pee (Re) = 100 paise

Exchange rates: Indian rupees (Rs) per US$1--16.965 (January 1990),
16.226 (1989), 13.917 (1988), 12.962 (1987), 12.611 (1986), 12.369 (1985)

Fiscal year: 1 April-31 March

- Communications
Railroads: 61,850 km total (1986); 33,553 km 1.676-meter broad gauge,
24,051 km 1.000-meter gauge, 4,246 km narrow gauge (0.762 meter and
0.610 meter); 12,617 km is double track; 6,500 km is electrified

Highways: 1,633,300 km total (1986); 515,300 km secondary and
1,118,000 km gravel, crushed stone, or earth

Inland waterways: 16,180 km; 3,631 km navigable by large vessels

Pipelines: crude oil, 3,497 km; refined products, 1,703 km; natural gas,
902 km (1989)

Ports: Bombay, Calcutta, Cochin, Kandla, Madras, New Mangalore,
Port Blair (Andaman Islands)

Merchant marine: 296 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 5,855,842
GRT/9,790,260 DWT; includes 1 short-sea passenger, 8 passenger-cargo, 95 cargo,
1 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 8 container, 53 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL)
tanker, 10 chemical tanker, 9 combination ore/oil,109 bulk, 2 combination bulk

Civil air: 93 major transport aircraft

Airports: 345 total, 292 usable; 202 with permanent-surface runways; 2
with runways over 3,659 m; 57 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 91 with runways
1,220-2,439 m

Telecommunications: poor domestic telephone service, international radio
communications adequate; 3,200,000 telephones; stations--170 AM, no FM, 14 TV
(government controlled); domestic satellite system for communications and TV;
3 Indian Ocean INTELSAT earth stations; submarine cables to Sri Lanka, Malaysia,
and Pakistan

- Defense Forces
Branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, Border Security Forces, Coast Guard,
Paramilitary Forces

Military manpower: males 15-49, 227,436,282; 134,169,114 fit for military
service; about 9,403,063 reach military age (17) annually

Defense expenditures: 2.6% of GNP, or $8.7 billion (FY90 est.)
----------------------------------------------------
Country: Indian Ocean
- Geography
Total area: 73,600,000 km2; Arabian Sea, Bass Strait, Bay of Bengal,
Java Sea, Persian Gulf, Red Sea, Strait of Malacca, Timor Sea, and other
tributary water bodies

Comparative area: slightly less than eight times the size of the US;
third-largest ocean (after the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Ocean, but larger
than the Arctic Ocean)

Coastline: 66,526 km

Climate: northeast monsoon (December to April), southwest monsoon (June
to October); t