India is a country of superlatives. With over 1.4 billion people, it is the second most populous country after China. Spanning 3.3 million square kilometers, it is the seventh largest country by area. It is also an ancient civilization with a rich cultural heritage spanning thousands of years. So it’s no surprise that India tops the charts in many arenas globally.
Agriculture
When it comes to agriculture, India is numero uno in several categories:
- Largest producer of milk – With over 188 million tonnes produced annually, India is the largest producer of milk in the world, accounting for over 20% of global production.
- Largest producer of spices – India produces over 75% of the world’s spices, including herbs like mint, fenugreek, and oregano. The country is the top producer of spices like chili pepper, turmeric, cumin seed, fenugreek, and ginger.
- Largest producer of mango – With over 25 million tonnes grown each year, India accounts for over 50% of the global mango production.
- Largest producer of bananas – India produces around 30 million tonnes of banana annually, which is over 23% of global banana production.
- Largest producer of tea – The tea production of India is estimated to be around 1.27 million tonnes annually, making it the largest tea producing country in the world.
- Largest livestock population – India has around 312 million cattle, 109 million goats, and 74 million buffaloes, the highest in the world.
The main reasons for India’s top rankings in agriculture are:
- Extensive arable land – India has over 160 million hectares of arable land suitable for cultivation.
- Diverse agro-climatic regions – India has diverse climatic zones, ranging from montane to tropical, enabling cultivation of diverse crops.
- Large farming population – With over 50% of the workforce engaged in agriculture, India has abundant farming manpower.
- Favorable policies – Initiatives like the Green Revolution of the 1960s helped strengthen India’s agriculture.
Movies
India’s movie industry, centered in Mumbai and Hyderabad, leads the world in many respects:
- Largest film producer – India produces over 2500 movies per year, way ahead of other major film producing nations like the US (700 films) and China (1250 films).
- Largest ticket sales – Around 2.9 billion movie tickets were sold in India in 2019 before the pandemic, the highest worldwide.
- Highest footfall – Over 12 million people visited cinemas daily across India in 2019, more than any other country.
- Largest studio complex – Ramoji Film City in Hyderabad spans 2000 acres, making it the largest integrated film city globally.
The success of Indian cinema is due to:
- Mass appeal – Films in languages like Hindi, Telugu and Tamil have pan-India appeal and loyal audiences.
- Cultural influence – Plotlines rooted in Indian traditions and values resonate with local audiences.
- Low costs – India’s lower production costs allow movie-making at a fraction of Hollywood budgets.
- Talent pool – Mumbai is a magnet for acting and filmmaking talent from across India.
- Global reach – Indian movies are watched worldwide, bringing in significant revenues.
Space exploration
India has a burgeoning space program that has achieved global firsts:
- First Mars orbiter – Mangalyaan, India’s maiden Mars orbiter launched in 2014, was the first to succeed on a maiden attempt.
- Lowest Mars mission cost – At just $73 million, Mangalyaan was the cheapest Mars mission to date.
- First lunar polar mission – Chandrayaan-2 in 2019 was the first attempt at a lunar polar mission.
- First space collision – In 2019, India’s ASAT test intentionally collided a satellite at 300 km altitude, becoming the fourth nation to demonstrate this capability.
India’s frugal space program is marked by:
- Indigenous capabilities – ISRO has developed end-to-end capabilities in launch vehicles, satellites and services.
- Low-cost engineering – Indian engineers have mastered cost-efficient design and fabrication.
- Commercial launches – ISRO’s commercial arm Antrix offers low-cost satellite launch services.
- Strategic autonomy – An independent space program boosts India’s global stature and national security interests.
With ambitious upcoming projects like Gaganyaan and space station, India is poised to cement its leadership in space exploration.
Software services
India’s information technology sector has attained global dominance thanks to:
- Largest IT workforce – With over 5 million workers, India’s IT/software services talent pool is the largest globally.
- Top tech outsourcing hub – India accounts for over 55% market share in the global tech outsourcing sector.
- Largest ITeS exporter – India exported $167 billion worth of ITeS in 2021, the highest worldwide.
- Top digital talent – Indian engineers are behind major tech innovations at firms like Google, Microsoft and IBM.
Factors underlying India’s IT success are:
- Cost arbitrage – Indian IT services cost 70-80% less than in developed countries.
- Language skills – High English proficiency enables delivery of global services.
- Supportive government – Software exports get policy support and tax incentives.
- Top engineering institutes – The IITs and other colleges produce high-quality engineering talent.
With cutting-edge capabilities in areas like cloud, analytics, AI and blockchain, India is poised to retain its leadership in the global tech industry.
Renewable energy
India aims to meet its Paris Agreement renewable energy commitments through rapid expansion of solar and wind power capacities:
- 4th in installed renewables – With over 100 GW installed renewable energy capacity, India ranks 4th globally behind China, US and Brazil.
- 5th in solar power – With over 40 GW of installed solar power capacity, India ranks behind only China, US, Japan and Germany.
- 4th in wind power – India’s installed wind power capacity of over 39 GW places it 4th worldwide after China, US and Germany.
- Largest solar farm – The Bhadla Solar Park in Rajasthan with 2245 MW capacity is the largest solar farm in the world.
Key drivers for India’s renewables expansion are:
- Policy support – Schemes like solar park development, RPOs and preferential tariffs are spurring renewables.
- Cost competitiveness – Renewables tariffs are now cheaper than conventional power in India.
- Energy security – Renewables reduce dependence on imported fossil fuels.
- Investments – Domestic and foreign players are investing billions in India’s renewable energy market.
With ambitious targets of 450 GW by 2030, renewables will be integral to India’s low-carbon pathway.
Exports
India is targeting a bigger share of global exports and already tops in:
- Largest exporter of Rice – Around 14 million tonnes were exported in 2021.
- Leading exporter of spices – Over 15% share in global spice exports.
- Largest exporter of beef – Buffalo meat exports of over $5 billion annually.
- Major textiles exporter – With $42 billion exports in 2020-21.
Factors aiding India’s export growth:
- Production strengths – In areas like agriculture, resources and textiles.
- Competitive labour – Skilled workforce that enables cost competitiveness.
- Business environment – Steps to ease processes and reduce compliance burden.
- FTAs – Agreements with key markets are enhancing trade ties.
With government aiming for double-digit export growth through initiatives like PLI scheme, India is gearing up to be a global exports hub.
Conclusions
To summarize, India tops the world in:
- Agriculture – Major producer of spices, milk, fruits and tea
- Movies – Largest film producer and consumer
- Space – Low-cost missions and technological capabilities
- Software services – Largest IT services workforce and exporter
- Renewable energy – Among top 5 in solar, wind and total renewables
- Exports – Of key products like rice, spices and beef
India’s global leadership across these sectors has been enabled by inherent strengths in resources, manpower and innovation. With government support in policy frameworks, R&D and capacity building, the country is poised to cement its top positions as a major economic power.