National Atlas of India

Summary

This paper presents the newly published National Atlas of India in Hindi, marking the completion of the first phase of the National Atlas Project. Compiled by the National Atlas Organization under the Union Ministry of Education and Scientific Research, the atlas prioritizes the depiction of socio-economic and physical distributional patterns over mere toponymy. It consists of 26 loose-leaf multi-colored map plates, facilitating flexible individual study. The primary scale is 1:5 million for 21 maps covering the whole country, supplemented by 16 maps at 1:10 million, 18 at 1:15 million, and 20 at 1:30 million, along with 28 additional maps and insets. Each plate is folded to a page size of 26 by 15 inches, yielding an overall atlas size of approximately 26 by 17 inches. A landmark feature is the first adoption of the metric system in an Indian atlas, with heights in metres, distances in kilometres, areas in hectares, and climatic data in metric units. To ensure international accessibility, English legends, explanatory notes, and a Roman-script place-name list are included. Thematic coverage spans physical relief, drainage, climate, soils, land use, agriculture, livestock, industry, transport, population demographics, education, health, archaeology, and tourist sites, drawing upon the most up-to-date central and state government data. The atlas thus serves as an authoritative, comprehensive geographical reference, available in deluxe and popular editions.