Buddhist Population in India 2022
Buddhist Population in India 2022
At the census of 2011, 8.5 million or 85 Lakh (0.70%) are Buddhists in India. Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, and North-East states have large Buddhist populations. Sikkim (27.39%), Arunachal Pradesh (11.77%), and Mizoram (8.5 %) have emerged as the top three states in terms of having the maximum percentage of Buddhist population.
In 2022 close to 10 million or 96 lakh are followers of Buddhism in India.
Source: Census 2011
Buddhist Population by State & UTs
Maharastra is a top state with a Buddhist population. Sikkim (27.39%), Arunachal Pradesh (11.77%), and Mizoram (8.5 %) have emerged as the top three states in terms of having the maximum percentage of Buddhist population. Let’s look at the Buddist population by States & Union Territories.
| # | State | Total Population | Buddhist Population | % of Total |
| 1 | Sikkim | 610,577 | 167,216 | 27.39% |
| 2 | Arunachal Pradesh | 1,383,727 | 162,815 | 11.77% |
| 3 | Mizoram | 1,097,206 | 93,411 | 8.51% |
| 4 | Maharashtra | 112,374,333 | 6,531,200 | 5.81% |
| 5 | Tripura | 3,673,917 | 125,385 | 3.41% |
| 6 | Himachal Pradesh | 6,864,602 | 78,659 | 1.15% |
| 7 | Jammu and Kashmir | 12,541,302 | 112,584 | 0.90% |
| 8 | Nagaland | 1,978,502 | 6,759 | 0.34% |
| 9 | Meghalaya | 2,966,889 | 9,864 | 0.33% |
| 10 | West Bengal | 91,276,115 | 282,898 | 0.31% |
| 11 | Madhya Pradesh | 72,626,809 | 216,052 | 0.30% |
| 12 | Chhattisgarh | 25,545,198 | 70,467 | 0.28% |
| 13 | Manipur | 2,855,794 | 7,084 | 0.25% |
| 14 | Dadra and Nagar Haveli | 343,709 | 634 | 0.18% |
| 15 | Assam | 31,205,576 | 54,993 | 0.18% |
| 16 | Karnataka | 61,095,297 | 95,710 | 0.16% |
| 17 | Uttarakhand | 10,086,292 | 14,926 | 0.15% |
| 18 | Punjab | 27,743,338 | 33,237 | 0.12% |
| 19 | Chandigarh | 1,055,450 | 1,160 | 0.11% |
| 20 | Delhi | 16,787,941 | 18,449 | 0.11% |
| 21 | Uttar Pradesh | 199,812,341 | 206,285 | 0.10% |
| 22 | Daman and Diu | 243,247 | 217 | 0.09% |
| 23 | Andaman and Nicobar Islands | 380,581 | 338 | 0.09% |
| 24 | Goa | 1,458,545 | 1,095 | 0.08% |
| 25 | Gujarat | 60,439,692 | 30,483 | 0.05% |
| 26 | Puducherry | 1,247,953 | 451 | 0.04% |
| 27 | Andhra Pradesh | 84,580,777 | 36,692 | 0.04% |
| 28 | Haryana | 25,351,462 | 7,514 | 0.03% |
| 29 | Jharkhand | 32,988,134 | 8,956 | 0.03% |
| 30 | Orissa | 41,974,218 | 13,852 | 0.03% |
| 31 | Rajasthan | 68,548,437 | 12,185 | 0.02% |
| 32 | Tamil Nadu | 72,147,030 | 11,186 | 0.02% |
| 33 | Bihar | 104,099,452 | 25,453 | 0.02% |
| 34 | Lakshadweep | 64,473 | 10 | 0.02% |
| 35 | Kerala | 33,406,061 | 4,752 | 0.01% |
Source: Census 2011
Top States with Buddhist Population
The largest concentration of Buddhism is in Maharashtra (6.5 million or 65 lakh), where (73.4%) of the total Buddhists in India reside followed by West Bengal (3 lakh) & Madhya Pradesh (2.16 Lakh).
Top 10 States with Buddhist Population
| # | State | Buddhist Population |
| 1 | Maharashtra | 6,531,200 |
| 2 | West Bengal | 282,898 |
| 3 | Madhya Pradesh | 216,052 |
| 4 | Uttar Pradesh | 206,285 |
| 5 | Sikkim | 167,216 |
| 6 | Arunachal Pradesh | 162,815 |
| 7 | Tripura | 125,385 |
| 8 | Jammu and Kashmir | 112,584 |
| 9 | Karnataka | 95,710 |
| 10 | Mizoram | 93,411 |
| 11 | Himachal Pradesh | 78,659 |
Source: Census 2011