Mysteries Of India

A floating post office

India has the largest postal network in the world with over 1, 55,015 post offices.

A single post office on an average serves a population of 7,175 people. The floating post office in Dal Lake, Srinagar, was inaugurated in August 2011.

The wettest inhabited place in the world

Mawsynram, a village on the Khasi Hills, Meghalaya, receives the highest recorded average rainfall in the world.

Cherrapunji, also a part of Meghalaya, holds the record for the most rainfall in the calendar year of 1861.

The highest cricket ground in the world

At an altitude of 2,444 meters, the Chail Cricket Ground in Chail, Himachal Pradesh, is the highest in the world.

It was built in 1893 and is a part of the Chail Military School.

Shampooing is an Indian concept

Shampoo was invented in India, not the commercial liquid ones but the method by use of herbs. The word 'shampoo' itself has been derived from the Sanskrit word champu, which means to massage.

The Indian national Kabaddi team has won all World Cups

India has won all 5 men's Kabaddi World Cups held till now and have been undefeated throughout these tournaments. The Indian women's team has also won all Kabaddi World Cups held till date.

Water on the moon was discovered by India

In September 2009, India's ISRO Chandrayaan- 1 using its Moon Mineralogy Mapper detected water on the moon for the first time.

Science day in Switzerland is dedicated to Ex-Indian President, APJ Abdul Kalam

The father of India's missile programme had visited Switzerland back in 2006. Upon his arrival, Switzerland declared May 26th as Science Day.

India's first President only took 50% of his salary

When Dr Rajendra Prasad was appointed the President of India, he only took 50% of his salary, claiming he did not require more than that. Towards the end of his 12-year tenure, he only took 25% of his salary. The salary of the President was Rs 10,000 back then.

The first rocket in India was transported on a cycle

The first rocket was so light and small that it was transported on a bicycle to the Thumba Launching Station in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala.

India has a spa just for elephants

Elephants receive baths, massages and even food at the Punnathoor Cotta Elephant Yard Rejuvenation Centre in Kerala. Now that's a BIG step for the country.

India is the world's second-largest English speaking country

India is second only to the USA when it comes to speaking English with around 125 million people speaking the language, which is only 10% of our population. This is expected to grow by quite a margin in the coming years.

The world's largest producer of milk

India recently overtook the European Union with production reaching over 132.4m tonnes in 2014.

The first country to consume sugar

India was the first country to develop extraction and purifying techniques of sugar. Many visitors from abroad learnt the refining and cultivation of sugar from us.

The human calculator

Shakuntala Devi was given this title after she demonstrated the calculation of two 13 digit numbers: 7,686,369,774,870 × 2,465,099,745,779 which were picked at random. She answered correctly within 28 seconds.

Diamonds were first mined in India

Initially, diamonds were only found in the alluvial deposits in Guntur and Krishna District of the Krishna River Delta. Until diamonds were found in Brazil during the 18th century, India led the world in diamond production.

Snakes and Ladders originated in India

Earlier known as Moksha Patamu, the game was initially invented as a moral lesson about karma to be taught to children. It was later commercialized and has become one of the most popular board games in the world.