2. The official name of India is Republic of India. The Republic of India has three
principal short names, These names are India, Bharat and Hindustan.
It is the 17th largest country by area, the second largest country with population of
1.2 billion and the most populous democracy in the world. India is the home of
world Four religions- Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity, Sikhism.
It remained the colony of Britain from the mid of 19th century till it became an
independent nation in 1947 after struggle for independence.
3. Federal System:
Federal system of India is governed in terms of the constitution of India.
The nation is basically the union of 29 states and 7 Union territories that works
according to the Indian constitution, which was adopted on the 16th of November
1949.
President is the head of the Executive union.
The Prime Minister is the head of the council of ministers.
The real political and social power resides in the hands of the Prime Minister.
4. Legislature of union is called the parliament.
It consists of the Rajya Sabha(council of states),lok sabha (house of
people) and the office of president.
5. President Of India
The president is elected by the members of both houses of parliament and
legislative Assemblies of state.
Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces
President has the power of proclaiming emergency in the country if he/she is not
satisfied with the situation of the country.
The president also appoints the Prime Minister of the country.
6. The Vice-President is elected in the same way as the President,
and holds office for five years.
The Vice-President is Ex-officio Chairman of the Rajya Sabha.
The 12th vice-president is Dr. Mohd Hamid Ansari.
7. Council of Ministers
The Council of Ministers comprises Cabinet Ministers, Minister of States
(independent charge or otherwise) and Deputy Ministers.
The Cabinet Secretariat has an important coordinating role in decision making at
highest level and operates under direction of Prime Minister.
The Legislative Arm of the Union, called Parliament, consists of the President,
Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha. All legislation requires consent of both houses of
parliament.
8. Head of the government and the head of the council of ministers.
Appointed by the president on the basis of majority party in lok
sabha.
The prime minister is usually always in-charge/head of:
Appointments Committee of the Cabinet;
Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions;
Ministry of Planning;
Department of Atomic Energy; and
Department of Space.
The 15th prime minister is Narendra Modi.
9. The Rajya Sabha consists of 245 members. Of these, 233 represent
states and union territories and 12 members are nominated by the
President.
Elections to the Rajya Sabha are indirect; members are elected by
the elected members of Legislative Assemblies of the concerned
states.
The Rajya Sabha is not subject to dissolution, one third of its
members retire every second year
10. The Lok Sabha is composed of representatives of the people
chosen by direct election on the basis of universal adult suffrage.
The Lok Sabha consists of 545 members with 2 members
nominated by the President to represent the Anglo-Indian
Community.
The curruent lok sabha is the 16th constituted lok sabha.
11. State Governments:
The system of government in states closely resembles that of the Union.
There are 29 states and 7 Union territories in the country.
Union Territories are administered by the President through an
Administrator appointed by him.
Political System:
A recognized political party has been classified as a National Party or a
State Party.
If a political party is recognized in four or more states, it is considered as a
National Party.
12. Judicial System:
The Supreme Court is the apex court in the country.
The High Court stands at the head of the state's judicial administration.
Each state is divided into judicial districts presided over by a district and
sessions judge, who is the highest judicial authority in a district.
Supreme Court:
The Supreme Court has original, appellate and advisory jurisdiction.
The Supreme Court of India comprises of the Chief Justice and not more
than 25 other Judges appointed by the President.
Judges hold office till 65 years of age.
13. High Courts:
There are 24 High Courts in the country, three having jurisdiction over more than
one state
The Chief Justice of a High Court is appointed by the President in consultation
with the Chief Justice of India and the Governor of the state.
High Court judges retire at the age of 62.
14. It is the only state in India which enjoys special autonomy under the article 370 of
constitution of India.
According to which no law can be enacted by the parliament of India excepts in
field of defense, communication and foreign policy.
Indians from other state can’t purchase property in J&K.
15. Members of the 16th Lok Sabha were elected during the 2014
Indian general election.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (of the NDA) achieved an absolute
majority with 282 seats out of 543
Its PM candidate Narendra Modi took office on the 26th of May
2014 as the 15th prime minister of independent India.
Speaker: Sumitra Mahajan
16. Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)
Defence – 26% to 49%
Insurance- 26%to 49%
Railways- 49% to 100%
Special Investigation Team
In its first decision after taking charge, Prime Minister Narendra
Modi's government announced the formation of a Special
Investigation Team (SIT) to probe black money, mostly stashed
abroad.
17. Cleanliness
In a bid to clean the river Ganga, the Modi government has set aside
Rs 2,037 crore.
Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana
Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana(Hindi: प्रधानमंत्री जन धन योजना,
English: Prime Minister's People Funding Scheme) is an ambitious
scheme for comprehensive financial inclusion launched by the Prime
Minister of India, Narendra Modi on 28 August 2014. He had
announced this scheme on his first Independence Day speech on 15
August 2014.
18. India-Bhutan relations
The Indian Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi chose Bhutan as his
first foreign destination, placing regional co-operation before global
co-operation. He had inaugurated the Supreme Court Complex in
Bhutan and also promised help to Bhutan on IT and digital sector.
India-United States relations
Modi delivered his maiden speech in the sixty-ninth session of the United
Nations General Assembly on 27 September 2014, where he called for
reform and expansion of United Nations Security Council including
India's long standing demand of a permanent membership.