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North India
North India is a loosely defined region in the northern part of India. The exact meaning of the term varies by usage. The dominant geographical features of North India are the Indo-Gangetic Plain and the Himalayas, which demarcate the region from Tibet and Central Asia. North India has been the historical center of the Maurya, Gupta, Maratha, Mughal and British Indian Empires. It has a diverse culture, and includes the Hindu pilgrimage centers of Char Dham, Haridwar and Varanasi, the Buddhist Mahabodhi Temple and the Muslim pilgrimage destination of Ajmer, as well as world heritage sites such as the Valley of flowers, Khajuraho, Bhimbetka Caves, Qutb Minar and the Taj Mahal. [edit] Definitions
Different authorities and sources in literature define North India differently.

Government of India definition
The Government of India defines the North India Cultural Zone as including the states of Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab, as well as the Union Territory of Chandigarh. There is a neighboring region, called the North Central India Cultural Zone, including the states of Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Haryana, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh, that is also defined by the Union Government of India. The states of Bihar and Jharkhand are also included in the East India Cultural Zone,] and some publications of the Government of Bihar place that state in the eastern part of India as well. Similarly, Rajasthan is also included in the West India Cultural Zone,[5] and the states of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh are also included in the South Central India Cultural Zone.

Linguistic definition. Indo-Aryan languages predominate in North India. This includes the so-called Hindi Heartland, where Hindi and related languages predominate. Prior to the Partition of India, this also included the Pakistani provinces of Sindhand Punjab, and the eastern portion of the North West Frontier Province up to Peshawar valley where Punjabi dialects and Hindko are spoken.[7] This effectively excludes several of the seven North-East states (except for Assam and Sikkim.
 
"North of the Vindhyas"
One traditional, and now obsolete, demarcation between Northern and Southern India is the Vindhya mountain range, which has sometimes formed a border during periods of imperial expansion in India, such as the one ruled by the Gupta emperor Samudragupta.[10] The Vindhyas also find mention in the narrative of Rishi Agastya as a dividing feature between North and South India.[11] The Manusmṛti also describes the southern limit of Aryavarta (a classical, and also now obsolete, term for parts of North India) as being defined by the Vindhya range.
Muslim, Central Asian and Persian impacts as defining influences
Several sources consider sizable Muslim populations and deep-seated Islamic, Central Asian and Persian influences to be defining characteristics of North Indian culture, both linguistically and culturally.[13][14] Some of these influences are pre-Islamic, such as the Bactrian-originated Kushan Empire that maintained twin capitals in Mathura (now in Uttar Pradesh) and Peshawar (in the North West Frontier Province), as well as the Hun confederacies that periodically asserted their rule over large parts of North India.
   
North India has extremely diverse climates.
North India lies mainly on continental India, north of peninsular India. Towards its North are the Himalayas which define the boundary between the Indian subcontinent and the Tibetan plateau. To its west is the Thar desert, shared between North India and Pakistan and the Aravalli Range, beyond which lies the state of Gujarat. The Vindhya mountains are, in some interpretations, taken to be the southern boundary of North India. The predominant geographical features of North India are the Indo-Gangetic plain which spans the states of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and West Bengal, the Himalayas which lie in the states of Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir and the Thar desert which lies mainly in the state of Rajasthan. The state of Madhya Pradesh has large areas under forest cover, as do Himachal Pradesh, 

Uttarakhand and Chattisgarh.
The Thar desert near Jaisalmer, Rajasthan
North India lies mainly in the north Temperate zone of the earth. Though cool or cold winters, hot summers and moderate monsoons are the general pattern, North India is one of the most climatically diverse regions on Earth. Extreme temperatures have ranged from −45 C (−49 F) in Dras, Jammu and Kashmir[25] to 50.6 C (123 F) in Alwar, Rajasthan. Dras is the second coldest inhabited place on the planet

Flora & Fauna
  Chinkara in Madhya Pradesh, India
Further information: Wildlife of India
North Indian vegetation is predominantly deciduous and coniferous. Of the deciduous trees, sal, teak, walnut, sheesham (Indian rosewood) and poplar are some which are important commercially.The Western Himalayan region abounds in chir, pine, deodar (Himalayan cedar), blue pine, spruce, various firs, birch and junipers.The birch, especially, has historical significance in Indian culture due to the extensive use of birch paper (Sanskrit: bhurja patra) as parchment for many ancient Indian texts. The Eastern Himalayan region consists of oaks, laurels, maples, rhododendrons, alder, birch and dwarf willows. Reflecting the diverse climatic zones and terrain contained in the region, the floral variety is extensive and ranges from Alpine to temperate thorn, coniferous to evergreen, and thick tropical jungles to cool temperate woods.
There are around 500 varieties of mammals, 2000 species of birds, 30,000 types of insects and a wide variety of fish, amphibians and reptiles in the country. Animal species in North India include Elephant, Tiger, Leopard, Snow Leopard, Sambar (Asiatic stag), Chital (Spotted deer), Hangul (Red deer), Hog Deer, Chinkara (Indian Gazelle), Blackbuck, Nilgai (blue bull antelope), Porcupine, Wild Boar, Indian Fox, Tibetan Sand Fox, Rhesus Monkey, Langur, Jungle Cat, Hyena, Jackal, Black Bear, Himalayan Brown Bear, Sloth Bear, and the highly endangered Caracal. A large number of snake species, lizards, ghariyal and crocodiles account for the reptile count. Snakes include the deadly King cobras to the equally poisonous Kraits. Various scorpion, spider and species of insects, includings the commercially useful honeybees, silkworms and Lac insects. The birds of North India includes the peacock to the parrots, and thousands of immigrant birds, such as the Siberian Crane. Common Indian birds are Pheasants, Geese Ducks, Mynahs, Parakeets, Pigeons, Cranes, and Hornbills. Great pied hornbill, Pallas's fishing eagle, Grey-headed fishing eagle, Red-thighed Falconet are some of the endangered birds found in Himalyan region. Other birds found in this region are Tawny Fish Owl, Great Hornbill, Scaly-bellied Woodpecker, Red-breasted Parakeet, Himalayan Swiftlet, Stork-billed Kingfisher and Himalayan Rubythroat. 

Places of interest
The largest Hindu temple in India, Akshardham Temple, and the largest mosque, Jama Masjid, are both located in this region. 
Political parties from North India
If Uttar Pradesh and Bihar states are considered to be in North India, the region plays an important role in the formation of the central government in India due to the large number of seats associated with the region in the lower house of parliament. The major political parties are Indian National Congress, Bharatiya Janata Party, Janata Dal, Bahujan Samaj Party, Samajwadi Party and the Shiromani Akali Dal. The Nehru-Gandhi family which has governed India for last few decades after Independence from British rule hails from Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh. Many Indian Prime Ministers have been North Indians including the first Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, Lal Bahadur Shastri, Gulzarilal Nanda, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, V P Singh, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Chandra Shekhar, I K Gujral and Dr Manmohan Singh. 
Universities in North India
North India has several universities and centres of excellence such as the University of Kashmir, Haryana Agricultural University, Guru Jambheshwar University of Science & Technology, Agra University, Aligarh Muslim University, University of Rajasthan, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Allahabad University, Benaras Hindu University, Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Delhi University, Govind Ballabh Pant University of Agriculture & Technology, Jawaharlal Nehru University, Kanpur University, Noida University, University of Lucknow, Kurukshetra University, Punjab University and many more. The world renowned Indian Institute of Technology and Indian Institute of Management, have campuses in several cities of North India such as Delhi, Kanpur, Varanasi Lucknow, Indore, and Ahmedabad. One of the first great universities in recorded history, the Nalanda University, is located in the state of Bihar. There has been various plans for revival of this ancient university, including an effort by a multinational consortium led by Singapore, China, India and Japan.