India’s most important natural resources include coal, iron ore, manganese, mica, bauxite, titanium ore, chromite, natural gas, diamonds, petroleum, limestone, and arable land. India has the fourth largest reserves of coal in the world. India’s major trading partners are USA, UK, Germany, Japan, Benelux, Belgium, etc. 3. Form of Government

The Republic of India is a federal republic of 28 states and 7 union territories. The capital city is New Delhi. India gained its independence from United Kingdom on August 15th 1947. India, a union of states, is a sovereign, secular, democratic Republic with a Parliamentary system of Government. The President is the constitutional head of Executive of the Union. Real executive power vests in a Council of Ministers with the Prime Minister as the head of government. India’s prime minister currently is Atal Bihari Vajpayee (since 1999). Legislative branch consists of bicameral Parliament or Sansad (a body of not more than 250 members chosen by elected members of states and territories) and the People’s Assembly or Lok Sabha (545 members elected by popular vote). India is a member of many international organizations including World Trade Organization. As a founder member of the United Nations, India has been firmly committed to the purposes and principles of the United Nations and has made significant contributions to its various activities, including peacekeeping operations. India has succeeded in establishing a network of mutually beneficial relations with all countries of the world. India values its bilateral relations with the US. As democracies, both countries have many shared ideals. The Bush Administration has acknowledged India as a major power and has repeatedly signaled its intention to build further upon recent progress in bilateral relations. An important achievement of India's foreign policy has been the strengthening of regional cooperation. India is an active member of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), which was launched in December 1985. With India's full support, SAARC has recently taken significant steps in accelerating the pace of economic cooperation. India was admitted as a full dialogue partner of ASEAN and a member of the ASEAN Regional Forum in 1996. 4. Economy

A series of ambitious economic reforms in recent years made India into a complex and rapidly changing nation, and an attractive place for investment. Foreign investment is welcome, approval is required but is automatic in sixty categories of industries. Skilled manpower and professional managers are available at competitive cost.