Indian Geography • Static GK
Basics of India for Students: Geography, States, Capitals & More
Location, size, important lines of latitude & longitude, straits, borders, states and union territories.
Perfect for school exams, competitive exams and quick revision.
Location of the Indian Subcontinent
The mainland of the Indian subcontinent (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan) extends:
- Latitudinal extent: 8°4′ N to 37°6′ N
- Longitudinal extent: 68°7′ E to 97°25′ E
The Tropic of Cancer (23½° N) passes almost through the middle of India.
From north to south, the subcontinent stretches for about 3,200 km, and from east to west for about 2,933 km.
The longitude 82°30′ E, known as the Standard Meridian of India, is used to calculate Indian Standard Time (IST).
Quick Facts – Indian Subcontinent
Approximate total area: 44.9 lakh km² (4.49 million km²)
- India: 32,87,263 km²
- Pakistan: 7,96,095 km²
- Bangladesh: 1,48,393 km²
- Nepal: 1,47,181 km²
- Bhutan: 46,500 km²
- Sri Lanka: 65,610 km²
Position and Extent of India
Location
India is located in South Asia, forming a large peninsula that projects into the Indian Ocean:
- Arabian Sea to the west
- Bay of Bengal to the east
- Indian Ocean to the south
Latitudinal & Longitudinal Extent
- Latitudes (mainland): 8°4′ N to 37°6′ N
- Longitudes: 68°7′ E to 97°25′ E
- Standard Meridian: 82°30′ E (for IST)
- Hemisphere: Entirely in the Northern and Eastern Hemispheres
Importance of India’s Location
- Located at the centre of the Indian Ocean – a key position on major sea routes.
- Connects West Asia, Africa, and Europe with South-East Asia and East Asia.
- Good location for trade, cultural contacts and strategic defence.
Size of India
India is the 7th largest country in the world with a total area of about
3.287 million km². It occupies around 2.4% of the world’s land area and is the
2nd most populous country after China. :contentReference[oaicite:2]{index=2}
- Approximate area: 32,87,263 km²
- North–South extent: about 3,214 km
- East–West extent: about 2,933 km
- Total coastline (mainland + islands): 7,516.6 km :contentReference[oaicite:3]{index=3}
- Area is roughly equal to Europe (excluding Russia).
- India is about eight times larger than Japan (commonly used competitive-exam comparison).
- India has about one-sixth of the world’s total population.
Important Geographical Points of India
| Easternmost longitude (mainland) | 97°25′ E |
|---|---|
| Westernmost longitude (mainland) | 68°7′ E |
| Northernmost latitude (mainland) | 37°6′ N |
| Southernmost latitude (mainland) | 8°4′ N |
| Southernmost point of India (including islands) | Indira Point, Great Nicobar Island |
| Southernmost tip of mainland India | Kanyakumari (Cape Comorin) |
| Largest state (area) | Rajasthan |
| Smallest state (area) | Goa |
| Total coastline of India | 7,516.6 km (including islands) |
| Share of world land area | About 2.4% |
| Water body separating India & Sri Lanka | Palk Strait and Gulf of Mannar |
| Hemisphere | Northern & Eastern Hemispheres |
| Island group in Arabian Sea | Lakshadweep Islands |
| Indian Standard Meridian | 82°30′ E |
Tropic of Cancer – States it passes through
It passes through 8 states (west to east):
Gujarat
Rajasthan
Madhya Pradesh
Chhattisgarh
Jharkhand
West Bengal
Tripura
Mizoram
Indian Standard Meridian (82°30′ E) passes through
Uttar Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh
Chhattisgarh
Odisha
Andhra Pradesh
State with Maximum Neighbouring States
Uttar Pradesh shares borders with 8 states:
Uttarakhand
Himachal Pradesh
Haryana
Rajasthan
Madhya Pradesh
Chhattisgarh
Jharkhand
Bihar
States / UTs with International Boundaries
| Neighbouring Country | Indian States / UTs sharing border |
|---|---|
| Pakistan | Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan, Gujarat |
| China | Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh |
| Nepal | Bihar, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Sikkim, West Bengal |
| Bangladesh | West Bengal, Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, Mizoram |
| Bhutan | West Bengal, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam |
| Myanmar | Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram |
| Afghanistan* | Jammu & Kashmir (through Pakistan-occupied areas – historic claim) |
*Afghanistan border lies in the Pakistan-occupied part of Jammu & Kashmir.
Important World Straits
Straits are narrow water bodies connecting two larger seas or oceans. They are very important for international trade and strategy.
| S. No. | Name of Strait | Connects | Countries / Region |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Malacca Strait | Andaman Sea & South China Sea | Between Indonesia & Malaysia |
| 2 | Palk Strait | Palk Bay & Bay of Bengal | Between India & Sri Lanka |
| 3 | Sunda Strait | Java Sea & Indian Ocean | Indonesia |
| 4 | Yucatan Strait | Gulf of Mexico & Caribbean Sea | Mexico & Cuba |
| 5 | Messina Strait | Mediterranean Sea | Italy & Sicily |
| 6 | Otranto Strait | Adriatic Sea & Ionian Sea | Italy & Albania |
| 7 | Bab-el-Mandeb | Red Sea & Gulf of Aden | Yemen & Djibouti |
| 8 | Cook Strait | South Pacific Ocean | Between North & South Islands of New Zealand |
| 9 | Mozambique Channel | Indian Ocean | Between Mozambique & Madagascar |
| 10 | North Channel | Irish Sea & Atlantic Ocean | Between Ireland & Great Britain |
| 11 | Torres Strait | Arafura Sea & Coral Sea / Gulf of Papua | Between Papua New Guinea & Australia |
| 12 | Bass Strait | Tasman Sea & Southern Ocean | Between mainland Australia & Tasmania |
| 13 | Bering Strait | Bering Sea & Chukchi Sea | Between Alaska (USA) & Russia |
| 14 | Bonifacio Strait | Mediterranean Sea | Between Corsica & Sardinia |
| 15 | Bosporus | Black Sea & Sea of Marmara | Turkey |
| 16 | Dardanelles | Sea of Marmara & Aegean Sea | Turkey |
| 17 | Davis Strait | Baffin Bay & Atlantic Ocean | Between Greenland & Canada |
| 18 | Denmark Strait | North Atlantic & Arctic Ocean | Between Greenland & Iceland |
| 19 | Dover Strait | English Channel & North Sea | Between England & France |
| 20 | Florida Strait | Gulf of Mexico & Atlantic Ocean | Between USA & Cuba |
| 21 | Hormuz Strait | Persian Gulf & Gulf of Oman | Between Iran & Oman |
| 22 | Hudson Strait | Hudson Bay & Atlantic Ocean | Canada |
| 23 | Gibraltar Strait | Mediterranean Sea & Atlantic Ocean | Between Spain & Morocco |
| 24 | Magellan Strait | Pacific Ocean & South Atlantic Ocean | Chile |
| 25 | Makassar Strait | Java Sea & Celebes Sea | Indonesia |
| 26 | Tsugaru Strait | Sea of Japan & Pacific Ocean | Between Hokkaido & Honshu (Japan) |
| 27 | Tatar Strait | Sea of Japan & Sea of Okhotsk | Between Russian mainland & Sakhalin Island |
States and Capitals of India (28 States)
Updated for 28 states and 8 Union Territories.
| S. No. | State | Capital Names | Year | Official Languages* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Andhra Pradesh | Amaravati | 2014 | Telugu |
| 2 | Arunachal Pradesh | Itanagar | 1987 | English |
| 3 | Assam | Dispur | 1950 | Assamese, Bodo |
| 4 | Bihar | Patna | 1950 | Hindi, Urdu |
| 5 | Chhattisgarh | Raipur | 2000 | Hindi, Chhattisgarhi (widely spoken) |
| 6 | Goa | Panaji | 1987 | Konkani, Marathi |
| 7 | Gujarat | Gandhinagar | 1960 | Gujarati |
| 8 | Haryana | Chandigarh | 1966 | Hindi, Punjabi |
| 9 | Himachal Pradesh | Shimla | 1971 | Hindi |
| 10 | Jharkhand | Ranchi | 2000 | Hindi, Urdu, Tribal Languages |
| 11 | Karnataka | Bengaluru | 1956 | Kannada |
| 12 | Kerala | Thiruvananthapuram | 1956 | Malayalam |
| 13 | Madhya Pradesh | Bhopal | 1956 | Hindi |
| 14 | Maharashtra | Mumbai | 1960 | Marathi |
| 15 | Manipur | Imphal | 1972 | Manipuri, English |
| 16 | Meghalaya | Shillong | 1972 | Khasi, Garo, English |
| 17 | Mizoram | Aizawl | 1987 | Mizo, English, Hindi |
| 18 | Nagaland | Kohima | 1963 | English |
| 19 | Odisha | Bhubaneswar | 1956 | Odia |
| 20 | Punjab | Chandigarh | 1950 | Punjabi |
| 21 | Rajasthan | Jaipur | 1956 | Hindi, Rajasthani dialects |
| 22 | Sikkim | Gangtok | 1975 | Nepali, English |
| 23 | Tamil Nadu | Chennai | 1950 | Tamil |
| 24 | Telangana | Hyderabad | 2014 | Telugu, Urdu |
| 25 | Tripura | Agartala | 1972 | Bengali, Kokborok, English |
| 26 | Uttar Pradesh | Lucknow | 1950 | Hindi, Urdu |
| 27 | Uttarakhand | Dehradun | 2000 | Hindi, Sanskrit |
| 28 | West Bengal | Kolkata | 1950 | Bengali, Hindi, Urdu etc. |
*Languages column is simplified for school-level and competitive-exam notes.
Union Territories and Capitals of India (8 UTs)
| S. No. | Union Territory | Capital | Year (as UT / latest form) | Major Official Languages* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Andaman and Nicobar Islands | Port Blair | 1956 | Hindi, English |
| 2 | Chandigarh | Chandigarh | 1966 | English, Hindi, Punjabi |
| 3 | Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu | Daman | 2020 (merged UT) | Gujarati, Hindi, English, Konkani |
| 4 | Delhi (NCT of Delhi) | New Delhi | 1956 (UT), 1992 (NCT) | Hindi, English, Punjabi, Urdu |
| 5 | Jammu and Kashmir | Srinagar (Summer), Jammu (Winter) | 2019 (UT) | Urdu, Hindi, Kashmiri, Dogri, English |
| 6 | Ladakh | Leh (admin), Kargil (2nd HQ) | 2019 (UT) | Bhoṭi (Ladakhi), Urdu, Hindi |
| 7 | Lakshadweep | Kavaratti | 1956 | Malayalam, Jeseri, Mahal, English, Hindi |
| 8 | Puducherry (Pondicherry) | Puducherry | 1963 | Tamil, French (heritage), Telugu, Malayalam, English |
*Language list simplified; some UTs recognise multiple regional languages.
📌 Tip for exams: Revise this whole page quickly one day before your test – focus especially on latitudes/longitudes, extreme points, important straits, and states & capitals.
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