The republic of India (population estimated to be between 1,049,549,000 (WHO) and 1,080,264,388 (CIA)) is located in Southern Asia, bordering the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal, between Burma and Pakistan and covers an area of around 3,287,590 square kilometres. It is bordered by Bangladesh, Bhutan, Burma, China, Nepal and Pakistan.

New Delhi is the capital of India,  which consists of 28 states and 7 union territories(marked with*): Andaman and Nicobar Islands*, Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chandigarh*, Chhattisgarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli*, Daman and Diu*, Delhi*, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Lakshadweep*, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Orissa, Pondicherry*, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Uttaranchal, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal.

According to the United Nations human development index (HDI) India is ranked 127/177 countries worldwide (value 0.602). This places India in the group of countries with medium human development .¹

It is estimated that one million new cases of cancer occur each year in India, with over 80% presenting at stage III and IV. ² Experience from cancer centres confirms that two-thirds of patients with cancer are incurable at presentation and need palliative care^3-5 and approximately one million people are experiencing cancer pain every year.⁶  It is difficult to assess the exact requirement for palliative care because of inadequate disease registration, communication problems and the cultural stigma attached to cancer and HIV/AIDS.