Buddhist Population in India
According to the 2011 census, there were 8.5 million or 85 lakh Buddhists in India, making up 0.70% of the population. The states with the largest Buddhist populations were Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, and the North-Eastern states. Sikkim (27.39%), Arunachal Pradesh (11.77%), and Mizoram (8.5%) had the highest percentages of Buddhist populations. It is projected that by 2024, the number of Buddhists in India will reach close to 10 million or 1 crore.
Buddhist Population by State and 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 |
also read about Top Countries by the Buddhist population