India's national capital territory, formally known as the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory that includes New Delhi, the country's capital. As a result of its location on the Yamuna river's western or right bank, Delhi shares boundaries with the state of Uttar Pradesh in the east and with the state of Haryana in the remaining directions. Delhi is the capital of India. The National Capital Territory (NCT) has a land size of 1,484 square kilometres (573 sq mi). According to the 2011 census, Delhi's city proper had a population of over 11 million people, while the population of the National Capital Territory (NCT) was over 16.8 million. In the National Capital Region (NCR), which includes the satellite cities of Ghaziabad, Faridabad, Gurgaon, and Noida, Delhi's urban agglomeration has an estimated population of more than 28 million people, making it the biggest metropolitan region in India and the second-largest in the world (after Tokyo).
The topography of the middle ages fort Purana Qila on the river bank Yamuna coincides to the literary description of the citadel Indraprastha in the Sanskrit epic Mahabharata; however, archaeological excavations in the area have revealed no evidence of an ancient built environment dating back thousands of years. From the early 13th century until the mid-19th century, Delhi served as the capital of two significant empires: the Delhi sultanate and the Mughal Empire, both of which ruled over considerable areas of South Asia during that period. The Qutub Minar, Humayun's Tomb, and the Red Fort, which are all UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the city, were all built during this time period. Delhi was the birthplace of Sufism and Qawwali music, and it continues to be so today. There are many important names affiliated with it, including Nizamuddin Auliya and Amir Khusrau. The Khariboli dialect of Delhi was part of a linguistic process that resulted in the formation of Urdu literature and, later, the development of Modern Standard Hindi literature. Mir Taqi Mir and Mirza Ghalib are two of the most important Urdu poets to emerge from Delhi. The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was centred on Delhi, which was a main focal point of the rebellion. The capital of the British Indian Empire was established in 1911 at New Delhi, a southern section of the city of Delhi. Delhi was changed from a Mughal metropolis to a Punjabi city after the Partition of India in 1947, losing two-thirds of its Muslim citizens as a result of pressure brought to bear by Hindu refugees from western Punjab who had arrived in the city. Following India's independence in 1947, New Delhi continued to serve as the country's capital, first as the Dominion of India, then as the Republic of India in 1950.
Delhi, India's second-wealthiest city (after Mumbai), is home to 18 billionaires and 23,000 millionaires, making it the second-richest city in the world. In terms of human development index, Delhi is ranked fifth among the Indian states and union territories. Delhi has the second-highest GDP per capita in India, behind only Bengaluru (after Goa). Despite its status as a union territory, the political administration of the National Capital Territory of Delhi today is more like to that of a state of India, with its own legislature, high court, and executive council of ministers led by a Chief Minister, among other things. New Delhi is jointly governed by the federal government of India and the municipal administration of Delhi, and it acts as both the capital of the country and the administrative centre of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT of Delhi). Delhi is also the administrative centre of the National Capital Region, which was established in 1985 as a "interstate regional planning" area. Delhi served as the host city for the first Asian Games in 1951, the second Asian Games in 1982, the first NAM Summit in 1983, the 2010 Men's Hockey World Championship, the Commonwealth Games in 2010, the 2012 BRICS Summit, and was one of the leading host cities for the 2011 Icc World Cup.