India

India is a former British colony that gained independence with the brutal partition of 1947 that carved the subcontinent in two, creating a Hindu-majority India and a Muslim-majority Pakistan. India is one of the most ethnically diverse countries in the world. Of its population of 1.38 billion, about 80 per cent are Hindu and 14 per cent are Muslim, with Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Jains making up most of the remaining 6 per cent. Hindu nationalism and religious violence have increased in recent years. India is tipped to become the world’s second biggest economy by 2050 and has declared itself a space superpower but poverty remains widespread.