is increasing by the day putting pressure on the limited
resources and leaving many Indians in absolute poverty. India is very poor
in terms of education, in terms of economic improvement, infrastructure,
heath care, etc. Here are some of the problems facing India today.