India's Location, Extent, Neighbours and Boundary Lines

Drafted with AI assistance and fact-checked on 28 October 2026; not yet read line by line by a human editor. Spotted a mistake? Tell us. Editorial standards & corrections

Where India lies

India lies wholly in the Northern and Eastern Hemispheres, in South Asia, at the head of the Indian Ocean, the only ocean named after a country. The mainland stretches from 8°4'N to 37°6'N latitude and from 68°7'E to 97°25'E longitude, so both its latitudinal and its longitudinal extent are about 30 degrees. Even so, the north-south length (about 3,214 km) is greater than the east-west width (about 2,933 km), because the distance between two lines of longitude shrinks away from the Equator. Its central place on the sea routes between Europe and Africa to the west and East Asia to the east has linked India to both sides of the ocean since ancient times.

Area and extreme points

With an area of 32,87,263 sq km (about 3.28 million sq km), India is the seventh largest country in the world after Russia, Canada, the USA, China, Brazil and Australia, and has about 2.4 percent of the world's land area. Rajasthan is the largest state by area and Goa the smallest. The southernmost point of the country is Indira Point on Great Nicobar, while Kanyakumari (Cape Comorin) is the southern tip of the mainland. The northernmost point lies in Ladakh (Indira Col, in the Siachen area), the easternmost in the Anjaw district of Arunachal Pradesh (usually given as Kibithu) and the westernmost at Guhar Moti in the Kachchh district of Gujarat.

Tropic of Cancer and Standard Meridian

The Tropic of Cancer (23°30'N) runs almost through the middle of the country and crosses eight states, west to east: Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Tripura and Mizoram. Land to its south lies in the tropical zone and land to its north in the sub-tropical zone. The sun takes 4 minutes to cross each degree of longitude, so the 30 degrees between Gujarat and Arunachal Pradesh mean a time difference of about 2 hours: the sun rises in Arunachal about two hours before it rises in Kachchh. To keep one time for the whole country, the Standard Meridian of 82°30'E, passing through Mirzapur in Uttar Pradesh, sets Indian Standard Time (IST), which is 5 hours 30 minutes ahead of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). This meridian crosses five states: Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.

Land frontier and coastline

India's land border is about 15,200 km long (15,106.7 km by the Home Ministry's count) and is shared with seven countries. In order of length they are Bangladesh (4,096.7 km, the longest), China (3,488 km), Pakistan (3,323 km), Nepal (1,751 km), Myanmar (1,643 km), Bhutan (699 km) and Afghanistan (106 km, the shortest). For decades the official length of the coastline, mainland plus islands, was 7,516.6 km; a re-measurement on larger-scale maps by the National Hydrographic Office and the Survey of India, adopted by the government in 2025, gives 11,098.81 km, so read the options carefully. Nine states touch the sea: Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and West Bengal, and Gujarat has the longest coastline of any state.

Neighbours and the states on each border

Pakistan borders Gujarat, Rajasthan, Punjab and the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. China borders Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh. Nepal borders five states: Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal and Sikkim. Bhutan borders four: Sikkim, West Bengal, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. Myanmar borders four: Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur and Mizoram. Bangladesh borders five: West Bengal (the longest stretch), Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram. The short border with Afghanistan lies in Ladakh, in the Gilgit-Baltistan area under Pakistan's occupation. Sikkim, West Bengal and Arunachal Pradesh each touch three countries. Across the sea lie Sri Lanka and the Maldives.

Boundary lines

The Radcliffe Line, drawn by Sir Cyril Radcliffe in 1947, is India's boundary with Pakistan and with Bangladesh (then East Pakistan). The McMahon Line, named after Sir Henry McMahon and agreed at the Simla Convention of 1913-14, is the India-China boundary in the eastern sector along Arunachal Pradesh; China does not accept it. The Durand Line of 1893, after Sir Mortimer Durand, divides Pakistan and Afghanistan. In Jammu and Kashmir the Line of Control (LoC) separates the areas held by India and Pakistan, and the Line of Actual Control (LAC) is the working line between India and China.

Palk Strait, channels and islands

The Palk Strait separates Tamil Nadu from Sri Lanka and joins the Bay of Bengal to Palk Bay; south of it lies the Gulf of Mannar, and between them runs Adam's Bridge (Ram Setu), a chain of shoals from Pamban Island (Rameswaram) to Mannar Island. India has two island groups. In the Bay of Bengal, the Ten Degree Channel separates the Andaman Islands from the Nicobar Islands, the Duncan Passage lies between South Andaman and Little Andaman, and the Coco Channel separates North Andaman from Myanmar's Coco Islands. In the Arabian Sea, the Nine Degree Channel separates Minicoy from the main group of the Lakshadweep coral islands (36 islands in all), and the Eight Degree Channel separates Minicoy from the Maldives.

Key facts

Mainland India: 8°4'N to 37°6'N and 68°7'E to 97°25'E; about 30 degrees of latitude and of longitude; north-south about 3,214 km, east-west about 2,933 km.
Area 32,87,263 sq km, about 2.4 percent of the world's land; seventh largest after Russia, Canada, USA, China, Brazil and Australia; Rajasthan largest state, Goa smallest.
Tropic of Cancer (23°30'N) crosses 8 states: Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Tripura, Mizoram.
Standard Meridian 82°30'E passes Mirzapur (UP) and five states (UP, MP, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh); IST is GMT plus 5 hours 30 minutes; east-west time gap about 2 hours.
Land border lengths: Bangladesh 4,096.7 km, China 3,488, Pakistan 3,323, Nepal 1,751, Myanmar 1,643, Bhutan 699, Afghanistan 106 km; total about 15,200 km.
Nepal touches Uttarakhand, UP, Bihar, West Bengal, Sikkim; Bhutan touches Sikkim, West Bengal, Assam, Arunachal; Myanmar touches Arunachal, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram.
Bangladesh touches West Bengal, Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram; China touches Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh.
Radcliffe Line (1947): India-Pakistan and India-Bangladesh; McMahon Line (Simla Convention, 1913-14): India-China in Arunachal; Durand Line (1893): Pakistan-Afghanistan.
Ten Degree Channel: Andaman from Nicobar; Duncan Passage: South Andaman from Little Andaman; Nine Degree Channel: Minicoy from the main Lakshadweep islands; Eight Degree Channel: Minicoy from the Maldives.
Extreme points: Indira Point (Great Nicobar) south, Kanyakumari mainland south, Kibithu (Anjaw, Arunachal) east, Guhar Moti (Kachchh, Gujarat) west, Indira Col (Ladakh) north.

Quick revision

Mainland 8°4'N-37°6'N and 68°7'E-97°25'E; area 32,87,263 sq km, 7th largest, 2.4% of world land; Tropic of Cancer crosses 8 states; Standard Meridian 82°30'E at Mirzapur, IST = GMT + 5:30; land border about 15,200 km with 7 countries, longest with Bangladesh, shortest with Afghanistan; coastline 7,516.6 km (11,098.81 km in the re-measurement adopted in 2025), Gujarat longest; Radcliffe 1947, McMahon 1913-14, Durand 1893; Palk Strait to Sri Lanka; Ten Degree Channel splits Andaman and Nicobar.

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All 10 lessons on Indian Geography: Physical, Economic and Human