1. Ethno-Linguistic Classification:

Indo-Aryan 73.3% : Found Mostly In north and central India. The languages spoken are:

Hindi 200,600,000; Marathi 81,650,000; Bengali 69,760,000; Urdu 44,542,000; Bhojpuri-Bihari 43,300,000; Gujarati 40,372,000; Oriya 31,000,000; Punjabi 24,330,000; Sindhi 18,760,000; Rajasthani/Mawari 17,000,000; Assamese 13,947,000; Nepali 6,480,000; Kashmiri 3,817,000; Lambadi/Gypsy 3,624,000; Konkani 2,371,000; Bagri 1,644,000.

Dravidian 24%. Majority are in south India. The languages spoken are:
Telugu 69,623,000; Tamil 58,547,000; Malayalam 34,166,000; Kannada 33,600,000; Oraon 1,932,000.

Austro-Asiatic 1.6%. They are scattered all over India as tribal groups and belong to over 80 people-groups. Major groups (including all related languages): Bhil 10,660,000; Gond 8,349,000; Santal 5,753,000; Kui 2,856,000; Munda 1,200,000; Ho 1,168,000; Khasi 726,000.

Sino-Tibetan 1.0%.: They live, predominantly in northeast India, though now there is a continuous migration to the south in search of a living. Over 105 groups; major: Tibetan (16) 1,950,000, Manipuri 1,216,000; Naga (28) 940,000; Tripuri (8) 814,000; Garo 641,000; Mizo 446,000; Kuki-Chin (17) 338,000.

Others 0.1%.  They are British, Chinese, Arabs, Russians, Armenians, Jews etc. settled in India due to various economic, cultural and family reasons.
 

2. Caste Based Classification

"Caste" refers to a system that, according to many observers of the Indian scene,  once perpetuated the racial superiority of Brahmins and other so-called higher castes over the majority. The discriminating system is now constitutionally, done away with but the social distinctions remain in the Indian psyche. Though  Caste discrimination is forbidden by the constitution, unfortunately it has not been eradicated either from Indian society or from everyday practices. The following is a rough estimate:

High caste: 4.9%. Brahmin; the priestly caste.
Forward castes: 10.5%. Kshatriya and Vaisya.
Backward castes: 47.6%.
Scheduled castes: 15%. (Once untouchables but now  enjoy equal rights because of extensive steps taken by the government and many social service organizations  )
Others: 22%. Muslims, Christians and Scheduled tribes are not considered part of the caste structure, but are often strongly influenced by caste thinking.
 
 

Literacy:  52%.  Functional literacy nearer 15%.

Official languages: Hindi (the language of the Union), English (legislative and judicial language), 16 other official regional languages (usually of States) have been recognized. They are: Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Kannada, Kashmiri, Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Nepali, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu, Sindhi. All languages and dialects of India put together be around  1,652 (according to the 1971 census), and  of these  33 are spoken by more than 100,000 people; 381 of these are listed in the SIL Ethnologue.

Languages Having The  Scriptures:   46 have full bibles 35 have the New Testament and 60, portions the scriptures, and a very large number of them have oral recordings done by Gospel Recording Association and similar organizations.

Capital:  The union state of New Delhi, with a population close to 10 million serves as the capital. India has over 20 major cities with over 1 million inhabitants each. Bombay 13,545,000; calcutta 13,413,000; Madras 5,582,000; Bangalore 4,410,000; Hyderabad 4,280,000; Ahmedabad 3,298,000; Pune 2,485,000; Kanpur 2,1 1 1,000; Nagpur 1,661,000; Lucknow 1,642,000.

Economy: India's economy is basically an agricultural one. 74% of the labour force is agricultural, but rapid industrialization and urbanization is taking place. Economic growth has been offset by the high birth rate, illiteracy, prejudice, resistance to change and bureaucratic inefficiency. The 200 million middle class would benefit most from the market reforms and liberalization being instituted. Over 600 million live in deep poverty, and 300 million live below the poverty-line. It was predicted that population, growth would outstrip food production just after 2000, but increasing efficiency of agriculture has not allowed this to happen. Unemployment is estimated to be 13%. Public debt per person stands at approximately Rs. 3500  and Per Capita Income is  approximately Rs.3000

Politics:  Indian became Independent from British rule  in 1947. Today it is the world's largest functioning democracy. It has somewhat strained relations with surrounding nations, and has had more than  two wars with Pakistan and one with China. However, the BJP government has been trying to normalize relations and also to make India a political, military, and economic superpower, which India might become by 2025.  Internal tensions have steadily increased because of caste, religious and regional loyalties. Secession movements in Kashmir, Nagaland, Manipur, Tripura, Punjab, Assam, and the tribal regions of south Bihar are weakening the union. Religious militancy among Sikhs and Muslims have from time to time threatened the survival of secular democracy. The BJP, a  nationalist and radical Hindu political party, became the largest opposition party in the 1991 and has eventually been able to rule India with the help of other parties that formed a coalition with BJP. It might eventually be able to rule India single-handedly. The strongly patriotic and nationalistic stand of this part has made many within it strongly anti-christian and anti-muslim, mainly due to the excesses of undiscerning among   the Christian and Muslim communities. This feeling is only expected to grow in future if Muslims and Christians do not abandon their seeming loyalty to non Indian powers.

Religion: India is a secular state. The majority of the population is extremely tolerant and receptive but a small minority of extremists are now causing some substantial problems The rising power of intolerant factions has caused the passing of anti conversion laws in some states. Hindus form the largest chunk of the population in India. The following is a rough estimate by religion:

Hindus:  82%. Hinduism readily absorbs elements of any religion with which it comes into contact. Popular Hinduism has a pantheon of 330 million gods. Intellectual Hinduism is philosophical and mystical and has a growing appeal to the philosophically minded people from east and west alike.

Muslims: 12% . A widespread minority, but a majority in Kashmir and Lakshadweep, and growing among scheduled castes. The Muslim secessionist movement -- fueled by Pakistan --  in Kashmir is in armed conflict with the government.

Sikhs: 1.92%. Originally they were part of the Hindu society, but now demand a separate identity. They are a majority in Punjab state where extremists  waged a bitter guerrilla war for years against the government for an independent Sikh state.

Tribal religions:  They form approximately 1.5% of the population.
Buddhists: 0.7%. A small minority in the land of its origin.
Jains: 0.48%.
Bahais: 0.2%.
Parsis:  0.01 %.
Non-religious And Others: 0.43%.

Christian:   According to Census they are 2.61 %  but the actual population might be closer to 4%. Their growth rate is around 2.8%.  Of this, Protestants are about 50 % and their  growth is about 3.4% mainly due to evangelistic activities.