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Tourists should seek permission from the authorities concerned before taking photographs of places of military importance, railway stations, bridges, airports, military installations, metro trains, tribal areas and sensitive border regions. It is prohibited to take photographs in some of the temples, historical monuments, forts, palaces, tombs and monasteries. Visitors are required to take special permits from the Archaeological Survey of India for photographing monuments with tripods and artificial lights. Camera fee is charged extra in some historical monuments.

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Protected Areas in India

There are certain places in India where entry is restricted. Tourists are required to take special permits from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), New Delhi for visiting these places. These places include certain areas of Assam, North Eastern Frontier States (Mizoram, Manipur, Nagaland, and Arunachal Pradesh) border areas of Jammu & Kashmir, selected areas of Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, Union Territories of Andaman and Lakshadweep Islands. One can visit in person or inquire on phone the details of getting special permits:

Foreigners' Division
Ministry of Home Affairs, North Block,
Central Secretariat, New Delhi - 110 001
Phone: +911123092011, +911123092161
Fax: +911123093750, +911123092763

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Language

There are 22 National Languages recognized by the Constitution of India, of which Hindi is the Official Union Language. Besides these, there are 844 different dialects that are practiced in various parts of the Country.

The official language is Hindi in the Devanagri script. The States are free to decide their own regional languages for internal administration and education. English is widely spoken.

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Guides

Trained English speaking guides are available at fixed charges at all important tourist centres. The Govt. of India Tourist Offices can be contacted by tourists for the services of approved guides. French, Italian, Spanish, German, Russian and Japanese speaking guides are available at some cities. Please consult the nearest Govt. of India Tourist Office. Unapproved guides are not permitted to enter protected monuments, and tourists are, therefore, advised to ask the guides for the identity card issued by the Department of Tourism, Govt. of India.

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Time

GMT + 5 1/2 hours.

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Electricity

Voltage in most places is 220 volts AC, 50 cycles, although some areas also have DC supplies.

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Communications

The Indian telecommunications Network is the fifth largest in the world and is the second largest among the emerging economies of Asia.
Today it is the fastest growing market in the world. Private operators like vodafone, Reliance, Tataindicom have made mobile telephony the fastest growing industry (over 164% p.a.) in India.

Wireless and Broadband internet is among the fastest growing communication sectors.

The international direct dialing code for India is +91.

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Currency

Currency of India is Rupee. 1 Rupee = 100 Paise.The Reserve Bank has the sole authority to issue banknotes in India. The Reserve Bank has introduced banknotes in the Mahatma Gandhi Series since 1996 and has so far issued notes in the denominations of Rs.5, Rs.10, Rs.20, Rs.50, Rs.100, Rs.500 and Rs.1000 in this series. Coins in India are presently being issued in denominations of 10 paise, 20 paise, 25 paise, 50 paise, one rupee, two rupees and five rupees. Coins upto 50 paise are called 'small coins' and coins of Rupee one and above are called 'Rupee Coins'.

There are 24 hour exchange facilities available at all big cites and international airports. All Credit cards are accepted in Major cities of India. All major Banks in India have a facility of 24hr Internationl ATMs. http://www.rbi.org.in/scripts/ic_banknotes.aspx

Indian Quotation

Amount

International Quotation

1 Lakh

100,000.00

100 Thousands

10 Lakhs

1,000,000.00

1 Million

1 Crore

10,000,000.00

10 Million

10 Crores

100,000,000.00

100 Million

100 Crores

1,000,000,000.00

1 Billion

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Customs and Currency Regulations

Al personal objects which are required in India are free from duty. Professional material and articles which have a high value can only be imported duty free if the traveler gives a written undertaking that these articles will be re-exported.

For the purpose of Customs clearance of arriving passengers, a two channel system has been adopted

(i) Green Channel for passengers not having any dutiable goods.

(ii) Red Channel for passengers having dutiable goods.

However,

(i)

All the passengers shall ensure to file correct declaration of their baggage.

(ii)

Green channel passengers must deposit the customs portion of the disembarkation card to the custom official at the gate before leaving the terminal.

(iii)

Declaration of foreign exchange/currency has be made before the custom officers in the following cases :



(a)

where the value of foreign currency notes exceed US $ 5000 or equivalent



(b)

where the aggregate value of foreign exchange including currency exceeds US $ 10,000 or equivalent





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Public Holidays

India is a land of festivals. There are many festivals and special events in India, but only a few of these are celebrated in various parts of India on various days.

The full public holidays are:

26. January Republic Day

15. August Independence Day

02. October Mahatma Gandhi’s Birthday

Click here for more information on holidays and festivals in India.