Forex In Indien Wiki

Internationale Präsenz: beliebige Bank bevorzugen 18.01.2017 Update für Cent-Accounts: neuer Server und erhöhte Auftragsvolumen 23.12.2016 Frohe Weihnachten und einen guten Rutsch ins neue Jahr 30.11.2016 Neuer Schritt in der Entwicklung unseres Unternehmens - Europas Lizenz 28.11.2016 Neues Partnerprogramm - Pro STP Markup 25.07.2016 Änderungen der ProSTP-Konten 17.06.2016 Änderungen der Margin-Anforderungen 15.06.2016 Forex4you Contest-Ergebnisse 01.04.2016 Über 20.000.000 Aufträge wurden im Share4you-Service kopiert 23.03.2016 Willkommen Neueste und höchste Leverage - 1: 2000 28.12.2015 Forex4you wünscht Ihnen frohe Weihnachten und ein glückliches neues Jahr Daily Forex Video für Partner Über Firma First Floor, Mandar House, Johnsons Ghut, PO (E-Global Trade Finance Group, Inc.) E-Global Trade Finance Group, Inc. ist zugelassen und reguliert Von der FSC nach dem Securities and Investment Business Act, 2010 Lizenz: SIBAL121027. Die Jahresabschlüsse der E-Global Trade Finance Group, Inc. werden jährlich von KPMG (BVI) Limited geprüft. Der Handel auf dem Forex-Markt beinhaltet erhebliche Risiken, einschließlich vollständiger möglicher Verlust von Geldern. Der Handel ist nicht für alle Anleger und Händler geeignet. Durch die Erhöhung des Risikos erhöht sich das Risiko (Hinweis auf Risiko). Der Service ist nicht verfügbar für Einwohner der USA, Großbritannien und Japan. Forex4you ist im Besitz und betrieben von E-Global Trade Finance Group, Inc, BVI.160 160 160 101 für Feuer 160 160 160 102 für medizinische Indien (Sanskrit. Hindi, Bhrat) ist das größte Land im indischen Subkontinent und Aktien grenzt an Pakistan im Westen, China und Nepal im Norden, Bhutan im Nordosten und Bangladesch und Myanmar im Osten. Sri Lanka liegt im Süden, Malediven im Südwesten und Indonesien im Südosten Indiens im Indischen Ozean. Indien ist das siebtgrößte Land der Welt nach Gebiet und mit über einer Milliarde Menschen ist an zweiter Stelle nach China in der Bevölkerung, obwohl seine viel höhere Geburtenrate macht es wahrscheinlich Pole Position in weniger als zehn Jahren zu erreichen. Es ist ein äußerst vielfältiges Land mit großen Unterschieden in Geographie, Klima, Kultur, Sprache und ethnischer Herkunft und ist stolz darauf, die größte Demokratie der Welt zu sein. Verstehen Edit Wir leben in einer wundervollen Welt voller Schönheit, Charme und Abenteuer. Es gibt kein Ende für die Abenteuer, die wir haben können, wenn wir sie nur mit offenen Augen suchen. 8212 Jawaharlal Nehru Indias Kultur und Erbe sind ein reiches Amalgam aus Vergangenheit und Gegenwart. Dieses riesige Land bietet dem Besucher einen Überblick über faszinierende Religionen und Ethnographien, eine Vielzahl von Sprachen mit mehr als 438 Sprachen und Denkmäler, die seit Tausenden von Jahren präsent sind. Als es eine globalisierte Welt eröffnet, hat Indien noch eine Tiefe der Geschichte und Intensität der Kultur, die fasziniert die vielen, die dort zu besuchen. Indien bleibt eines der am schnellsten wachsenden Volkswirtschaften und eines der am schnellsten entwickelten Länder. Es gilt als eine aufstrebende Supermacht. Daher ist Ihr Besuch in der Tat eine interessante. Geschichte Edit Hindu Pilger Baden auf Varanasi Mesolithic Standorten gehören die Bhimbetka Felsvorhänge in Zentralindien, Madhya Pradesh, die 300.000 Jahre alt sind. Indianer datieren die Vedische Periode als eine der bedeutenden Rolle in der indischen Gesellschaft, die Gelehrten Platz in der zweiten und ersten Jahrtausende v. Chr. Bis zum 6. Jahrhundert v. Chr., Basierend auf literarischen Beweisen. Dies ist die Zeit der Veden. Eines der ältesten und bedeutendsten Bücher des Hinduismus. Wurden erstellt. Die frühesten archäologischen Spuren sind von 7000 v. Chr. In Mehrgarh. Die wuchs, um die Indus-Tal-Zivilisation zu sein. Um 3300 v. Chr. Hatte diese Zivilisation gut geplante Städte und gut gepflasterte Straßen, gab aber keine Beweise für Waffen oder Befestigungen. Dieser Rückgang und Zerfall um 1900 v. Chr., Möglicherweise aufgrund von Dürre und geologische Störungen. Die meisten Historiker sagen, dass das vedische Volk, oder Arier, waren später Migranten, die eine Zivilisation im Niedergang begegnet und vielleicht beeilte diesen Niedergang. Nach dieser Ansicht besetzten die Vedischen schließlich den Großteil Nordindiens, während die Nachkommen der Indus-Talkulturen nach Süden zogen und die Dravidenkultur auslösten. Die Minderheitenansicht fordert diese arische Migrationstheorie heraus und behauptet, dass die Menschen im Industal tatsächlich diejenigen waren, die die Veden kompilierten. Die vedische Zivilisation beeinflusst Indien bis heute. Der heutige Hinduismus verfolgt seine Wurzeln zu den Veden, ist aber auch stark von der Literatur beeinflusst, die später wie die Upanishaden kam. Die Puranas. Die großen Epen 8212 Ramayana und Mahabharata. Und die Bhagavad Gita. Traditionell behaupten diese Bücher, nur das in den Veden bereits vorhandene Wissen auszubauen und zu destillieren. Einige Rituale des Hinduismus haben in dieser Zeit Gestalt angenommen. Die meisten nordindischen Sprachen kommen aus dem Sanskrit, der Sprache der Veden, und sind Teil der indoeuropäischen Sprachgruppe. Im 1. Jahrtausend v. Chr. Entwickelten sich verschiedene Denkschulen in der Philosophie, die den Hinduismus stark bereicherten. Die meisten von ihnen behaupteten, von den Veden ableiten. Doch drei dieser Schulen - Sikhism. Buddhismus und Jainismus - die Autorität der Veden in Frage stellen und sie nun als getrennte Religionen anerkannt werden. Viele große Imperien wurden zwischen 500160BC und AD160500 gebildet. Bemerkenswert waren unter ihnen die Mauryas und die Guptas. In dieser Zeit gab es große mathematische und astronomische Fortschritte, von denen viele ihrer Zeit voraus waren und später im Westen wiederentdeckt wurden. Insbesondere argumentierte Aryabhata, dass die Erde eine Kugel war, die um ihre Achse rotiert und sich um die Sonne dreht. Er entwickelte auch einen Kalender, der bis heute gefolgt wird. Diese Periode sah auch einen allmählichen Rückgang des Buddhismus und Jainismus. Die Praxis des Buddhismus, insbesondere, verschwand aus Indias Herzland, obwohl Buddha selbst in das Hindu-Pantheon aufgenommen wurde. Der Jainismus wird nach wie vor von einer bedeutenden Anzahl praktiziert, die ambivalent sind, ob sie sich für Hindus halten oder nicht. Der Hinduismus selbst erlebte bedeutende Veränderungen. Die Bedeutung vedischer Gottheiten wie Indra und Agni verringerte sich und puranische Gottheiten wie Vishnu, Shiva, ihre verschiedenen Avatare und Familienmitglieder gewannen an Bedeutung. Islamische Einfälle begannen im 8. Jahrhundert. Allmählich begannen die Räuber als Herrscher zu bleiben, und bald wurde viel von Nordindien von Muslimen regiert. Die wichtigsten muslimischen Herrscher waren die Moguln. Der ein Reich bildete, das auf seinem Höhepunkt fast den gesamten Subkontinent (außer den südlichen und östlichen Extremitäten) bedeckte, während die große hinduistische Kraft, die im Norden überlebte, die Rajputs waren. Die Tapferkeit der Rajputs im Widerstand gegen Invasion ihres Landes ist legendär und gefeiert in Balladen überall in den Festungen von Rajasthan. Prominent unter den Rajputs wes Rana Pratap. Der Herrscher von Chittorgarh. Die verbrachte Jahre im Exil Kämpfen Akbar. Der dritte der Mughals. Irgendwann wurden die Rajputen unterdrückt, und die Rajput-Mughal-Allianz blieb bis zum Ende des Imperiums stark. Diese Periode von Nordindien war das goldene Zeitalter für indische Kunst, Architektur und Literatur und produzierte die monumentalen Edelsteine ​​von Rajasthan und dem Taj Mahal. Hindi und Urdu wurzelten auch im mittelalterlichen Nordindien. Während der islamischen Zeit, einige Hindus auch zum Islam konvertiert, einige aufgrund von Gewalt, einige durch Anreize, und einige, um die Kaste-System zu entkommen. Heute sind 13 der indischen Bevölkerung Muslime. Sikhismus Eine weitere große Religion, wurde in Punjab während der Mughal Periode gegründet. Die Beziehungen zwischen dem Sikhismus und den Mogulen schwankten im Laufe der Zeit. Der Goldene Tempel in Amritsar wurde von dem vierten Guru, Guru Ram Das Ji, gebaut. Zur Zeit seines zehnten Guru - Guru Gobind Singh. Jedoch waren die Beziehungen feindlich. Der Konflikt zwischen den Sikhs und den Moguln war eine der Ursachen für den eventuellen Niedergang des Mogulreiches. Die andere Ursache war die Herausforderung der Marathas in Maharashtra. Die von Shivaji gestartet und von der Peshwas weitergeführt wurde. Die Marathas errichteten eine kurzlebige Konföderation, die fast so groß war wie das Mogulreich. Marathas verloren ihr Kommando über Indien nach der dritten Schlacht von Panipat, die wiederum einen Weg für den britischen Kolonialismus gelegt. Südindien folgte einer anderen Bahn, die von der islamischen Herrschaft weniger betroffen war. Der Zeitraum von 500160AD bis 1600160AD heißt die klassische Periode von großen südindischen Reiche dominiert. Prominent waren unter ihnen die Chalukyas. Rashtrakutas und Vijayanagara Imperien, die vom heutigen Karnataka und den Pallavas herrschten. Cheras Pandyas und Cholas, die vom heutigen Tamil Nadu amp Kerala regierten. Unter ihnen sind die Cholas weithin anerkannt, um die mächtigsten der südindischen Königreiche zu sein, mit ihrem Territorium, das sich so weit nördlich wie Pataliputra ausdehnt und deren Einfluss sich so weit nach Osten wie Sumatra, Westborneo und Südvietnam auf dem Höhepunkt ihrer Macht ausbreitet. Einige der größten Hindu - und Jain-Denkmäler, die in Indien existieren, wurden während dieser Zeit in Süd - und Ostindien gebaut. Die europäischen Händler begannen im späten 16. Jahrhundert Indien zu besuchen. Prominent waren unter ihnen die Engländer, Franzosen und Portugiesen. Die britische Ostindien-Firma bildete Kalkutta ihren Hauptsitz 1772. Sie stellten auch Städte der Städte wie Bombay und Madras her. Kalkutta ging später auf die zweite Stadt des Imperiums nach London zu werden. Im 19. Jahrhundert hatten die Briten die eine oder andere Weise die politische Kontrolle über praktisch ganz Indien übernommen, obwohl die Portugiesen und Franzosen auch ihre Enklaven an der Küste hatten. Es gab einen Aufstand von indischen Machthabern im Jahre 1857, der unterdrückt wurde, der aber die britische Regierung dazu veranlasste, die Gesellschaft zu übernehmen und Indien zu einem Teil des Imperiums zu machen. Viele Indianer wandten sich während des Zeitraums für das Christentum, so ziemlich dieselben Gründe, wie sie zum Islam konvertierten, obwohl gewaltsame Konvertierungen im britischen Indien nach 1859 endete, und Königin Victorias Proklamation versprach, die religiösen Glaubensbekenntnisse der Indianer zu respektieren. Der gewaltfreie Widerstand gegen den britischen Kolonialismus unter Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi führte am 15. August 1947 zur Unabhängigkeit. Gleichwohl wurde dem säkularen Staat Indien und dem kleineren islamischen Staat Pakistan gleichzeitig Unabhängigkeit gewährt. Und die Orgie der hindu-muslimischen Blutvergiftung, die auf die Teilung folgte, führte zum Tod von mindestens einer halben Million und der Migration von 12-14 Millionen Menschen. Free India unter Nehru verabschiedete eine demokratisch regierte, zentral geplante Wirtschaft. Diese Politik zielte auf die Erreichung der Selbstversorgung, und zu einem großen Teil machte Indien, was es heute ist. Indien erreichte Selbstgenügsamkeit in den Nahrungsmittelkörnern durch die siebziger Jahre, sicherzustellen, dass die groß angelegten Hungersnöte, die geläufig waren, jetzt Geschichte sind. Diese Politik führte jedoch auch zu Engpässen, einem langsamen Wachstum und einer großen Korruption. Nach einer Zahlungsbilanzkrise im Jahr 1991 verabschiedete sich das Land mit marktbeherrschenden Reformen, die sich seither mit einem starken Wachstum fortsetzten. Die IT und die Business-Outsourcing-Industrie waren die Treiber für das Wachstum, während die Produktion und Landwirtschaft. Die keine Reformen erlebt haben, hinterher. Etwa 60 der Indianer leben in der Landwirtschaft und rund 36 in Armut. Beziehungen zu Pakistan waren frostig. Die beiden Länder haben vier Kriege, drei von ihnen über den Status von Kaschmir gekämpft. Der dritte Krieg zwischen den beiden Ländern im Jahr 1971 führte dazu, dass Ost-Pakistan Bangladesch wurde. Indien erlebt weiterhin gelegentliche Terroranschläge, von denen man glaubt, dass sie in Pakistan ihren Ursprung haben und von ihrem militärisch-intelligenten Komplex bestellt werden. China und Indien gingen 1962 über einen Grenzstreit in den Krieg. Obwohl die gegenwärtigen Beziehungen friedlich sind, gibt es immer noch militärische Rivalitäten und keine Landübergänge sind zwischen den beiden Ländern erlaubt, obwohl ein Grenzübertritt zwischen Sikkim und Tibet 2006 für den Handel (aber nicht für Touristen) wiedereröffnet wurde. Sicherheitsbedenken über Pakistan und China veranlassten Indien, Nuklearwaffen zweimal zu prüfen (einschließlich der 1974 als friedliche Explosionen beschriebenen Tests). Indien will als legitime Kernenergie akzeptiert werden und kämpft für einen ständigen Sitz des Sicherheitsrates. Indien ist stolz auf seine demokratische Bilanz. Die konstitutionelle Regierung und die demokratischen Freiheiten wurden während ihrer 60 Jahre als unabhängiges Land mit Ausnahme eines 18-monatigen Zwischenspiels in den Jahren 1975-1977 bewahrt, als Ministerpräsident Indira Gandhi einen Ausnahmezustand erklärte. Die Aussetzung von Wahlen und Menschenrechten. Zu den gegenwärtigen Anliegen in Indien gehören Korruption, Armut, Übervölkerung, Umweltdegradation, laufende Auseinandersetzungen mit Pakistan und China, Terrorismus sowie ethnische und religiöse Streitigkeiten. Aber die gegenwärtige Besessenheit, zumindest unter den gebildeten Eliten, ist vorbei, ob Indien in der Lage sein wird, China in Wirtschaftswachstum zu überholen. Politik Edit Indien ist eine parlamentarische Demokratie nach dem Vorbild des britischen Westminster-Systems. Der Präsident, der indirekt gewählt wird, ist das Staatsoberhaupt, aber seine Stellung, obwohl nicht ganz zeremoniell, hat begrenzte Befugnisse. In der Praxis sieht man, dass der Premierminister die größte Autorität ausübt und die Regierung mit ihrem Kabinett leitet. Das Parlament ist bi-kameral. Die Lok Sabha, die untere Haus, wird direkt von erwachsenen Franchise gewählt, während die Rajya Sabha, oder das obere Haus, indirekt gewählt wird. Die Lok Sabha ist die stärkere der beiden, vor allem, weil eine Mehrheit in der Lok Sabha erforderlich ist, um eine Regierung zu bilden und passieren Budgets. Indien hat eine große Anzahl von politischen Parteien, erhielt vor kurzem eine sehr stabile Regierung von sehr beliebten Narendra Modi geführt, wo eine einzelne Partei die absolute Mehrheit erhielt nach einer Reihe von instabilen Koalition führte Regierungen, in denen keine einzige Partei hat die Mehrheit in der Lok Sabha, Was zu instabilen Regierungen und rauhen Politik. Jedoch, im Gegensatz zu benachbarten Pakistan, Übergang der Macht war immer friedlich und immer konstitutionell. Indien hat eine starke und unabhängige Justiz und eine freie Presse. Indien ist auch eine Bundesrepublik, aufgeteilt in Staaten und Gewerkschaftsgebiete. Jeder von ihnen hat ihre eigenen Gesetzgeber, mit der Regierung von einem Ministerpräsidenten und einem Kabinett geführt. Straßendemonstrationen und politische Agitationen treten auf, wie es in jeder Demokratie der Fall ist, obwohl es auch gelegentliche niedrige Gewalt gibt. Ein Besucher hat nur eine winzige Möglichkeit, in diesen Demonstrationen gefangen zu werden. Zeitzone Bearbeiten Indische Standardzeit (IST) ist 5 Stunden und 30 Minuten vor Greenwich Mean Time (GMT5.5). Die Sommerzeit wird nicht beachtet. Geographie Bearbeiten Berge, Dschungel, Wüsten und Strände, Indien hat alles. Es ist nach Norden und Nordosten durch den schneebedeckten Himalaya begrenzt. Die höchste Bergkette der Welt. Zusätzlich zum Schutz des Landes vor Eindringlingen, sie füttern auch die mehrjährigen Flüsse Ganga. Yamuna (Jamuna) und Sindhu (Indus), auf deren Ebenen Indias Zivilisation blühte. Obwohl die meisten der Sindhu in Pakistan jetzt, drei seiner Nebenflüsse fließen durch Punjab. Der andere Himalaya-Fluss, der Brahmaputra fließt durch den Nordosten, meistens durch Assam. Südlich von Punjab liegt die Aravalli Strecke, die Rajasthan in zwei schneidet. Die westliche Hälfte von Rajasthan wird von der Thar-Wüste besetzt. Die Vindhyas schneiden über Mittelindien, besonders durch Madhya Pradesh und bedeuten den Anfang des Deccan-Plateaus, das fast die gesamte südliche Halbinsel bedeckt. Das Deccanplateau wird durch die Sahyadri (Western Ghats) Strecke zum Westen und die östlichen Ghats zum Osten begrenzt. Das Plateau ist trockener als die Ebenen, wie die Flüsse, die das Gebiet ernähren, wie das Narmada. Godavari und die Kaveri laufen im Sommer trocken. Im Nordosten des Deccan-Plateaus befindet sich ein dicht bewaldetes Gebiet namens Dandakaranya, das die Staaten Chhattisgarh bedeckt. Jharkhand. Den östlichen Rand von Maharashtra und die nördliche Spitze von Andhra Pradesh. Dieser Bereich ist noch bewaldet, Armut betroffen und bevölkert von Stammes-Menschen. Dieser Wald fungierte als Hindernis für die Invasion von Südindien. Indien hat eine lange Küste. Die Westküste grenzt an das Arabische Meer und an die Ostküste an die Bucht von Bengalen. Beide Teile des Indischen Ozeans. Climate Edit In Indien regnet es nur während einer bestimmten Zeit des Jahres. Die Jahreszeit sowie das Phänomen, das sie verursacht, heißt der Monsun. Es gibt zwei von ihnen, den Südwesten und den Nordosten. Beide benannt nach den Richtungen, aus denen die Winde kommen. Der südwestliche Monsun ist der wichtigere, da er Regen über die meisten Teile des Landes verursacht und ist die entscheidende Variable, die entscheidet, wie die Kulturen tun werden. Es dauert von Juni bis September. Der Südwestmonsun trifft am meisten auf die Westküste, da die Überquerung der westlichen Ghats und das Erreichen des restlichen Indiens eine anstrengende Aufgabe für die Winde ist. Die westliche Küste ist daher viel grüner als das Innere. Der Nordostmonsun trifft die Ostküste zwischen Oktober und Februar, meistens in Form von gelegentlichen Wirbelstürmen, die viel Verwüstung jedes Jahr verursachen. Die einzige Region, die Regen von beiden Monstern bekommt, ist Nord-Ost-Indien, das folglich die höchsten Niederschläge in der Welt erlebt. Indien erlebt mindestens drei Jahreszeiten pro Jahr, Sommer. Regenzeit (oder Monsun) und Winter. Obwohl im tropischen Süden, der das 25176C (77176F) Wetter anruft, Winter das Konzept dehnen würde. Der Norden erlebt einige extreme Hitze im Sommer und kalt im Winter, aber außer in den Himalaya-Regionen ist Schnee fast ungehört. November bis Januar ist die Wintersaison und April und Mai sind die heißen Monate, wenn alle gespannt auf den Regen warten. Es gibt auch einen kurzen Frühling im Februar und März, vor allem in Nord-Indien. Meinungen sind geteilt, ob irgendein Teil von Indien wirklich einen Herbst erfährt. Aber die Alten hatten sicher eine solche Jahreszeit unter den sechs Jahreszeiten (oder Ritus - Vasanta - Frühling, Greeshma - Sommer, Varsha - Rainy, Sharat - Herbst, Shishira - Winter, Hemanta - Mild Winter) identifiziert. Kultur Bearbeiten Kulturschock Viele Besucher, die Maharadschas und fabelhafte Paläste erwarten, sind schockiert, wenn ihr erster Eindruck von der Armut dominiert wird. Bereiten Sie sich für Folgendes vor: Achtung. Einige Leute werden unablässig auf fremde Touristen anstarren, die auch Magneten für anhaltende touts und Bettler sein können. Beggars, vor allem unterernährte Kinder und die schlecht deformierten, können besonders störend sein. Schmutz Müll ist reich an Städten. Indische Städte erzeugen zu viel Müll, haben aber keinen Platz, um sie zu entsorgen. Landfilling ist eine Option, aber es braucht auch Platz. Daher ist es nicht ungewöhnlich, Müll auf den Straßenrändern zu finden. Roadsides können manchmal Urinale sein. Lärm . Die Treiber stützen sich auf Hörner, auch Tempel, Moscheen und Kirchen benutzen Lautsprecher, um ihre Botschaft zu verbreiten. Aber du wirst den Hang davon bekommen. Größere Städte haben weniger Lärm. Verschmutzung . Alle indischen Städte leiden schlecht. Auspuff mit Staub kombiniert können die trockeneren Jahreszeiten ein Albtraum für Asthma leiden. Massen. Indische Straßen, Märkte und Basare sind mit Menschen, Autos und zu bestimmten Zeiten, Tieren und Straßen neigen dazu, eng zu sein. Die meisten Besucher bekommen recht schnell und beginnen, die guten Seiten zu sehen, aber nehmen Sie es einfach auf Ihre ersten Tage und planen einige Zeit, um weg von allem. Zusammen mit, dass die Premierminister Swachch Bharat Mission der Reinigung Indien wird sehr effizient durchgeführt und Städte werden aufgeräumt. Großstädte haben nicht zu viel Müll, aber Dumps sind hier und da zu finden. Die Bedingungen verschlechtern sich, wenn Sie in Richtung der ländlichen Gebiete bewegen. Indias reiche und vielschichtige Kulturen werden von religiösen und spirituellen Themen dominiert. Während es ein Fehler ist, anzunehmen, dass es eine einzige einheitliche indische Kultur gibt, gibt es sicherlich vereinende Themen, die die verschiedenen Kulturen verknüpfen. Indias kulturelles Erbe wird durch seine unzähligen Sprachen ausgedrückt, in denen viel große Literatur und Poesie geschrieben wurde. Es kann in seiner Musik gesehen werden - sowohl in seiner klassischen (Carnatic und Hindustani) Formen und in der modernen Bollywood-Musik. Indien hat auch eine große Tradition der klassischen und Volkstänze. Kunst und Theater gedeihen unter den belebten Städten des Landes, vor dem Hintergrund der immer wachsenden westlichen Einflüsse. Lebendige Prozessionen sind überall zu sehen, vor allem während Festivals. Ganesh Chatutrthi Prozessionen in Mumbai, Dusshera in Mysore etc. sind einige wichtige Prozessionen, die gesehen werden müssen. Zusammen mit diesen, Ehe und religiösen Prozessionen sind auch auf den Straßen zu sehen. Sie können sehen, Menschen tanzen, spielen Musik und Schlagzeug, spielen mit Farben etc. Indians Wert ihrer Familie System eine Menge. Typischerweise umfasst eine Indianer-Familie, was würde die erweiterte Familie im Westen genannt werden. Es ist Routine für Inder, als Teil der Familie der väterlichen Familie während ihres ganzen Lebens zu leben - d. h. Söhne leben zusammen mit ihren Eltern ihr ganzes Leben, und Töchter leben mit ihren Eltern, bis sie heiraten. Die Beziehung ist gegenseitig selbsttragend. Eltern können ihre Kinder länger unterstützen, als es im Westen üblich ist, Brüder und Schwestern können sich gegenseitig unterstützen, und Söhne werden erwartet, sich um ihre Eltern in ihrem Alter zu kümmern. Das Leben mit den Eltern trägt nicht die gleiche Stigmatisierung wie in den USA. Heutzutage werden die meisten indischen Familien nuklearer. Natürlich sind die Arrangements nicht perfekt und es gibt Stämme und Trennungen, vor allem durch die Zeit der dritten Generation aufwächst. Auch ist es jetzt üblich geworden, dass sich Kinder vom Elternhaus für Bildung und Beschäftigung entfernen. Dennoch ist es fair zu sagen, dass die gemeinsame Familie immer noch als die Norm und ein Ideal, um zu streben, und die Indianer weiterhin über ihre Familie Ehre, Leistungen und Misserfolge kümmern, auch wenn sie nicht zusammen leben. Trotz der Schwächung des Kastensystems bleibt Indien eine ziemlich geschichtete Gesellschaft. Indianer kümmern sich um eine Person Hintergrund und Position in der Gesellschaft, wie es der Fall anderswo in der Welt. Diese Haltung, in Verbindung mit dem Erbe der Kolonialherrschaft, führt zu einigen ziemlich interessanten, wenn unglücklichen Folgen. Paler Haut gilt als wünschenswert, aber es gibt keine Diskriminierung auf der Grundlage der Farbe. Nationale Symbole der Republik Indien Es gibt drei nationale Feiertage: Tag der Republik (26. Januar), Unabhängigkeitstag (15. August) und Gandhi Jayanti (2. Oktober), die jedes Jahr am selben Tag stattfinden. Darüber hinaus gibt es drei große bundesweit Festivals mit wechselnden Daten bewusst zu sein: Holi. Im Februar oder März 8212 Das Fest der Farbe ist ein großes Fest, das vor allem in Nord-, Ost - und Westindien gefeiert wird. Am ersten Tag gehen die Menschen in Tempel und leichte Lagerfeuer, aber auf der zweiten, es ist ein Wasserdampf in Verbindung mit Duschen aus farbigem Pulver. Dies ist kein Zuschauersport: Als sichtbarer Ausländer bist du ein Magnet für Aufmerksamkeit, also musst du dich entweder innen verbarrikadieren oder deine bestmöglichen Kleider anziehen und dich dem Kampf anschließen. Alkohol und Bhang (Cannabis) sind oft beteiligt und Massen können rowless wie der Abend trägt auf. Feiern sind weniger in Südindien, obwohl private Feiern unter den nordindischen Gemeinschaften wohnen in den großen südindischen Städten Durga Puja NavarathriDussehara auftreten. Sep-Okt 8212 Ein neuntägiges Festival, das in den heiligen Tag von Dasara gipfelt, wenn Einheimische die Gottheit Durga anbeten. Arbeiter erhalten Süßigkeiten, Bargeldprämien, Geschenke und neue Kleider. Es ist auch ein neues Jahr für Geschäftsleute, wenn sie sollen neue Konto Bücher zu starten. An manchen Orten wie West Bengal. Durga Puja ist das wichtigste Festival. Im Norden finden Dussehara Feiern statt, und das Töten von Ravana durch Lord Rama wird zeremoniell als Ram Lila wiedereröffnet. In Gujarat und Südindien. Wird es als Navarathri gefeiert, wo das Festival gefeiert wird, indem er zu frommen Liedern und religiösen Beobachtungen wie Fasten über einen Zeitraum von 9 Nächten verlängert wird gefeiert. Diwali (Deepavali), Okt.-November 8212 Das Fest der Lichter, feiert die Rückkehr von Lord Rama in die Hauptstadt seines Königreichs, Ayodhya nach einem Exil von 14 Jahren. Wahrscheinlich das aufwendigste Fest im Land, erinnert (an U. S. Reisende mindestens) der Nahrung von Thanksgiving und die Einkaufen und Geschenke von Weihnachten kombiniert. Häuser sind dekoriert, überall ist Glitter, und wenn Sie die Straßen auf Diwali Nacht wandern, gibt es Feuerwerkskörper gehen überall überall, auch manchmal unter den Füßen. Abgesehen von diesen hat jeder Staat seine eigenen großen nationalen Festival wie Onam für Kerala oder Sankranti für Andhra Pradesh amp Karnataka oder Pongal für Tamil Nadu oder Baisakhi für Punjab oder Ratha Jatra für Odisha, die als Feiertag in den jeweiligen Staaten gefeiert wird. Religiöse Feiertage treten an verschiedenen Tagen jedes Jahr auf, weil die Hindu - und Islamfeste auf ihren jeweiligen Kalender basieren und nicht auf dem gregorianischen Kalender. Die meisten von ihnen sind nur lokal gefeiert, so überprüfen Sie den Staat oder die Stadt, die Sie besuchen, um Informationen darüber, ob es Schließungen werden. Verschiedene Regionen könnten demselben Festival etwas andere Namen geben. Um den unterschiedlichen religiösen Praktiken gerecht zu werden, haben die Büros eine Liste von fakultativen Feiertagen (die von der Regierung als beschränkte Feiertage bezeichnet werden), aus denen die Mitarbeiter zusätzlich zur Liste der festen Feiertage zwei Personen auswählen dürfen. Dies kann bedeuten, dünne Anwesenheit und verzögerte Service, auch wenn das Büro offiziell geöffnet ist. Vorgeschlagenes Lesen Bearbeiten Eine Göttin in den Steinen: Reisen in Indien durch Norman Lewis (Kap 1991 US: Holt 1992), In der Göttin in den Steinen, einflussreichen Journalisten und Autor Norman Lewis unternimmt eine jouney von 2500 Meilen auf der Suche nach dem alten Indien. Indische Zeitschriften, März 1962-Mai 1963: Notizbücher, Tagebuch, leere Seiten, Schriften. Ginsberg, A. (1970). San Francisco: Dave Haselwood Bücher. Reisetagebuch des berühmten Beatdichters Allen Ginsberg. Indien: Eine Geschichte. John Keay Eine großartige einbändige Geschichte eines Landes, das der Reduktion in einfache Erzählung entgeht. Ohne Peer unter allgemeinen Studien, eine Geschichte, die intelligent, schneidend und hervorragend lesbar ist. - Kirkus Review (Review) (ISBN 0802137970) Indien: Eine Million Mutinies Jetzt. V. S. Naipaul Mit diesem Buch mag er wohl sein eigenes dauerhaftes Denkmal geschrieben haben, in Prosa, gleichsam rührend und intensiv persönlich, sowohl nach Stil als auch nach kritischem Scharfsinn - K. Natwar-Singh, Financial Times (ISBN 0670837024) Trotz der Götter. Edward Luce ein außergewöhnlich aufschlussreiches und lesbares Buch über den unwahrscheinlichen Aufstieg des modernen Indien. (ISBN 0316729817) Keine Vollstops in Indien. Mark Tully Indias Westernized Elite, abgeschnitten von lokalen Traditionen, wollen einen ganzen Punkt in einem Land, wo es keine vollen Haltestellen zu schreiben. Von dieser markanten Einsicht hat Mark Tully eine hervorragende Serie von Geschichten gewebt, die alles vom kommunistischen Konflikt in Ahmedabad bis zum Kommunismus in Kolkata, vom Kumbh Mela in Allahabad (wahrscheinlich das größte religiöse Festival der Welt) bis zum Fernsehen eines Hindu-Epos erforschen. (ISBN 0140104801) Mutter der Frommen Dame. Santosh Desai Eine hervorragende Darstellung der mittelalterlichen Überzeugungen und Bräuche aus der Zeit vor der Liberalisierung bis heute. Für alle, die die Kultur des heutigen Indien verstehen will, ist dies ein Muss zu lesen, wo der Autor schneidet durch das Chaos und Verwirrung lassen Sie die Dinge klarer zu sehen. (ISBN 8172238643) Touts Edit Touts sind ubiquitär, wie in vielen Entwicklungsländern, und wo Tourismus strategisch gefördert wird und Sie sollten davon ausgehen, dass jeder proaktiv versucht, Ihnen zu helfen hat eine versteckte Agenda, um Sie von Ihrem Geld wie Sie in jedem anderen erleben Touristischen Ort, den Sie besuchen. Doch in Gebieten, die kaum oder gar nicht von Touristen besucht werden, ist es gar nicht ungewöhnlich für Menschen, die aus dem Weg gehen, um proaktiv zu helfen, ohne etwas im Gegenzug erwarten. Während Ihrer Reisen in Indien, werden Sie mit touts versuchen, um Ihnen etwas zu kaufen oder bevormunden bestimmten Einrichtungen getaucht werden. Es gibt eine Vielzahl von gemeinsamen Betrügereien, die von Ihnen sagen, dass Ihr Hotel aus dem Geschäft gegangen ist (natürlich, dass sie wissen, von einem offenen mit offenen Stellen), um falsche Richtungen zu einer staatlichen Bahn Ticket Buchungsbüro (die Richtungen werden (Die Diamanten sind wertloser Kristall), zu den armen Kursteilnehmern, die Ihnen eine Besichtigung für Stunden und dann mit Mitleid bilden, Sie kaufen Schulbücher für sie (enorm Überteuert von einer Buchhandlung, mit der sie verbunden sind). Es gibt auch offensichtlich Touts, die einen sehr guten Platz zum Abendessen kennen, verkaufen gefälschte SIM-Karten (auch in offiziell aussehenden Einrichtung), oder wollen Sie ein Schach-Set auf der Straße verkaufen. Kein Platz in Indien ist völlig frei von touts, aber wenn Sie eine fast tout freie Erfahrung möchten, besuchen Sie südlichen Staaten vor allem Kerala. Angesichts eines solchen Angriffs, ist es sehr einfach, in eine Belagerung Mentalität, wo ganz Indien ist gegen Sie und aus, um Sie trocken zu drücken. Unnötig zu sagen, eine solche Mentalität kann jede echte Aufwertung des Landes beeinflussen. Umgang mit touts ist sehr einfach: annehmen, dass jemand bietet überraschende Informationen (wie Ihr Hotel heruntergefahren ist) ist ein tout. Keine Angst, eine zweite oder dritte Antwort auf eine Frage zu bekommen. Um loszuwerden ein tout: Völlig ignorieren ihn und gehen über Ihr Unternehmen, bis er geht weg. Dies kann eine ganze Weile dauern, aber Geduld ist der Schlüssel zur Verwaltung Indiens. Sagen Sie ihm NEIN, sehr fest und immer wieder. Es ist auch vorteilhaft, einen festen indischen Freund zu haben, dem Sie vertrauen können. Wenn sie Ihnen herum zeigen, werden sie handeln, um Ihnen zu helfen abzuwehren solche Touts. Grundlegende Strategie hilft Ihnen: Dont fühlen belästigt, betrachten jedes Problem und Freude als Ihre Erfahrung, das ist, warum Sie unterwegs sind. Isnt es Mieten Sie einen qualifizierten Führer, wenn Sie es schaffen, ein vertrauenswürdiges finden, wird sortieren Sie Ihre meisten der Probleme, fast jedes Problem. Wenn Sie noch irgendwelche Probleme haben oder möchten, um zu einem Indianer freundlich zu plaudern, dann suchen Sie nach einem indischen Touristen. Heshe kann Ihnen helfen, wenn heshe Englisch weiß, aber wahrscheinlich weniger wissen, als Sie über den Ort youre besuchen. Dont erwarten, dass alles passieren, genau wie zu Hause schnell an Situationen anzupassen und nutzen Sie Ihren gesunden Menschenverstand. Im Falle einer praktischen Anleitung oder Hilfe suchen Sie für jede respektable Person in den Räumlichkeiten (die im Großen und Ganzen finden Sie viele) und fordern Sie für jede Anleitung. Else seine absolut eine gute Idee, um Vorschläge für die kommerzielle Stall Betreiber in Plattformen, die in der Regel sind lokale Stipendiaten zu fragen. Im Großen und Ganzen finden Sie eine Menge Hilfe und Informationen von den anständigen Menschen um, die nicht die touts und haben kein Interesse an den Angelegenheiten. So verwenden Sie Ihren gesunden Menschenverstand vernünftig, um Ausschau nach diesen Stipendiaten. Vor kurzem gab es einen großen Anstieg der Zahl der Beschwerden über die Belästigung von unschuldigen Touristen in verschiedenen Destinationen im ganzen Land. Das Ministerium für Tourismus hat eine Strategie der Einführung von Audio Guide Devices an verschiedenen Orten des Interesses im ganzen Land wie das Taj Mahal, Agra Fort, etc., um zuverlässige und sachliche Informationen für Touristen zu verabschieden. Es ist klug, solche Geräte zu mieten, da können Sie vermeiden, dass die abgerissen oder überfallen von verzweifelten tout Juckreiz, um ein Geld zu machen. Das Ministerium für Tourismus hat auch seine Partnerschaft mit AudioCompass, ein Unternehmen spezialisiert auf die Schaffung von Audio-Touren aller Orte des Interesses in dem Land in Form von Audio-Geräte an den Denkmälern und Smartphone-Anwendungen, die aus dem App Store heruntergeladen werden können. Verschiedene Preise Bearbeiten Einige touristische Attraktionen, die von der Archäologischen Untersuchung von Indien durchgeführt werden, haben unterschiedliche Preise für Inder, SAARC-Länder und Ausländer. These rates are prominently posted at the entrance and ticketing booths. The rates for foreigners may be as many as five to ten times those for Indians. Indians pay taxes in order to maintain the monuments and hence are entitled to subsidized rates. Regions Edit India is administratively divided into 29 states and 7 union territories . The states are broadly demarcated on linguistic lines. They vary in size the larger ones are bigger and more diverse than some countries of Europe. The union territories are smaller than the states8212sometimes they are just one city8212and they have much less autonomy. These states and union territories are grouped by convention into the following regions . Map of Indias regions and states Western India (Dadra and Nagar Haveli. Daman and Diu. Goa. Gujarat. Maharashtra. Rajasthan ) Miles and miles of the Thar Desert. Home to the colorful palaces, forts and cities of Rajasthan, the countrys most vibrant and biggest city Mumbai (formerly known as Bombay ), wonderful beaches and pristine forests of Goa and Bollywood . Southern India (Andaman and Nicobar. Andhra Pradesh. Telangana. Karnataka. Kerala. Lakshadweep. Pondicherry. Tamil Nadu ) South India features famous and historical temples, tropical forests, backwaters, beaches hill stations, and the vibrant cities of Bangalore. Kochi. Chennai and Hyderabad. The island groups of Andaman amp Nicobar (on the east) and Lakshadweep on the west are included in this region for convenience, but they are far from the mainland and have their own unique characteristics. Eastern India (Chhattisgarh. Jharkhand. Odisha. Sikkim. West Bengal ) Economically less developed, but culturally rich and perhaps the most welcoming of outsiders. Features Kolkata (formerly known as Calcutta ), once the capital of British India, and the temple cities of Puri. Bhubaneswar and Konark. Geographically it stretches from the mountains to the coast, resulting in fascinating variations in climate. It is also the mineral storehouse of India, having the countrys largest and richest mines. North-Eastern India (Arunachal Pradesh. Assam. Manipur. Meghalaya. Mizoram. Nagaland. Tripura ) insular and relatively virgin, the countrys tribal corner, with lush, beautiful landscapes, endemic flora and fauna of the Indo-Malayan group and famous for Tea Gardens . Consists of seven tiny states (by Indian standards, some of them are larger than Switzerland or Austria) popularly nicknamed as the Seven Sisters. Cities Edit Below is a selection of just nine of Indias most notable cities. Other cities can be found under their specific regions. Delhi 8212 The Capital of India, seat of the Federal Government, numerous historic monuments, markets, industrial hub and major gateway to rest of Northern India. Bangalore 8212 The garden city, once the sleepy home of pensioners now transformed into Silicon Valley with all major of software companies establishing their offices in the city and major aviationrail hub for South Central India. Chennai (formerly Madras) 8212 Main port in Southern India, cradle of Carnatic Music, Bharatanatyam and Indian Tamil Film Industry, home of the famous Marina beach, Automobile Capital of India and a fast emerging IT hub. Jaipur 8212 the Pink City is a major exhibit of the Hindu Rajput culture of medieval Northern India. Kochi (formerly Cochin) 8212 the Queen of Arabian Sea, historically, a centre of international trade, now the gateway to the sandy beaches and backwaters . Kolkata (formerly Calcutta) 8212 The Erstwhile Capital of British India till 1911, now gatewayhub to EasternNorth Eastern India, home to numerous colonial relics, eclectic culture, street food, Indian Bengali Film Industry Tollywood, Oscar Winners and Nobel Laureates, has earned the sobriquets of City of Joy, Cultural Capital of India Mumbai (formerly Bombay) 8212 The financial capital of India, housing most of the IndianMulti National Corporations, major port, Bollywood (Indian Hindi Film Industry). Shimla 8212 the former summer capital of British India located in the Himalayan foothills with a large legacy of Victorian architecture. Varanasi 8212 considered the most sacred Hindu city, located on the banks of the Ganges, one of the oldest continually inhabited cities of the world. Other destinations Edit India has many outstanding landmarks and areas of outstanding beauty. Below is a list of nine of the most notable: Bodh Gaya 8212 the place where the Buddha Sakyamuni attained enlightenment. Ellora Ajanta 8212 spectacular rock-cut cave monasteries and temples, holy place for the Buddhists, Jains and Hindus. Goa 8212 an east-west mix, beaches and syncretic culture. Golden Temple 8212 Sikh holy site located in Amritsar Hampi 8212 the awesome ruins of the empire of Vijayanagara Khajuraho 8212 famed for its erotic sculptures Lake Palace 8212 the Lake Palace of Octopussy fame, located in Udaipur Meenakshi Temple 8212 a spectacular Hindu temple in Madurai Taj Mahal 8212 the incomparable marble tomb in Agra Much has been written about this monument and everyone has seen the photos. But little can prepare you for witnessing it up close. its unlike any other place in india. Get in Edit Visas Edit Do you need a visa Electronic Visa An online e-Tourist Visa facility was introduced on 27 November 2014. This visa allows a single entry through the airports in Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Bangalore, Chennai, Cochin, Delhi, Gaya, Goa, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai, Tirchy, Trivandrum and Varanasi within 30 days of issue. The e-Tourist Visa should be applied for at least four days in advance of travel and permits a stay not exceeding 30 days in India. Those of Pakistani descent are not permitted to apply for an eTV. A copy of the eTV printout should be carried and presented both to airline staff at the airport of departure and to Immigration at the port of entry. Biometrics will be collected upon arrival. The visa cannot be adjusted or extended and is not valid for Protected or Restricted Areas. Only two visits with e-Tourist Visas are permitted in a calendar year. Citizens from these countries are eligible: Argentina Cook Islands Fiji Jamaica Kiribati Marshall Islands Mauritius Micronesia Nauru Niue Palau Papua New Guinea Samoa Seychelles Solomon Islands Tonga Tuvalu Uruguay Vanuatu eTV Fee of USD 25 (2.5 bank fee) eTV Fee of USD 48 (2.5 bank fee) Andorra Anguilla Antigua and Barbuda Armenia Aruba Australia Bahamas Barbados Belgium Belize Bolivia Brazil Cambodia Canada Cayman Islands China (PRC) China (Hong Kong SAR) China (Macau SAR) Colombia Costa Rica Cuba Djibouti Dominica Dominican Republic East Timor Ecuador El Salvador Estonia Finland France Georgia Germany Grenada Guatemala Guyana Haiti Honduras Hungary Indonesia Ireland Israel Jordan Kenya Laos Latvia Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Macedonia Malaysia Malta Mexico Monaco Mongolia Montenegro Montserrat Myanmar Netherlands New Zealand Nicaragua Norway Oman Palestinian Authority Panama Paraguay Peru Philippines Poland Portugal Republic of China (Taiwan) Republic of Korea St. Christopher and Nevis St. Lucia St. Vincent and the Grenadines Slovenia Spain Suriname Sweden Tanzania Thailand Turks and Caicos United Arab Emirates Vatican City Venezuela Vietnam eTV Fee of USD 60 (2.5 bank fee) Mozambique Russia Ukraine United Kingdom United States of America Visa on Arrival As of March 2016, citizens of Japan are permitted to apply for a visa on arrival at the Kolkata, Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, and Chennai airports. This visa costs 2000 is valid for a single entry and a maximum stay of 30 days for tourism, business, conference, or medical reasons and is not extendable or convertible to another visa category. Bhutan Nepal Maldives (max. stay of 90 days as a tourist only) A visa obtained in advance is required by all other nationalities other than those mentioned above. Depending on the purpose of your visit and nationality, you can get an online e-Tourist Visa (30 days), a visa on arrival (30 days), a tourist visa (3 months or more, depending on nationality), a business visa (6 months, one year, five years, or ten years, multiple entries), or a student visa (up to 5 years). A special 10-year visa is available only to select nationalities, including US citizens (USD100 for tourists, USD 240 for business) US citizens can now only apply for a 10-year multiple-entry tourist visa, however. An Indian visa is valid from the day it is issued, not the date of entry. For example, a 6-month visa issued on January 1 will expire on June 30, regardless of your date of entry. A tourist visa valid for 6 months can have maximum duration of stay of 90 days per visit, depending on citizenship. Make sure to check maximum duration per visit with your local embassy. Other visas, including Student, Employment, Research, Missionary, and Overseas Citizen of India visas, are also available for those who qualify, with varying validity periods and stay limitations. The e-Tourist visa online application process is detailed and somewhat cumbersome, especially for those with weak computer skills. Allow at least an hour per visa for the process if it is your first time. You will be required to upload a photo of yourself and a scan of the first two pages of your passport. Make sure you write down the visa application number or print it out as it will be necessary if you decide to return to the visa application process. One incorrect letter or number in the temporary application ID number will result in the loss of your application and you will have to start again. Certain minimum and maximum file sizes and other specifications are required for the uploads. A useful photo cropping tool is provided on the visa application site. A standard scan of the passport pages may be too large to meet the requirements and custom scanner settings may have to be used. The e-Tourist visa applications are required to be submitted several days ahead of time, but the actual processing time for two recent visa applications was only about 24 hours. Many Indian embassies have outsourced visa processing in full or in part to third party companies, so check ahead before going to the embassy. For example, in the USA, you must submit your visa application to Cox amp Kings Global Services. not the embassy. Applications through these agencies also attract an application fee, above that which is detailed on most embassy websites and should be checked prior to submitting your paperwork. In addition, many Indian embassies only offers visas to residents of that country . this means you should get your visa before you leave home, instead of trying to get in a neighbouring country (since August 09, non-residents were able to apply for visas through the Bangkok embassy for an additional 400 THB referral fee, but this has changed: since AugustSeptember 2015 this is, for the time being, no longer possible: only Thai nationals can apply for a visa). Rules and validity of visas will differ based on citizenship. Check the website of the Indian embassy, consulate or high commission in your country 1 or contact the local office 2. A notable rule is that citizens of Afghanistan, China, Iran, Pakistan, Iraq, Sudan, and Bangladesh, foreigners of Pakistan and Bangladesh origin, and stateless persons are not permitted to re-enter India on tourist or visitor visas within 60 days of their preceding departure without special permission. (This rule was abolished for other foreigners in 2012.) Its wise to ask for a multiple entry visa even if you arent planning to use it - they cost the same, are handed out pretty liberally and come in handy if you decide last minute to dip into one of the neighbouring countries. Overstaying a visa is to be avoided at all costs as you will be prevented from leaving the country until you have paid some fairly hefty fines and presented a large amount of paperwork to either the local immigration office or police station. This whole process is unlikely to take less than 3 days, and can take much longer if you include weekends, numerous government holidays and the inevitable bizarre bureaucratic requirements. Customs and immigration Edit Clearing customs can be a bit of a hassle, though it has improved vastly over the the last decade. Most airports now operate red and green channels for customs clearance. In general, avoid the touts who will offer to ease your baggage through customs. There are various rules regarding duty-free allowances 8212 there are differing rules for Indian citizens, foreign tourists, citizens of Nepal, Bhutan and Pakistan, non-citizens of Indian origin and people moving to India. Cast a quick glance at the website of the Central Board of Excise and Customs for information about what you can bring in. Foreign tourists other than Nepalis, Bhutanese and Pakistanis and those entering through Nepal, Bhutan or Pakistan, are entitled to bring in their used personal effects and travel souvenirs and 4,000 worth of articles for gifts. If you are an Indian citizen or are of Indian origin, you are entitled to 25,000 worth of articles, (provided of course you arent entering from Nepal, Bhutan or Pakistan.) The other rules are on the web site. If you are bringing any new packaged items along, it is a good idea to carry along the invoices for them to show their value. You are also allowed to bring in 200 cigarettes or 50 cigars or 250 grams of tobacco and 1 litre (2 litres for Indians) of alcohol duty-free. If you do not have anything to declare, you can go through the green channel clearly marked at various airports and generally you will not be harassed. Up to US5000 in foreign currency cash, or an aggregate of US10,000 in foreign currency, may be imported or exported from India without any special requirements or declaration. Importing and exporting Indian rupees is no longer prohibited, except by citizens of Pakistan and Bangladesh. Indians and other foreign citizens travelling fromto countries other than Bhutan or Nepal may import andor export a maximum of 25,000, but only when entering or exiting India via an airport the import and export of rupees when travelling fromto Nepal or Bhutan is unlimited, but cannot include notes of greater than 100. By plane Edit India has 4 major airports known as Gateway Airports at Mumbai. Delhi. Chennai and Kolkata. The airports at these cities are either new or undergoing development. Delhi has unveiled its brand new international Terminal 3, is one of the largest in the world. Mumbais swanky new Terminal 2 (T2) was inaugurated on January 10. The other major entry points in the country are Bengaluru. Hyderabad. and Kochi. There are many non-stop, direct and connecting choices to these cities from Europe, North America, Middle East amp Australia. Africa is also connected to Delhi and Mumbai. For secondary points of entry to India, consider Goa. Trivandrum. Trichy. Coimbatore. Madurai. Kozhikode. Ahmedabad and Pune. Most of the major Middle Eastern carriers offer one stop connections to the coast from their Gulf hubs. Goa is a favourite European tourist destination and is connected by many European charter operators like Condor, Edelweiss, Monarch Airlines, Thomas Cook Airlines amp Thomson Airways. Kolkata is currently served by Dragonair (a subsidiary of Cathay Pacific), Emirates, Qatar Airways, Singapore Airlines and Thai Airways. India has homegrown international airlines like Air India. Jet Airways 3. Indigo 4 etc. They have daily flights to major hubs across the world. From the United States, United Airlines 5 offers nonstop daily service from Newark Airport to Delhi and Mumbai Air India offers daily non-stop service to Delhi from New York-JFK and Chicago and Mumbai from Newark. Various European airlines offer connecting service through their European hubs from most major US cities and various Asian airlines offer connecting service from West Coast cities to India through their Asian hubs. Jet Airways 6 also flies from New York to Delhi, Mumbai, and Chennai via Brussels. Entries from Europe and Northern America are possible using many European airlines such as Lufthansa 7. Finnair 8. British Airways 9. KLM Royal Dutch Airlines 10. Air France 11 and Virgin Atlantic 12. For long-term visitors (3-12 months), Swiss airlines 13 often have good deals from Switzerland with connecting flights from major European and some American cities as well. To save on tickets, consider connecting via Gulf countries, by Air Arabia 14 (Sharjah - based low cost carrier having some connections in Europe), Etihad 15 (especially if you need one-way ticket or going back to Europe from another Asian country) via Abu Dhabi. as well as Emirates 16 via Dubai or Qatar airways 17 via Doha. Obviously, these airlines are also the easiest way to come from the Gulf countries themselves, along with Air India and Air India Express. From East Asia and Australia, Singapore (which is served by Air India, its low-cost subsidiary Air India Express 18. Jet Airways, as well as Singapore Airlines 19. its subsidiary Silk Air 20 and low-cost subsidiary Tiger Airways 21 ) has arguably the best connections to India with flights to all the major cities and many smaller ones. As about the cheap way from South-East Asia or vice versa, Malaysian low-cost carrier AirAsia 22 is usually the best choice (if booked well in advance, one-way ticket price is normally below US100, sometimes being less than US50, they have connections from China, Australia and most of South-East Asian countries). They fly from Kuala Lumpur into New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Kochi and Tiruchirapalli. If youre going fromto Thailand. Air India Express flies from Chennai and Kolkata to Bangkok. Jet Airways, Air India and Thai Airways 23 fly from there to the wider range of Indian cities also. Most Recently, Silk Air 24 started its direct flights from Singapore to Coimbatore. Hyderabad as well. Recently, IndiGo, an Indian low-cost-carrier, has started service to Singapore, Bangkok, Dubai, and Muscat. From Hong Kong, Cathay Pacific and its subsidiary Dragonair fly to Delhi. Mumbai. Bengaluru. Chennai. Hyderabad and Kolkata. G. C. Nanda 25 has been appointed as the exclusive wholesale agent for selling Cathay Pacific and Dragonair flights from Hong Kong to India. If you try booking flights from Hong Kong to India on the Cathay PacificDragonair website you will only be able to purchase full-fare tickets. If, however, your itinerary originates from another country and you are merely transiting through or stopping over in Hong Kong, G. C. Nanda does not have exclusive wholesale rights. By boat Edit India has several international ports on its peninsula. Kochi. Mumbai, Goa and Chennai are the main ones handling passenger traffic, while the rest mainly handle cargo. However, due to the profusion of cheap flights, there no longer appear to be any scheduled ferry services from India to the Middle East. Some cruise lines that travel to India include Indian Oceans Eden II and Grand Voyage Seychelles-Dubai. By train Edit There are two links from Pakistan. The Samjhauta Express runs from Lahore to Attari near Amritsar in Punjab. The Thar Express . restarted in February 2006 after 40 years out of service, runs from Munabao in the Indian state of Rajasthan to Khokrapar in Pakistans Sindh province however, this crossing is not open to foreign tourists . Neither train is the fastest, safest or the most practical way to go between India and Pakistan due to the long delay to clear customs and immigration (although the trains are sights in their own right and make for a fascinating trip). Ths Samjhauta express was the victim of a terrorist strike in February 2007, when they set off bombs that killed many people. Should you want to get from one country to the other as quickly as possible, walk across at Attari Wagah. In India, all trains are managed by Indian Railways IRTC. From Nepal. trains run between Khajuri in Dhanusa district of Nepal and Jaynagar in Bihar. operated by Nepal Railways. Neither is of much interest for travelers and there are no onward connections into Nepal, so most travelers opt for the bus or plane instead. Train services from Bangladesh were suspended for 42 years, but the Moitree Express started running again between Dhaka to Kolkata in April 2008. The service is biweekly: A Bangledeshi train leaves Dhaka every Saturday, returning on Sunday, while an Indian train leaves Kolkata on Saturdays and returns the next day. You can see what trains are available between stations at the following sites: indiarail. gov. in. However, for booking of rail tickets through the internet you should use the Government of Indias website irctc. co. in. For booking through this site, you have to register (which is free) and you need a creditdebit card. It is better that you book your own tickets than fall prey to touts. For checking reservation status enquiry you could use the pnr status check Indian railways. or Check PNR Status directly here. By car Edit From Pakistan the only land crossing is from Lahore to Amritsar via the Attari Wagah border crossing. See Istanbul to New Delhi over land. You will need a Carnet de Passage if crossing with your own vehicle. The process is not particularly lengthy - crossing with your own vehicle fromto Pakistan should take a maximum of 3 hours to clear both borders for you and your vehicle. There are also crossing points with Bangladesh. Nepal and Bhutan. There is one open border crossing between India and Myanmar at Moreh. Manipur. but special permits are required to reach the border from either side. The Nathu La pass in Sikkim. which borders Tibet in China is the only open border crossing between India and China. For now though, only traders and pilgrims are allowed to cross the border, and it is still not open to tourists. Special permits are required to visit the pass from either side. By bus Edit Tour in India By Bus is possible. Research around. While most of the Indian states have their own Transport Departments registered online for internet booking of the tickets, private bus bookings can also be made at redbus. in 26. Under this website one can make a booking for private bus tickets. Buses vary from ultra modern Volvo or Mercedes Benz to plain vanilla non air-conditioned buses run by private bus operators. From Nepal Edit From Nepal buses cross the border daily, usually with connections to New Delhi. Lucknow. Patna and Varanasi. However, its cheaper and more reliable to take one bus to the border crossing and another from there on. The border crossings are (IndiaNepal side) SunauliBhairawa from Varanasi, RaxaulBirganj from Patna. Kolkata, Kakarbhitta from Darjeeling, and Mahendrenagar-Banbassa from Delhi. From Bhutan Edit The Royal Bhutanese Government runs a service tofrom Phuentsholing. These buses depart from Kolkatas Esplanade bus station at 7PM on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday and from the Phuentsholing Bhutan Post office at 3PM on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. The journey takes around 18 hours and costs 300. The buses are comfortable, but because much of the highway to Kolkata is like the surface of the moon, dont bank on getting much sleep on the way. There is frequent service between Siliguri and Phuentsholing. From Pakistan Edit From Pakistan the only land crossing is from Lahore to Amritsar via the Attari Wagah border crossing. Despite tensions between the two countries, there is a steady trickle of travellers passing this way. The immigration procedures are fairly straightforward, but note that neither Pakistan nor India issue visas at the border. Expect to take most of the day to go between Lahore and Amritsar on local buses. Normally its possible to get a direct bus from Amritsar to the border, walk to the other side and catch a direct bus to Lahore, although you may need to change at some point on route. Amritsar and Lahore are both fairly close to the border (about 30-40 minutes drive), so taxis are a faster and easier option. The direct Delhi-Lahore service has restarted, though it is far more costly than local busestrains, not any faster, and would mean you miss seeing Amritsar. You will also be stuck at the border for much longer while the bus is searched and all of the passengers go through immigration. There is now a bus service across the Line of control between Indian and Pakistani Kashmir, however it is not open to foreign tourists. From Bangladesh Edit From Bangladesh there are a number of land entry points to India. The most common way is the regular air-conditioned and comfortable bus services from Dhaka to Kolkata via Haridaspur (India)Benapole (Bangladesh) border post. Bus companies Shyamoli, Shohag, Green Line, and others operate daily bus services under the label of the state owned West Bengal Surface Transport Service Corporation (WBSTSC) and the Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation (BRTC). From Kolkata 2 buses leave every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday while from Dhaka they leave on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. The journey usually takes around 12 hours with a one-way fare of 400-450 or BDT600-800, roughly US8-10. Another daily bus service by Shyamoli and others under the BRTC label from Dhaka connects Siliguri, but the buses in this route do not cross the ChangrabandaBurimari or Burungamari border post. Rather, passengers reaching the border have to clear customs, walk a few hundred yards to cross the border and board the awaiting connecting buses on the other end for the final destination. Ticket for Dhaka-Siliguri-Dhaka route costs BDT 1,600, roughly US20-25 depending on conversion rates. Tickets are purchased either in Dhaka or in Siliguri. There is also a regular bus service between Dhaka and Agartala, capital of Tripura. Two BRTC buses daily from Dhaka and the Tripura Road Transport Corporation plying its vehicles six days a week with a round fare costing US10 connect the two cities. There is only one halt at Ashuganj in Bangladesh during the journey. Other entry points from Bangladesh are Hili, ChilahatiHaldibari, Banglaband border posts for entry to West Bengal Tamabil border post for a route to Shillong in Meghalaya, and some others with lesser known routes to north-eastern Indian regions. Get around Edit India is big and there are lots of interesting ways to travel around it, most of which could not very well be described as efficient or punctual. Allow considerable buffer time for any journey with a fixed deadline (eg. your flight back), and try to remember that getting there should be half the fun. Note that travel in much of the North-East (with the notable exception of Assam) and parts of Andaman and Nicobar. Jammu and Kashmir. Lakshadweep. Rajasthan. Himachal Pradesh and Uttaranchal will require obtaining a Protected Area Permit (PAP). The easiest way to get one is to request it along with your visa application, in which case it will be added to your visa. Otherwise, you will need to hunt down a local Ministry of Home Affairs office and battle with bureaucracy. By plane Edit Map of airports in India Indias large size and uncertain roads make flying a viable option, especially as prices have tumbled in the last few years. Even Indias offshore islands and remote mountain states are served by flights, the main exceptions being Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh (although crossing over from neighbouring states is fairly easy). Due to the aviation boom over the last few years, airports have not been able to keep up with the air traffic. Most Indian airports continue to function with one runway and a handful of boarding gates. Check in and security queues can be terribly long, especially in Delhi and Mumbai. India has recently built two new international airports in Hyderabad and Bengaluru, which are modern and well-equipped. Mumbai and New Delhi airports have been upgraded. The newly constructed terminal 3 in the Delhi airport is the 8th largest terminal in the world. In South Cochin (Kochi) airport is the fourth busiest airport in India in terms of international passenger traffic is the primary base for Air India Express operations and is a focus city for Air Asia India, Air India, Indigo, Jet Airways and SpiceJet. In northern India, particularly Delhi, heavy winter fog can wreak havoc on schedules. Flights to small airports up in the mountains, especially to Leh in Ladakh (which is reachable only by plane for most the year), are erratic at the best of times. Airlines Edit At one time, domestic flights were the monopoly of the government-owned Indian Airlines, but things have changed dramatically and now there are quite a few competitors, with prices a travellers delight. The main operators are: Air India is Indias decrepit and continually bankrupt state owned carrier. Formerly two carriers, Indian Airlines (domestic) and Air India (mainly international), these merged in 2007 but this airline is still in transition Air India has the largest network in the country and provides regional connectivity. But, recently Air-India has become a Star-Alliance member, and has improved its service quality quite a lot. Air India also operates low-cost carrier Air India Express . which flies mainly on trunk routes and to international destinations in the Gulf and South-East Asia, and Air India Regional . which flies small aircraft to obscure places. Go Air low cost airline which now offers additional products: Business class at economy fare (GoBusiness), Flexible travelling product (GoFlexi). Mostly flies from their Mumbai base. IndiGo Airlines 27 - another low cost airline, connecting around 20 major cities throughout the country. Their planes are new A320s purchased directly from Airbus a few years ago at most. IndiGo Airlines is also considered to be the most punctual airline in the country. As usually with low cost carriers, tickets should be purchased well in advance to get the best fares (more often than not under US100 (1 way) even for longer flights across the country). Jet Airways 28. full service airline with very good coverage. Now services London (LHR) directly from Delhi and Mumbai and flights tofrom Toronto and New York via Brussels. Their subsidiary Jetlite 29. formerly Air Sahara, operates as a value carrier i. e. some food and beverages are given. SpiceJet 30. a third low cost airline, has fairly good network between bigger Indian cities as well as prices comparable to those of IndiGo. Their planes are similarly brand new, the main difference being these are B737-800s and -900s. Keep in mind, however, that outside of major cities coverage is not that good . Flying low-cost to a metro and taking a train is not a bad idea either. Fares Edit The earlier you book, the lower you pay. You will hear a lot about air tickets at 500 . but those are promotional rates for limited seats which are sold out within seconds. In some other cases, the advertised fare may not include charges such as passenger service fees, air fuel surcharge and taxes which will be added subsequently. Nonetheless, you do get good rates from the budget airlines. Tickets for small cities will cost more than those for the metros, because of basic law of economics viz. economies of scale. As of now, you dont have to worry about higher prices on weekends, lower prices for round-trips, lower prices for travel around weekends. There are two complications for non-Indians trying to buy plane tickets: Many airlines have higher fares for foreigners than for Indians. Foreigners (non-residents) will be charged in US dollars, whereas Indians will be charged in rupees. In practice, you can simply pretend to be Indian when booking online as the check-in desk will rarely if ever care, but you are still running a small risk if you do this. When possible its best to patronize those airlines that do not follow this practice. Many online booking sites and some of the low-cost carriers may not accept non-indian Credit Cards. Read the small print before you start booking, or book directly with the airline or through a bricks-and-mortar travel agency instead. Check in Edit Checking in at Indian airports used to be slow and bureaucratic, involving lots of queuing and security checks. This is no longer the case and, in a small airport like that in Patna, it can take 15160min for the entire process from arrival at the airport through to security. Delays are solely due to large numbers of passengers at peak hours or just before departure of a plane. However, a few precautions should be taken: Arrive at least two hours before departure if traveling from the major airports. (For domestic flights from minor airports, one hour before is fine.) A new rule dictates that check-in closes 45 minutes before departure and the boarding gate closes 25 minutes before departure. This rule is now being strictly implemented widely to avoid delays in flight departures. Bring a print-out of your ticket or a soft copy of your ticket and a government-issued id . or security guards will not allow you inside. If you have neither a printout nor a soft copy, you can get one at the airline office outside the airport. Some airlines have started to charge for this. Most airports require that you screen your checked bags before check-in . usually at a stand near the entrance. In high-security airports like Jammu, Srinagar or anywhere in the Northeast, even carry-on baggage needs to be screened. In fact all carry on baggage will be screened by an X-ray scanner and at the discretion of the security personnel, physically too. At Mumbai and Delhi airports there is no pre-screening of baggage. Dont hesitate to ask someone if you are unsure. Most staff in airports are very helpful to passengers and will take pains to ensure you catch your flight. There are separate queues for passengers traveling without checked luggage which are usually less crowded. Different airlines have different standards for what they allow as cabin baggage, so err on the side of caution, especially if you are traveling on a low-cost airline. The allowed free baggage limit is 15Kg on most airlines. By train Edit An old train in India The modern Delhi Metro, a sign of Indias economic development Railways are the most widely used mode of long distance travelling in India. India boasts of one of the biggest network of railway lines in the world. The rail system is very efficient, if not always on schedule. Travelling on Indian Railways gives you the opportunity to discover the Indian landscape and scenic beauty first hand and is generally more economical than flying domestic. It is one of the safest ways of travel in India. With classes ranging from luxurious to regular, its the best way to get to know the country and its people. Most train passengers will be curious about you and happy to pass the time with a chat. Travelling on a train or strolling through an Indian railway station while waiting for your train, is in itself an important part of discovering India. If you are on a budget, travelling on an overnight sleeper train will reduce a nights stay at a hotel. Travelling on trains in India is highly recommended. Regular trains Edit Trains come in many varieties, but the broad hierarchy from luxurious to normal is as follows: Rajdhani Express Shatabdi Express Duronto Express Jan Shatabdi Express Garib Rath Express Superfast Trains MailExpress Trains Fast Passenger Trains Passenger Trains Localsuburban trains The Rajdhani and Shatabdi trains are the most luxurious trains on Indian Railways and are completely air-conditioned and also have breakfast, lunch, evening tea and dinner included in your ticket price and the food is served at your seat during travel. Most of these trains also have modern German designed LHB coaches which are extremely comfortable and luxurious. These trains are also faster than any other train in Indian Railways. The Rajdhani Express trains are fast long distance overnight that connect regional state capitals to the national capital New Delhi. The Shatabdi Express trains are fast short distance daytime intercity trains that connect important cities in a region, for example two adjacent states capitals. The Duronto Express (introduced in 2009) are fast long-distance point to point non stop trains that directly connect, without stopping, two important cities located far apart. These trains have no commercial halts on their way but only operational halts for maintainence and crew changes. Luxury Trains Edit Although the history of luxury train traveling in India dates back to the time of maharajas during the days of British Raj, the modern history of this mode of transportation dates back to 1982 with the introduction of Indias first luxury train Palace on Wheels. Palace on Wheels was introduced as a joint venture of the Rajasthan Tourism Development Corporation and Indian Railways to promote Rajasthan as a global tourist destination. The venture turned out to be a great success among overseas travelers and a few decades later more such train journeys followed. At present there are 5 trains offering 12 signature journeys across major tourist destinations in India. Operated jointly by Indian Railways and respective state tourism departments, luxury trains in India offer a wonderful way to experience the sights in India without having to worry about the hassles of travel and accommodation. Journeys on board these trains are all inclusive of accommodation, dining, sightseeing, transportation and porter charges. Each of these luxury trains are equipped with state of the art amenities such as live television, individual climate control, restaurant, bar, lounges and cabins with electronic safe and attached bathrooms. Mentioned below is the brief overview of the Indian Luxury Trains: Palace on Wheels . 31 8212 The Palace on Wheels offer 7 nights8 days itinerary starting from US 520 and carry the guests on a weeklong voyage across royal destinations in Rajasthan. All destinations included in the itinerary happen to be former princely states of Rajputana. The destinations covered in Palace on Wheels train itinerary are Jaipur. Ranthambore, Chittorgarh, Udaipur, Jaisalmer. Jodhpur. Bharatpur, Agra and Delhi and includes sightseeing of forts, palaces along with a dash of wildlife, heritage and cultural interactions. Maharajas Express . 32 8212 Dubbed as the most luxurious train of Asia, Maharajas Express is an internationally acclaimed and award winning luxury train in India. Maharajas Express also happens to be the latest luxury train to be introduced in India . It has created significant buzz in the global luxury travel segment owing to its refined interior, intricate decor, world class facilities and impeccable service. It is the only luxury train which offers accommodation in presidential suite spanning over an entire carriage. Redefining the art of elegant traveling in India, Maharajas Express train offers 5 rail journeys across tastefully selected tourist destinations in India. The itineraries include 3 pan-Indian programs along with 2 golden triangle short tours. The journeys offered by this Indian luxury train are classified as the Heritage of India, The Indian Panorama, The Indian Splendor, Treasures of India and the Gems of India. State of the art amenities, elegant interiors, refined luxury and impeccable service along with technology such as pneumatic hydraulic suspension system add to the pampering and class of this marvelous rail tour in India. Deccan Odyssey . 33 8212 Second luxury train to be introduced in India after the Palace on Wheels, Deccan Odyssey train journey covers destinations across two Indian states of Maharashtra and Goa. The Deccan Odyssey train offers a weeklong journey which crisscrosses through the fascinating terrains of Western Ghats and the Konkan Coast. Included in the itinerary is the trip to coastal fortress town of Sindhudurg, Ajanta and Ellora rock cut caves, Tarkali Beaches and Old Goa and Vasco among others. The all inclusive tariff of the Deccan Odyssey starts from US 425 per person per night on triple on triple occupancy basis during the peak season and US 315 for the same during lean season (April and September run). The Golden Chariot . 34 8212 The Golden Chariot is the only luxury train offering two train tour itineraries in South India. The itineraries are named the Pride of the South and The Splendor of the South. Whereas the Pride of the South tour itinerary covers destinations in Karnataka along with a halt the Indias most prominent beach destination Goa. the Splendor of the South Itinerary offers tours to tastefully selected destinations across South India. Destinations covered during the 8 days itinerary of the Splendor of the South aboard the Golden Chariot include Bangalore. Chennai, Pondicherry. Thanjavur. Madurai, Thiruvananthapuram, Alleppey and Kochi. Both journeys include a dash of cultural sights, World Heritage Sites, local interactions and wildlife. Royal Rajasthan on Wheels 35 Equipped with modern amenities such as Wi-Fi internet, direct dial phones, Spa and satellite television, Royal Rajasthan on Wheels offer royal ride across destinations in Rajasthan along with halts in Varanasi. Khajuraho and Agra . The Indian Maharaja 36 8212 This train happens to be the Indias first privately managed luxury train. Winner of the coveted World Travel Awards in the category of Asias Leading Luxury Train, the Indian Maharaja takes guests on a weeklong adventure through several exotic destinations covering the vast expanse of Western, Central and North India. Destinations included in the itinerary of this luxury train are Mumbai, Aurangabad, Udaipur. Sawai Modhopur, Jaipur. Agra and Delhi. The train is equipped with two dining cars serving fine Indian and Continental cuisine and catering and hospitality on board is managed by the prestigious Taj Group of hotels. To add to the luxury of the journey facilities such as a library, gymnasium and beauty parlor along with Wi-Fi internet and large screen live TVs are available on board. Classes Edit Most countries offer two classes of service, but India has no less than seven to choose from. But note that all seven classes of travel are generally NOT present all together in most trains. In descending order of cost amp luxury, they are: But note that all seven classes of travel are generally NOT present together in a single train. For example AC Chair Car and Second Class Seating may be present on a short distance daytime train but sleeper classes (air-con amp non air-con) may not be present in it. For a long distance night train, the reverse is true with the former being present and latter absent. Note that there are different comfort levels for different classes of Rail journeys. General Compartment(GS) is the unreserved coach and is usually extremely crowded and are advisable only for short distance travelling. Whereas Sleeper Class(SL) is not recommended for a comfortcleanliness seeking person since this is the cheapest class of journey where the most ordinary of Indian populace travel with a privilege to have a sleeper berth, AC 3 Tier(3A), AC 2 Tier(2A) and AC First(1A) may be a far better option to travel comfortably. Ac First(1A) costs as much as economy air ticket and has 2 bed or 4 bed lockable cabins. AC 2 tier(2A) has no cabins but privacy curtains are present. Ac 3 tier(3A) and Sleeper Class(SL) are similar with the difference being the air conditioning in AC 3 tier. First Class(FC) is similar to AC First(1A) but with no air conditioning and is now only found in very few trains. 1A,2A,3A and FC are in general very well maintained and clean. 4 toilets are present in all classes of coaches, with 3 of them being Indian style and and the other Western style. However the true colors of India could only be glimpsed in Sleeper Class(SL) where co-passengers would not mind interacting with you in their broken knowledge of the English language or below. But keep in mind that Sleeper Class(SL) is usually crowded with people getting in without a ticket or with a General compartment(GS) ticket and this is especially true in the Central, Northern and Eastern parts of the country. Also it can get unbearably hot in the Sleeper Class during summer months to the point of not being able to enjoy the journey at all. It is not uncommon to find people occupying your reserved seats in the Sleeper Class(SL) and then refusing to move, especially in the Central, Northern and Eastern parts of the country. Unless you are able to find the Conductor (called TTE in India), you most likely will never be able to make them vacate your seat. But it is generally a nice experience to travel in Sleeper Class(SL) in the Southern part of the country, especially Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, and people will readily vacate your seats if they are occupying it. Also the number of people without tickets entering the Sleeper Class(SL) is much lower in Southern parts of the country. So if comfort is not the singular aspect in your mind go for the ordinary Sleeper Class(SL). Ac coaches are much nicer and very well maintained, and its unheard of for people without tickets entering them. Also it is easier to find the conductor in Ac coaches in case of any need. So its advisable to travel in any of the AC coaches if travelling in the Central, Northern or Eastern part of the country. Ticketing Edit Beware that trains tend to fill up early and booking tickets online can be fraught with complications due very high number of users. Railway department is expanding the IT Infrastructure with a great rate to improve customer experience. Please plan your travel well in advance to have a smooth journey. In case of urgent ticketing needs you may contact several authorised ticketing Agencies (albeit its wise to look about their credentials before the transaction from a known source, may be from the hotel authorities or any known friends. For a paltry 5-10 extra they may book the ticket for you. But dont expect guaranteed tickets during the rush period, viz, festivals like Deepavali, or Holi since there would be a lot of craze for the tickets among domestic travelers. Tickets are available from counters at most railway stations as well as directly from Indian Railways online reservation service . Rail passes are also available, and are called Indrail passes. Indian man buying a Chai (Tea with Spices) from a train window. One day before the departure date of a train the Tatkal quota seats become available. It opens at morning 10AM for Ac coaches and 11 AM for Sleeper Class on the previous day. This allows tourists who like to plan a trip as they go to book seats closer to the day of departure, for an extra fee. Even with this extra quota (about 10 of the seats on a train) it can sometimes be difficult to get the train you want when you want it. It is very difficult to book Tatkal tickets online because of excess amount of traffic on Indian railway website during Tatkal ticket booking hours. Success rate of Tatkal ticket booking through Indian railway website is less than 20 for very busy train. Indian railway website recently started a service for faster Tatkal ticket booking by paying through ewallet. Ewallet is new feature when you put money before booking ticket on irctc website. To transfer money on ewallet you may need Bank IFSC Code. IFSC Code is Indian Financial System Code which uniquely identifies bank branches in India. Meals Edit Most long distance night trains have a pantry car and if you are in the sleeper or air-con classes, you can buy meals on board the train. The Railways are concerned about the bad quality of pantry car meals and efforts are underway to improve things, but do not count on it as yet. If you are finicky, bring enough food and bottled water for the journey including delays: bananas, bread, and candy bars are good basics to have. At most larger stations hawkers selling tea, peanuts, and snack food and even complete meals will go up and down the train. Most important stations will have vendors selling all kinds of edible stuff, but the usual caveats about eating in India apply. Note that in the most luxurious Rajdhani amp Shatabdi and Duronto trains meals are included in your ticket price and served at your seat during travel. There are no dining cars in Indian Railways. By taxi Edit In central locations of big cities like airports or stations reliable pre-paid taxis are available and will save you money as well as the bargaining hassle. However beware of touts who would claim themselves to be running pre-paid taxis. Always collect the receipt from the counter first. The receipt has two parts - one part is for your reference and the other part you will need to handover to the taxi driver only after you reach your desired destination. The taxi driver will get his payment by submitting or producing this other part to the pre-paid taxi counter. Normal taxis running by meter are usually more common. In many non Metro Cities (or even in Metros depending on time) taxies or autos may ply without the usual meter. they may quote a lumpsum amount depending upon th elocation of your visit, time of the day etc. However remember that in most Indian cities general meter fare for the taxis are INR 14-16 and for auto rickshaws INR 11-13. There are night surcharges ( 11.00 pm to 5.00 am) 10-15 extra. So dont nod for any extraordinary fare quote by your cabby friend. One most common excuses are thet I will not get any return passenger to my way back so you have to compensate for my both way journey (thats his lookout, isnt it). Do not expect Indian taxi or auto rickshaw drivers to ever have any change, so make sure that you have a good collection of small bills (or be ready to give an involuntary tip). By bus Edit Ordinary-class Himachal Road Transport Co bus, Dharamsala While you cant take a cross-country bus-ride across India, buses are the second most popular way of travelling across states and the only cheap way of reaching many places not on the rail network (eg. Dharamsala). Every state has its own public bus service, usually named X Road Transport Corporation (or X RTC) or X State Transport Corporation (or X STC) which primarily connects intra-state routes, but will also have services to neighbouring states. There are usually multiple classes of buses. The ordinary buses (called differently in different states, e. g. service bus) are extremely crowded with even standing room rarely available (unless youre among the first on board) as reservations are not possible and they tend to stop at too many places. On the upside, theyre very cheap, with even a 5-6 hour journey rarely costing over 100. In addition to ordinary public buses, there are luxury or express buses available, and most have air-conditioning now-a-days. Some state transport corporations have even introduced Volvo brand buses on some routes which are extremely luxurious and comfortable. These better class express or luxury buses have assured seating (book in advance), and have limited stops, making them well worth the slight extra expense. But even these better-class buses rarely have toilets and make occasional snack and bathroom breaks. Private buses may or may not be available in the area you are travelling to, and even if they are, the quality could vary a lot. Be warned that many of the private buses, especially long-distance lines, play music andor videos at ear-splitting volume. Even with earplugs it can be nerve-wracking. Do not expect public restrooms at all, or even most, bus stops. Unfortunately, the bus industry is extremely fragmented and there are few operators who offer services in more than 2 or 3 neighbouring states. Travel agents usually only offer seats on private buses. However, long distance bus operators such as Raj National Express and KPN Travels 37 are currently beginning to roll out their operations across the country modelled on the lines of coach services such as Eurolines in Europe, National Express in the UK and Greyhound in the United States. Their services are excellent and they provide entertainment on board. Regardless of class of travel, all buses have to contend with the poor state of Indian highways and the havoc of Indian traffic which usually makes them slower, less comfortable and less safe than trains. Night buses are particularly hazardous, and for long-distance travel its wise to opt for sleeper train services instead. By car Edit Driving on your own Edit In India driving is on the left of the road. India has the second largest road connectivity in the world, after the US, but that does not ensure road quality anyway. You can drive in India if you have a local license or an International Driving Permit, but unless you are accustomed to driving on extremely chaotic streets, you probably will not want to. The average village road is narrow, often potholed and badly marked. National Highways are excellent roads, with generally 4 to 6 lanes but still, Indian driving discipline is non-existent. In the cities, the quality of roads depend upon the part of the city. A regular residential area or the smallerpoorer part of the city will have an average, two-lane road, which are often of not a very good quality, but in the greater parts of the city, the roads are excellent, well paved and marked. In the past few years the Central government has embarked on an ambitious project to upgrade the highways. The Golden Quadrilateral connecting the four largest cities of Chennai, Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata with four-laned highways has been completed and is of international standard. However, improving the quality of the roads does not improve the way in which people drive and it is very dangerous to drive on the roads in India as many of the people drive as they like without regard to any rules. Generally, driving on your own in the city roads is not recommended in India at all. Lane cutting and over taking in blind turns are universal. You will not find any lane discipline in the driving and you always have to expect for something sudden, like a car suddenly turning towards you, and DO NOT hope that they will stop and give way. You will find many two-wheeler riders squeezing between any empty space between cars and a two lane road can end up like a four laned one. Pedestrians too do not follow any sort of traffic rules and walk into the middle of the road at any time. Honking is wide spread and is like a greeting in India, it is used as a Hi or a Hello between cars. Drivers also flash their headlights as a signal for you to allow the driver to pass or as a warning in blind turns. Do not expect two wheelersthree wheelers to follow traffic rules, they never do so. To add on to these issues, there are numerous marriage, death and other religious processions that disrupt traffic and block roads. You will find people taking huge idols, dancing, playing with colors on the roads occasionally. These do disrupt traffic, but they are key parts of the cultural richness of India and are indeed fun to watch. The Indian traffic police has improved their quality of service by a huge margin. They have become quite strict with the traffic issues and punish offenders. They generally ask for a driving license and vehicle papers. The traffic conditions have improved after the police have implemented date-wise parking, towing away of many vehicles and clearing traffic manually using patrol cars. To drive a private vehicle in any part of India the following documents are required - a valid drivers license for the driver (International driving permit for a foreigner), vehicle registration certificate, vehicle insurance certificate and emission certificate if the vehicle is more than one year old (called pollution under control certificate in India). No other document is required for driving a private vehicle in any part of India except some restricted areas. If a policeman is asking for some other document like No Objection Certificate etc, most likely he is hinting at a bribe. In case of an accident, it is not unheard of for the crowd to assault the driver of the bigger vehicle involved. So in case of hitting a pedestrian or a vehicle smaller than your own vehicle, even if not your fault, it is better to immediately leave the scene and be present at the nearest police station. Even if you are not driving the vehicle, it is better to immediately leave the scene and inform the police. Hiring driver with car Edit Instead, if you desire going by a car, opt for driver while renting the car. Rates are quoted in rupees per km and you will have to pay for both ways even if you are going only one way. The drivers salary is low (typically around 100-150 per day) that it adds little to the cost of renting the car. The driver will find his own accommodation and food wherever you are travelling, although it is customary to give him some money to buy some food when you stop somewhere to eat. A common rental vehicle is the legendary Hindustan Motors Ambassador, which is essentially an Indian-made copy of the 1956 Morris Oxford: its large, boxy, with space for 5 passengers (including driver), and a decent-sized trunk. However, the Tata Indica (a hatchback) and Tata Indigo (a small sedan) is now replacing the Ambassador as the cheap car of choice. Imported international models may be available at a premium. If the number of people travelling together is large, popular rental vehicles are Tata Sumo, and Toyota Innova. There are numerous advantages to having a car and driver. A good local driver is the safest means of car travel. You can keep your bags and shopping goods with you securely wherever you go. The driver will often have some knowledge of local tourist destinations. A car is the quickest and most reliable means of going from point to point. After the initial agreement you neednt spend any time finding further transport, or haggling over price. You can stop anywhere you like, and change plans at the last minute. The driver will know where clean toilets are. It is rare to find a driver that speaks more than a few words of English. As a result, misunderstandings are common. Keep sentences short. Use the present tense. Use single words and hand gestures to convey meaning. Make sure you can trust your driver before you leave your goods with him. If he shows any suspicious motives or behavior make sure you keep your bags with you. Conversely, if your driver is very friendly and helpful, it is a nice gesture to buy him a little something to eat or drink when stopping for food. They will really appreciate this. Your driver may in some cases act as a tout, offering to take you to businesses from which he gets baksheesh (a sort of commission). This isnt necessarily a bad thing - he may help you find just what youre looking for, and add a little bit to his paltry income at the same time. On the other hand, you should always evaluate for yourself whether you are being sold on a higher-cost product than you want. Also, many times, these places that supply commissions to the driver (especially restaurants) may not always be the best or most sanitary, so use your judgement. Avoid touts on the road posing as guides that your driver may stop for because he gets a commission from them supporting them only promotes this unpleasant practice. The driver might ask for a tip at the end of the trip. Pay him some amount (100day is generally sufficient) and dont let him guilt-trip you into paying too much. If you rent a car for a trip to a remote destination, make sure before getting out that you will recognize the driver and write down the license plate number and his phone number (nearly all drivers have mobile phones). Touts at tourist areas will may try to mislead you into getting into the wrong car when you leave if you fall for this you will certainly be ripped off, and possibly much worse such as sexual assault if you are female traveller. Be wary of reckless driving when renting a car with a driver. Do not be afraid to tell the driver that you have time to see around and that you are not in a hurry. Indian highways can be extremely dangerous . Make sure also that your driver gets enough rest time and time to eat. In general as you visit restaurants, the driver may eat at the same time (either separately at the same restaurant or at some other nearby place). He may be willing to work nonstop for you as you are the boss, but your life depends on his ability to concentrate, so ensure that your driving demands are reasonable for example, if you decide to carry your own food with you on the road, be sure to offer your driver time to get a lunch himself. Avoid travel at night. Indian city roads are dimly lit. and there are chances of some traffic hazards such as reckless drivers after mid-night. Some parts of highways are well lit, and some are not, as they are not considered important. Try sticking to the main highway and avoid taking diversions in the highway at night, as you never know where it might end up. However, highway driving at night is not very dangerous also and violent crimes such as assaults are rare. The highway police force does a lot to keep it that way. By motorcycle Edit Some people point out that the best way to experience India is on a motorbike . Riding a motorbike and travelling across India you get the closer look and feel of India with all the smells and sounds added. There are Companies which organize packaged tours or tailor made tours for Enthusiastic bikers and adventurous travellers for a safer motorbike experience of India. Blazing Trails tours, Wild Experience tours and Extreme Bike tours are the known names in the market. Another choice, popular with people who like taking risks, is to buy a motorcycle . Not for the faint of heart or inexperienced rider. The Royal Enfield is a popular (some would say, the only) choice for its classic looks and macho mystique. This despite its high petrol consumption, 27 kmlitre, supposed low reliability (it is classic 1940s engineering after all and requires regular service adjustment you can find an Enfield mechanic who has worked on this bike for ten, twenty, thirty years in every town in India, who will perform near-miracles very cheaply), and claimed difficulty to handle (actually the bike handles beautifully, but may be a wee heavy and seat high for some). Or, one can opt for the smaller yet quicker and more fuel efficient bikes. They can range from 100 cc to the newly launched 220 cc bikes. Two most popular bike manufacturers are Bajaj and Honda. The smaller variants (100-125 cc) can give you a mileage exceeding 50 kmlitre on the road, while giving less power if one is opting to drive with pillion on the highways. The bigger variants (150-220 cc) are more powerful and one can get a feel of the power especially on highways - the mileage is lesser for these bikes anywhere between 35kmlitre to 45 kmlitre. Preferably tourists should go for second hand bikes rather than purchasing new ones. The smaller 100 cc variants can be purchased for anywhere between 15,000-25,000 depending on the year of make and condition of vehicle. The bigger ones can be brought from 30,000 onwards. There are lots of garages that provide motorcycle for rent as well. You can check for options on websites like RideIndia. Rental price is usually between 800-1200 but varies from city to city. They may or may not take a deposit. Foreigners have a top hand while negotiating. There are no standards for pricing, hence you can negotiate freely. By hitch hiking Edit Hitch hiking in India is very easy due to the enormous number of cargo trucks on every highway and road. Most drivers do not speak English or any other international language however, most have a very keen sense of where the cities and villages are located along the road. It is rare for any of them to expect payment. It might not be advisable for women to hitch hike alone in India. By auto-rickshaw Edit A typical Indian autorickshaw, Andaman Islands The auto-rickshaw, sometimes abbreviated as auto and sometimes as rickshaw, is the most common means of hired transportation in India. Most residents usually refer to them as a three wheeler. They are very handy for short-distance travel in cities, especially since they can weave their way through small alleys to bypass larger cars stuck in travel jams, but are not very suitable for long distances. Most are green and yellow, due to the new CNG gas laws, and some may be yellow and black in color, with one wheel in the front and two in the back, with a leather or soft plastic top. When getting an auto-rickshaw, you can either negotiate the fare or go by the meter. In almost all cases it is better to use the meter -- a negotiated fare means that you are being charged a higher than normal rate. A metered fare starts around 13, and includes the first kilometre of travel. Never get in an auto-rickshaw without either the meter being turned on, or the fare negotiated in advance. In nearly all cases the driver will ask an exorbitant sum (for Indian standards) from you later. A normal fare would be 11-12 for the first km and 7-8 per km after that. In most of the cities, auto-rickshaw drivers are provided with a rate card that elaborately describes the fares on per kilometre basis. A careful tourist must verify the meter-reading against the rate-card before making a payment. Ideally, you should talk with a local to find out what the fare for any estimated route will be. Higher rates may apply at night, and for special destinations such as airports. Finally, factor in that auto drivers may have to pay bribes to join the queue for customers at premium location such as expensive hotels. The bribe will be factored in the fare. Taxis and auto-rickshaws are unfortunately where youll be most commonly ripped off - and dealing with them can be incredibly tiring. While many taxis and auto-rickshaws will charge you by the meter or the tariff card, dont be surprised if the drivers refuse to carry you by the proper way and insist on receiving a flat rate for travellng a fixed distance. If an auto-rickshaw driver demands for extra moneyabove the meter reading, report to the nearest police station and they shall help you. While the former is more preferable, it is in the latter situation, that people new to a city (both Indians and foreigners) are most likely to be overcharged by a large extent. Just take your belongings, pay what was originally agreed and walk away. Your driver may also make unscheduled detours to shops - refuse to get out and firmly tell them that you do not want to go to any shops - they will always be overpriced and are not worth the time and effort. Auto-rickshaw travel in Indian cities are generally of two types. These are Sharing and Reserve . In the latter, the traveler has the whole auto-rickshaw for self and can go directly to the destination of hisher choice after deciding the mode of payment(Tariff based or Flat rate). In such a kind of booking, never allow any other person to accompany the driver, even if he insists. This could spell trouble for unwary travellers. It is costlier, faster and more comfortable to travel this way as compared to the other option, in which the auto-rickshaw is shared by a couple of more passengers for fares as cheap as Rupees 5 or 10 each. In this option the auto travels on a fixed route and makes multiple stops en route to the final destination, picking and dropping passengers on the way. In some cities and towns, both the modes are available to chose from while in the rest only one of the two is on offer. An alternative to using the above mentioned taxis and auto-rickshaws is to use Uber or its local competitor Ola. Both are available across most cities in India and offer rates that are usually only marginally more expensive than autorickshaws. Functioning exactly as they do in any western country, cabs can be hailed using an app loaded on a GPS and internet enabled smart phone and will usually arrive between 3-10 minutes after being hailed. Since these cabs use GPS navigation to get to your destination, they are by far superior alternatives to freelance taxis and auto rickshaws which may easily dupe you. Addresses Edit If you need to get anywhere, call in advance and ask for detailed directions. Postal addresses are often stated in terms of other landmarks, as in Opp. Prithvi theatre or Behind Maruti Showroom. Unlike the western system of address, the Indian system uses municipal ward number, plot number, house number, land mark and the location instead of street name and block number. Finding a place will usually involve some searching, but you will always find someone out on the streets to guide you. Unlike many other countries, Indians usually do ask passers-by, nearby shopkeepers or policeman for guidance on street addresses. It is usually safe to ask a policeman or traffic-policeman for guidance. If you do not feel like asking strangers for directions, you can use Google maps. Most locations in cities and towns are well covered by Google Maps and this can be a handy tool for navigation. Innerline Permit Edit Inner Line Permit is an official travel document issued by the Government of India to allow inward travel of an Indian citizen into a protectedrestricted area for a limited period. It is obligatory for Indian citizens from outside those states to obtain permit for entering into the protected state. The document is an effort by the Government to regulate movement to certain areas located near the international border of India. This is a security measure and it is applicable for the following states: Arunachal Pradesh permits are issued by the Secretary of the Government of Arunachal Pradesh. The permits are required for entering the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh through any of the check gates across the inter-state border with Assam or Nagaland. Mizoram permits are issued by the Government of Mizoram. The permit is required for entering the Indian state of Mizoram through any of the check gates across the inter-state borders. Nagaland a permit is mandatory for a mainland Indian citizen entering the state of Nagaland through any of the check gates across the inter-state borders. Sikkim There are also hundreds of other less prominent languages like Tulu. Bhojpuri and Ladakhi that are the main spoken language of some places. A good rule of thumb, each Indian state different Indian language. Hindi . natively spoken by about 40 of the population, is the native tongue of the people from the Hindi Belt(including the capital, Delhi ) in Northern India. Many more speak it as a second language. However, these figures include dialects like Bhojpuri (Bihar ) and the Pahadi dialects of Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand that may differ significantly from standard Hindi. However, the prestige dialect of Hindi used in media and education is generally homogeneous and is based on the dialect of the Delhi and Western UP. If you can only afford only one phrasebook, pick up the Hindi one as it will allow you to get by in most of India. While Hindi is the main working language of the Union Government, and also sometime spoken as a second language by Indians from outside the Hindi Belt, it is by no means a lingua-franca for all of India. Majority of the people in Southern and North Eastern states cannot understand Hindi. Avoid speaking Hindi in places such as Tamil Nadu and the Northeast. as Hindi is met with hostility from some of the locals there. Also do not refer to the other languages as dialects of Hindi they are separate languages, mostly mutually unintelligible with different writing systems, and some (like the Dravidian languages) are completely unrelated to Hindi. Code-switching between English and the native language (often in the same sentence) is very common among youngsters and is widely used in daily conversation, SMS (in Roman script), TV advertising, FM radio and Bollywood. While fluency in English varies vastly depending on education levels, occupation, age and region it is generally not a problem getting by with English in urban areas. English is compulsory in all schools, and is widely spoken in major cities and around most tourist places, as well as in most police stations and government offices, and acts as the lingua franca among educated Indians. English is also the second language for most of the Indians. However, if possible, you are better off picking up as many words of the local language of the place you are going to - people are proud of their states (or regions) culture and language and will appreciate it if an outsider makes an attempt to communicate in it. English has been spoken by Indians long enough that it has begun evolving its own rhythm, vocabulary, and inflection, much like French in Africa. Indeed, much has recently been made of subcontinental writers such as Arundhati Roy, Vikram Seth, and Salman Rushdie. The English you are likely to hear in India will be heavily influenced by British English, although spoken with the lilting stress and intonation of the speakers other native language. Indians may be able to recognize the native language of another countryman by the accent (Bengali accents are very different from the South Indian accents, for example). Generally speaking, most official signs are bilingual in the state language and English. Signs at railway stations are generally trilingual outside the Hindi-speaking belt. One of the most delightful quirks of Indian English is the languages adherence to Pre-1950s British English which to speakers in North America and Britain will sound oddly formal. Another source of fascination and intrigue for travelers is the ubiquitous use of English for cute quips in random places. One relatively common traffic sign reads, Speed thrills, but kills. On the back of trucks everywhere youll find use dipper at night or Sound Horn. However, only standard British English is considered correct . Interestingly, keyboards in India are based on the US-standard, so American spelling is also used. Indians are adopting more and more native words into their English. A lot of these are already well known to speakers elsewhere. Chai (tea), Guru (learned teachermaster), cummerbund (literally waist-tie), Nirvana (extinction of the separative ego) and avatar (God in human form) are words that have left their original subcontinental home. However, Indians are using English loan words in their native languages at an even more rapid pace. As India modernizes blazingly fast, it has taken from English words for modern objects that simply did not exist a few decades ago. However, more importantly, bilingual Indians in informal conversation will often switch unpredictably between English and their native language when speaking to similar polyglots, thus effectively communicating in a hybridized language that relies on the listeners ability to speak both languages. A bilingual speaker in Delhi, might for example, say mera fever bahut bad hai (my fever is very bad) which mixes English with Hindi 50-50 in spite of the fact that perfectly good words exist for both fever and bad in Hindi. This hybrid is sometimes referred to as Hinglish. It seems that English and Hindi are indeed converging among the bilingual sections of society. While English, as a distinct language, is here to stay for now, it appears that it will eventually over hundreds of years be absorbed into the vast cultural fabric of the subcontinent. Most Indian languages lack a word for please, just like the Scandinavian languages. Instead, verbs have many forms denoting levels of politeness and formality. As there is no such distinction in English, Indians may also seem commanding to a westerner. You may hear phrases like come here which may sound commanding to Anglophones from Western cultures, but this is not meant to be rude. There are plenty of English language TV shows that air in India (without dubbing) on Zee Cafe, FX, Star World, BBC Entertainment, AXN, Warner Bros and BIG CBS Prime. However, with the exception of BIG CBS Prime, shows are usually a season behind. Nearly all shows are American (except for the ones on BBC Entertainment). There are many other TV channels in English in fact, there are more English TV channels than in any other Indian language. English language films in cinemas are generally shown in their original language with subtitles in the local language. Cartoon Network, Pogo, Nat Geo, and Discovery may be dubbed in Hindi, Telegu or Tamil in their respective areas. However, this can be changed to English by changing the audio settings. Though extremely limited in numbers and influence compared to English, India has small areas where Portuguese and even French are spoken. Portuguese speaks may be found in Goa, Daman and Diu, around the village Korlai, and some other places, all of which were once Portuguese colonies. Some French speakers would be found in Pondicherry where about ten thousand french speakers reside. French influence can still be seen in the city (the caps of policemen, architecture, Alliance Franais, and many French-based institutionsgovernmental buildings. Non-verbal communication is also important. Much has been made of the confusing Indian head nod for yes and no, but the only important thing to understand is that Indians have different nods for yes, ok and no. If they are nodding their head up and down . they mean yes or I agree . as in a standard nod. If they are shaking their head in a tilting motion from right to left and back (like a figure of eight), they mean I understand or I get what you said . If they shake their head sideways (left to right to left), they mean no . There are differences in the way these signs are used in northern and southern India. The back to forth is yes and a vigorous left-right shift is no in northern India, though latter may be construed for yes in southern states like Tamilnadu. Look for verbal cues that accompany these sounds (like aaan for yes ) in southern India to get the correct meaning. If you really want to see all the worth visiting places in India, one tourist visa of six months can be argued to be considered enough. There are more tourist destinations in India than can be mentioned in one book. Almost every State in India has over ten major tourist destinations and there are cities which can not be fully experienced even in one full week. Not to forget that several states of India are bigger than most of the countries in the world and there are twenty-nine states in India. The Taj Mahal 160: It is actually bigger and more majestic than what it looks in the photograph. Varanasi 160: Hindu religious rituals, some harking back to the Vedic age, 5,000 years ago, Varanasi is the oldest living city of the world. Dont miss the evening Ganga Aarti. Tigers160: They may or may not be present in all the tiger reserves but your chances of seeing a tiger are fairly good in Bandhavgarh or Ranthambore tiger reserves. Sundarbans : Largest mangrove forest and delta in the world. Home to the famous Royal Bengal tigers and estuarine crocodiles. Hill Stations: India is home to some remarkable, scenic and gorgeous hill stations such as Shimla. Mussorie. Darjeeling. Shillong and Ooty . Sangla Valley 160: Considered one of the most beautiful valleys of the world lies in the upper regions of Himachal Pradesh. It is extremely scenic with photogenic landscapes and unforgettable landscapes. Leh 160: Considered to be on the top of the world. One of the highest inhabited cities of the world. It gives a different idea of high altitude altogether with unbelievable landscapes. Srinagar 160: It is the capital of the State of Jammu and Kashmir. Extremely beautiful city in the midst of the Himalayas with a very beautiful Dal lake in it. Gangtok 160: Capital city of Sikkim. Gangtok is a bewitching hill-station located amidst the multiple-hued mountains of Sikkim. Goa 160: Ruled by Portuguese for over 400 years, Goa is a cocktail of Indian and Portuguese culture. Quite a different kind of place altogether, Goa is full of beautiful beaches and flocking tourists. Pondicherry 160: Pondicherry was a French colony over two hundred years and has a lot of sighting of French influence throughout its territories. Now tourists often flock there for spiritual ashrams or enjoyable pubs and parties. Bishnupur 160: Located in West Bengal, it is home to the famous terracotta temples and a great centre for classical Bishnupur Gharana music. Do not forget to buy a Bankura horse made of terracota(which is the symbol for Indian handicrafts). Tirupati Balaji160: If you want to see the material richness of a religious place, visit this temple. It is considered to be the richest temple in the world and one surprising sight to see for a non Indian. It is located in Andhra Pradesh. Nalanda 160: Related to Buddhism, It was the oldest university of the world later on destroyed completely during the Muslim invasions of India. Sights of Buddhist interest like Pavapuri and Rajgir are in the vicinity. Golden Temple 160: An actual temple plated with gold is one of Sikhisms holiest shrines. Looks very serene early in the mornings. Khajuraho 160: Supposedly the birth place of Kamasutra, Khajuraho is full of temples with erotic sculptures all around them. One of the most interesting and less talked about aspects of Hindu culture. Kochi 160: In a State full of secluded and ravishing beaches, Kochi is one of the most sought after tourist destination. It is advisable to visit the surrounding beach cities of Kochi. Dont forget to experience backwaters of Kerala in a house boat. Andamans 160: Beautiful Island territory of India in the Bay of Bengal, Andaman islands can be considered one of the best island destinations in the world. Jaisalmer 160: A city located in the middle of desert, Jaisalmer is a place to go for watching the beautiful view of sun lighted virgin deserts of Thar Desert. Nasik Kumbh Mela 160: 2015 welcomes the Kumbh Mela, the biggest spiritual fair of the country to Nasik. Several tour operators provide luxury tent accommodation for tourists to experience the beauty and spiritual aura of the Kumbh Mela. Srirangam. 38. Srirangam is a marvellous and magnificient temple in South of India. 160edit Kumarakom. 39. Serene back waters in Gods own country, Kerala in South India is a must visit. Kumarakom is best described as a cluster of islands in the backdrop of Vembanad Lake housing varied wild life, which makes it an ornithologists dreamland. 160edit Kutch Mandvi Beach. 40. Mandvi is a city and a municipality in the Kutch district in the indian state of Gujarat. It was once a major port of the region and summer retreat for Maharao (king) of the Cutch State. 160edit Sports Edit Football. Other than cricket, you can come across young boys playing around with a ball on any open space which is available. The club soccer is more favorite to the Indians than the international games and you will find people getting into heated arguments in public places over their favorite team. Also, many large restaurants and bars offer a view of important European club matches and the World Cup matches. The most famous and electrifying Derby club match is between Mohun Bagan Athletic club (Estd.-1889) and East Bengal Football club (Estd.-1920) held in Salt Lake stadium (the second largest non-auto racing stadium in the world) in Kolkata. the football capital of India and a tremendously football crazy city. 160edit Hockey ( (Field hockey) ). Despite the craze for football and cricket, the national game of India, hockey retains a prominent position in the hearts of many Indians. Although the viewership has dwindled significantly, (as compared to the golden era before cricket came to the fore in the mid 80s), it hasnt vanished. Especially in North India, some eastern parts like Jharkhand, Odisha and the north-eastern states still have a significant base. The introduction of the Premier Hockey League has recovered its popularity in recent times. 160edit Cricket. India is a cricket-obsessed country and cricket is in the blood of most Indians. It plays a dominant role in world cricket and has been world champion twice in ICC Cricket World Cup. Once in 1983 beating a mighty West Indies in the final and most recently in 2011 defeating Sri Lanka. India also emerged triumphant in the inaugural ICC T20 World Cup in 2007 held in South Africa beating arch-rival Pakistan in a nail-biting final. Popularity of cricket in India is second to no other games therefore seeing kids playing cricket in parks and alleys with rubber balls and makeshift wickets is an extremely common sight. Until 2008, Indian cricket was all about the national team playing against other countries in one-day matches or epic 5 day Test marathons, but the advent of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 41 has, for better or worse, brought fast-paced, commercialized Twenty20 cricket to the fore, complete with cheerleaders and massive salaries. In international matches, while Australia and South Africa make viable opposition, the biggest rivalry by far is with neighbouring Pakistan, and matches between the two sides are often a very charged affair. About half-a dozen Indian stadiums have a capacity of over 45,000 and watching a cricket match can be quite an experience. Eden Gardens cricket stadium in Kolkata is Asias highest capacity stadium with over 90,000 seating capacity and is the oldest cricket stadium in the Indian Subcontinent established in 1865 and is comparable to the stadiums of Lords in London and the MCG in Melbourne. The atmosphere of most matches is electrifying. Nearly all international matches have sellout crowds, and it is quite normal for fans to bribe officials and make their way in. Starting ticket prices are quite cheap they can be as low as 250-300. India and Pakistan are all-time arch rivals, and cricket matches between the two nations attract up to a billion TV viewers. 160edit Fairs and festivals Edit Goa Fair(carnival) - February heralds the carnival at Goa. For three days and nights the streets come alive with color. Held in mid February the weeklong event is a time for lively processions, floats, the strumming of guitars, graceful dances and of non-stop festivity. One of the more famous of the Indian Carnivals the Goa Festival is a complete sell out in terms of tourism capacities. Surajkund Mela -(1-15 Febuary)As spring glides in, full of warmth and vibrancy leaving the gray winter behind, Surajkund adorns itself with colorful traditional crafts of India. Craftsmen from all over the country assemble at Surajkund during the first fortnight of February to participate in the annual celebration known as the Surajkund Crafts Mela. Shop selling colours for Holi, Old Delhi Holi-The Spring Festival of India, Holi - is a festival of colors. Celebrated in March or April according to the Hindu calendar, it was meant to welcome the spring and win the blessings of Gods for good harvests and fertility of the land. As with all the Hindu festivals, there are many interesting legends attached to Holi, the most popular being that of Prince Prahlad, who was a devout follower of Lord Vishnu. It is the second most important festival of India after Diwali. Holi in India is a festival of fun and frolic and has been associated with the immortal love of Krishna and Radha. The exuberance and the festivity of the season are remarkable. Diwali - Diwali, the festival of lights, illuminates the darkness of the New Years moon, and strengthens our close friendships and knowledge, with a self-realization. Diwali is celebrated on a nation-wide scale on Amavasya - the 15th day of the dark fortnight of the Hindu month of Ashwin, (OctNov) every year. It symbolizes that age-old culture of India which teaches to vanquish ignorance that subdues humanity and to drive away darkness that engulfs the light of knowledge. Diwali, the festival of lights even to-day in this modern world projects the rich and glorious past of India. Pushkar Mela - Every November, the sleepy little township of Pushkar in Rajasthan, India comes alive with a riot of colors amp a frenzied burst of activity during the Pushkar Fair. Very few, if at all any, fairs in the world can match the liveliness of Pushkar. Most people associate the Pushkar Fair with the worlds largest camel fair. But it is much more than that. National parks Edit Depending on the area and terrain National Parks provide ample opportunities to the visitors to have a close encounters with the wilds. Indian National Parks have great variety and range of attractions and activities including the observation of their flora, avifauna, and aquafauna, or witnessing various wild creatures in their natural surroundings from on foot or a viewpoint riding upon an elephant or from inside a jeep. Bandhavgarh National Park - located in Umaria District, Madhya Pradesh. Ranthambore National Park-located near Sawai Madhopur, Rajasthan. Kaziranga National Park - located in Golaghat, Assam. Kanha National Park-located in Mandla District, Madhya Pradesh Royal Chitwan National Park (Nepal)- located in South West Of Kathmandu, Nepal Eravikulam National Park - located in Munnar, Kerala Tours amp Activities Edit India is an amazing land to be explored and discovered. India offers a different aspect of her personality - exotic, extravagant, elegant, eclectic - to each traveller of the country. There are six regions or zones according to tourism point of view: 1) North, 2) South, 3) East, 4) West, 5) Central and 6) North East. While North and North-East boast of splendid palaces, forts and mighty Himalayas South and West have beaches, bustling towns, backwaters and architectural marvels160 East is famous for religious ties: One finds ancient roots of both Hinduism and Buddhism here. If you plan on taking on Indian tourist places, do note that India is a huge land and has all kinds of people living here - friendly as well as non-friendly ones, so be street-smart wherever you are and enjoy an amazing trip. E-Tourist Visa has been extended to 37 more countries recently (The list now has 150 countries). Indian government has become more tourist friendly, however tourists do find themselves paying a lot more than usual due to differential pricing of travel agents through out the country. It is advisable to consult Government Tourist Information Centres located at Railway Stations or Airports. Do not get in the hands of touts and cheats who post Government Approved Agent signs all over their shops There are many online travel sites to help you plan your trip in a systematic and organised way. Like for booking Train Tickets you can visit irctc. co. in (This is a government website to sell train tickets) for Bus Bookings you can visit different state road transport websites like Himachal Road Transport (hrtc. gov. inhrtctickets ) and also all states have their own tourism websites that can help tourists. The Indian Rupee Symbol: Rs. or The new Rupee symbol was introduced in July 2010 to bring the rupees symbol in line with other major currencies. Previously, Rs was used (or Re for the singular rupee). It is very likely you will continue to see the previous nomenclature in your Indian travels, especially with smaller businesses and street vendors. It will take many years for the new symbol to become universally adopted in the country. 2016 Demonetization On 8 November 2016, the two largest banknotes, the 500 (yellow) and 1,000 (pink), were demonetized and replaced with new 500 and 2000 notes. (In due course, a new 1000 note will be issued.) While the old 500 and 1000 notes can be exchanged until 31 December at banks and at other places until 31 March 2017, there are limits as to the amount of notes that can be exchanged: a practical implication is that travellers normally can only exchange up to 5000 for foreign currency. Do not accept any of the old 500 and 1000 notes: become familiar with what the old notes look like. The currency in India is the Indian rupee (sign: code: INR ) ( 8212 rupaya in Hindi and similarly named in most Indian languages, but taka in Maithili and Taakaa in Bengali and Toka in Assamese). The rupee is subdivided into 100 paise (singular: paisa). 5 rupees 75 paise would normally be written as 5.75 . Currently-used banknotes come in denominations of 1 (pink and green), 5 (green), 10 (orange), 20 (red), 50 (purple), 100 (blue-green), 500 (yellow-gray) and 2,000 (pink-purple). 1 and 5 notes are less common than their coin counterparts, but they still can be found the 10 note, however, is far more common than its coin counterpart. It is always good to have a number of small notes on hand, as merchants and drivers sometimes have no change. A useful technique is to keep small notes (10-50) in your wallet or in a pocket, and to keep larger notes separate. Then, it will not be obvious how much money you have. Many merchants will claim that they dont have change for a 100 or 500 note. This is often a lie so that they are not stuck with a large note. It is best not to buy unless you have exact change. The coins in circulation are 50 paise (uncommon), 1, 2, 5, and 10. Coins of less than 50 paise are no longer legal tender. Coins are useful for buying tea (5), for bus fares (2 to 10), and for giving exact change for an auto-rickshaw. Indians commonly use lakh and crore for 100,000 and 10,000,000 respectively. Comma placement differs, so one crore rupees would be written as 1,00,00,000. This format is not that difficult, but may puzzle you as it is different. You can rectify this when you start thinking in terms of lakhs and crores, after which it will seem natural. Changing money Edit Rajasthani fabric for sale, Jodhpur The Indian Rupee is not officially convertible, and a few government-run shops and hotels will still insist on seeing official exchange receipts if you are visibly a foreigner and attempt to pay in rupees instead of hard currency. Rates for exchanging rupees overseas are often poor and importing rupees is restricted, although places with significant Indian populations (eg. Dubai, Singapore) can give decent rates. Try to get rid of any spare rupees before you leave the country. Officially, to re-exchange rupees prior to departure from India, you need to present exchange certificates andor ATM receipts a limited amount of rupees may be exchangeable without these receipts. Outside airports, you can change your currency at any one of the numerous foreign exchange conversion units including banks. In many cities and towns, credit cards are accepted at retail chain stores and other restaurants and stores. Small businesses (including hotels and guest houses) and family-run stores almost never accept credit cards, so it is useful to keep a moderate amount of cash on hand. ATMs are abundant across India - though often not found in smaller airports. Most ATMs will pay out at most 10,000 in each transaction - some will pay 20,000. State Bank of India (SBI) is the biggest bank in India and has the most ATMs, and ICICI bank has the second largest network of ATMs. International banks such as Citibank, HSBC, Deutsche Bank (part of Global ATM Alliance), RBS (The Royal Bank of Scotland) and Standard Chartered have a significant presence in major Indian cities. It is always worthwhile to have bank cards or credit cards from at least two different providers to ensure that you have a backup available in case one card is suspended by your bank or simply does not work work at a particular ATM. If you find the ATM saying invalid card, try inserting it and removing it more slowly. Increasing number of banks (e. g. Citibank, HDFC, ICICI) charge more than 200 for transactions made with foreign cards. So far (2015), State Bank of India, which has the largest number of ATMs, doesnt charge any fee for foreign transaction. If the ATM has a fee it will always ask you for confirmation before you continue (this is a legal requirement). Costs Edit In short, India is not very expensive . Mid-range to high-range travellers Edit 2000, at least, needed for a decent room in a good hotel offering cable, air conditioning and a direct telephone however, this price doesnt include a refrigerator. Food will cost at least 150 for a decent meal at a stall, not at a hotel), but the sky is the limit. While bus transportation will cost approximately 5 for a short distance of about 1 km, a taxi or rickshaw will cost 22 for the same distance without air conditioning. There are radio taxis that are available at 2025 per km in key Indian cities which have GPS navigation, air conditioned and accept debitcredit cards for payments. They are a very safe mode of travel. So the total for one day would be about as below: Hotel: US35 for a good place per day Food: US10 for a good meal per day Travel: US10 taxi and bus together Total: US80 for a couple, US70 for a person alone Budget travellers Edit Budget travel around India is surprisingly easy, with the savvy backpacker able to get by (relatively comfortably) on as little as US25-35 per day. It is generally cheaper than South East Asia with a night in a hotel costing as little as 200-1,000 (though there will be probably no air conditioning or room service for this price). Beach huts in the cheaper places of Goa can cost around 800 per night. A meal can be bought from a street trader for as little as 30, though, in a restaurant expect, to pay around 200-300 for a beer or two. Overnight buses and trains can cost anywhere from 600-1,000 dependent on distance and locations, though an uncomfortable government bus (benches only) may be cheaper. Shopping Edit In India, you are expected to negotiate the price with street hawkers but not in department stores and the like. If not, you risk overpaying many times, which can be okay if you think that it is cheaper than at home. In most of the big cities and even smaller towns retail chain stores are popping up where the shopping experience is essentially identical to similar stores in the West. There are also some government-run stores like the Cottage Emporium in New Delhi, where you can sample wares from all across the country in air-conditioned comfort. Although you will pay a little more at these stores, you can be sure that what you are getting is not a cheap knockoff. The harder you bargain, the more you save money. A few tries later, you will realise that it is fun. Often, the more time you spend in a store, the better deals you will get. It is worth spending time getting to know the owner, asking questions, and getting him to show you other products (if you are interested). Once the owner feels that he is making a sufficient profit from you, he will often give you additional goods at a rate close to his cost, rather than the common foreigner rate. You will get better prices and service by buying many items in one store than by bargaining in multiple stores individually. If you see local people buying in a store, you can probably get the real Indian prices. Ask someone around you quietly, How much would you pay for this Also, very often you will meet a friend in the street inviting you to visit their familys shop. That almost always means that you pay twice as much as when you had been in the shop without your newly found friend. Baksheesh --small bribes--is a very common phenomenon. While it is a big problem in India, doing it can ease certain problems and clear some hurdles. Baksheesh is also the term used by beggars if they want money from you and may refer to tips given those who provide you a service. Baksheesh is as ancient a part of Middle Eastern and Asian culture as anywhere else. It derives from the Arabic meaning a small gift. It refers as much to charity as to bribes. Packaged goods show the Maximum Retail Price (MRP) right on the package. This includes taxes. Retailers are not supposed to charge more than this. Though this rule is adhered to at most places, at tourist destinations or remote places, you may be charged more. This is especially true for cold drinks like Coke or Pepsi, where a bottle (300 ml) is priced around 11-12 when the actual price is 10. Also, keep in mind that a surprising number of things do not come in packaged form. Do check for the authenticity of the MRP, as shopkeepers may put up a sticker of his own to charge more from you. What to look forbuy Edit Wood Carvings . India produces a striking variety of carved wood products that can be bought at very low prices. Examples include decorative wooden plates, bowls, artwork, furniture and miscellaneous items that will surprise you. Check the regulations of your home country before attempting to import wooden items. Clothing . It depends on the stateregion you are visiting. Many states have their own specialties: for example, silk sarees in Benaras block prints in Jaipur. Paintings . Paintings come on a wide variety of media, such as cotton, silk or with frame included. Gemstone paintings incorporate semi-precious stone dust, so they have a glittering appearance to them. Marble and stone carvings . Common carved items include elephants, Hindu godsgoddesses. Jewellery . Beautiful necklaces, bracelets and other jewellery are very inexpensive in India. Pillow covers, bedsets . Striking and rich designs are common for pillows and bed covers. Designer brands like Louis Vuitton, Prada. Gucci, Zara. A amp F, all are available in upmarket stores. India food State wise Indian cuisine is superb and takes its place among the great cuisines of the world. Most of the time you may find it good and spicy. There is a good chance that youd have tasted Indian food in your country, especially if you are a traveller from the West, but what India has exported abroad is just one part of its extraordinary range of culinary diversity. Indian food has a well-deserved reputation for being hot . owing to the Indian penchant for the liberal use of a variety of spices, and potent fresh green chilies or red chilies powder that will bring tears to the eyes of the uninitiated, and found in unexpected places like sweet cornflakes (a snack, not breakfast) or even candies. The degree of spiciness varies widely throughout the country: Andhra food is famously fiery, while Gujarati cuisine is quite mild in taste. To enjoy the local food, start slowly. Dont try everything at once. After a few weeks, you can get accustomed to spicy food. If you would like to order your dish not spicy, simply say so. Most visitors are tempted to try at least some of the spicy concoctions, and most discover that the sting is worth the trouble. Cuisine Edit A vast spread of North Indian food Cuisine in India varies greatly from region to region. The Indian food served by many so-called Indian restaurants in the Western hemisphere is inspired by North Indian cooking, specifically Mughlai cuisine, a style developed by the royal kitchens of the historical Mughal Empire, and the regional cuisine of the Punjab. although degree of authenticity in relation to actual Mughlai or Punjabi cooking is sometimes variable at best and dubious at worst. North India is wheat growing land, so you have Indian breads (known as roti ), including chapatti (unleavened bread), paratha (pan-fried layered roti), naan (made from refined wheat flour, and cooked in a clay tandoori oven), puri (deep-fried and puffed up bread), and many more. A typical meal consists of one or more gravy dishes along with rotis, to be eaten by breaking off a piece of roti, dipping it in the gravy and eating them together. Most of the Hindi heartland of India survives on roti, rice, and lentils ( dal ), which are prepared in several different ways and made spicy to taste. Served on the side, you will usually find spiced yogurt ( raita ) and either fresh chutney or a tiny piece of exceedingly pungent pickle ( achar ), a very acquired taste for most visitors 8212 try mixing it with curry, not eating it plain. A variety of regional cuisines can be found throughout the North. Tandoori chicken, prepared in a clay oven called a tandoor . is probably the best-known North Indian dish, innovated by a Punjabi immigrant from present-day Pakistan during the Partition. For a taste of traditional Punjabi folk cooking, try dal makhani (stewed black lentils and kidney beans in a buttery gravy), or sarson da saag . a yummy gravy dish made with stewed mustard greens, served with makke di roti (flatbread made from maize). Theres also the hearty textures and robust flavours of Rajasthani food, the meat heavy Kashmiri dishes from the valley of Kashmir, or the mild yet gratiating Himalayan ( pahari ) cuisine found in the higher reaches. North India also has of a variety of snacks like samosa (vegetables encased in thin pastry of a triangular shape) and kachori (either vegetable or pulses encased in thin pastry). There is also a vast constellation of sweet desserts like jalebi (deep-fried pretzel with sugar syrup - shaped like a spiral), rasmalai (balls of curds soaked in condensed milk) and halwa . Dry fruits and nuts like almonds, cashews and pistachio are used a lot, often in the desserts, but sometimes also in the main meal. Authentic Mughal-style cooking, the royal cuisine of the Mughal Empire, can still be found and savoured in some parts of India, most notably the old Mughal cities of Delhi, Agra and Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh. and Hyderabad in Andhra Pradesh. It is a refined blend of Persian. Turkic and Subcontinent cooking, and makes heavy use of meat and spices. The names of some Mughal dishes bear the prefix of shahi as a sign of its prestige and royal status from a bygone era. Famous Mugha specialties include biryani (layered meat and rice casserole), pulao (rice cooked in a meat or vegetable broth), kebab (grilled meat), kofta (balls of mincemeat), rumali roti (flatbread whirled into paper-thin consistency), shahi tukray (saffron and cardamom-scented bread pudding). A typically south Indian banana leaf meal In South India . the food is mostly rice-based . A typical meal includes sambhar (a thick vegetable and lentil chowder) with rice, rasam (a thin, peppery soup), or avial (mixed vegetables) with rice, traditionally served on a banana leaf as a plate. Seasoning in South India differs from northern regions by its ubiquitous use of mustard seeds, curry leaves, pulses, fenugreek seeds, and a variety of souring agents such as tamarind and kokum. There are regional variations too 8212 the coastal regions make greater use of coconut and fish. In the State of Kerala. it is common to use grated coconut in everything and coconut oil for cooking, while someone from the interior could be surprised to learn that coconut oil, can in fact, be used for cooking. The South also has some great breakfast dishes like idli (a steamed cake of lentils and rice), dosa . a thin, crispy pancake often stuffed with spiced potatoes to make masala dosa . vada . a savoury Indian donut, and uttapam . a fried pancake made from a rice and lentil batter with onions and other vegetables mixed in. All of these can be eaten with dahi . plain yogurt, and chutney . a condiment that can be made from practically anything. Try the ever popular Masala Dosa, which originated from Udupi in Karnataka. in one of the old restaurants of Bangalore like MTR and Janatha in Malleswaram or Vidyarthi Bhavan in Basavangudi. South Indian cuisine is predominantly vegetarian, though there are exceptions: seafood is very popular in Kerala and the Mangalorean coast of Karnataka and Chettinad and Hyderabad cuisines use meat heavily, and are a lot more spicier. Coffee tends to be the preferred drink to tea in South India. To the West . you will find some great cuisine groups. Gujarati cuisine is somewhat similar to Rajastani cooking with the heavy use of dairy products, but differs in that it is predominantly vegetarian, and often sweetened with jaggery or sugar. Gujaratis make some of the best snack items such as the Dhokla and the Muthia . Mumbai is famous for its chaat, as well as the food of the small but visible Irani and Parsi communities concentrated in and around the city. The adjacent states of Maharashtra and Goa are renowned for their seafood, often simply grilled, fried or poached in coconut milk. A notable feature of Goan cooking is that pork and vinegar is used, a rare sight in the rest of India. Vindaloo originated in Goa, and is in fact traditionally cooked with pork, and in spite of its apparent popularity in Indian restaurants abroad, it is not common in India itself. To the East . Bengali and Odishan food makes heavy use of rice, and fish due to the vast river channels and ocean coastline in the region. Bengali cooking is known for its complexity of flavor and bittersweet balance. Mustard oil, derived from mustard seeds, is often used in cooking and adds a pungent, slightly sweet flavor and intense heat. Bengalis prefer freshwater fish, in particular the iconic ilish or hilsa: it can be smoked, fried, steamed, baked in young plantain leaves, cooked with curd, eggplant and cumin seeds. It is said that ilish can be prepared in more than 50 ways. Typical Bengali dishes include maccher jhal . a brothy fish stew which literally means fish in sauce, and shorshe ilish (cooked in a gravy made from mustard seed paste). Eastern India is also famous for its desserts and sweets: Rasgulla is a famous variant of the better-known gulab jamun, a spherical morsel made from cows milk and soaked in a clear sugar syrup. Its excellent if consumed fresh or within a day after it is made. Sondesh is another excellent milk-based sweet, best described as the dry equivalent of ras malai. A lot of food has also filtered in from other countries. Indian Chinese (or Chindian ) is far and away the most common adaptation: most Chinese would barely recognize the stuff, but dishes like veg manchurian (deep-fried vegetable balls in a chilli-soy-ginger sauce) and chilli chicken are very much a part of the Indian cultural landscape and worth a try. The British left fish and chips and some fusion dishes like mulligatawny soup, while Tibetan and Nepali food, especially momo dumplings, are not uncommon in north India. Pizza has entered India in a big way, but chains like Pizza hut and Dominos have been forced to Indianize the pizza and introduce adaptations like paneer-tikka pizza. Remarkably, there is an Indian chain called Smokin Joes, based out of Mumbai, which has gone and mixed Thai curry with Pizzas. It is, of course, impossible to do full justice to the range and diversity of Indian food in this brief section. Not only does every region of India have a distinctive cuisine, but you will also find that even within a region, castes and ethnic communities have different styles of cooking and often have their signature recipes which you will probably not find in restaurants. The adventurous traveller is advised to wangle invitations to homes, try various bylanes of the city and look for food in unlikely places like temples in search of culinary nirvana. Fruits Edit While there are a wide variety of fruits native to India such as the chikoo and the jackfruit . nothing is closer to an Indians heart than a juicy ripe mango. Hundreds of varieties are found across most of its regions 8212 in fact, India is the largest producer, growing more than half the worlds output. Mangoes are in season at the hottest part of the year, usually between May and July, and range from small (as big as a fist) to some as big as a small cantaloupe. It can be consumed in its ripe, unripe as well a baby form (the last 2 predominently in pickles). Other fruits widely available (depending on the season) are bananas, oranges, guavas, lychees, apples, pineapple, pomegranate, apricot, melons, coconut, grapes, plums, peaches and berries. Vegetarian Edit Know your vegetarians Most Indians who practise vegetarianism do so for religious or cultural reasons 8212 though cultural taboos have their roots in ethical concerns. Indians dietary restrictions come in all shapes and sizes and the two symbols (see right) do not capture the full range. Here is a quick guide: Veganism is practically unknown in many parts of India, because milk and honey are enthusiastically consumed by virtually everyone. But major cities, such as Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore, do have budding vegan societies and items such as tofu, soy chunks (branded Nutrela), and soy milk are readily available in major cities, as well as some minor ones. Eggs are considered non-vegetarian by many, though you are very likely to find people who are otherwise vegetarian eating eggs. These people are often referred to as eggetarians . That said, there are a number of foods that are vegan by default in India, including standard restaurant dishes such as aloo gobi, channa masala, various types of dal, dosas, and the vast majority of Indo-Chinese dishes. Dishes made with dairy products are usually denoted as such (referencing their use of butter or ghee, in particular). Most restaurants will accommodate dietary restrictions and it is advisable to ask if a dish contains milk, butter, cream, yogurt or ghee. Virtually all Indian desserts, however, are non-vegan, with the exception of jalebi, an orange-colored fried dough commonly found in western and northern India. The strictest vegetarians are some Jains and some Brahmin sects - they not only abjure all kinds of meat and eggs, they also refuse to eat onions, potatoes or anything grown under the soil. Even meat-eating Hindus often follow special diets during religious days or during fasts . Hindu fasts do not involve giving up all food, just eating a restricted diet 8212 some take only fruits. A very small group of Indians are, or used to be piscatarians 8212 i. e. they count fish as a vegetable product. Among these are Bengali and Konkani Brahmins. Such people are increasingly rare as most have taken to meat-eating. Visiting vegetarians will discover a culinary treasure that is found nowhere else in the world. Owing to a large number of strictly vegetarian Hindus, Buddhists and Jains, Indian cuisine has evolved an astonishingly rich menu that uses no meat or eggs. The Jains in particular practice a strict form of vegetarianism based on the principles of non-violence and peaceful co-operative co-existence: Jains usually do not consume root vegetables such as potatoes, garlic, onions, carrots, radishes, cassava, sweet potatoes and turnips, as the plant needed to be killed in the process of accessing these prior to their end of life cycle. At least half the menus of most restaurants are devoted to vegetarian dishes, and by law all packaged food products in India are tagged with a green dot (vegetarian) or red dot (non-veg). Veganism however is not a well-understood concept in India, and vegans may face a tougher time: milk products like cheese ( paneer ), yogurt ( dahi ) and clarified butter ( ghee ) are used extensively, and honey is also commonly used as a sweetener. Milk in India is generally not pasteurized, and must be boiled before consumption. Even non-vegetarians will soon note that due to the Hindu taboo, beef is generally not served (except in the Muslim and Parsi communities, Goa. Kerala and the North-Eastern states ), and pork is also uncommon due to the Muslim population. Chicken and mutton are thus by far the most common meats used, although buff (water buffalo) is occasionally served in backpacker establishments. Seafood is of course ubiquitous in the coastal regions of India, and a few regional cuisines do use duck, venison and other game meats in traditional dishes. Etiquette Edit In India eating with your hand (instead of utensils like forks and spoons) is very common. Theres one basic rule of etiquette to observe, particularly in non-urban India: Use only your right hand . The left hand is only used for dirty things, like cleaning up in the toilet. Dont stick either hand into communal serving dishes: instead, use the left hand to serve yourself with utensils and then dig in. Needless to say, its wise to wash your hands well before and after eating. For breads for all types, the basic technique is to hold down the item with your forefinger and use your middle-finger and thumb to tear off pieces. The pieces can then be dipped in sauce or used to pick up bits before you stuff them in your mouth. Rice is more challenging, but the basic idea is to use four fingers to mix the rice in curry and pack a little ball, before you pop it in your mouth by pushing it with your thumb. Most of the restaurants do provide cutlery and its pretty safe to use them instead of your hand. Eating by hand is frowned on in some classier places. If you are provided with cutlery and nobody else around you seems to be doing it, then take the hint. Restaurants Edit Indian restaurants run the gamut from roadside shacks ( dhabas ) to classy five-star places where the experience is comparable to places anywhere in the world. Away from the big cities and tourist haunts, mid-level restaurants are scarce, and food choices will be limited to the local cuisine, PunjabiMughlai, Chinese and occasionally South Indian. Menus in English. well, almost Menus in Indian restaurants are usually written in English 8212 but using Hindi names. Heres a quick decoder key that goes a long way for understanding common dishes like aloo gobi and muttar paneer . aloo or aalu 8212 potato baigan or baingan 8212 eggplantaubergine bhindi 8212 okra chana 8212 chickpeas dal 8212 lentils gobi 8212 cauliflower (or other cabbage) machli 8212 fish makkhan 8212 butter matar 8212 green peas mirch 8212 chilli pepper murgh or murg 8212 chicken palak or saag 8212 spinach (or other greens) paneer 8212 Indian cottage cheese subzi 8212 vegetable The credit for popularizing Punjabi cuisine all over the country goes to the dhabas that line Indias highways. Their patrons are usually the truckers, who happen to be overwhelmingly Punjabi. The authentic dhaba serves up simple yet tasty seasonal dishes like roti and dhal with onions, and diners sit on cots instead of chairs. Hygiene can be an issue in many dhabas, so if ones not up to your standards try another. In rural areas, dhabas are usually the only option. In Southern India, Hotel means a local restaurant serving south Indian food, usually a thali -- a full plate of food that usually includes a kind of bread and an assortment of meat or vegetarian dishes -- and prepared meals. Although you may be handed an extensive menu, most dishes are served only during specific hours, if at all. Prices listed on menu at fancier restaurants typically do not include the taxes, that may add up to 15-30 of total bill. At local eateries, practice is to show the actual price on the menu itself. Tipping in small denominations is usually acceptable though not mandatory, usually done by leaving small banknotes coins. At fancier restaurants where 10 tip is appropriate, though it is commonly included in bill labelled Service Charge . Dietary Restrictions Edit The cow is highly revered animal (other animals are also quite revered thanks to their connections to various deities but cow enjoys special mother figure as in the past cow made the survival better and easier by providing milk, fuel, insulating material for floor, energy for ploughing and withdrawing water from wells) in Hinduism and as such, Hindus are not permitted to eat beef. Due to this restriction, you will find that the Western fast food chains in India generally do not serve beef. This means that the hamburgers people from Western countries are used to in fast food restaurants are generally absent in India. Also cow slaughter is banned in several states and it maybe illegal to eat beef in some of them. But the above restrictions is found only in North, Central and Eastern India, and beef is common in Southern states and North East of the country. States like Kerala has beef dishes in almost all of the Non Vegetarian restaurants. India also has a sizeable Muslim minority, and in the major cities, halal food can be found at one of the many Muslim stalls. Drink Edit One of the sweetest and safest beverages you can get is tender coconut water. You can almost always find it in any beach, roadside or other tourist destinations in the south. In summer (Mar-Jul), you can get fresh sugarcane juice in many places and even a lot of fresh fruit juice varieties. Cane juice is also sold by some good company stores such as Canola. Kabbu is another cane juice chain which is found exclusively in the state of Karnataka. Be careful as fresh juice may contain many germs besides unhygienic ice. Some of the better juice shops and restaurants may serve juices topped up with ice cubes made from bottled water, but it is wiser to ask for your juice without ice. The juice vendors do not always clean their equipment properly and do not wash the fruits either. India is famous for its Alphonso variety of mangoes, generally regarded as the King of Mangoes among connoisseurs. So do try the Alphonso mango-flavoured beverage Maaza (bottled by Coca-Cola) or Slice (bottled by PepsiCo), both of which contain about 15 Alphonso mango pulp. Both of these brands will sure provide some needed refreshment during Indias scorching hot summer. Both cost about 30-50 for a 600 ml bottle. As for bottled water, make sure that the caps seal has not been broken, otherwise, it is a tell tale sign of tampering or that unscrupulous vendors reuse old bottles and fill them with tap water, which is generally unsafe for foreign tourists to drink without prior boiling. Bottled water brands like Aquafina (by PepsiCo) and Kinley (by Coca-Cola) are widely available. Local brands like Bisleri are also acceptable and perfectly safe. Tastes may vary due to the individual brands mineral contents. Avoid most locally sold soft drinks and sodas, they are known to have strong dyes and chemicals and can lead to nausea, diarrhea, and headache. Everywhere you can get tea ( chai in most North Indian languages) of one variety or another. Most common is the railway tea type: cheap (2-5), sweet and uniquely refreshing once you get the taste for it. Its made by brewing up tea leaves, milk, and sugar altogether in a pot and keeping it hot until its all sold. Masala chai will also have spices added to the mix, such as cardamom, ginger, cinnamon, and black pepper. For some people, that takes some getting used to. While Masala chai is popular in Northern and Central India, it must be noted that people in Eastern India (West Bengal and Assam ) generally consume tea without spices, the English way. This is also the part of India where most tea is grown. In South India(except Kerala), coffee (especially sweet filter coffee) replaces tea as a standard beverage. Alcohol Edit The legal drinkingpurchasing age varies from state to state and Union Territory to Union Territory. It varies between 18 to 25 years of age. In some districts of Maharastra the age limt is 30. Alcohol is banned in some states. Drinking alcohol can either be frowned upon or openly accepted, depending on the region and religion of the area within which you are drinking. For example, Goa, Punjab, and Pondicherry tend to be more free-wheeling (and have low taxes on alcohol), while a few southern areas like Chennai are less tolerant of alcohol, and may even charge excessive taxes on it. Some states such as Gujarat are legally dry and alcohol cannot be bought openly there, although there is a substantial bootlegging industry. There are beverage corporation owned by most states where you can buy alcoholic beverages for retail price printed in bottle. You will generally find a queue of men, so female travelers may get a wary look. In some of the far-eastern states the age limit may exceed 21. Favorite Indian tipples include beer, notably the ubiquitous Kingfisher (a decent lager), and rum, particularly Old Monk . Prices vary by state, especially for hard liquor, but you can expect to pay 50-100 for a large bottle of beer and anywhere between 170-250 for a 750 ml bottle of Old Monk. Indian wines, long a bit of a joke, have improved remarkably in recent years and theres a booming wine industry in the hills of Maharashtra. The good stuff is not particularly cheap (expect to pay around 500 a bottle) and selections are mostly limited to white wines, but look out for labels by Chateau Indage 42 or Sula 43. Illegal moonshine, called tharra when made from sugar cane and toddy when made from coconuts, is widely available in some states. Its cheap and strong, but very dangerous as quality control is nonexistent, and best avoided entirely. In the former Portugese colony of Goa you can obtain an extremely pungent liquor called fenny or feni . typically made from cashew fruits or coconuts. The sale of alcohol is illegal on certain days of the year known as Dry Days . which are Federally recognized holidays. These days include Republic day(Jan 26), Independence Day(Aug 15), and Gandhi Jayanti (Oct 2). Smoking Edit Public Smoking is officially banned and fined, but some policemen dont mind tourists smoking or just warn them for it. Just be careful. Cannabis Edit Government-authorized bhang shop, Jaisalmer Cannabis in its many forms 8212 especially ganja (weed) and charas (hash) 8212 is widely available throughout India, especially in the tourist places like Goa, Rajasthan and small other tourist places where they have more tourist demands but they are all illegal in the vast majority of the country, and the letter of the law states that simple possession may mean years in jail. However, in some states (notably Uttar Pradesh, Bihar. Rajasthan. Madhya Pradesh. Uttarakhand and Orissa ) the one legal and socially accepted way to consume cannabis is as bhang . a low-grade preparation sold at government-licensed shops that is not only smoked, but also made into cookies, chocolate and the infamous bhang lassi . a herb-laced version of the normally innocuous yogurt drink. Bhang lassi is usually available at varying strengths, so use caution if opting for the stronger versions. Its also occasionally sold as special lassi, but is usually easily spotted by the 30-50 price tag (several times higher than the non-special kinds). An important point to bear in mind is that the effects of Bhang are slow and heighten when consumed with something sweet. Also, first time users may want to wait a while before consuming too much in an effort to judge their tolerance. Sleep Edit Choices vary widely depending on your budget and location. Cheap travellers hotels are numerous in big cities where you can get a room for less than 450. Rooms at guest-houses with a double bed (and often a bathroom) can be found in many touristic venues for 150-200. Good budget hotels in India are not hard to find. You can find accommodation in clean dormitories for as little as 50 in many Indian districts. Most Indian train stations have rooms or dormitories, are cheap, relatively well maintained (the beds, sheets, not the showers) and secure. There are also the added bonus of not being accosted by the rickshaw mafia, getting your bag off quickly and, for the adventurous, you are highly likely to be able to jump on a cheap public bus back to the train station, just ask. Keep in mind you must have an arrival or departure train ticket from the station where you intend to sleep and there could be a limit on how many nights you may stay. Midrange options are plentiful in the larger cities and expanding fast into second-tier cities as well. Dependable local chains include Country Inns 44. Ginger 45. Hotel Orange 35 46 and Neemrana 47. and prices vary from 1,000-4,000 per night. Local, unbranded hotels can be found in any city, but quality varies widely. If your wallet allows it, you can try staying in a maharajas palace in Udaipur or modern five-star hotels which are now found pretty much all over the country. The top-end of Indian luxury rests with the Oberoi 48. Taj 49. and ITC Welcomgroup 50 hotel chains, who operate hotels in all the major cities and throughout Rajasthan. The usual international chains also run major 5-star hotels in most Indian metropolises, but due to Indias economic boom availability is tight and prices can be crazy: its not uncommon to be quoted over US300night for what would elsewhere be a distinctly ordinary business hotel going for a third of the price. Also beware that some jurisdictions including Delhi and Bengaluru charge stiff luxury taxes on the rack rate of the room, which can lead to nasty surprises at check-out time. Two important factors to keep in mind when choosing a place to stay are 1) safety and 2) cleanliness. Malaria is alive and well in certain areas of India - one of the best ways to combat malaria is to choose lodgings with air conditioning and sealed windows. An insect-repellent spray containing DEET will also help. Dak bungalows exist in many areas. These were built by the British to accommodate travelling officials and are now used by the Indian and state governments for the same purpose. If they have room, most will take tourists at a moderate fee. They are plain 8212 ceiling fans rather than air conditioning, shower but no tub. 8212 but clean, comfortable and usually in good locations. Typically the staff includes a pensioned-off soldier as night watchman and perhaps another as gardener often the gardens are lovely. Sometimes there is a cook. You meet interesting Indian travellers this way: engineers building a bridge in the area, a team of doctors vaccinating the villagers, whatever. Dont count on having a reliable electricity supply if you arent staying in an upmarket hotel. Brownouts are frequent, and many buildings have unsafe wiring. Make sure to bring your passport wherever you go, as most hotels will not rent out rooms without you producing a valid passport. This is especially true in Delhi. Learn Edit There are many things to learn that interest foreigners all over India, but there are a few destinations that become known for certain things: Yoga is popular in Haridwar and Rishikesh . Ayurveda is popular in Kerala . Hindi in Delhi and Varanasi . Classical musical instruments in Varanasi . Classical vocal music and classical Dance forms in Tamilnadu . Sanskrit at Samskrita Bharati in Bangalore and Delhi . Buddhism in Dharamsala and Bir in Himachal Pradesh as well as in Bodhgaya in Bihar . Study South Asian medicine . Himalayan art . and other unique subjects while in India 51 Cooking classes are also popular. The most well-known exported type of Indian food is Punjabi. as the Sikhs have been the most successful in spreading Indian restaurants throughout the western world. However, styles vary a lot throughout the country, so if you have the time and appetite its worth checking out courses in a variety of areas such as Kerala. Tamil Nadu. and West Bengal . There are many Universities imparting education but at the helm are Indian Institutes of Technology(IITs) for technical graduation, Indian Institutes of Management(IIMs) for management post-graduation and National Law Universities Schools (NLUs) which are world class institutes. Most of the ambitious students who want to get a good high level education thrive to get into these institutes through admission processes which are rather very difficult ones both due to nature of test and the prevailing competition. For example, the 6 top IIMs (Including the 4 oldest - Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Bangalore amp Lucknow plus newly established Indore and Kozhikode) together select only about 1,200 students from 350,000 students who appear for CAT exam. But still students have a great desire to get into these institutes. These institutes offer degrees to foreign students also. Apart from undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral courses, there are many training and diploma-level institutes and polytechnics that cater to the growing demand for skill-based and vocational education. Besides conventional educational institutes, foreigners might also be interested to study with Pandits to learn Hindi and Sanskrit in genuine settings as well as with Mullahs to study Urdu, Persian, and Arabic. They might also like to live with famed Ustads to study traditional Indian music. Whether people are interested in philosophy or religion, cuisine or dance, India will have the right opportunity for them. Indian Board Result Edit Education in India is provided by the public sector as well as the private sector, with control and funding coming from three levels: central, state, and local. Under various articles of the Indian Constitution, free and compulsory education is provided as a fundamental right to children between the ages of 6 and 14. The ratio of public schools to private schools in India is 7:5. There are many university board in India52. Foreigners need a work permit to be employed in India. A work permit is granted if an application is made to the local Indian embassy along with proof of potential employment and supporting documents. There are many expatriates working in India, mostly for multinational Fortune 1,000 firms. India has always had an expatriate community of reasonable size, and there are many avenues for finding employment, including popular job hunting websites. With growing economy India is one the best places for a professional internship. Many students from across the world choose India as their preferred destination for an Internship as working in India give the interns a chance to work in the fastest growing economy and at the same time experience the centuries old cultural traditions India is famous for. Interns looking to get Intern in India can look at160: Internship India, 53 - Customised professional internship placements in India There are many volunteer opportunities around the country including teaching. India has a reasonable presence of foreign Christian missionaries, who for the most part form the non-local religious workers, since the other major religions of the world either grew out of India or have had a long term presence. To search for volunteering opportunities across India, volunteers can visit,160:- Idealist, 54 - Directory of Volunteer opportunities. Volunteering With India (VWI), 55 - Volunteer Programs in Jaipur, India which is North Western Part of India. Offering programs in Teaching English in ruralslums, Women Empowerment, Orphanage Work, Street Children rescue amp protection and Elephant Care Work. Rainbow Voluntours, 56 - Volunteer Programs in Kerala and Kolkata. Offering community programs in rural and urban slum area with Women Empowerment, Orphanage Work, Street Children rescue amp protection and Renovations programs. Volunteering Solutions in India. 57 - Programs in Delhi. Dharamshala. Bangalore and Kolkata. A living can be made in the traveler scenes by providing some kind of service such as baking Western cakes, tattooing or massage. Previously, an AIDS test result was required as part of the work visa application process. It is highly recommended that applicants obtain test results in their home country beforehand if at all possible. Stay safe Edit As a rule India is quite safe for foreigners. Unfortunately common theft . violence and armed robbery occur. A thief may pickpocket (see pickpockets ) or break into the room. Agree on all fares and payments for services clearly in advance . Being told that you can pay as you like is a bad sign. Strangers offering assistance or services may be dishonest see Common scams. Be wary of frauds at tourist attractions such as the temples of Kanchipuram, Kalighat etc. While travelling in public transport dont accept food or drinks. It could have substances that cause unconsciousness. WARNING: Homosexuality is illegal in India under Section 377 that criminalize sodomy with penalties of up to life in prison or vigilante executions. Police officers have harassed, extorted and blackmailed homosexuals in India. Discrimination against LGBT is rife you will be refused service. Also violence toward LGBT is a daily occurrence and police officers will join in on the violence or turn a blind eye. If youre LGBT, avoid India. Driving Edit India follows the left hand driving system. Irresponsible driving habits, insufficient road infrastructure development, and wandering livestock are some hazards that make driving difficult. Police and other emergency services Edit In the Indian police department, corruption exists. However many take their duties seriously and they have cracked down on dishonesty. If they want a bribe demand a bill and be firm. The traffic police may check your papers or check if you are under the influence. If you are pulled over be respectful. Swearing at a police officer is illegal and can lead to fines or jail. You will see many police patrol jeeps at night. Police and the highway police are efficient and aim for citizen safety. The emergency contact numbers for most of India are: Police (dial 100), Ambulance (102) and Fire (dial 101). In Chennai, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Kochi and other cities in India, you can dial 108 for all emergencies. There are also emergency apps like ruly sos which sends your number to the police and an alert with your location to your emergency contacts. Another app which sends alerts to your contacts is VithU. Health emergency apps like lybrate murgency and Practo could also be useful. Stay healthy Edit Avoiding Delhi belly Four quick tips for keeping your stomach happy: Prefer vegetarian options . during your stay or at least for the initial weeks as meat risks getting spoiled quickly in Indian conditions. Ensure raw leafy vegetables are cleaned properly . If in doubt, avoid consuming them. Avoid ice if unsure. Ice served at upscale or relatively well off establishments will not pose any harm but avoid consuming ice if you are unsure about its origins. Avoid unbottled water . Try to use only commercially available sealed bottled water. Even most Indians prefer using only bottled water when travelling. Wash hands before eating . with soap. Otherwise the dirt of Indias streets will find its way onto your chapatis and into your mouth. Going to India, you have to adapt to a new climate, new food and hence Some travellers to India might become slightly ill during their stay there. Even Indians returning from abroad can at times become ill as their bodies readjust to the food, climate and sanitation conditions. However, with precautions the chance and severity of any illness can be minimized. Dont stress yourself too much at the beginning of your journey so as to allow your body to acclimatize to the country. For example, take a day of rest upon arrival, at least on your first visit. Many travellers get ill for wanting to do too much in too little time. Be careful with spicy food if it is not your daily diet. No vaccinations are required for entry to India . except for yellow fever if you are coming from an infected area such as Africa. However, Hepatitis (both A and B, depending on your individual circumstances), meningitis and typhoid shots are recommended, as is a booster shot for tetanus. The CDC has a list of recommended vaccines when traveling to India. Tap water is generally not considered safe for drinking at many installations, even by local populace. However, many establishments have water filterspurifiers installed, in which case the water may be safe to drink. Packed drinking water (popularly called mineral water throughout India) is a better choice. Bisleri and Kinley among others are some of the more popular and safe brands. However, please check for whether the seal is intact or not as on some occasions, if the seal has been tampered, it could be nothing but purified tap water or worse, unfiltered water. On Indian Railways, a particular mineral water brand is generally available known as Rail Neer, which is considered to be safe and pure. Fruits that can be peeled such as apples and bananas, as well as packaged snacks are always a safe option. As is the practice with the native population, always wash the fruits and vegetables prior to cooking, with water. Municipality provided running tap water is generally considered safe to do so and this should not pose any later harm. Diarrhea is common, and can have many different causes. Bring a standard first-aid kit, plus extra over-the-counter medicine for diarrhea and stomach upset. A rehydration kit can also be helpful. At the least, remember the saltsugarwater ratio for oral rehydration: 1 tsp salt, 8 tsp sugar, for 1 litre of water. Most Indians will happily share their own advice for treatment of illnesses and other problems. A commonly recommended cure-all is to eat boiled rice and curd (yoghurt) together for 3 meals a day until youre better. Keep in mind that this is usually not sound medical advice . Indians have resistance to native bacteria and parasites that visitors do not have. If you have serious diarrhea for more than a day or two, it is best to visit a private hospital. Parasites are a common cause of diarrhea, and may not get better without treatment. Malaria is endemic throughout India. CDC 59 states that risk exists in all areas, including the cities and at altitudes of less than 2000 metres in Himachal Pradesh, Jammu, Kashmir, and Sikkim. However, the risk of infection is considered to be low in the more touristy spots as these are attempted to be kept clean. Get expert advice on malaria preventatives, and take adequate precautions to prevent mosquito bites. You can choose to use a mosquito repellent when going outside (particularly advised in small towns and villages and relatively less necessary in bigger cities). When sleeping at night, you can use a mosquito net or an electronic mosquito repellent, depending upon the need and your convenience. India is home to many venomous snakes. If bitten try to note the markings of the snake so that the snake can be identified and the correct antidote given. In any event, immediately seek medical care. It is very important to stay away from the many stray dogs and cats in India, as India has a rabies problem. If you are bitten it is extremely urgent to get to a hospital in a major urban area capable of dealing with Rabies. You can get treatment at any major hospital. It is very important to get the rabies vaccine after any contact with animals that includes contact with saliva or blood. Rabies vaccines only work if the full course is given prior to symptoms. The disease is invariably fatal otherwise. Theres no known cure for rabies once infected - except a immediate vaccine. There were also unconfirmed sporadic reports that getting vaccinations and blood transfusions in low quality hospitals increases your risk of contracting HIVAIDS - for e. g. in some government clinics. For people with asthma, it is advised to avoid visiting areas with high dust and pollution levels as a precautionary measure or instead use a mask. As a thumb rule, it is considered safer to visit private hospitals or the larger(and more popular ones in cities) government hospitals in case of an emergency. Do not get a tattoo while in India All tattoo parlours in India are unlicensed, so there is a risk of the tattoo artist not changing needles and thus putting you at risk of contracting HIV. Finally, there are a few travel clinics in India, that can be checked out by visiting the ISTM website 60 in the larger cities. Most CDC recommended vaccinations are available in many of these clinics in larger cities 61. Large corporate hospital chains like Fortis, Max, Apollo and similar places are your best bet for emergency medical care in larger cities, and they have better hygiene and generally well trained doctors, many from even US amp UK institutions. Respect Edit Outside of the larger cities, it is unusual for people of the opposite sex to touch each other in public. Even couples (married or otherwise) refrain from public displays of affection. Therefore, it is advised that you do not shake hands with a person of the opposite sex unless the other person extends hisher hand first. The greeting among Indians and more so among Hindus is to bring your palms together in front of your chest and simply say Namaste . or Namaskar . When speaking to Muslims, it is more likely to hear the opposite person say Salaam Alekum . which is an Urdu translation of the same greeting. Residents of Punjab and followers of Sikhism are equally likely to say Sat Sri Akaal and those from Tamil Nadu could be heard saying Vanakkam instead. That said, it is not necessary that the above mentioned forms of greeting are the only acceptable forms. Almost all the people (even if they dont know English) do understand a Hi or a Hello. Kindly note, however, when unsure, that at least in cities, it is quite acceptable to offer a Hello or Good Day followed by a handshake, regardless of gender. Smoking in any public place is illegal in India. But it is rarely enforced except in the Southern state of Kerala where police will fine you at the spot. Smoking is still considered a taboo when associated with women but things are slowly changing and one is more likely to spot a woman smoking in Indian cities today than ever before. Even in larger cities, it is becoming much more common to find women smoking outside offices, in universities, in pubs and discotheques than in most other places. Outside of large cities, probability of spotting a women smoking is rare and decreases sharply. Though in some rural areas women do smoke, but discreetly. Since ages, a woman who smokesdrinks was associated with loose moral character in much of the countrys growing middle class(by both men and women) and this thought process has not yet disappeared completely, especially outside of major cities. Surprisingly, Indians are relatively more relaxed regarding women of foreign origin consuming liquor or smoking in public as compared to Indian women themselves. Places such as Discos Dance clubs are less-conservative areas. It is good to leave your things at a hotel and head down there for a drink and some light conversation. Only carry as much change as you think you would require since losing your wallet or I. D. means that you will waste a considerable time trying to get any kind of help in that regard. People are fully-clothed even at the beach. There is no law prohibiting women from wearing bikinis. As with women smoking, wearing bikinis, especially by Indian women, was thought of to be completely unthinkable until some time back. This has begun to change with more media exposure but is still significantly prevalent somewhat and there is a clear difference between family beaches and tourist beaches. Most tourist beaches have bikinis as part of beach culture. So, be sure to find out what the appropriate attire is for the beach you are visiting. In some rare places like Goa, where the visitors to beach are predominantly foreigners, it is permissible to wear bikinis on the beach but it is still offensive to go about dressed in western swim wear away from the beach. There are a few beaches where women (mostly foreigners) sunbathe topless but make sure there it is safe and accepted before you do so. Clothing like shorts and modest versions of tank tops are more acceptable for a visit to the beach. In localsuburban trains, there are usually cars reserved only for women and designated as such towards the front. This reserved car is usually (but not always) the third-to-last compartment. In most buses (private and public) a few seats at the front of the bus are reserved for women, Usually these seats will be occupied by men and, very often, they vacate the place when a female stands near gesturing her intention to sit there. If you sit near a man, he may stand up from the seat and give the place to you this is a sign of respect, NOT rudeness. Religion and rituals Edit Republic of India is a secular nation, which guarantees religious freedom to all religions and their practice From Time immemorial India had been a tolerant land that welcomed all religions and was a sanctuary of many religious communities persecuted in other parts of the world. Following the destruction of the First Temple in the Siege of Jerusalem of 587 BC, Jewish exiles came to India and settled in Cochin and are referred to as Cochin Jews . To seek refuge from the religious persecution as a result of Muslim conquest of Persia. launched by the Rashidun Caliphate in 633 AD many Zoroastrians were offered refuge in India. A Hindu Brahmin King of Sindh named Raja Dahir offered sanctuary to Muhammad Bin Allafia man much sought by the Umayyad in their deadly hunt for eliminating the last of the Ahl-e-Bait (Prophet Muhammads immediate family). Raja Dahir had even offered asylum to Husayn ibn Ali. the grandson of Prophet Mohammed, who was being persecuted at home. As a result of his tolerance, Raja Dahir Sen was decapitated by Muhammad bin Qasim. and his severed head was sent to Al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf. an Umayyad governor India was the land where you can visit one of the two oldest Mosques which were built in 628-630 AD when Prophet Mohammed was alive. They are Cheraman Juma Masjid and Palaiya Jumma Palli In mosques, churches and temples it is obligatory to take off your shoes. It may also be customary to take off your footwear while entering into homes, follow other peoples lead. It is disrespectful to touch or point at people with your feet. If done accidentally, you will find that Indians will make a quick gesture of apology that involves touching the offended person with the right hand, and then moving the hand to the chest and to the eyes. It is a good idea to emulate that. Books and written material are treated with respect, as they are considered as being concretephysical forms of the Hindu Goddess of Learning, Saraswati. A book should not be touched with the feet and if it has accidentally touched, the same gesture of apology as is made to people (see above) should be performed. The same goes with currency, or anything associated with wealth (especially gold). They are treated as being physical representations of the Goddess Lakshmi (of Wealth) in human form, and should not be disrespected. Avoid winking, whistling, pointing or beckoning with your fingers, and touching someones ears. All of these are considered rude. The Swastika is commonly seen in India, as it is considered a religious symbol for Hindus, Buddhists and Jains. It is not regarded as a symbol for Nazism in India, and in fact, had its origins in Hinduism long before the birth of Nazism, so Western visitors should not feel offended if they see a Swastika in a temple or in the home of a local. It does not mean the person is a Nazi supporter, and does not symbolise anti-Semitism. The correlation between the Swastika and anti-Semitism is mostly not even understood in India. Most of the population do not even know that Swastika is associated with Nazism in the west. And in point of fact, India is a land where Jews have lived for thousands of years and always had good relations with their non-Jewish neighbors. It is notable but not surprising, for example, that the local Hindu king protected the Jewish community of Goa from the Inquisition after the Portuguese captured that port. Etiquette Edit In bigger Indian cities, wearing of shorts by women is generally accepted. Picture shows an Indian woman with her daughter in Mumbai . Travellers should be aware of the fact that Indians generally dress conservatively and should do the same. Shorts, short skirts (knee-length or above) and sleeveless shirts are frowned upon in smaller cities and rural areas, but are commonly accepted in large metros. Cover as much skin as possible. Both men and women should keep their shoulders covered. Women should wear baggy clothes that do not emphasize their contours. However, if you move to metropolitan cities, there is much more liberalism of wearing western outfits and skimpy clothes though still they may become a centre of stare from men. But they should avoid moving alone at night. Keep in mind that Indians will consider themselves obliged to go out of the way to fulfil a guests request and will insist very strongly that it is no inconvenience to do so, even if it is not true. This of course means that there is a reciprocal obligation on you as a guest to take extra care not to be a burden. Never use profanity, even when someone does something that warrants it. Never swear during an argument. You will lose the argument immediately as they will act offended that you swore and claim that you are abusing them. Profanity makes you look bad in India so avoid it when you can. There is a huge difference between how Indians treat one another on the street and at home. Indian culture is inward thinking. In their homes everyone is a guest and treated incredibly well. Strangers on the street however are treated with complete indifference and without what westerns call common courtesy. Personal space is not respected, people shove you, cut you off while driving, cheat, cut in line, spit and urinate in public. So be prepared for that and try not to take it personally and if you are female be careful amp watchful. On the streets of India nothing is personal. But in the home you can expect great treatment. Note that most Indians are not aware that the term Negro is now considered offensive, and they may use it with no intent to offend. An Indian is usually not aware of the other N word. It is customary to put up a token friendly argument with your host or any other member of the group when paying bills at restaurant or while making purchases. The etiquette for this is somewhat complicated. In a business lunch or dinner . it is usually clear upfront who is supposed to pay, and there is no need to fight. But if you are someones personal guest and they take you out to a restaurant, you should offer to pay anyway, and you should insist a lot. Sometimes these fights get a little funny, with each side trying to snatch the bill away from the other, all the time laughing politely. If you dont have experience in these things, chances are, you will lose the chance the first time, but in that case, make sure that you pay the next time. (and try to make sure that there is a next time.) Unless the bill amount is very large do not offer to share it, and only as a second resort after they have refused to let you pay it all. The same rule applies when you are making a purchase. If you are purchasing something for yourself, your hosts might still offer to pay for it if the amount is not very high, and sometimes, even if it is. In this situation, unless the amount is very low, you should never lose the fight. (If the amount is in fact ridiculously low, say less than 10, then dont insult your hosts by putting up a fight.) Even if by chance you lose the fight to pay the shopkeeper, it is customary to practically thrust (in a nice way, of course) the money into your hosts hands. These rules do not apply if the host has made it clear beforehand that it is his or her treat, especially for some specific occasion. Bring a few spare coins from your home country - Indians often ask if you have any and they really appreciate it if you do Pens are also often appreciated by school children. Try to avoid political statements like India does not have Drainage system even when they have send Rockets to Mars in common public as it is not considered a good mannerism. Sensitive topics Edit Kissing in India India can trace kissing back thousands of years in its literature. Indeed, the well-known Kama Sutra has an entire chapter devoted to kissing. However, in most cultures of the subcontinent, kissing has traditionally been seen as part of sex, and in recent years many have unknowingly gotten into serious trouble for kissing, regardless of relationship or marriage or nationality. Kissing can lead to fines an Israeli couple was fined USD22 for kissing at their own wedding or even arrest. This is not a universal opinion, as many Indians find kissing acceptable, but common enough that avoiding kissing in public is a good idea while in India. Pakistan is a sensitive subject about which many Indians will have strong views. Take care when discussing the issue, and avoid getting into a conversation about the whole issue. Its fine to have a chat about your visit to Pakistan, the people, and Indo-Pak cricket matches. But it is far better to avoid all together the political disputes with Pakistan or the Jammu and Kashmir Conflict - Indian government must support a large number of refugees that have been internally displaced by the ongoing conflict. Likewise, bitterness and often intense dislike may be expressed concerning Pakistanis or the nation of Pakistan. China is a quite sensitive topic in the country as well. The territorial conflict between the two countries has led to disputes. If you are talking about business then talk on China could be a preferred thing for the Indians. Be cautious when discussing the caste system, since Western viewpoints on this topic are often either antiquated or inadequate, or both. Recent changes in society have meant that in some urban areas, caste prejudice is non-existent. Contact Edit Phone Edit The country code for India is 91 . India is then divided into area codes, known locally as STD codes . See individual city guides for the area codes. In acronym-happy India, a phone booth is known as a PCO (Public Call Office) and they usually offer STDISD (Subscriber Trunk DialingInternational Subscriber Dialing), or national and international long distance respectively. These are usually staffed, and you dial yourself but pay to the attendant after the call is over. Metering is done per pulse and a service charge of 2 is added to the bill. Larger cities also have Western-style unmanned public phones, which are usually red in colour and accept one rupee coins. Local phone numbers can be anywhere from 5-8 digits long. But when the area code is included, all landline phone numbers in India are 10 digits long. Cellphone numbers usually start with 9 or 8. The following table explains how to dial: Toll-free numbers start with 1-800 . but are usually operator-dependent . you cant call a BSNLMTNL toll-free number from an Airtel landline, and vice versa. Often, the numbers may not work from your cellular phone. Other National Numbers that starts with 18xx or 19xx may attract special charges. To dial outside the country from India, prefix the country code with 00. E. g a US number will be dialed as 00-1-555-555-5555. Calling the USACanadaUK over the normal telephone line will cost you about 7.20 per minute. Calls to other countries, particularly to the Middle East, can be more expensive. Mobile Edit India uses both GSM and CDMA and mobile phones are widely available, starting from 120 with 90 credit on the SIM. (3G networks are available in most of the cities.) Major operators with India-wide networks include Bharti Airtel , Vodafone , BSNL , MTNL . Reliance Mobile (both GSM and CDMA), TATA DOCOMO (GSM), TATA Indicom (CDMA), Idea Cellular . Uninor , Aircel , MTS (CDMA), and Videocon Mobile . Not all operators have Pan-India operations but have tie-ups with other operators to provide pan-India coverage via roaming, though roaming charges are higher. You will not be able to use your mobile in Jammu amp Kashmir since the local government does not allow any roaming and restricts foreigners from buying SIM cards there due to terrorism. Local calls could cost as little as 0.10 per minute (typically 0.50), although going to a different state within India is considered roaming and additional charges of 1-3min for both incoming and outgoing calls may apply. International calls are comparatively cheap, with most destinations under 10min, the same as youd pay at a PCO booth. Fully loaded prepaid starter kits are available for around 500 or less, including several hundred rupees of call time. Plain SIM cards are sold for as little as 10-15 while they are given out for free in many cases. You will need identification (including a photocopy of your visa and passport) and a passport size photo. Shops can often do this for you for a small fee. Some shops will also insist on a local address in India try the next one if theyre not accommodating, but usually a bill from your hotel is fine. The best option is always buying a SIM card from the phone companys own store, that way you can verify the SIM card is working and you have been allocated your credit before you leave. They may require a minimum tourist visa validity of 3 months which can be a problem for those on a 30 day Visa-On-Arrival visa, which you will have to try your luck on the smaller vendors who may not require your passport. Buying from smaller vendors will often mean a delay of a few hours to a few days before they call to get the SIM working, and you risk your SIM being cancelled if they never send in your identification paperwork. Several eBay stores sell activated Indian SIM cards at a surcharge that can be mailed to you before you depart consider buying before you arrive to save the hassle. Beware that talk time (unexpired minutes of talk time) and validity (the date that the SIM card expires) are considered separate and you have to keep both topped up, or otherwise you may find the 500 you just recharged disappearing in a puff of smoke when the one-month validity expires. Usually, when you extend the validity, you will also get extra minutes but you can buy minutes for less without extending the validity. Alternatively, if you are in India for a reasonably long time, you can buy a prepaid SIM with lifetime validity and then topup with talktime as per your needs. Please note that in most such cases, you will need to topup atleast once every six months to keep the SIM active. And the term lifetime is slightly misleading as it refers to the life of the license issued to the operator by the Government of India to provide mobile services. If the license is renewed, your services shall continue without any additional charges but if the license is not renewed, your lifetime SIM also becomes defunct. Licenses are awarded to operators for a period of 20 years. Beware that whilst large telecommunications companies, such as Airtel are technically the same company throughout India, and your SIM card will work anywhere have reception or a partnership, their sales and support teams are often outsourced and franchised. Meaning a SIM bought in one state (even from an official store) does not only attract a roaming charge when used in other states, it will also mean that your support numbers will not work. For example, if you buy a SIM in Goa and something goes wrong whilst you are travelling in another state, local stores will not be able to help you, nor often will your support number that came with your SIM. They will simply tell you to go back to the state you bought it in for support, or give you other numbers to try and call back in your purchase state. This also impacts recharging when youre outside the state you bought your SIM card . Due to local taxes and company pricing, recharge cards (or the amount people pay to get the same about of talk time) differs from state to state - even though your per minute call costs will be the same state to state. Take note of the recharge options and prices in the state that you originally bought your SIM, because as you move to other areas in India, the local recharge options vary and will not apply to you (theyll only apply to SIMs bought in that state). For example, if you bought your SIM in Goa and to get Rs100 talk time credited to your account, you actually paid Rs120 (Rs100 talk time Rs20 local taxes), but then travelled to another state where they had a promotion where Rs100 talk time only costs Rs100, you are not eligible. You still have to pay the rates of where you bought your SIM, even if local signage says differently. The important thing to remember is that you always recharge based on where your SIM card is from, so take a note of the recharge options when you buy your SIM, and use them (not the local rates) to recharge. As an added complication, many local vendors do not like to recharge out of state SIMs (which they can tell from your number). This is because the way they recharge phones is by crediting a certain amount of rupees to your account, and then your carrier recognises the amount and transforms it into a service. For example Rs120 rupees may mean your account is recharged with Rs100 talk time, whereas Rs121 may mean you get a cricket SMS updates pack. Consequently, because local recharge shops do not know the prices to recharge in the state your SIM is from, they may not want to risk giving you something you do not want. The way to get around this is to, as mentioned, make a note of your recharge options when you buy your SIM and politely insist to local recharge merchants that you know that amount works. 2G and 3G Internet prices are usually the same from state to state, making this process slightly easier. Airtel and Vodafone seem to have the best reputation for 3G. Airtel gives you 2GB for Rs499 on a 3G only plan. Tata DoCoMo have a prepaid plan with unlimited 3G for Rs250, but their coverage is limited to a small number of cities. Be aware that no one company provide 3G in the whole country. It is best to choose the company that has 3G coverage in the state you will be traveling to or you will be stuck on 2G speed. Internet Edit Internet kiosks are everywhere nowadays and they charge as low as as 10-20 per hour (the cost being a compromise for speed). Beware of using your credit cards online as many cases have come forward regarding credit card thefts using keyloggers . More reliable chains include Reliance World (formerly Reliance Web World ) and Sify iWay . Calling overseas is also very cheap if you use the many booths that advertise Net2Phone service. The quality ranges from tolerable to excellent, and the price is very good, with calls to the USA ranging from 2-5 per minute. WiFi hotspots in India are, for the most part, limited. The major airports and stations do offer paid WiFi at around 60-100 an hour. Delhi, Bangalore, Pune and Mumbai are the only cities with decent WiFi coverage. Most internet users in India do not rely on WiFi too much. 3G data cardsUSB modems are widely used, but some of these require signing contracts with operators and thus are not a practical option for short-term visitors without a residential address in India. The better companies such as Airtel (GSM) and Tata DoCoMo do not rent data cards, which means that you have to buy them outright. As per prepaid mobile phones, this is doable as long as you have copies of your ID and a hotel bill. Reliance charges Rs650 per month (1GB downloading free, Rs2mb) for a data cardUSB modem. The cheap price also means a 256 kbps connection, by the way. Airtel are one of the cheapest 3G (HSDPA) data (for phone or data card) providers, at 10GB (valid for a month) for Rs1250, 2GB for Rs499 and also much lower quantities. They have one of the largest networks with the best coverage, but the drawback is particularly poor customer support that often manages to make the problem worse. If you have a smartphone or a tablet, you can just get the SIM card and tether with your phone if you need to. Tata DoCoMo are even cheaper, with unlimited 3G for Rs. 250 - however, their coverage is not India-wide, so make sure you check. Most, if not all phone companies, offer free data roaming India-wide (i. e. between different states). You will need to enable this option on your smartphone. Tourism Help Line Edit Ministry of Tourism, Government of India has started a 24X7 Incredible India Tourist Helpline: 1363 (Toll Free Line) (or) WhatsApp SMS Call 91-94900 69000 (Mobile) Emergency Numbers Edit You should keep the emergency numbers handy while you are travelling in India. 100 - Police control room 102 - For ambulance 108 - Emergency help line 1091 - Women help line (works across India) 181 - Women help line ( Supposed to work across India) 103 - Women safety helpline (Mumbai only) 112 - The government of India is coming with a panic button in all phones bought in India post January 2017. If you are in trouble in India, dial 112 post January 2017. Otherwise you can dial the emergency numbers above to get connected to the police control room. Note that emergency numbers dont always work in India because of different states, different rules etc. Private apps (emergency in India) There are panicemergency apps like ruly SOS through which you can find the contact number of the police station, nearest to wherever you are in India. It also sends an alert with your location and address to your emergency contacts. Covers 11,000 police stations covered out of the total 15,000 big police stations in India. Press the power button twice to activate. Another app which sends alerts to your contacts is VithU Health emergency apps like lybrate (to find the nearest ambulance, doctor), murgency and Practo (to get medical help immediately) could also be useful. Also, since connectivity is not certain across all parts of the country, carrying maps offline on your phone is strongly recommended, while traveling across India. 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