Question

Arrange the following religious groups in decreasing order of their population in India:
A. Jains
B. Christians
C. Buddhists
D. Sikhs
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:

• A. A, B, C, D
• B. A, D, B, C
• C. B, D, C, A
• D. C, B, D, A

Hint:

Remember religious population rank in India (Census 2011):
Hindus ($79.8\%$) $>$ Muslims ($14.2\%$) $>$ Christians ($2.3\%$) $>$ Sikhs ($1.7\%$) $>$ Buddhists ($0.7\%$) $>$ Jains ($0.4\%$).

Answer 1

The Correct Option is C

Concept:
Religious composition forms a vital element of the socio-cultural fabric of India's population geography.
Data gathered by the decennial Census of India enumerates six major religious communities: Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, and Jains, alongside other religions and persuasions.
To arrange the religious groups in decreasing order, one must compare their respective demographic shares as recorded in the official Census 2011 figures.

Step 1: Census 2011 Religious Demographic Figures:
The demographic distribution of religious communities in India is as follows:
- Hindus: $79.8\%$ of total population ($966.3\text{ million}$).
- Muslims: $14.2\%$ of total population ($172.2\text{ million}$).
- Christians (B): $2.3\%$ of total population ($27.8\text{ million}$).
- Sikhs (D): $1.7\%$ of total population ($20.8\text{ million}$).
- Buddhists (C): $0.7\%$ of total population ($8.4\text{ million}$).
- Jains (A): $0.37\%$ of total population ($4.5\text{ million}$).

Step 2: Ranking in Decreasing Order:
Arranging the given four minority religious communities from largest to smallest population:
\[ \text{Christians } (2.3\%) > \text{Sikhs } (1.7\%) > \text{Buddhists } (0.7\%) > \text{Jains } (0.37\%) \] This matches the exact sequence: B, D, C, A.
Final Answer:
Hence, the correct decreasing order of population is B, D, C, A.