Religious composition is an important aspect of India’s population. Hinduism is the dominant religion of the country which accounts for 80.46 per cent of India’s population (cf. 83.5 per cent in 1961). Hindus are found in every state and union territory of the country.
There are 12 states and 4 union territories of the country wherein the percentage of the Hindus is higher than the national average (80.46 per cent). In Himachal Pradesh (95.4%), Orissa (94.4%), Madhya Pradesh (91.1%) and Dadra and Nagar Haveli (93.5%) their percentage share is more than 90 per cent. On the other hand they are in minority in Jammu and Kashmir (by Muslims), and Arunachal Pradesh (by tribal’s).
Their lowest percentage is found in Lakshadweep (3.7%) and Mizoram (3.6%). During the last four decades there has been constant decline in the percentage share of Hindus in the country’s population. This because their growth rate is below the growth rate of other religious communities and the general population.
According to 2001 Census Muslim population numbered 138.2 million which accounted for 13.43 per cent of the country’s total population. They constitute the second largest religious group of the country. At state level they are most numerous (95.5 per cent) in Lakshadweep and Jammu and Kashmir (67.0). Similarly their percentage share is higher than the national average (13.43 %) in 6 states (Jammu and Kashmir, Assam, Kerala, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar) and 1 union territory (Lakshadweep). On the other hand their population share is less than 1.5 per cent in Mizoram (1.1%), and Sikkim (1.4 per cent).
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The major areas of Muslim concentration are located in the Kashmir valley, upper Ganga Plain, a number of districts in West Bengal and Bihar and a few pockets in Haryana and Rajasthan. In Murshidabad district (West Bengal), the Muslim proportion is as high as 56 per cent.
Similarly in Bijnor, Moradabad, Bareilly and Pilibhit the percentage of Muslim to the total population is more than 20 per cent. In some districts of Kashmir valley the Muslim proportion remains above 90 per cent. Other pockets of Muslim concentration are located in Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala. There has been constant increase in the percentage share of Muslim in total population (from 10.7 percent in 1961 to 13.43 per cent in 2001). Muslims are divided into two sects: Shia and Sunni. In India latter are more numerous.
The 2001 census returns show that there are 19.2 million Sikhs which constitute 1.87 per cent of the total population of the country. They are the largest religious community in Punjab with percentage share of 59.9 in the state’s total population.
Similarly in Chandigarh (16.1 percent), and Haryana (5.5 per cent) they occupy second place and in Delhi (2.5 per cent) third place amongst major religious groups. Sikhs constitute some two-fifths of the total population of Hoshiarpur, absolute majority in the districtsof Amritsar, Kapurthala, Firozpur, Gurdaspur, Bathinda, Patiala, Ludhiana and less than 50 per cent of the population of Jalandhar and Sangrur. Minor pockets of their concentration are found in the Tarai region of Uttar Pradesh, Ganganagar, Alwar and Bharatpur districts of Rajasthan. In the urban areas of other states they live in small groups.
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India has about 7.96 million Buddhists (0.77 per cent of the country’s population). About 83 per cent of the total Buddhists of India live in Maharashtra alone (6.0 per cent of state’s population). Other states with sizeable percentage of Buddhists in their population include Sikkim (28.1), Arunachal Pradesh (13.0), Mizoram (7.9), Tripura (3.1) Himachal Pradesh (1.2) and Jammu and Kashmir. These are mostly Neo-Buddhists converted from Dalits amongst Hindus. Some of them have also come as refugees from Tibet after its occupation by China.
India has 4.2 million Jains which constitute about 0.41 per cent of the country’s total population. Majority of them are concentrated in Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Delhi, which together account for about 65 per cent of the Jain population of the country. It is mostly a business community mostly inhabiting the urban areas of the country. Paris are the smallest religious group mainly concentrated in Greater Mumbai and western parts of the country, mostly in urban areas.