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Government of India, Indian Union, States and Territories In India, Indian government
The Indian Union is a federation compris ing 27 States and 6 Union Territories. Each state, and some Union Territories, has its own Legislative Assembly and Government, headed by a Chief Minister. The Central (federal) government is headed by a Prime Minister and Council of Ministers (Cabinet) responsible to the two houses of Parliament: the Lok Sabha (the Council of the People) which is directly elected by the people on the basis of adult franchise: and the Rajya Sabha (the Council of State), an indirectly elected body which functions somewhat like those of the British House of Lords. The President and Vice-President are elected by an electoral college consisting of Members of Parliament and members of the State Legislatures.
Each state has its own legislature and is responsible for a number of administrative functions such as health, education, forests and surface transport (except railways).
Elections are normally held every five years but can, in certain situations, be called earlier. India has had nine general elections since it became an independent country in 1947.
With a well developed, democratic politi cal and administrative structure, a large skilled labor force and an adequate communications system, the country has made considerable progress since independence. Despite the agrarian bias of its economy
industry has grown enormously, placing India among the 15 top industrial nations of the world. Her relatively low level of exports is partly due to a large volume of domestic consumption. The per capital national in come, although meagre in comparison with the rest of the world, is a considerable im provement over 1947. In the matter of production of foodgrains particularly, the ad vance has been spectacular - once a chronically deficit area, India can now export foodgrains. |
Places to Visit in India
Bandhavgarh
If Kanha is Kipling's country, then Bandhavgarh is the jewel in Madhya Pradesh's crown. Situated at a distance of 195 km from Jabalpur and 225 km from Khajuraho, the Bandhavgarh National Park is a premier wildlife preserve in the Vindhya mountain range of Central India. It is a tiny park compared to Kanha but with nearly the same number of tigers and leopards, or at least that is the official figure. Besides tigers and leopards, Bandhavgarh is also extremely productive for medium-sized bison herds.
Bandhavgarh came into existence as a national park in 1968 with a core area of 105 sq. km, which was later extended to include two adjoining sal forests in 1986. Before becoming a national park, it was the game reserve of the Maharajas of Rewa. But due to loss of royal patronage, it remained neglected for a long time until the government declared it a national park to control rampant poaching in the area. Bandhavgarh has the highest density of tigers among all reserves in India and packs the same wealth of wildlife in a smaller area. It is famous as the original home of the white (albino) tiger, though this rare species has long become extinct here. Apart from tigers, Bandhavgarh is also famous for sloth bear sambar, chital, muntjac, nilgai, chinkara, and wild pigs. There are also interesting cave shrines scattered around the park, with Brahmi inscriptions dating from the first century B.C. You can visit the remains of the Bandhavgarh fort believed to be 2,000 years old. |
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