India is located entirely in the Northern and Eastern Hemispheres of the Earth. Positioned in the south-central part of the Asian continent, it forms the apex of the Indian Ocean, giving it a strategic commanding position along vital maritime trade routes connecting East Asia with Europe and Africa.
Latitudinal and Longitudinal Extent
The Indian mainland extends between latitudes 8°4’N and 37°6’N, and longitudes 68°7’E and 97°25’E.
- Latitudinal Spread: The north-south distance from Indira Col to Kanyakumari is 3,214 km.
- Longitudinal Spread: The east-west distance from Sir Creek (Gujarat) to Kibithu (Arunachal Pradesh) is 2,933 km.
- The 30-Degree Variational Fact: Despite both the latitudinal and longitudinal extents being approximately 30°, the north-south distance is greater than the east-west distance. This occurs because the distance between longitudes decreases from the equator toward the poles, whereas the distance between latitudes remains constant.
Extreme Points of India
- Northernmost Point: Indira Col (Siachen Glacier, Ladakh)
- Southernmost Point (Mainland): Cape Comorin / Kanyakumari (Tamil Nadu)
- Southernmost Point (Union Territory): Indira Point / Pygmalion Point (Great Nicobar Island, 6°45’N)
- Westernmost Point: Ghuar Mota, near Sir Creek (Gujarat)
- Easternmost Point: Kibithu (Anjaw District, Arunachal Pradesh)
Standard Time Meridian and Implications
The 82°30’E longitude is selected as the Standard Meridian of India (IST), passing through Mirzapur near Prayagraj (Uttar Pradesh). It is exactly 5 hours and 30 minutes ahead of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT +5:30).
- Time Lag: There is a time difference of nearly two hours (116 minutes) between the easternmost point in Arunachal Pradesh and the westernmost point in Gujarat.
- States passing through 82°30’E: Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, and Andhra Pradesh.
Tropic of Cancer
The Tropic of Cancer (23°30’N) divides India into almost two equal halves. The region south of this line falls in the tropical zone, while the region north of it lies in the sub-tropical/warm temperate zone.
States Bisected by the Tropic of Cancer
From West to East, the Tropic of Cancer passes through 8 Indian states:
- Gujarat
- Rajasthan
- Madhya Pradesh
- Chhattisgarh
- Jharkhand (Ranchi is the closest capital city to the Tropic of Cancer)
- West Bengal
- Tripura
- Mizoram
Size and Dimensions
With an area of 3.28 million square kilometers, India accounts for 2.4% of the world’s total land area. It ranks as the seventh-largest country in the world.
Global Area Rankings
| Rank | Country |
| 1 | Russia |
| 2 | Canada |
| 3 | United States |
| 4 | China |
| 5 | Brazil |
| 6 | Australia |
| 7 | India |
Frontiers and Boundaries
India possesses a total land frontier of approximately 15,200 km and a total coastline length of 7,516.6 km, which includes the mainland, Lakshadweep, and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The mainland coastline alone measures 6,100 km.
Coastline Distribution by States and UTs
Gujarat possesses the longest coastline among all Indian states, followed by Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. Among Union Territories, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands hold the longest coastline.
| State/UT | Coastline Length (in km) |
| Andaman & Nicobar Islands | 1,962 |
| Gujarat | 1,214.7 |
| Andhra Pradesh | 973.7 |
| Tamil Nadu | 856.8 |
| Maharashtra | 652.6 |
| Kerala | 569.7 |
| Odisha | 476.4 |
| Karnataka | 280.0 |
| Goa, Daman & Diu | 160.5 |
| West Bengal | 157.5 |
| Puducherry | 47.6 |
| Lakshadweep | 132.0 |
Land Neighbours and Border Lengths
India shares its land borders with seven sovereign nations. The borders are distributed as follows, sorted in descending order of length (the “Bachpan” mnemonic formula: Bangladesh, China, Pakistan, Nepal, Myanmar, Bhutan, Afghanistan).
| Neighbouring Country | Border Length (km) | Bordering Indian States / UTs |
| Bangladesh | 4,096.7 | West Bengal, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Tripura, Assam |
| China | 3,488 | Ladakh (UT), Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh |
| Pakistan | 3,323 | Gujarat, Rajasthan, Punjab, Jammu & Kashmir (UT), Ladakh (UT) |
| Nepal | 1,751 | Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Sikkim |
| Myanmar | 1,643 | Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram |
| Bhutan | 699 | Sikkim, West Bengal, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh |
| Afghanistan | 106 | Ladakh (UT – Durand Line, currently under Pakistan-occupied Kashmir) |
Maritime Neighbours and Important Channels
India shares maritime boundaries with Sri Lanka, Maldives, Indonesia, Thailand, and Myanmar.
Strategic Geographical Channels
- Palk Strait and Gulf of Mannar: Separates India (Tamil Nadu) from Sri Lanka.
- 8 Degree Channel: Separates Minicoy Island (India) from the Maldives.
- 9 Degree Channel: Separates Minicoy Island from the main Lakshadweep archipelago.
- 10 Degree Channel: Separates the Andaman Islands from the Nicobar Islands in the Bay of Bengal.
- Duncan Passage: Separates South Andaman from Little Andaman.
- Coco Channel: Separates the Andaman Islands from the Coco Islands of Myanmar.
- Great Channel (Grand Channel): Separates Great Nicobar Island from Sumatra island of Indonesia.
Geopolitical Facts and Territorial Waters
Under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), India’s maritime zones are classified into three distinct categories measured from the territorial baseline.
- Territorial Waters: Extends up to 12 nautical miles (1 NM ≈ 1.852 km) from the baseline. India exercises full sovereignty over this zone.
- Contiguous Zone: Extends from 12 to 24 nautical miles. India has fiscal, customs, immigration, and sanitation rights here.
- Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ): Extends up to 200 nautical miles. India holds exclusive rights to explore, exploit, conserve, and manage natural resources, both living and non-living, within this area.