According to a survey conducted by India's fifth National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5) in 2021 stated that about 36 percent of Christian men consumed alcohol in India. In contrast, over six percent of Muslim men consumed alcohol.

With almost all major religions being practiced throughout the country, India is known for its religious diversity. Hinduism made up for the highest share of faith followed by people in the country. According to the Indian census of 2011, Muslims had the highest population growth in the country.

It was estimated that by 2050, India's Muslim population would grow by ** percent compared to 2010. For followers of the Hindu faith, this change stood at ** percent. According to this projection, the south Asian country would be home not just to the world's majority of Hindus, but also Muslims by this time period. Regardless, the latter would continue to remain a minority within the country at ** percent, with ** percent or *** billion Hindus at the forefront by 2050.

India Census: Population: by Religion: Muslim: Urban data was reported at 68,740,419.000 Person in 2011. This records an increase from the previous number of 49,393,496.000 Person for 2001. India Census: Population: by Religion: Muslim: Urban data is updated yearly, averaging 59,066,957.500 Person from Mar 2001 (Median) to 2011, with 2 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 68,740,419.000 Person in 2011 and a record low of 49,393,496.000 Person in 2001. India Census: Population: by Religion: Muslim: Urban data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Census of India. The data is categorized under India Premium Database’s Demographic – Table IN.GAE001: Census: Population: by Religion.

According to India's last census details, Hindus made up the majority of the population in the country, followed by Muslims. At the same time, almost three million people did not state their religion for the census. India has historically been a religiously pluralistic and multiethnic democracy, with a substantial proportion of all major religions of the world along with several minority and tribal religions.

A survey conducted across India in 2024 found that ** percent of Hindu population and ** percent of minorities agree that India belongs to all religions equally. The survey reflects citizens' faith in the secular and pluralistic fabric of the country.

This dataset provides the unemployment rates for major religious groups in India, based on usual status (ps+ss). For years before 2017-18, the data was obtained in different quinquennial rounds of NSSO conducted from 2004-05 (NSS 61st) to 2011-12 (NSS 68th round). From 2017-18 the data is sourced from the annual report of the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) conducted by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation. The data highlights unemployment trends within different religious communities.

This dataset provides the labour force participation rates (LFPR), in percentage terms, for major religious groups in India, based on usual status (ps+ss). It is sourced from the PLFS reports conducted by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation. The years covered in the survey are from July to June. For instance, 2023-24 refers to the period July 2023 to June 2024 and likewise for other years.

Census: Population: by Religion: Muslim: Uttarakhand data was reported at 1,406,825.000 Person in 03-01-2011. This records an increase from the previous number of 1,012,141.000 Person for 03-01-2001. Census: Population: by Religion: Muslim: Uttarakhand data is updated decadal, averaging 1,209,483.000 Person from Mar 2001 (Median) to 03-01-2011, with 2 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 1,406,825.000 Person in 03-01-2011 and a record low of 1,012,141.000 Person in 03-01-2001. Census: Population: by Religion: Muslim: Uttarakhand data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. The data is categorized under India Premium Database’s Demographic – Table IN.GAE003: Census: Population: by Religion: Muslim.

As of 2010, Christianity was the religion with the most followers worldwide, followed by Islam (Muslims) and Hinduism. In the forty years between 2010 and 2050, it is projected that the landscape of world religions will undergo some noticeable changes, with the number of Muslims almost catching up to Christians. The changes in population sizes of each religious group is largely dependent on demographic development, for example, the rise in the world's Christian population will largely be driven by population growth in Sub-Saharan Africa, while Muslim populations will rise across various regions of Africa and South Asia. As India's population is set to grow while China's goes into decline, this will be reflected in the fact that Hindus will outnumber the unaffiliated by 2050. In fact, India may be home to both the largest Hindu and Muslim populations in the world by the middle of this century.

Census: Population: by Religion: Muslim: Tripura data was reported at 316,042.000 Person in 03-01-2011. This records an increase from the previous number of 254,442.000 Person for 03-01-2001. Census: Population: by Religion: Muslim: Tripura data is updated decadal, averaging 285,242.000 Person from Mar 2001 (Median) to 03-01-2011, with 2 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 316,042.000 Person in 03-01-2011 and a record low of 254,442.000 Person in 03-01-2001. Census: Population: by Religion: Muslim: Tripura data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. The data is categorized under India Premium Database’s Demographic – Table IN.GAE003: Census: Population: by Religion: Muslim.

Mass ritualized gatherings like pilgrimages are central to religious practice globally. Do they generate votes for religious parties? The events may heighten religiosity, enlarging support for parties seen as owning religious policy issues. Such parties might also co-opt the events to organize and campaign. We evaluate the electoral impact of India's Kumbh Mela, a Hindu festival considered the world's biggest human assembly, leveraging its astrologically determined timing combined with districts' proximity by rail to the festival sites. The Kumbh Mela boosts Hindu nationalists' vote share. Mechanisms tests suggest it does so by increasing religious orthodoxy---seen in the adoption of Brahminical dietary practices---and by strengthening party capacity. There are mixed effects on communal conflict. The events are electorally polarizing; they cause India's main secular-leaning party to perform better in regions with denser concentrations of religious minorities. Our study offers a new account of how confessional parties make inroads in multiethnic democracies.

We investigate how religion concordance influences the effectiveness of preventive health campaigns. Conducted during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic in two major Indian cities marked by Hindu--Muslim tensions, we randomly assigned a representative sample of slum residents to receive either a physician-delivered information campaign promoting health-related preventive practices, or uninformative control messages on their mobile phones. Messages, introduced by a local citizen (the sender), were cross-randomized to start with a greeting signaling either a Hindu or a Muslim identity, manipulating religion concordance between sender and receiver. We found that doctor messages increased compliance with recommended practices and beliefs in their efficacy. Our findings suggest that the campaign's impact is primarily driven by shared religion between sender and receiver, leading to increased message engagement and compliance with recommended practices. Additionally, we observe that religion concordance helps protect against misinformation.

The Indian religious and spiritual market reached approximately USD 58.56 Billion in 2024. The market is further expected to grow at a CAGR of 10.00% during the forecast period of 2025-2034 to reach a value of USD 151.89 Billion by 2034.

With almost all major religions being practiced throughout the country, India is known for its religious diversity. Hinduism made up for the highest share of faith followed by people in the country. According to the Indian census of 2011, Himachal Pradesh had the highest share of Hindu population in the country.

Replication code for Caste, Religion and the Labor Force Participation of Women: Evidence from India. The data used in this paper- National Sample Survey on employment and Unemployment and Periodic Labour force Survey- is owned by Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MOSPI), India. Available on payment of fees to MOSPI. The code below replicates the tables in the main paper and the appendix. Please email the author for any additional clarifications.

This dataset captures regional superstitions and beliefs from all 28 states and 8 union territories across India, offering a glimpse into the diverse cultural fabric that shapes daily life. It aims to preserve and explore India’s rich cultural heritage through data. The collection is notable for its uniqueness, as there is no existing large-scale dataset that details Indian superstitions region-wise with comparable depth and breadth. It holds significant cultural and linguistic value, making it highly suitable for Natural Language Processing (NLP) applications and serving an educational purpose by raising awareness about India’s intangible cultural heritage.

Columns

The dataset includes the following columns: * id: A unique identifier for each superstition entry. * superstition_name: A concise name or label for the superstition. * description: A detailed explanation of the belief or practice. * region: Specifies the State or Union Territory where the belief is commonly observed. * category: Indicates the type of superstition, such as omen, protection, health, taboo, wealth, pregnancy-related, weekly beliefs, or ghost/spirits. * origin_theory: Provides the folk or cultural explanation, or historical root of the belief. * modern_status: Identifies whether the belief is still followed in the specified region (Yes/No/Partially). * is_harmful: States whether the belief might have detrimental effects, e.g., social or medical. * source: Describes the type of source from which the data was collected, such as oral tradition, community elders, or user contributed. * user_contributed: A flag indicating if the entry was directly contributed by users or sourced from communities.

Distribution

The dataset is provided in CSV format and consists of two main files: train.csv and test.csv. The train.csv file contains over 500 superstition entries, with approximately 20 entries per state or Union Territory. The test.csv file includes over 100 entries, typically 1 to 2 per state or Union Territory, intended for model validation or exploration. Both files share a similar structure, making them suitable for supervised learning tasks.

Usage

This dataset is ideally suited for various applications, including: * Exploring regional cultural differences in beliefs across India. * Training machine learning models for classifying or generating folklore-related text. * Developing AI assistants that can understand and respond to regional cultural nuances. * Enhancing chatbots with culturally relevant responses and information. * Academic research in social sciences, humanities, cultural studies, anthropology, folklore, and linguistics. * NLP applications such as text classification, sentiment analysis, and entity recognition. * Building cultural AI systems.

Coverage

The dataset's geographic scope covers all 28 states and 8 union territories of India, ensuring a wide representation of regional beliefs. The time range encompasses traditions passed down through generations, with a focus on their modern status. While specific demographic details are not outlined, the dataset captures beliefs shaping daily life across the country, aiming for a fair representation of all regions.

License

CC-BY

Who Can Use It

The dataset is intended for: * Researchers in cultural studies, anthropology, folklore, and linguistics. * Data scientists and machine learning engineers working on NLP applications. * Academics engaged in social sciences and humanities research. * Developers creating AI assistants or chatbots. * Anyone interested in India's intangible cultural heritage.

Dataset Name Suggestions

• Regional Indian Superstitions and Beliefs
• Cultural Fabric of India: Regional Beliefs
• India's Folk Beliefs Dataset
• Indian Cultural Heritage Data
• Superstitions Across Indian States

Attributes

Original Data Source: Regional Indian Superstitions & Beliefs

The catalog contains data related to Non-Workers by Main Activity, Age, Sex and Religion, Census 2001 - India and States. It includes data on Non-worker, Main Activity, Household Duty, Dependent, Pensioner, Beggar, Vagrant.

With almost all major religions being practiced throughout the country, India is known for its religious diversity. Islam makes up the highest share among minority faiths in the country. According to the Indian census of 2011, the Muslim population in Uttar Pradesh more than ** million, making it the state with the most Muslims.

Socio-economic conditions of Muslims
Muslims seem to lag behind every other religious community in India in terms of living standards, financial stability, education and other aspects, thereby showing poor performance in most of the fields. According to a national survey, 17 percent of the Muslims were categorized under the lowest wealth index, which indicates poor socio-economic conditions.

Growth of Muslim population in India
Islam is one of the fastest-growing religions worldwide. According to India’s census, the Muslim population has witnessed a negative decadal growth of more than ** percent from 1951 to 1960, presumably due to the partitions forming Pakistan and Bangladesh. The population showed a positive and steady growth since 1961, making up ** percent of the total population of India . Even though people following Islam were estimated to grow significantly, they would still remain a minority in India compared to *** billion Hindus by 2050.

Census: Population: by Religion: Sikh: Andaman and Nicobar Islands: Male data was reported at 701.000 Person in 03-01-2011. This records a decrease from the previous number of 873.000 Person for 03-01-2001. Census: Population: by Religion: Sikh: Andaman and Nicobar Islands: Male data is updated decadal, averaging 787.000 Person from Mar 2001 (Median) to 03-01-2011, with 2 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 873.000 Person in 03-01-2001 and a record low of 701.000 Person in 03-01-2011. Census: Population: by Religion: Sikh: Andaman and Nicobar Islands: Male data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. The data is categorized under India Premium Database’s Demographic – Table IN.GAE005: Census: Population: by Religion: Sikh.