Head of state: King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck
Population
1,205,073,612
716,896
Life Expectancy
67.140 years
67.880 years
Capital City
New Delhi
Thimphu
Largest city
Mumbai (population: 12,691,800)
Thimphu (population: 98,676)
Human Development Index
0.609
0.613
GDP per capita
$3,700 US
$6,200 US
Literacy Rate
61%
47%
Corruption Perception Index
3.4
5.2
Percentage of Women in Parliament
9.2%
13.9%
Wealthiest Citizens
Mukesh Ambani ($19.5bn US)
NA
Unemployment Rate
9.800%
4.000%
Death Penalty
Legal
Abolished
Political System
federal republic
in transition to constitutional monarchy; special treaty relationship with India
Independence date
15 August 1947 (from UK)
1907 (became a unified kingdom under its first hereditary king)
Religions
Hindu 80.5%, Muslim 13.4%, Christian 2.3%, Sikh 1.9%, other 1.8%, unspecified 0.1% (2001 census)
Lamaistic Buddhist 75%, Indian- and Nepalese-influenced Hinduism 25%
Languages
Hindi 41%, Bengali 8.1%, Telugu 7.2%, Marathi 7%, Tamil 5.9%, Urdu 5%, Gujarati 4.5%, Kannada 3.7%, Malayalam 3.2%, Oriya 3.2%, Punjabi 2.8%, Assamese 1.3%, Maithili 1.2%, other 5.9% note: English enjoys associate status but is the most important language for national, political, and commercial communication; Hindi is the national language and primary tongue of 41% of the people; there are 14 other official languages: Bengali, Telugu, Marathi, Tamil, Urdu, Gujarati, Malayalam, Kannada, Oriya, Punjabi, Assamese, Kashmiri, Sindhi, and Sanskrit; Hindustani is a popular variant of Hindi/Urdu spoken widely throughout northern India but is not an official language (2001 census)
Dzongkha (official), Bhotes speak various Tibetan dialects, Nepalese speak various Nepalese dialects
Indian rupees (INR) per US dollar - 43.319 (2008 est.), 41.487 (2007), 45.3 (2006), 44.101 (2005), 45.317 (2004)
ngultrum (BTN) per US dollar - 41.487 (2007), 45.279 (2006), 44.101 (2005), 45.317 (2004), 46.583 (2003) note: the ngultrum is pegged to the Indian rupee
Military Budget as percentage of GDP
2.500%
1.000%
Beijing Olympics Medal Count
3
0
Location
Southern Asia, bordering the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal, between Burma and Pakistan
Southern Asia, between China and India
Area
3,287,263 km sq
38,394 km sq
Coastline
7,000 km
0 km
Climate
varies from tropical monsoon in south to temperate in north
varies; tropical in southern plains; cool winters and hot summers in central valleys; severe winters and cool summers in Himalayas
