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India Population and Demographics

India (Republic of India) is a country in Southern Asia. India is the second most populous country in the world, with more than 1.4 billion representing 17.7% of the world’s population. By Land area, it’s the seventh-largest country in the world. The total land area of India is 2,973,190 sq. km  (1,147,960 sq. mi) and population density is 471 people per sq. km (1220 people per sq. mi).  

As per the Indian Census population projection reports, the estimated population of India in 2024 is 1,400,744,000 (1.4 billion or 140 Crore)

read about India population by religion

India Demographics

India 2024 Population
Total Population 1,400,744,000 (1.4 Billion)
Male Population 719,493,000
Female Population 681,251,000
Global Rank 2
Share of World Pop. 17.70%
Area  2,973,190 Sq. Km  (1,147,960 sq. mi)
Area Rank 7th
Density 471 person/sq. km (1220/sq. mi.)
Fertility Rate 2
Infant mortality rate 28.3 
Median Age  28.4 Years
Life Expectancy  70.42 year
Urban Population 35%

Source: Census 2011 and  Census Population Projection Reports 2011-2036

*Fertility rate, the average number of children born to women during their reproductive years.

**Infant mortality rate is the number of deaths per 1,000 live births of children under one year of age.

India Historical Population

India has a population growth rate of  17.70% from 2001-to 2011. At the start of the 2oth century, India’s Population was 24 Crore and didn’t see much growth till 1931. By 1960 it saw good growth and doubled around  44 crores. After the 1950s till 2001 population growth rate is high and registered + 20% growth.

India’s population touched 100 crores or 1 billion in the 2001 census. In the last two decades, the growth rate declined a bit & now it’s around 15%.

Let’s look at decade population & percentage change from the Year 1910 to 2021

Census Year Population Absolute Change Percent Change
1901  238,396,327     –
1911 252,093,390  +13,697,063  5.75%
1921 251,321,213  – 772,177  – 0.31
1931  278,977,238  +27,656,025  11.00 %
1941  318,660,580  +39,683,342  14.22%
1951   361,088,090  +42,420,485  13.31%
1961   439,234,771  +77,682,873  21.51%
1971  548,159,652  +108,924,881  24.80%
1981   683,329,097  +135,169,445  24.66%
1991   846,421,039  +163,091,942  23.87%
2001   1,028,737,436  +182,316,397  21.54%
2011 1,210,854,977 +182,117,541 17.70%

Source: India Census 2011 

Hinduism is the main religion in India. In fact, India is the largest Hindu nation in the world & 94% percent of the World’s Hindu population live in India. Islam also has large followers in India & 15% of the Population follows it. Christians, Buddism, Sikhs, Jain are other minority religions in India  per the census data, which was compiled in 2011 the breakup of India population on religion basis is as Follows

  • Hinduism: 966.3 million  – 79.8% 
  • Islam:  172.2 million – 14.2%
  • Christians: 27.8 million – 2.3%
  • Sikhs: 20.8 million – 1.7%
  • Others ( Buddhist, Jains etc.) – 2%

For more details visit Religion in India

Source: Census 2011

Indian States by Population

Uttar Pradesh is the most populous state in India, and Sikkim retains its status as the least populated state.

RankStates2011 Census2023 estimates
1Uttar Pradesh19,98,12,3412,35,687,000
2Maharashtra11,23,74,3331,26,385,000
3Bihar10,40,99,4521,26,756,000
4West Bengal9,12,76,11599,084,000
5Madhya Pradesh7,26,26,80986,579,000
6Tamil Nadu7,21,47,03076,860,000
7Rajasthan6,85,48,43781,025,000
8Karnataka6,10,95,29767,692,000
9Gujarat6,04,39,69271,507,000
10Andhra Pradesh49,386,79953,156,000
11Odisha4,19,74,21846,276,000
12Telangana35,193,97838,090,000
13Kerala3,34,06,06135,776,000
14Jharkhand3,29,88,13439,466,000
15Assam3,12,05,57635,713,000
16Punjab2,77,43,33830,730,000
17Chhattisgarh2,55,45,19830,180,000
18Haryana2,53,51,46230,209,000
UT1Delhi1,67,87,94121,359,000
UT2Jammu & Kashmir1,22,58,43313,603,000
19Uttarakhand1,00,86,29211,637,000
20Himachal Pradesh68,64,6027,468,000
21Tripura36,73,9174,147,000
22Meghalaya29,66,8893,349,000
23Manipur28,55,7943,223,000
24Nagaland19,78,5022,233,000
25Goa14,58,5451,575,000
26Arunachal Pradesh13,83,7271,562,000
UT3Puducherry12,47,9531,646,000
27Mizoram10,97,2061,238,000
UT4Chandigarh10,55,4501,231,000
28Sikkim6,10,577689,000
UT5Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu5,86,9561,263,000
UT6Andaman & Nicobar3,80,581403,000
UT7Ladakh274,289300,000
UT8Lakshadweep64,47369,000

Source: Census 2011 & Census Population Projection report

read in detail about Top States in India by population

Population of India 2024 | Demography of India

Rajeev Rana

Rajeev Rana loves reading about history and demography and has been writing on these topics for five years. While not a certified expert, he has a deep understanding of demography in India. Rajeev contributes to several websites and has extensive knowledge of the Delhi NCR area.

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