Author: Nelema Cona

Population – The population of  India is over 1.4 billion people, making it the second most populous country. This large population is rich in cultural, linguistic, and religious diversity, with over 2,000 distinct ethnic groups and more than 1,600 languages. Rapid urbanization and economic development have led to major demographic shifts, with an increasing percentage of the population living in cities. Although India has made progress in education and healthcare, challenges such as poverty, resource allocation, and environmental sustainability remain, making population management a critical issue for the country’s future. Between 1951 and 1961, the Muslim population in India grew by 32.7%, outpacing the overall growth rate of 21.6%. However, the growth gap has decreased since then. From 2001 to 2011, Muslims grew by 24.7%, while Hindus grew by 17.7%, a difference of 7 percentage points. Meanwhile, the Christian population grew the slowest at 15.7% during the same period, significantly lower than the 29.0% growth seen in the decade after Partition.

Demographic – “Of or relating to the study of changes that occur in large groups of people over some time: of or relating to demography” (Britannica dictionary). 

As of September 29, 2024, India’s population consists of approximately 1.45 billion people. (Worldometer, 2024). The country’s demographic as it relates to religion is not far from a monocultural society with over 80% of the population identifying as Hindu and more than 14% as Muslim. India is home to the world’s third-largest Muslim population (Statista, 2024). Projections indicate that India is on track to surpass China as the world’s most populous country by 2030, this highlights the ever-growing and ongoing demographic shifts that may influence various sectors (Statista, 2024). 

India is rich in natural resources and has seen steady GDP growth of around 5.8% for 20 consecutive years. The service sector is crucial to GDP (Fiksel et al., 2021). Indian It companies provide services worldwide. Agriculture provides food and employment for many of the population (Kumar et al., 2020). Indian Textile Corporation is one of the largest textile companies in the world, with operations ranging from fiber production to ready-made garments. These include cotton, wool, silk, and synthetic textiles, making them important to domestic consumption and international exports. The balance of payments crisis of 1991 prompted the Indian government to liberalize the economy, moving toward a free market that encourages foreign investment and trade. Some of India’s natural resources include, mica, diamonds, natural gas, oil, arable land, and chromite are among the minerals found in the region. 

In addition to these products,  India has a wide range of indigenous products it can sell to the United States, such as textiles, and wooden crafts. The India textiles segment is estimated at $ 16 bn, representing about 6% of the global market. In addition to highlighting Indian culture, these products also appeal to consumers looking for sustainability and uniqueness. India can sell products to the United States by expanding trade relations with countries like Bangladesh and Nepal. The existing level of competition in the textile domain between the two countries is high. Collaborating for sustainable fashion initiatives certainly can bring unique products to the market in the United States.  With Indian craftsmanship and Bangladeshi manufacturing, both countries can produce environmentally friendly quality clothing. The Partnerships between The data also showed that the country missed its export target of $33.785 billion by 6.89%. A category-wise comparison showed that knitwear exports grew 21.94 percent to $16.960 billion in July 2020-21 as against $13.908 billion in the previous fiscal, the data showed.  

India’s huge size and diverse geography make its Climate highly variable. This country has six main climate categories that contribute to its climatic variation. The southern region—Kerala and parts of Karnataka—has a tropical wet climate (United Nations, n.d.). This area has year-round high temperatures and abundant precipitation. Central and northern India have tropical wet and dry climates. The rainy and dry seasons are distinct (Brahmananda Rao et al., 2021). The Southwest Monsoon causes heavy rain from June through September. The dry season, from October to May, is cooler and drier. Gujarat, Rajasthan, and the Deccan Plateau have semi-arid climates. Summers are hot, and winters are frigid in these places. Rajasthan’s west is arid (Salunke et al., 2023). Summer heat and scant rainfall define this area

 The Indo-Gangetic lowlands and northern India are subtropical and humid. Summers are hot, monsoons are wet, and winters are mild. Alpine climates dominate the Himalayas (Monsoon & Gupta, n.d.). The winters in these areas are cold and snowy. India’s Southwest Monsoon, from June to September, is a major weather trend. Precipitation keeps agricultural and water resources alive. (Yale Program on climate change communication, 2022). However, certain regions may flood.