India

Oriane Blondel Jannice Pettersson Kirsten van der Sluijs

Agenda General information Culture and customs Do´s and dont´s Travel tips Doing business in India Discussion

7th largest country in the world Capital : New Delhi Total landmass of 3,287,590 sq km Located in South Asia Neighbours: Pakistan, China, Bangladesh, Burma, Nepal and Bhutan Geography

Multiplicity of climates and terrains - snow-peaked Himalayas in the north - desert in the west - thick rain forests in the north-east - flat green pastures in the Gangetic planes - plateaus in south and central India Climate

Population and ethnic composition Population more than 1 billion Religion all major world religions and ethnic strains 82% of Indians are Hindu 12% Muslims 3% Christians 2% Sikhs Other big religious groups Buddhists, Jains and Parsis

Institutional system Federal system with 28 states based on a linguage selection and 7 territories created for political or historical matters Its the largest democracy in the world inspired by the British model

Language 18 constitutionally recognized major languages Around 1,600 other languages and dialects English is the co-official language

Economic situation Indian growth rate is about 5,7% for the past ten years and between : 7,8% India suffers from infrastructural disabilities A rate of 9% of growth is necessary in order to reduce poverty India is the 127 place in the 175 country of IDH

Indian culture and customs Indian treat guests as they were gods, or from there own family Elders and the respect for elders is a major component in Indian culture. An individual takes blessings from his elders by touching their feet Helpful nature

Indian culture and customs (2) How to great each other in India To greet a friend or another Indian, you join your hands (palms together), bow down in front of the other person, and say: Namaste (feminin:Namaskar) or Pranam

Eating and hospitality When refreshments are offered, it is customary to refuse the first offer, but to accept the second or third Under no circumstances should you eat with your left hand in India, the left hand is considred unclean Never offer any other person food from your plate in India, this is unacceptable Never thank your host after a meal Although Indians are vegetarians, most people eat lamb, chicken, and fish

The Cast system Definition The hereditary, endogamous social classes or subclasses of traditional Hindu society, stratified according to Hindu ritual purity.

The Cast system (2) Four generic casts ( the Varna’s) - Brahmanes (priests) - Kshatriya (warrios) - Vaishya (salesmen) - Shudra (servants) Besides the Hindous who belong to a cast, there are people who are the ´untouchables´ or being ´off casts´

Do´s and dont´s Wear your clothes properly and respect local tradition Never enter a religious place with your shoes on Make sure you have all the permissions needed for taking photo’s

Do’s and dont’s (2) Never make eyecontact with a professional begger, or you will have a hard case to be left alone Try do bargain as much as possible, you will get ripped or any way Whistling in public is unacceptable Never point your feet at another person as feet are considered unclean

Transportation Transportation in India is a big hustle. Don’t ever expect the train being on time It is very busy during department time and many reports of robbery during this hour Travel tips in India

Travel tips in India (2) You are not allowed to bring local currency in or out of the country Change your money in large amounts and prepare your patience for a challenge Tipping is not a common habit execpt in really fancy places Baksheesh  You pay to get things done

Doing business Deal-focused vs. relationship focused Informal vs. formal cultures Rigid time vs. fluid time cultures Expressive vs. reserved cultures

Relationship Focused Indirect approach of via a third party Relationship focused No contract but trust Indirect use of language, avoid saying no

Formal culture Status Boss vs. employee Using titles

Fluid time culture Punctuality Scheduling of an appointment Polychronic culture

Reserved Culture Distance Gestures Eye contact Attitude

Discussion