India is the seventh-largest country by area, at roughly 3.29 million square kilometres, with 28 states and 8 Union Territories.
82.5 degrees East passes near Mirzapur in Uttar Pradesh. Indian Standard Time is 5 hours 30 minutes ahead of UTC.
It crosses eight states: Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Tripura and Mizoram.
The Himalaya are young fold mountains. Kangchenjunga, at 8,586 metres, is the highest peak in India.
The Ganga, at about 2,525 km, is India's longest river. Among peninsular rivers the Godavari is the longest; the Narmada and Tapi flow west.
The south-west monsoon reaches Kerala around 1 June. Mawsynram and Cherrapunji in Meghalaya are among the wettest places on Earth.
Alluvial soil is the most widespread and most fertile. Black soil, or regur, suits cotton.
The Thar Desert in Rajasthan is India's great hot desert. The coastline runs to about 7,500 km including the islands.
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