India

Valid visas and passports are required for entry into India. The passport must be valid for six months beyond the date of visa application to obtain a visa. It also must have two blank pages for immigration to allow visitors to enter the country.

A certificate for yellow fever vaccination may be required if the traveler is arriving from an infected area. Other vaccinations and immunizations are also suggested.

The climate of India can be divided in different climate zones. The eastern part of India and the west coast can be classified as Aw climate; a hot, tropical climate with all months above 18°C and a dry period in the winter. The southern tip of India can be classified as Am climate; a hot tropical rainforest climate with monsoon rains and all months above 18°C. Central and northwestern India have a BSh climate; a dry Steppe climate with an annual average temperature above 18°C. Finally, The northern mountainous areas can be classified as Cfa climate; a temperate, humid climate with the warmest month above 22°C.

The country code for India is +91. Most areas in the country are covered by cellular networks and have access to the Internet with decent speed. However, there are some areas with zero cellular coverage and Internet access.

In India, the standard voltage is 230 V and the frequency is 50 Hz. There are three associated plug types, types C, D and M. Plug type C is the plug which has two round pins, plug type D is the plug which has three round pins in a triangular pattern and plug type M is the plug which also has three round pins.

Make two copies of important documents such as your tickets, passport, visas and travelers’ cheques. Keep one with you in a separate place from the original and leave another copy with someone at home.

Be sure to let your credit card company and your bank know that you will travel internationally into South America. This will eliminate any credit card holds for fraudulent activity.

You are advised to carry cash, an ATM or traveler’s check card, and a credit card that can be used for cash advances in case of emergency. The best places to exchange money are normally bureau de change, which are fast, have longer hours and often give slightly better rates than banks. The local currency is Indian Rupee (INR), but it is advised to carry hard notes of USD. Many hotels, lodges, and camps will be able to accept credit cards. However, it is advised to withdraw cash when visiting remote areas and villages.

Broadly speaking, the peoples of north-central and northwestern India tend to have ethnic affinities with European and Indo-European peoples from southern Europe, the Caucasus region, and Southwest and Central Asia. In northeastern India, West Bengal (to a lesser degree), the higher reaches of the western Himalayan region, and Ladakh, much of the population more closely resembles peoples to the north and east—notably Tibetans and Burmans. Many aboriginal (“tribal”) peoples in the Chota Nagpur Plateau (northeastern peninsular India) have affinities to such groups as the Mon, who have long been established in mainland Southeast Asia. Much less numerous are southern groups who appear to be descended, at least in part, either from peoples of East African origin (some of whom settled in historical times on India’s western coast) or from a population commonly designated as Negrito, now represented by numerous small and widely dispersed peoples from the Andaman Islands, the Philippines, New Guinea, and other areas.

There are probably hundreds of major and minor languages and many hundreds of recognized dialects in India, whose languages belong to four different language families: Indo-Iranian (a subfamily of the Indo-European language family), Dravidian, Austroasiatic, and Tibeto-Burman (a subfamily of Sino-Tibetan). There are also several isolated languages, such as Nahali, which is spoken in a small area of Madhya Pradesh state. The overwhelming majority of Indians speak Indo-Iranian or Dravidian languages.