Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10.3 4.3bsd-beta 6/6/85; site gumby.UUCP
Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!bellcore!decvax!genrad!panda!talcott!harvard!uwvax!gumby!g-rengar
From: g-rengar@gumby.UUCP (T.K.Rengarajan)
Newsgroups: net.nlang.india
Subject: Some basic questions!
Message-ID: <75@gumby.UUCP>
Date: Sun, 2-Mar-86 15:47:58 EST
Article-I.D.: gumby.75
Posted: Sun Mar  2 15:47:58 1986
Date-Received: Tue, 4-Mar-86 02:24:50 EST
Organization: U of Wisconsin CS Dept
Lines: 54
Keywords: Indian Statistics

=======================================================================

    We had a slideshow and a discussion on March 1,86 here in Madison,
sponsored by the UW-Madison India Students' Association.  The slide
show was presented by Mr.Vince Rivers, an American artist who has stayed
in Benaras for quite a while(on the order of a year) on a program
sponsored by UW-Madison.

    The discussion topics included the portrayal of India by American
Media, the response of the people of Benaras to a Hindi-speaking white
American and the problems of American women students on the UWM program
there.

    Throughout the discussion, I had this nagging feeling that I couldn't
say anything in *GENERAL* about Indians.  I seem to lack the global picture 
of India.  That leads me to the following troublesome questions.  I'd 
appreciate if someone can clarify the issues.

    - Is there a description of a TYPICAL Indian?

    - Or, can one atleast say *SOMETHING* about an average Indian?

    - If so, how does one substantiate such a description of the
      traits of the average Indian?  Statistics?

    - If not, can one atleast describe a typical person from the different
      regions of India?

    - Talking of statistics, what percentage of Indians are vegetarian?
      What percentage of the Hindus are vegetarian?

    - Can such information only be estimated very roughly in India?

    - What are the error margins on such statistics? (I have never seen
      error margins specified on statistics on India)

    - How infomative is a value for the per capita income of India?

    - Can I get a frequency distribution of people in the poor-rich
      scale from some official source?

    As you can see, I have just too many questions and too few answers.
All these quetions in my opinion are important for a better understanding
of India.

T.K.Rengarajan

Aliases : Ranga, TK, TKR
ARPA    : g-rengar@gumby.wisc.edu
UUCP    : uwvax!gumby!g-rengar
USPostal: 215 N.Frances St, #701,
          Madison, WI-53703.
Phone   : (608) 257-0765 (Home)
=======================================================================