Assam (; ) is a state in
northeastern India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...
, south of the eastern
Himalayas
The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 10 ...
along the
Brahmaputra
The Brahmaputra is a trans-boundary river which flows through Tibet, northeast India, and Bangladesh. It is also known as the Yarlung Tsangpo in Tibetan, the Siang/Dihang River in Arunachali, Luit in Assamese, and Jamuna River in Bangla. It ...
and
Barak River
The Barak River flows through the states of Manipur, Nagaland, Mizoram and Assam in India. Further it enters Bangladesh where it bifurcates into the Surma river and the Kushiyara river which converges again to become the Meghna river before f ...
valleys. Assam covers an area of . The state is bordered by
Bhutan
Bhutan (; dz, འབྲུག་ཡུལ་, Druk Yul ), officially the Kingdom of Bhutan,), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is situated in the Eastern Himalayas, between China in the north and India in the south. A mountainou ...
and
Arunachal Pradesh
Arunachal Pradesh (, ) is a state in Northeastern India. It was formed from the erstwhile North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA) region, and became a state on 20 February 1987. It borders the states of Assam and Nagaland to the south. It shares ...
to the north;
Nagaland
Nagaland () is a landlocked state in the northeastern region of India. It is bordered by the Indian states of Arunachal Pradesh to the north, Assam to the west, Manipur to the south and the Sagaing Region of Myanmar to the east. Its capital cit ...
and
Manipur
Manipur () ( mni, Kangleipak) is a state in Northeast India, with the city of Imphal as its capital. It is bounded by the Indian states of Nagaland to the north, Mizoram to the south and Assam to the west. It also borders two regions of ...
to the east;
Meghalaya
Meghalaya (, or , meaning "abode of clouds"; from Sanskrit , "cloud" + , "abode") is a state in northeastern India. Meghalaya was formed on 21 January 1972 by carving out two districts from the state of Assam: (a) the United Khasi Hills and J ...
,
Tripura
Tripura (, Bengali: ) is a state in Northeast India. The third-smallest state in the country, it covers ; and the seventh-least populous state with a population of 36.71 lakh ( 3.67 million). It is bordered by Assam and Mizoram to the ea ...
,
Mizoram
Mizoram () is a state in Northeast India, with Aizawl as its seat of government and capital city. The name of the state is derived from "Mizo", the self-described name of the native inhabitants, and "Ram", which in the Mizo language means "lan ...
and
Bangladesh
Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mo ...
to the south; and
West Bengal
West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fou ...
to the west via the
Siliguri Corridor
The Siliguri Corridor, also known as the Chicken's Neck, is a stretch of land around the city of Siliguri in West Bengal, India. at the narrowest section, this geo-political and geo-economical corridor connects the eight states of northeast I ...
, a wide strip of land that connects the state to the rest of India.
Assamese and
Boro __NOTOC__
Boro may refer to:
People
* Boro people, indigenous peoples of Amazonas, Brazil
* A variant spelling for the Bodo people of northeast India
* Charan Boro, Indian politician
* Isaac Adaka Boro, a celebrated Niger Delta nationalist and Nig ...
are the official languages of Assam, while
Bengali
Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to:
*something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia
* Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region
* Bengali language, the language they speak
** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
is an additional official language in the
Barak Valley
The Barak Valley is located in the southern region of the Indian state of Assam. The region is named after the Barak river. The Barak valley consists of three administrative districts of Assam - namely Cachar, Karimganj, and Hailakandi. The ...
.
Assam is known for
Assam tea
Assam tea is a black tea named after the region of its production, Assam, India. It is manufactured specifically from the plant ''Camellia sinensis'' var. ''assamica'' (Masters). The Assam tea plant is indigenous to Assam—initial efforts to plan ...
and
Assam silk
Assam silk denotes the three major types of indigenous wild silks produced in Assam—golden muga, white pat and warm eri silk. The Assam silk industry, now centered in Sualkuchi, is a labor-intensive industry.
History
Assam was well known f ...
. The state was the first site for
oil drilling
An oil well is a drillhole boring in Earth that is designed to bring petroleum oil hydrocarbons to the surface. Usually some natural gas is released as associated petroleum gas along with the oil. A well that is designed to produce only gas may ...
in
Asia
Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...
. Assam is home to the one-horned
Indian rhinoceros
}
The Indian rhinoceros (''Rhinoceros unicornis''), also called the Indian rhino, greater one-horned rhinoceros or great Indian rhinoceros, is a rhinoceros species native to the Indian subcontinent. It is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red Li ...
, along with the
wild water buffalo
The wild water buffalo (''Bubalus arnee''), also called Asian buffalo, Asiatic buffalo and wild buffalo, is a large Bovinae, bovine native to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. It has been listed as ''Endangered species, Endangered'' i ...
,
pygmy hog
The pygmy hog (''Porcula salvania'') is the rarest species of pig in the world today, and is the only species in the genus ''Porcula''. It is also the smallest species of pig in the world, with its piglets being small enough to fit in one's pock ...
,
tiger
The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is the largest living Felidae, cat species and a member of the genus ''Panthera''. It is most recognisable for its dark vertical stripes on orange fur with a white underside. An apex predator, it primarily pr ...
and various species of Asiatic birds, and provides one of the last wild habitats for the
Asian elephant
The Asian elephant (''Elephas maximus''), also known as the Asiatic elephant, is the only living species of the genus '' Elephas'' and is distributed throughout the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia, from India in the west, Nepal in t ...
. The
Assamese economy is aided by
wildlife tourism
Wildlife tourism is an element of many nations' travel industry centered around observation and interaction with local animal and plant life in their natural habitats. While it can include eco- and animal-friendly tourism, safari hunting and si ...
to
Kaziranga National Park
Kaziranga National Park is a national park in the Golaghat and Nagaon districts of the state of Assam, India. The park, which hosts two-thirds of the world's great one-horned rhinoceroses, is a World Heritage Site. According to the census h ...
and
Manas National Park
Manas may refer to:
Philosophy and mythology
*Manas, the Pali and Sanskrit term for "mind"; see
**Manas (early Buddhism)
** Manas-vijnana, one of the eight consciousnesses taught in Yogacara Buddhism
*''Ramcharitmanas'', a retelling of the Ramaya ...
, which are
World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...
s.
Dibru-Saikhowa National Park
Dibru-Saikhowa National Park is a national park located in Dibrugarh and Tinsukia districts, Assam, India. It was designated a Biosphere Reserve in July 1997 with an area of , including a core area of and a buffer zone of .
It is located at a ...
is famed for its
feral horses.
Sal tree
''Shorea robusta'', the sal tree, sāla, shala, sakhua, or sarai, is a species of tree in the family Dipterocarpaceae. The tree is native to India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Tibet and across the Himalayan regions .
Evolution
Fossil evidence from lig ...
forests are found in the state which, as a result of abundant rainfall, look green all year round. Assam receives more rainfall than most parts of India; this rain feeds the
Brahmaputra River
The Brahmaputra is a trans-boundary river which flows through Tibet, northeast India, and Bangladesh. It is also known as the Yarlung Tsangpo in Tibetan, the Siang/Dihang River in Arunachali, Luit in Assamese, and Jamuna River in Bangla. I ...
, whose
tributaries
A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drain ...
and
oxbow lake
An oxbow lake is a U-shaped lake or pool that forms when a wide meander of a river is cut off, creating a free-standing body of water. In South Texas, oxbows left by the Rio Grande are called '' resacas''. In Australia, oxbow lakes are call ...
s provide the region with a hydro-
geomorphic
Geomorphology (from Ancient Greek: , ', "earth"; , ', "form"; and , ', "study") is the scientific study of the origin and evolution of topographic and bathymetric features created by physical, chemical or biological processes operating at or ...
environment.
Etymology
The first dated mention of the region comes from ''
Periplus of the Erythraean Sea
The ''Periplus of the Erythraean Sea'' ( grc, Περίπλους τῆς Ἐρυθρᾶς Θαλάσσης, ', modern Greek '), also known by its Latin name as the , is a Greco-Roman periplus written in Koine Greek that describes navigation and ...
'' (1st century) and
Ptolemy
Claudius Ptolemy (; grc-gre, Πτολεμαῖος, ; la, Claudius Ptolemaeus; AD) was a mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist, who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were of importanc ...
's
Geographia
The ''Geography'' ( grc-gre, Γεωγραφικὴ Ὑφήγησις, ''Geōgraphikḕ Hyphḗgēsis'', "Geographical Guidance"), also known by its Latin names as the ' and the ', is a gazetteer, an atlas, and a treatise on cartography, com ...
(2nd century), which calls the region ''Kirrhadia'', apparently after the
Kirata
The Kirāta ( sa, किरात) is a generic term in Sanskrit literature for people who had territory in the mountains, particularly in the Himalayas and Northeast India and who are believed to have been Sino-Tibetan in origin. The meaning o ...
population. In the classical period and up to the 12th century, the region east of the
Karatoya river
Karatoya River (also spelt Korotoa River) is a small stream in Rajshahi Division of Bangladesh.
Etymology
The name of the river is formed of two Sanskrit words ''kar'' (hand) and ''toa'' (water).
Course
The Karatoya, known as Phuljhur rises i ...
, largely congruent to present-day Assam, was called
Kamarupa
Kamarupa (; also called Pragjyotisha or Pragjyotisha-Kamarupa), an early state during the Classical period on the Indian subcontinent, was (along with Davaka) the first historical kingdom of Assam.
Though Kamarupa prevailed from 350 to 11 ...
, and alternatively,
Pragjyotisha
Kamarupa (; also called Pragjyotisha or Pragjyotisha-Kamarupa), an early state during the Classical period on the Indian subcontinent, was (along with Davaka) the first historical kingdom of Assam.
Though Kamarupa prevailed from 350 to 1 ...
. Though a western portion of Assam as a region continued to be called
Kamrup, the
Ahom kingdom that emerged in the east, and which came to dominate the entire
Brahmaputra valley
The Brahmaputra Valley is a region situated between hill ranges of the eastern and northeastern Himalayan range in Eastern India.
The valley consists of the Western Brahmaputra Valley covering the regions of Goalpara and Kamrup; the Central ...
, was called Assam (e.g. Mughals used ''Asham''); and the
British province too was called Assam. Though the precise
etymology of Assam
Though the precise Etymology of Assam, a state in India is unclear—there is general agreement that it is related to the Ahom people."Ahoms also gave Assam and its language their name (''Ahom'' and the modern ''ɒχɒm'' 'Assam' come from an ...
is not clear, the name Assam is associated with the
Ahom people
The Ahom (Pron: ), or Tai-Ahom is an ethnic group from the Indian states of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. The members of this group are admixed descendants of the Tai people who reached the Brahmaputra valley of Assam in 1228 and the local ind ...
, originally called ''Shyam'' (
Shan).
History
Pre-history
Assam and adjoining regions have evidences of human settlement from the beginning of the
Stone Age
The Stone Age was a broad prehistoric period during which stone was widely used to make tools with an edge, a point, or a percussion surface. The period lasted for roughly 3.4 million years, and ended between 4,000 BC and 2,000 BC, with ...
. The hills at the height of 1,500 to 2,000 feet (460–615 m) were popular habitats probably due to availability of exposed dolerite basalt, useful for tool-making.
Ambari
Ambari is a locality in Guwahati, India. Located North West of Guwahati, it is a site for important archaeological excavations related to ancient Assam.
Some important buildings located here like Guwahati Press Club, Asom Gana Parishad Office, ...
site in Guwahati has revealed
Shunga
is a type of Japanese erotic art typically executed as a kind of ukiyo-e, often in woodblock print format. While rare, there are also extant erotic painted handscrolls which predate ukiyo-e. Translated literally, the Japanese word ''shunga' ...
-
Kushana
The Kushan Empire ( grc, Βασιλεία Κοσσανῶν; xbc, Κυϸανο, ; sa, कुषाण वंश; Brahmi: , '; BHS: ; xpr, 𐭊𐭅𐭔𐭍 𐭇𐭔𐭕𐭓, ; zh, 貴霜 ) was a syncretic empire, formed by the Yuezhi, ...
era artefacts including flight of stairs and a water tank which may date from 1st century BCE and may be 2,000 years old. Experts speculate that another significant find at Ambari is
Roman era
In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–509 BC ...
Roman roulette pottery from the 2nd century BCE.
Legend
According to a late text,
Kalika Purana
The Kalika Purana ( sa, Kālikā Purāṇa), also called the Kali Purana, Sati Purana or Kalika Tantra, is one of the eighteen minor Puranas (''Upapurana'') in the Shaktism tradition of Hinduism. The text was likely composed in Assam or Cooch Beh ...
(c. 9th–10th century
CE), the earliest ruler of Assam was Mahiranga Danav of the
Danava dynasty
The Danava dynasty was the first legendary line of rulers in Pragjyotisha, established by Mahiranga Danava. The dynasty was of Kirata origin. These rulers are mentioned in the Kalika Purana but there are no archaeological evidence to support ...
, which was removed by
Naraka
Naraka ( sa, नरक) is the realm of hell in Indian religions. According to some schools of Hinduism, Sikhism, Jainism and Buddhism, ''Naraka'' is a place of torment. The word ''Neraka'' (modification of ''Naraka'') in Indonesian and Mala ...
of
Mithila Mithila may refer to:
Places
* Mithilā, a synonym for the ancient Videha state
** Mithilā (ancient city), the ancient capital city of Videha
* Mithila (region), a cultural region (historical and contemporary), now divided between India and Nepal
...
and established the
Bhauma dynasty
The Bhauma dynasty is the second legendary dynasty of Pragjyotisha, after the Danava dynasty. Narakasura, who is said to have established this dynasty, and his descendants Bhagadatta and Vajradatta are first mentioned in the epics ''Mahabh ...
. The last of these rulers, also Naraka, was slain by
Krishna
Krishna (; sa, कृष्ण ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme god in his own right. He is the god of protection, compassion, tenderness, and love; and is on ...
. Naraka's son
Bhagadatta
Bhagadatta ( sa, भगदत्त) was the son of Narakasura, and the king of Pragjyotisha. Bhagadatta was born from a limb of the asura called Bāṣkala. He was a renowned warrior, and was known to be a great friend of Indra. When Arjuna emba ...
became the king, who (it is mentioned in the Mahabharata) fought for the
Kaurava
''Kaurava'' is a Sanskrit term which refers to descendants of Kuru, a legendary king of India who is the ancestor of many of the characters of the epic ''Mahabharata''. Usually, the term is used for the 100 sons of King Dhritarashtra and his wi ...
s in the
battle of Kurukshetra
The Kurukshetra War ( sa, कुरुक्षेत्र युद्ध ), also called the Mahabharata War, is a war described in the ''Mahabharata ( sa, महाभारत )''. The conflict arose from a dynastic succession struggle be ...
with an army of
kiratas
The Kirāta ( sa, किरात) is a generic term in Sanskrit literature for people who had territory in the mountains, particularly in the Himalayas and Northeast India and who are believed to have been Sino-Tibetan in origin. The meaning o ...
,
chinas
The Chinas, Cīna, or Chīnaḥ (Sanskrit चीनः (''cīna'')) are a people mentioned in ancient Indian literature from the first millennium BC and first millennium AD, such as the ''Mahabharata'', ''Laws of Manu'', and the Puranic literatu ...
and dwellers of the eastern coast. At the same time towards the east in central Assam,
Asura Kingdom
Asura Kingdom (Sonitpura Kingdom) is a mythological kingdom that is mentioned in a multiple of Hindu epics which later came to be associated with modern-day Tezpur in central Assam and Banasura Hill in Kerala. The kingdom was contemporary of Pr ...
was ruled by another line of kings.
Ancient era
Evidence indicates presence of civilization in Assam around 2nd century BCE, a rock cut stupa at
Sri Surya Pahar
Sri Surya Pahar is located about 12 km southeast of Goalpara, about 132 km northwest of Guwahati, is a significant but relatively unknown archaeological site in Assam, India. Goalpara is the nearest city from the site. The site is a h ...
has been dated to 200 BCE contemporary with rock cut
Karle and
Bhaja caves of Maharashtra.
Samudragupta
Samudragupta (Gupta script: ''Sa-mu-dra-gu-pta'', (c. 335–375 CE) was the second emperor of the Gupta Empire of ancient India, and is regarded among the greatest rulers of the dynasty. As a son of the Gupta emperor Chandragupta I and the ...
's 4th-century-CE
Allahabad pillar inscription mentions
Kamarupa
Kamarupa (; also called Pragjyotisha or Pragjyotisha-Kamarupa), an early state during the Classical period on the Indian subcontinent, was (along with Davaka) the first historical kingdom of Assam.
Though Kamarupa prevailed from 350 to 11 ...
and
Davaka
Davaka was a kingdom of ancient Indian subcontinent, located in current central region of Assam state. The references to it comes from the 4th century Allahabad pillar inscription of Samudragupta, where it is mentioned as one of five frontier k ...
(Central Assam) as frontier kingdoms of the
Gupta Empire
The Gupta Empire was an ancient Indian empire which existed from the early 4th century CE to late 6th century CE. At its zenith, from approximately 319 to 467 CE, it covered much of the Indian subcontinent. This period is considered as the Gold ...
. Davaka was later absorbed by Kamarupa, which grew into a large kingdom that spanned from Karatoya river to near present
Sadiya
Sadiya is a town in Tinsukia district, Assam. It was the capital of the Chutia Kingdom and after the downfall of the kingdom it became the seat of the ''Sadiya-khowa-Gohain'' of the Ahom kingdom. Extensive remains of buildings and fortificati ...
and covered the entire Brahmaputra valley,
North Bengal
North Bengal ( bn, উত্তরবঙ্গ/উত্তর বাংলা) is a term used for the north-western part of Bangladesh and northern part of West Bengal. The Bangladesh part denotes the Rajshahi Division and Rangpur Division. G ...
, parts of
Bangladesh
Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mo ...
and, at times
Purnea
Purnia ()(also Romanization, romanized as Purnea) is a city that serves as the administrative headquarters of both Purnia district and Purnia division in the Indian state of Bihar.
Total geographical area of Purnia Urban Agglomeration is ...
and parts of
West Bengal
West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fou ...
. The kingdom was ruled by three dynasties who traced their lineage from a mleccha or Kirata Naraka; the
Varmanas (c. 350–650 CE), the
Mlechchha dynasty (c.655–900 CE) and the
Kamarupa-Palas (c. 900–1100 CE), from their capitals in present-day
Guwahati
Guwahati (, ; formerly rendered Gauhati, ) is the biggest city of the Indian state of Assam and also the largest metropolis in northeastern India. Dispur, the capital of Assam, is in the circuit city region located within Guwahati and is the ...
(
Pragjyotishpura), Tezpur (
Haruppeswara) and
North Gauhati
North Guwahati is northern part of the city of Guwahati and a town area committee in Kamrup Rural district in the Indian state of Assam.This town abounds in historical places and picnic spots. National Highway 27 passes through North Guwahati. ...
(
Durjaya
Durjaya, now North Guwahati, was capital of Kamarupa kingdom under the Pala Dynasty for the period 900 to 1100 C.E. Pala rulers built their capital on the banks of the Brahmaputra and surrounded it with a rampart and a strong palisade, whence the ...
) respectively. All three dynasties claimed descent from
Narakasura
Naraka, also known as Narakasura (), is an asura king in Hindu mythology. In Assamese tradition, he is regarded as the legendary progenitor of all three dynasties of Pragjyotisha-Kamarupa, and the founding ruler of the legendary Bhauma dyna ...
. In the reign of the Varman king,
Bhaskaravarman
Bhaskaravarman () (600–650), the last of the Varman dynasty, was an illustrious king of medieval Kamarupa. After being captured by the Gauda king during the reign of his father, he was able to re-establish the rule of the Varman's. He mad ...
(c. 600–650 CE), the Chinese traveller
Xuanzang
Xuanzang (, ; 602–664), born Chen Hui / Chen Yi (), also known as Hiuen Tsang, was a 7th-century Chinese Buddhist monk, scholar, traveler, and translator. He is known for the epoch-making contributions to Chinese Buddhism, the travelogue of ...
visited the
region
In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), and the interaction of humanity an ...
and recorded his travels. Later, after weakening and disintegration (after the Kamarupa-Palas), the Kamarupa tradition was extended to c. 1255 CE by the Lunar I (c. 1120–1185 CE) and Lunar II (c. 1155–1255 CE) dynasties.
Medieval era
The
Chutia
The Chutia people (Pron: or ''Sutia'') are an ethnic group that are native to Assam and historically associated with the Chutia kingdom. However, after the kingdom was absorbed into the Ahom kingdom in 1523–24, the Chutia population was ...
, a
Bodo-Kachari group by origin, held the regions on both the banks of Brahmaputra with its domain in the area eastwards from
Vishwanath (north bank) and
Buridihing (south bank), in
Upper Assam
Upper Assam is an administrative division of the state of Assam comprising the undivided Lakhimpur and Sivasagar (previously, Sibsagar) districts, of the upper reaches of the Brahmaputra valley. The other divisions are: Lower Assam, North Assam ...
and in the state of
Arunachal Pradesh
Arunachal Pradesh (, ) is a state in Northeastern India. It was formed from the erstwhile North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA) region, and became a state on 20 February 1987. It borders the states of Assam and Nagaland to the south. It shares ...
. It was annexed by the Ahoms in the year 1524. The rivalry between the Chutias and Ahoms for the supremacy of eastern Assam led to a series of conflicts between them from the early 16th century.
The
Dimasa, another
Bodo-Kachari dynasty, (13th century–1854) ruled from
Dikhow River to central and southern Assam and had their capital at
Dimapur. With the expansion of Ahom kingdom, by the early 17th century, the Chutia areas were annexed and since c. 1536 the Kacharis remained only in
Cachar
Cachar district is an administrative district in the state of Assam in India. After independence the undivided Cachar district was split into four districts in Assam: Dima Hasao district (formerly North Cachar Hills), Cachar district alongside ...
and
North Cachar
Dima Hasao district (), earlier called North Cachar Hills district, is an administrative district in the state of Assam, India. As of 2011, it is the least populous district of Assam.
Dima Hasao district is one of the two autonomous hill distr ...
, and more as an Ahom ally than a competing force.
The
Ahoms
The Ahom (Pron: ), or Tai-Ahom is an ethnic group from the Indian states of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. The members of this group are admixed descendants of the Tai people who reached the Brahmaputra valley of Assam in 1228 and the local ind ...
, a
Tai group, ruled
Upper Assam
Upper Assam is an administrative division of the state of Assam comprising the undivided Lakhimpur and Sivasagar (previously, Sibsagar) districts, of the upper reaches of the Brahmaputra valley. The other divisions are: Lower Assam, North Assam ...
. The Ahom built their kingdom and consolidated their power in Eastern Assam with the modern town of
Sibsagar
Sivasagar (Pron: or ) ("the sea of Shiva"), is a city in and headquarters of the Sivasagar district, Assam. Sivasagar is situated about 360 kilometers (224 mi) northeast of Guwahati. It is well known for its Ahom palaces and monuments. Si ...
as their capital. Until the early 16th century, the Ahoms ruled a small kingdom in
Sibsagar district
Sivasagar district (Pron: or ), formerly known as ''Sibsagar'', is one of the 34 districts of Assam state in Northeast India. Sivasagar city is the administrative headquarters of this district. This historic place is also known for its rich bio ...
and suddenly expanded during King
Suhungmung
Suhungmung (), or Dihingia Roja I was one of the most prominent Ahom Kings who ruled at the cusp of Assam's medieval history. His reign broke from the early Ahom rule and established a multi-ethnic polity in his kingdom. Under him the Ahom K ...
's rule taking advantage of weakening rule of Chutia and Dimasa kingdoms. By 1681, the whole track down to the border of the modern district of
Goalpara
Goalpara, Pron: ) is the district headquarters of Goalpara district, Assam, India. It is situated to the west of Guwahati.
Etymology
The name Goalpara is said to have originated from the word "Gwaltippika" meaning Guwali village, or The villa ...
came permanently under their sway. Ahoms ruled for nearly 600 years (1228–1826) with major expansions in the early 16th century at the cost of
Chutia
The Chutia people (Pron: or ''Sutia'') are an ethnic group that are native to Assam and historically associated with the Chutia kingdom. However, after the kingdom was absorbed into the Ahom kingdom in 1523–24, the Chutia population was ...
and
Dimasa Kachari kingdoms. Since the 13th century, the centre of the Ahom polity was upper Assam; the kingdom was gradually extended to the
Karatoya River
Karatoya River (also spelt Korotoa River) is a small stream in Rajshahi Division of Bangladesh.
Etymology
The name of the river is formed of two Sanskrit words ''kar'' (hand) and ''toa'' (water).
Course
The Karatoya, known as Phuljhur rises i ...
in the 17th or 18th century. It was at its zenith during the reign of
Sukhrungphaa
Sukhrungphaa (reigned 1696–1714), or Swargadeo Rudra Singha, was a Tungkhungia ahom king and 30th king of the Ahom kingdom under whom the kingdom reached its zenith of power and glory, he is considered as the most illustrious of the Ah ...
or Swargadeo
Rudra Singha
Sukhrungphaa (reigned 1696–1714), or Swargadeo Rudra Singha, was a Tungkhungia ahom king and 30th king of the Ahom kingdom under whom the kingdom reached its zenith of power and glory, he is considered as the most illustrious of the Ah ...
(c. 1696–1714).
The
Koch
Koch may refer to:
People
* Koch (surname), people with this surname
* Koch dynasty, a dynasty in Assam and Bengal, north east India
* Koch family
* Koch people (or Koche), an ethnic group originally from the ancient Koch kingdom in north east I ...
, another
Bodo-Kachari dynasty, established sovereignty around 1510. The Koch kingdom in
Western Assam
Lower Assam division is one of the 5 administrative divisions of Assam. It was formed in 1874, comprising Undivided Kamrup district of Western Assam, undivided Darrang and Nagoan districts of Central Assam and Khasi & Jaintia hills of Meghalay ...
and present-day
North Bengal
North Bengal ( bn, উত্তরবঙ্গ/উত্তর বাংলা) is a term used for the north-western part of Bangladesh and northern part of West Bengal. The Bangladesh part denotes the Rajshahi Division and Rangpur Division. G ...
was at its zenith in the early reign of
Nara Narayan
Naranarayan (reign 1554–1587) was the last ruler of the undivided Koch dynasty of Kamata Kingdom. He succeeded his father, Biswa Singha. Under him the Koch kingdom reached its cultural and political zenith. Under his rule, and under the m ...
(c. 1540–1587). It split into two in c. 1581, the western part as a
Mughal vassal and the eastern as an Ahom satellite state. Later, in 1682,
Koch Hajo
Koch Hajo (1581-1616) was the kingdom under Raghudev and his son Parikshit Narayan of the Koch dynasty that stretched from Sankosh river in the west to the Bhareli river in the east on the north bank of the Brahmaputra river. It was created by ...
was entirely annexed by the Ahoms.
Despite numerous invasions, mostly by the Muslim rulers, no western power ruled Assam until the arrival of the British. Though the
Mughals
The Mughal Empire was an early-modern empire that controlled much of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries. Quote: "Although the first two Timurid emperors and many of their noblemen were recent migrants to the subcontinent, the d ...
made seventeen attempts to invade, they were never successful. The most successful invader
Mir Jumla, a governor of
Aurangzeb
Muhi al-Din Muhammad (; – 3 March 1707), commonly known as ( fa, , lit=Ornament of the Throne) and by his regnal title Alamgir ( fa, , translit=ʿĀlamgīr, lit=Conqueror of the World), was the sixth emperor of the Mughal Empire, ruling ...
, briefly occupied
Garhgaon
Gargaon (Pron:/gɑ:ˈgɑ̃ʊ/) is a town in Assam, India and was the capital of the Ahom kingdom for many years. It was built by the Ahom king Suklenmung (Gargoyaan Rojaa) in 1540. It is said that the capital was built at the suggestion of ...
(c. 1662–1663), the then capital, but found it difficult to prevent
guerrilla attacks on his forces, forcing them to leave. The decisive victory of the Assamese led by general
Lachit Borphukan on the Mughals, then under command of
Raja Ram Singha, in the
Battle of Saraighat in 1671 almost ended Mughal ambitions in this region. The Mughals were comprehensively defeated in the
Battle of Itakhuli
The Battle of Itakhuli was fought in 1682 between the Ahom Kingdom and the Mughal Empire. The Ahoms pushed back Mughal control to the west of the Manas river."In the Battle of Itakhuli in September 1682, the Ahom forces chased the defeated Mu ...
and expelled from Lower Assam during the reign of
Gadadhar Singha
Supaatpha also, Gadadhar Singha (reign 1681–1696) established the rule of the Tungkhungia clan of the Ahom kings that ruled the Ahom kingdom till its climactic end. He was the son of Gobar Roja, a descendant of Suhungmung, and who had become ...
in 1682.
Colonial era
![British Indian Empire 1909 Imperial Gazetteer of India](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/36/British_Indian_Empire_1909_Imperial_Gazetteer_of_India.jpg)
The discovery of ''
Camellia sinensis
''Camellia sinensis'' is a species of evergreen shrub or small tree in the flowering plant family Theaceae. Its leaves and leaf buds are used to produce the popular beverage, tea. Common names include tea plant, tea shrub, and tea tree (not t ...
'' in 1834 in Assam was followed by testing in 1836–37 in London. The British allowed companies to rent land from 1839 onwards. Thereafter tea plantations proliferated in Eastern Assam,
where the soil and the climate were most suitable. Problems with the imported Han Chinese labourers from China and hostility from native Assamese resulted in the migration of forced labourers from central and eastern parts of India. After initial trial and error with planting the Chinese and the Assamese-Chinese hybrid varieties, the planters later accepted the local ''
Camellia assamica
''Camellia sinensis'' is a species of evergreen shrub or small tree in the flowering plant family Theaceae. Its leaves and leaf buds are used to produce the popular beverage, tea. Common names include tea plant, tea shrub, and tea tree (not to ...
'' as the most suitable variety for Assam. By the 1850s, the industry started seeing some profits. The industry saw initial growth, when in 1861, investors were allowed to own land in Assam and it saw substantial progress with the invention of new technologies and machinery for preparing processed tea during the 1870s.
Despite the commercial success, tea labourers continued to be exploited, working and living under poor conditions. Fearful of greater government interference, the tea growers formed the
Indian Tea Association
The Indian Tea Association is a trade association of Indian tea producers. The head office is in Kolkata (Calcutta).
History
The Association was founded in 1881 to protect the interests of tea planters in British India
The provinc ...
in 1888 to lobby to retain the status quo. The organisation was successful in this, but even after India's independence, conditions of the labourers have improved very little.
In the later part of the 18th century, religious tensions and atrocities by the nobles led to the
Moamoria rebellion
The Moamoria rebellion (1769–1805) was the 18th century uprising in Ahom kingdom of present-day Assam that began as power struggle between the Moamorias (''Mataks''), the adherents of the Moamara Sattra, and the Ahom kings. This uprising ...
(1769–1805), resulting in tremendous casualties of lives and property. The rebellion was suppressed but the kingdom was severely weakened by the civil war. Political rivalry between Prime Minister Purnananda
Burhagohain Buragohain (Ahom language: ''Chao Phrung Mung'') was the first of the two original counsellors in the Ahom kingdom. He was selected by the Ahom king from members of the Ahom nobility (''Satgharia Ahom''),who vowed not to fight for the position of ...
and Badan Chandra
Borphukan
Borphukan (Ahom language: ''Phu-Kan-Lung'') was one of the five (councillors) in the Ahom kingdom, a position that was created by the Ahom king Prataap Singha. The position included both executive and judicial powers, with jurisdiction of the ...
, the
Ahom Viceroy of Western Assam, led to an invitation to the Burmese by the latter, in turn leading to three successive
Burmese invasions of Assam
Burmese may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to Myanmar, a country in Southeast Asia
* Burmese people
* Burmese language
* Burmese alphabet
* Burmese cuisine
* Burmese culture
Animals
* Burmese cat
* Burmese chicken
* Burmese (horse), ...
. The reigning monarch
Chandrakanta Singha tried to check the Burmese invaders but he was defeated after fierce resistance. And Ahom occupied Assam was captured by the Burmese.
A reign of terror was unleashed by the Burmese on the Assamese people, who fled to neighbouring kingdoms and British-ruled
Bengal
Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...
. The Burmese reached the
East India Company
The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Sou ...
's borders, and the
First Anglo-Burmese War
The First Anglo-Burmese War ( my, ပထမ အင်္ဂလိပ်-မြန်မာ စစ်; ; 5 March 1824 – 24 February 1826), also known as the First Burma War, was the first of three wars fought between the British and Burmes ...
ensued in 1824. The war ended under the
Treaty of Yandabo
The Treaty of Yandabo ( my, ရန္တပိုစာချုပ် ) was the peace treaty that ended the First Anglo-Burmese War. The treaty was signed on 24February 1826, nearly two years after the war formally broke out on 5March 1824, by ...
in 1826, with the Company taking control of Western Assam and installing
Purandar Singha as king of Upper Assam in 1833. The arrangement lasted until 1838 and thereafter the British gradually annexed the entire region. Thereafter the court language and medium of instruction in educational institutions of Assam was made
Bengali
Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to:
*something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia
* Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region
* Bengali language, the language they speak
** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
, instead of Assamese. Starting from 1836 until 1873, this imposition of a foreign tongue created greater unemployment among the
People of Assam
The People of Assam inhabit a multi-ethnic, multi-linguistic and multi-religious society. They speak languages that belong to four main language groups: Tibeto-Burman, Indo-Aryan, Tai-Kadai, and Austroasiatic. The large number of ethnic and ...
and Assamese literature naturally suffered in its growth.
![Kanaklata Udyan, Tezpur](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/86/Kanaklata_Udyan%2C_Tezpur.jpg)
Initially, Assam was made a part of the
Bengal Presidency
The Bengal Presidency, officially the Presidency of Fort William and later Bengal Province, was a subdivision of the British Empire in India. At the height of its territorial jurisdiction, it covered large parts of what is now South Asia an ...
, then in 1906 it was made a part of
Eastern Bengal and Assam
Eastern Bengal and Assam was an administrative subdivision (province) of British India between 1905 and 1912. Headquartered in the city of Dacca, it covered territories in what are now Bangladesh, Northeast India and Northern West Bengal.
Hist ...
province, and in 1912 it was reconstituted into a chief commissioners' province. In 1913, a legislative council and, in 1937, the Assam Legislative Assembly, were formed in Shillong, the erstwhile capital of the region. The British tea planters imported labour from central India adding to the demographic canvas.
The Assam territory was first separated from Bengal in 1874 as the 'North-East Frontier'
non-regulation province
The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...
, also known as the Assam Chief-Commissionership. It was incorporated into the new province of
Eastern Bengal and Assam
Eastern Bengal and Assam was an administrative subdivision (province) of British India between 1905 and 1912. Headquartered in the city of Dacca, it covered territories in what are now Bangladesh, Northeast India and Northern West Bengal.
Hist ...
in 1905 after the partition of Bengal (1905–1911) and re-established in 1912 as
Assam Province
Assam Province was a province of British India, created in 1912 by the partition of the Eastern Bengal and Assam Province.
Its capital was in Shillong.
The Assam territory was first separated from Bengal in 1874 as the 'North-East Frontier' n ...
.
After a few initially unsuccessful attempts to gain independence for Assam during the 1850s, anti-colonial Assamese joined and actively supported the
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British E ...
against the British from the early 20th century, with
Gopinath Bordoloi
Gopinath Bordoloi (6 June 1890 – 5 August 1950) was a politician and Indian independence activist who served as the first Chief Minister of Assam. He was a follower of the Gandhian principle of non-violence as a political tool. Due to his un ...
emerging as the preeminent nationalist leader in the Assam Congress. Bordoloi's major political rival in this time was Sir Saidullah, who was representing the
Muslim League Muslim League may refer to:
Political parties Subcontinent
; British India
*All-India Muslim League, Mohammed Ali Jinah, led the demand for the partition of India resulting in the creation of Pakistan.
**Punjab Muslim League, a branch of the organ ...
, and had the backing of the influential Muslim cleric
Maulana Bhasani
Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani (12 December 1880 – 17 November 1976), often shortened as Maulana Bhashani, was a Bengali politician. His political tenure spanned the British colonial India, Pakistan and Bangladesh periods.
Maulana Bhashani was po ...
.
The ''Assam Postage Circle'' was established by 1873 under the headship of the Deputy Post Master General.
At the turn of the 20th century, British India consisted of eight provinces that were administered either by a governor or a lieutenant-governor. Assam Province was one among the major eight provinces of British India. The table below shows the major original provinces during British India covering the Assam Province under the Administrative Office of the Chief Commissioner.
With the partition of India in 1947, Assam became a constituent state of India. The
Sylhet District
Sylhet ( bn, সিলেট), located in north-east Bangladesh, is the divisional capital and one of the four districts in the Sylhet Division.
History
Sylhet district was established on 3 January 1782, and until 1878 it was part of Bengal Pr ...
of Assam (excluding the Karimganj subdivision) was given up to East Pakistan, which later became Bangladesh.
Modern history
![Assam in 1950s](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f9/Assam_in_1950s.png)
The government of India, which has the unilateral powers to change the borders of a state, divided Assam into several states beginning in 1970 within the borders of what was then Assam. In 1963, the Naga Hills district became the 16th state of India under the name of
Nagaland
Nagaland () is a landlocked state in the northeastern region of India. It is bordered by the Indian states of Arunachal Pradesh to the north, Assam to the west, Manipur to the south and the Sagaing Region of Myanmar to the east. Its capital cit ...
. Part of Tuensang was added to Nagaland. In 1970, in response to the demands of the Khasi, Jaintia and Garo people of the
Meghalaya Plateau, the districts containing the Khasi Hills, Jaintia Hills, and Garo Hills were formed into an autonomous state within Assam; in 1972 this became a separate state under the name of Meghalaya. In 1972, Arunachal Pradesh (the
North East Frontier Agency
The North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA), originally known as the North-East Frontier Tracts (NEFT), was one of the political divisions in British India, and later the Republic of India until 20 January 1972, when it became the Union Territory of ...
) and Mizoram (from the Mizo Hills in the south) were separated from Assam as union territories; both became states in 1986.
Since the restructuring of Assam after independence, communal tensions and violence remain.
Separatist groups began forming along ethnic lines, and demands for autonomy and sovereignty grew, resulting in the fragmentation of Assam. In 1961, the government of Assam passed legislation making use of the
Assamese language
Assamese (), also Asamiya ( ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken mainly in the north-east Indian state of Assam, where it is an official language, and it serves as a '' lingua franca'' of the wider region. The easternmost Indo-Iranian langua ...
compulsory. It was withdrawn later
under pressure from Bengali speaking people in Cachar. In the 1980s the Brahmaputra valley saw a six-year
Assam Agitation
The Assam Movement (also Anti-Foreigners Agitation) (1979–1985) was a popular uprising in Assam, India, that demanded the Government of India to detect, disenfranchise and deport illegal aliens. Led by All Assam Students Union (AASU) and A ...
triggered by the discovery of a sudden rise in registered voters on electoral rolls. It tried to force the government to identify and deport foreigners illegally migrating from neighbouring
Bangladesh
Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mo ...
and to provide constitutional, legislative, administrative and cultural safeguards for the indigenous Assamese majority, which they felt was under threat due to the increase of migration from Bangladesh. The agitation ended after an accord (Assam Accord 1985) between its leaders and the Union Government, which remained unimplemented, causing simmering discontent.
The post 1970s experienced the growth of armed separatist groups such as the
United Liberation Front of Asom
The United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) (Assamese: সংযুক্ত মুক্তি বাহিনী, অসম) is an armed separatist organisation operating in the Northeast Indian state of Assam. It seeks to establish an indep ...
(ULFA)
and the
National Democratic Front of Bodoland
The National Democratic Front of Boroland (NDFB) was an armed separatist outfit which sought to obtain a sovereign Boroland for the Bodo people. It is designated as a terrorist organisation by the Government of India.
NDFB traces its origin t ...
(NDFB). In November 1990, the
Government of India
The Government of India ( ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, ...
deployed the
Indian army
The Indian Army is the Land warfare, land-based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Commander-in-Chief, Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head is the Chief of Arm ...
, after which low-intensity military conflicts and political homicides have been continuing for more than a decade. In recent times, ethnically based militant groups have grown. The
Panchayati Raj
The Panchayat raj is a political system, originating from the Indian subcontinent, found mainly in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Nepal. It is the oldest system of local government in the Indian subcontinent, and historical ment ...
Act has been applied in Assam, after agitation of the communities due to the sluggish rate of development and general apathy of successive state governments towards Indigenous Assamese communities.
Deadly floods hit the state in
2020
2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global social and economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, worldwide lockdowns and the largest economic recession since the Great Depression in t ...
and
2022
File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretariat; The global monkeypo ...
.
Geography
![Assam Valley](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/67/Assam_Valley.JPG)
A significant geographical aspect of Assam is that it contains three of six physiographic divisions of India – The Northern Himalayas (Eastern Hills), The Northern Plains (Brahmaputra plain) and Deccan Plateau (Karbi Anglong). As the Brahmaputra flows in Assam the climate here is cold and there is rainfall most of the month. Geomorphic studies conclude that the Brahmaputra, the life-line of Assam, is an
antecedent river older than the Himalayas, which has
entrenched itself since they started rising. The river with steep
gorges and rapids in Arunachal Pradesh entering Assam, becomes a
braided river
A braided river, or braided channel, consists of a network of river channels separated by small, often temporary, islands called braid bars or, in English usage, ''aits'' or ''eyots''.
Braided streams tend to occur in rivers with high sediment ...
(at times 10 mi/16 km wide) and with tributaries, creates a flood plain (Brahmaputra Valley: 50–60 mi/80–100 km wide, 600 mi/1000 km long).
The hills of
Karbi Anglong
Karbi may refer to:
Places
* Karbi, Armenia
* Karbi Anglong Plateau, an extension of the Indian Plate in Assam, India
* Karbi Anglong district, a district of Assam, north-eastern India
Other uses
* Karbi people, an ethnic group of North-eas ...
,
North Cachar
Dima Hasao district (), earlier called North Cachar Hills district, is an administrative district in the state of Assam, India. As of 2011, it is the least populous district of Assam.
Dima Hasao district is one of the two autonomous hill distr ...
and those in and close to Guwahati (also Khasi-Garo Hills) now eroded and dissected are originally parts of the South Indian Plateau system.
In the south, the
Barak
Barak ( or ; he, בָּרָק; Tiberian Hebrew: '' Bārāq''; ar, البُراق ''al-Burāq'' "lightning") was a ruler of Ancient Israel. As military commander in the biblical Book of Judges, Barak, with Deborah, from the Tribe of Ephrai ...
originating in the Barail Range (Assam-Nagaland border) flows through the
Cachar district
Cachar district is an administrative district in the state of Assam in India. After independence the undivided Cachar district was split into four districts in Assam: Dima Hasao district (formerly North Cachar Hills), Cachar district alongsid ...
with a 25–30 miles (40–50 km) wide valley and enters Bangladesh with the name
Surma River
The Surma River ( bn, সুরমা নদী) is a major river in Bangladesh, part of the Surma-Meghna River System. It starts when the Barak River from northeast India divides at the Bangladesh border into the Surma and the Kushiyara rivers. ...
.
Urban centres include
Guwahati
Guwahati (, ; formerly rendered Gauhati, ) is the biggest city of the Indian state of Assam and also the largest metropolis in northeastern India. Dispur, the capital of Assam, is in the circuit city region located within Guwahati and is the ...
, one of the 100 fastest growing cities in the world. Guwahati is also referred to as the "Gateway to the North-East India".
Silchar
Silchar is a city and the headquarters of the Cachar district of the state of Assam, India. It is located south east of Guwahati. It was founded by Captain Thomas Fisher in 1832 when he shifted the headquarters of Cachar to Janiganj in Silchar. ...
, (in the Barak valley) is the second most populous city in Assam and an important centre of business. Other large cities include
Dibrugarh
Dibrugarh (pron: ˌdɪbru:ˈgɑ:) is an industrial city in Upper Assam with sprawling tea gardens. It is located 435 kms East from the state capital of Dispur. It serves as the headquarters of Dibrugarh district in the state of Assam i ...
, an oil and natural gas industry centre,
Climate
With the
tropical monsoon climate
An area of tropical monsoon climate (occasionally known as a sub-equatorial, tropical wet climate or a tropical monsoon and trade-wind littoral climate) is a tropical climate sub-type that corresponds to the Köppen climate classification category ...
, Assam is temperate (summer max. at 95–100 °F or 35–38 °C and winter min. at 43–46 °F or 6–8 °C) and experiences heavy rainfall and high humidity.
The climate is characterised by heavy monsoon downpours reducing summer temperatures and affecting foggy nights and mornings in winters, frequent during the afternoons. Spring (March–April) and autumn (September–October) are usually pleasant with moderate rainfall and temperature. Assam's agriculture usually depends on the south-west monsoon rains.
Flooding
Every year, flooding from the Brahmaputra and other rivers such as Barak River etc. deluges places in Assam. The water levels of the rivers rise because of rainfall resulting in the rivers overflowing their banks and engulfing nearby areas. Apart from houses and livestock being washed away by flood water, bridges, railway tracks, and roads are also damaged by the calamity, which causes communication breakdown in many places. Fatalities are also caused by the natural disaster in many places of the State.
Fauna
Assam is one of the richest
biodiversity
Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic ('' genetic variability''), species ('' species diversity''), and ecosystem ('' ecosystem diversity'') ...
zones in the world and consists of tropical
rainforest
Rainforests are characterized by a closed and continuous tree canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforest can be classified as tropical rainforest or temperate rainfores ...
s, deciduous forests, riverine
grasslands
A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses ( Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush ( Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur nat ...
,
bamboo
Bamboos are a diverse group of evergreen perennial flowering plants making up the subfamily Bambusoideae of the grass family Poaceae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family. The origin of the word "bamboo" is uncertain, ...
orchards and numerous
wetland
A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (Anoxic waters, anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in t ...
ecosystems; Many are now protected as national parks and reserved forests.
Assam has wildlife sanctuaries, the most prominent of which are two UNESCO
World Heritage Sites
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...
-the
Kaziranga National Park
Kaziranga National Park is a national park in the Golaghat and Nagaon districts of the state of Assam, India. The park, which hosts two-thirds of the world's great one-horned rhinoceroses, is a World Heritage Site. According to the census h ...
, on the bank of the
Brahmaputra River
The Brahmaputra is a trans-boundary river which flows through Tibet, northeast India, and Bangladesh. It is also known as the Yarlung Tsangpo in Tibetan, the Siang/Dihang River in Arunachali, Luit in Assamese, and Jamuna River in Bangla. I ...
, and the
Manas Wildlife Sanctuary
Manas may refer to:
Philosophy and mythology
*Manas, the Pali and Sanskrit term for "mind"; see
**Manas (early Buddhism)
**Manas-vijnana, one of the eight consciousnesses taught in Yogacara Buddhism
*''Ramcharitmanas'', a retelling of the Ramayan ...
, near the border with Bhutan. The Kaziranga is a refuge for the fast-disappearing Indian one-horned rhinoceros. The state is the last refuge for numerous other endangered and threatened species including the
white-winged wood duck
The white-winged duck or white-winged wood duck (''Asarcornis scutulata'') is a large species of duck, formerly placed in the genus ''Cairina'' with the Muscovy duck (''Cairina moschata'') and allied with the dabbling ducks. However, mtDNA cyto ...
or ''deohanh'',
Bengal florican
The Bengal florican (''Houbaropsis bengalensis''), also called the Bengal bustard, is a bustard species native to the Indian subcontinent, Cambodia, and Vietnam. It is listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List because fewer than 1,00 ...
,
black-breasted parrotbill
The black-breasted parrotbill (''Paradoxornis flavirostris'') is a 19 cm long, large, thick-billed parrotbill with black patches on the head-sides and throat. Formerly placed with the typical warblers in the Sylviidae (Jønsson & Fjeldså 2 ...
,
red-headed vulture
The red-headed vulture (''Sarcogyps calvus''), also known as the Asian king vulture, Indian black vulture or Pondicherry vulture, is an Old World vulture mainly found in the Indian subcontinent, with small disjunct populations in some parts of So ...
,
white-rumped vulture,
greater adjutant,
Jerdon's babbler
Jerdon's babbler (''Chrysomma altirostre'') is a passerine bird native to wetlands and grasslands of the Indian sub-continent. It is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List since 1994. It is a member of the genus '' Chrysomma'' of the family ...
,
rufous-necked hornbill,
Bengal tiger
The Bengal tiger is a population of the '' Panthera tigris tigris'' subspecies. It ranks among the biggest wild cats alive today. It is considered to belong to the world's charismatic megafauna.
The tiger is estimated to have been present i ...
,
Asian elephant
The Asian elephant (''Elephas maximus''), also known as the Asiatic elephant, is the only living species of the genus '' Elephas'' and is distributed throughout the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia, from India in the west, Nepal in t ...
,
pygmy hog
The pygmy hog (''Porcula salvania'') is the rarest species of pig in the world today, and is the only species in the genus ''Porcula''. It is also the smallest species of pig in the world, with its piglets being small enough to fit in one's pock ...
,
gaur
The gaur (''Bos gaurus''; ), also known as the Indian bison, is a bovine native to South Asia and Southeast Asia, and has been listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List since 1986. The global population was estimated at a maximum of 21,000 m ...
,
wild water buffalo
The wild water buffalo (''Bubalus arnee''), also called Asian buffalo, Asiatic buffalo and wild buffalo, is a large Bovinae, bovine native to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. It has been listed as ''Endangered species, Endangered'' i ...
,
Indian hog deer,
hoolock gibbon
The hoolock gibbons are three primate species of genus ''Hoolock'' in the gibbon family, Hylobatidae, native to eastern Bangladesh, Northeast India, Myanmar, and Southwest China.
Description
Hoolocks are the second-largest of the gibbons, after ...
,
golden langur
Gee's golden langur (''Trachypithecus geei''), also known as simply the golden langur, is an Old World monkey found in a small region of Western Assam, India and in the neighboring foothills of the Black Mountains of Bhutan. Long considered sac ...
,
capped langur
The capped langur (''Trachypithecus pileatus'') is a species of primate in the family Cercopithecidae. It is native to Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, and Myanmar. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry forests. It is threatened by habitat ...
,
barasingha
The barasingha (''Rucervus duvaucelii''), also known as the swamp deer, is a deer species distributed in the Indian subcontinent. Populations in northern and central India are fragmented, and two isolated populations occur in southwestern Nepal. ...
,
Ganges river dolphin
The Ganges river dolphin (''Platanista gangetica'') is a species of toothed whale classified in the family Platanistidae. It lives in the Ganges and related rivers of South Asia, namely in the countries of India, Nepal, and Bangladesh. It is rel ...
,
Barca snakehead
The Barca snakehead (''Channa barca'') is a rare species of snakehead. It is endemic to the upper Brahmaputra river basin in northeastern India and Bangladesh. Records from Nepal are of doubtful validity. Overall it has been assessed as data d ...
,
Ganges shark
The Ganges shark (''Glyphis gangeticus'') is a critically endangered species of requiem shark found in the Ganges River (Padma River) and the Brahmaputra River of Bangladesh and India. It is often confused with the more common bull shark (''Ca ...
,
Burmese python
The Burmese python (''Python bivittatus'') is one of the largest species of snakes. It is native to a large area of Southeast Asia and is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List. Until 2009, it was considered a subspecies of the Indian pytho ...
,
brahminy river turtle
The brahminy river turtle or crowned river turtle (''Hardella thurjii'') is a species of turtle in the family Geoemydidae. The species is endemic to South Asia.
Taxonomy
The genus ''Hardella'', to which the species ''Hardella thurjii'' belongs, ...
,
black pond turtle
The black pond turtle (''Geoclemys hamiltonii''), also known as the spotted pond turtle or the Indian spotted turtle, is a species of freshwater turtle endemic to South Asia. It belongs to the monotypic genus '' Geoclemys''.
Etymology
The spec ...
,
Asian forest tortoise
The Asian forest tortoise (''Manouria emys''), also known commonly as the Mountain tortoise, is a species of tortoise in the family Testudinidae. The species is endemic to Southeast Asia. It is believed to be among the most primitive of living ...
, and
Assam roofed turtle
The Assam roofed turtle or Sylhet roofed turtle (''Pangshura sylhetensis'') is a turtle species of the family Geoemydidae found in the Brahmaputra-Meghna drainage in India (Assam) and parts of eastern Bangladesh. It was formerly placed in the g ...
. Threatened species that are extinct in Assam include the
gharial
The gharial (''Gavialis gangeticus''), also known as gavial or fish-eating crocodile, is a crocodilian in the family Gavialidae and among the longest of all living crocodilians. Mature females are long, and males . Adult males have a distinct ...
, a critically endangered fish-eating crocodilian, and the
pink-headed duck
The pink-headed duck (''Rhodonessa caryophyllacea'') is a large diving duck that was once found in parts of the Gangetic plains of India, parts of Maharashtra, Bangladesh and in the riverine swamps of Myanmar but feared extinct since the 1950s. ...
(which may be extinct worldwide). For the state bird, the white-winged wood duck, Assam is a globally important area. In addition to the above, there are three other National Parks in Assam namely Dibru Saikhowa National Park, Nameri National Park and the Orang National Park.
Assam has conserved the one-horned
Indian rhinoceros
}
The Indian rhinoceros (''Rhinoceros unicornis''), also called the Indian rhino, greater one-horned rhinoceros or great Indian rhinoceros, is a rhinoceros species native to the Indian subcontinent. It is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red Li ...
from near extinction, along with the
pygmy hog
The pygmy hog (''Porcula salvania'') is the rarest species of pig in the world today, and is the only species in the genus ''Porcula''. It is also the smallest species of pig in the world, with its piglets being small enough to fit in one's pock ...
, tiger and numerous species of birds, and it provides one of the last wild habitats for the
Asian elephant
The Asian elephant (''Elephas maximus''), also known as the Asiatic elephant, is the only living species of the genus '' Elephas'' and is distributed throughout the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia, from India in the west, Nepal in t ...
.
Kaziranga
Kaziranga National Park is a national park in the Golaghat and Nagaon districts of the state of Assam, India. The park, which hosts two-thirds of the world's great one-horned rhinoceroses, is a World Heritage Site. According to the census held i ...
and
Manas are both
World Heritage Sites
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...
. The state contains
Sal tree
''Shorea robusta'', the sal tree, sāla, shala, sakhua, or sarai, is a species of tree in the family Dipterocarpaceae. The tree is native to India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Tibet and across the Himalayan regions .
Evolution
Fossil evidence from lig ...
forests and forest products, much depleted from earlier times. A land of high rainfall, Assam displays greenery. The Brahmaputra River tributaries and
oxbow lake
An oxbow lake is a U-shaped lake or pool that forms when a wide meander of a river is cut off, creating a free-standing body of water. In South Texas, oxbows left by the Rio Grande are called '' resacas''. In Australia, oxbow lakes are call ...
s provide the region with hydro-
geomorphic
Geomorphology (from Ancient Greek: , ', "earth"; , ', "form"; and , ', "study") is the scientific study of the origin and evolution of topographic and bathymetric features created by physical, chemical or biological processes operating at or ...
environment.
The state has the largest population of the
wild water buffalo
The wild water buffalo (''Bubalus arnee''), also called Asian buffalo, Asiatic buffalo and wild buffalo, is a large Bovinae, bovine native to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. It has been listed as ''Endangered species, Endangered'' i ...
in the world.
The state has the highest diversity of birds in India with around 820 species. With subspecies the number is as high as 946.
The mammal diversity in the state is around 190 species.
Flora
Assam is remarkably rich in
Orchid
Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant.
Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of floweri ...
species and the
Foxtail orchid is the state flower of Assam. The recently established Kaziranga National Orchid and Biodiversity Park boasts more than 500 of the estimated 1,314 orchid species found in India.
Geology
Assam has
petroleum
Petroleum, also known as crude oil, or simply oil, is a naturally occurring yellowish-black liquid mixture of mainly hydrocarbons, and is found in geological formations. The name ''petroleum'' covers both naturally occurring unprocessed crud ...
, natural gas, coal,
limestone
Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms w ...
and other minor minerals such as
magnetic quartzite,
kaolin
Kaolinite ( ) is a clay mineral, with the chemical composition Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4. It is an important industrial mineral. It is a layered silicate mineral, with one tetrahedral sheet of silica () linked through oxygen atoms to one octahedra ...
,
sillimanite
Sillimanite is an aluminosilicate mineral with the chemical formula Al2SiO5. Sillimanite is named after the American chemist Benjamin Silliman (1779–1864). It was first described in 1824 for an occurrence in Chester, Connecticut.
Occurrence ...
s,
clay
Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4).
Clays develop plasticity when wet, due to a molecular film of water surrounding the clay pa ...
and
feldspar
Feldspars are a group of rock-forming aluminium tectosilicate minerals, also containing other cations such as sodium, calcium, potassium, or barium. The most common members of the feldspar group are the ''plagioclase'' (sodium-calcium) felds ...
.
A small quantity of iron ore is available in western districts.
Discovered in 1889, all the major petroleum-gas reserves are in Upper parts. A recent
USGS
The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, ...
estimate shows of oil, of gas and of natural gas liquids in the Assam Geologic Province.
The region is prone to natural disasters like annual floods and frequent mild earthquakes. Strong earthquakes were recorded in 1869,
1897
Events
January–March
* January 2 – The International Alpha Omicron Pi sorority is founded, in New York City.
* January 4 – A British force is ambushed by Chief Ologbosere, son-in-law of the ruler. This leads to a puni ...
, and
1950
Events January
* January 1 – The International Police Association (IPA) – the largest police organization in the world – is formed.
* January 5 – Sverdlovsk plane crash: ''Aeroflot'' Lisunov Li-2 crashes in a snowstorm. All 19 ...
.
Demographics
Population
![Ambubachi Mela at Kamakhya Temple by Vikramjit Kakati](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c2/Ambubachi_Mela_at_Kamakhya_Temple_by_Vikramjit_Kakati.jpg)
The total population of Assam was 26.66 million with 4.91 million households in 2001.
Higher population concentration was recorded in the districts of
Kamrup,
Nagaon
Nagaon (previously Nowgong; Assamese নগাঁও), is a town and a municipal board in Nagaon district in the Indian state of Assam. It is situated east of Guwahati.
History
This division was organised on the both banks of Kalang river ...
,
Sonitpur
Sonitpur district ron: ˌsə(ʊ)nɪtˈpʊə or ˌʃə(ʊ)nɪtˈpʊəis an administrative district in the state of Assam in India. The district headquarters is located at Tezpur.
Etymology
The name of the is derived from a mythological story f ...
,
Barpeta
Barpeta (Pron: bə(r)ˈpeɪtə / bə(r)ˈpi:tə ) is a town in Barpeta district of the state of Assam in India and is district headquarters. The city is located north west of Guwahati and is one of the major cities in Western Assam. It is als ...
,
Dhubri
Dhubri (Pron: ˈdhubri) is an old town and headquarter of Dhubri district in Indian state of Assam. It is an old town on the bank of the Brahmaputra river, with historical significance. In 1883, the town was first constituted as a Municipal Bo ...
,
Darrang
Darrang () is an administrative district in the state of Assam in India. The district headquarters are located at Mangaldoi. The district occupies an area of 1585 km2.
History
No definitive records about Darrang are available for the pre-me ...
, and
Cachar
Cachar district is an administrative district in the state of Assam in India. After independence the undivided Cachar district was split into four districts in Assam: Dima Hasao district (formerly North Cachar Hills), Cachar district alongside ...
. Assam's population was estimated at 28.67 million in 2006 and at 30.57 million in 2011
and is expected to reach 34.18 million by 2021 and 35.60 million by 2026.
As per the 2011 census, the total population of Assam was 31,169,272. The total population of the state has increased from 26,638,407 to 31,169,272 in the last ten years with a growth rate of 16.93%.
Of the 33 districts, eight districts registered a rise in the decadal population growth rate. Religious minority-dominated districts like
Dhubri
Dhubri (Pron: ˈdhubri) is an old town and headquarter of Dhubri district in Indian state of Assam. It is an old town on the bank of the Brahmaputra river, with historical significance. In 1883, the town was first constituted as a Municipal Bo ...
,
Goalpara
Goalpara, Pron: ) is the district headquarters of Goalpara district, Assam, India. It is situated to the west of Guwahati.
Etymology
The name Goalpara is said to have originated from the word "Gwaltippika" meaning Guwali village, or The villa ...
,
Barpeta
Barpeta (Pron: bə(r)ˈpeɪtə / bə(r)ˈpi:tə ) is a town in Barpeta district of the state of Assam in India and is district headquarters. The city is located north west of Guwahati and is one of the major cities in Western Assam. It is als ...
,
Morigaon
Morigaon (pron: mʌrɪˈgãʊ) is a town of town area committee and the district headquarters of Morigaon district in the Indian state of Assam and including the headquarters of the Tiwa Autonomous Council (TAC), Tiwashong, Assam which was con ...
,
Nagaon
Nagaon (previously Nowgong; Assamese নগাঁও), is a town and a municipal board in Nagaon district in the Indian state of Assam. It is situated east of Guwahati.
History
This division was organised on the both banks of Kalang river ...
, and
Hailakandi
Hailakandi (pron:ˈhaɪləˌkʌndi) is a town and the district headquarters of Hailakandi district in the Indian state of Assam. Hailakandi is located at .
Demography
According to the 2011 census, Hailakandi had a population of 33,637. Most ...
, recorded growth rates ranging from 20 per cent to 24 per cent during the last decade. Eastern Assamese districts, including
Sivasagar
Sivasagar (Pron: or ) ("the sea of Shiva"), is a city in and headquarters of the Sivasagar district, Assam. Sivasagar is situated about 360 kilometers (224 mi) northeast of Guwahati. It is well known for its Ahom palaces and monuments. S ...
and
Jorhat
Jorhat ( ) is one of the important cities and a growing urban centre in the state of Assam in India.
Etymology
Jorhat ("jor" means twin and "hat" means market) means two hats or mandis - "Masorhaat" and "Sowkihat" which existed on the opposite ...
, registered around 9 per cent population growth. These districts do not have any international border.
In 2011, the
literacy
Literacy in its broadest sense describes "particular ways of thinking about and doing reading and writing" with the purpose of understanding or expressing thoughts or ideas in Writing, written form in some specific context of use. In other wo ...
rate in the state was 73.18%. The male literacy rate was 78.81% and the female literacy rate was 67.27%.
In 2001, the census had recorded literacy in Assam at 63.3% with male literacy at 71.3% and female at 54.6%. The urbanisation rate was recorded at 12.9%.
The growth of population in Assam has increased since the middle decades of the 20th century. The population grew from 3.29 million in 1901 to 6.70 million in 1941. It increased to 14.63 million in 1971 and 22.41 million in 1991.
The growth in the
Western districts and
Southern districts was high primarily due to the influx of people from
East Pakistan
East Pakistan was a Pakistani province established in 1955 by the One Unit Policy, renaming the province as such from East Bengal, which, in modern times, is split between India and Bangladesh. Its land borders were with India and Myanmar, wit ...
, now Bangladesh.
The mistrust and clashes between indigenous Assamese people and
Bengali Muslims
Bengali Muslims ( bn, বাঙালি মুসলমান; ) are adherents of Islam who ethnically, linguistically and genealogically identify as Bengalis. Comprising about two-thirds of the global Bengali population, they are the sec ...
started as early as 1952, but is rooted in
anti Bengali sentiments of the 1940s. At least 77 people died
and 400,000 people were displaced in the
2012 Assam violence
In July 2012, violence in the Indian state of Assam broke out with riots between indigenous Bodos and Bengali Muslims in Bodoland region of North East. The first incident was reported to have taken place on 20 July 2012. As of 8 August 2012, 77 ...
between indigenous
Bodos and
Bengali Muslims
Bengali Muslims ( bn, বাঙালি মুসলমান; ) are adherents of Islam who ethnically, linguistically and genealogically identify as Bengalis. Comprising about two-thirds of the global Bengali population, they are the sec ...
.
The People of India project has studied 115 of the ethnic groups in Assam. 79 (69%) identify themselves regionally, 22 (19%) locally, and 3 trans-nationally. The earliest settlers were
Austroasiatic
The Austroasiatic languages , , are a large language family in Mainland Southeast Asia and South Asia. These languages are scattered throughout parts of Thailand, Laos, India, Myanmar, Malaysia, Bangladesh, Nepal, and southern China and are th ...
,
Dravidian followed by
Tibeto-Burman
The Tibeto-Burman languages are the non- Sinitic members of the Sino-Tibetan language family, over 400 of which are spoken throughout the Southeast Asian Massif ("Zomia") as well as parts of East Asia and South Asia. Around 60 million people spea ...
,
Indo-Aryan, and
Tai–Kadai people. Forty-five languages are spoken by different communities, including three major language families: Austroasiatic (5),
Sino-Tibetan
Sino-Tibetan, also cited as Trans-Himalayan in a few sources, is a family of more than 400 languages, second only to Indo-European in number of native speakers. The vast majority of these are the 1.3 billion native speakers of Chinese languages. ...
(24) and
Indo-European
The Indo-European languages are a language family native to the overwhelming majority of Europe, the Iranian plateau, and the northern Indian subcontinent. Some European languages of this family, English, French, Portuguese, Russian, Du ...
(12). Three of the spoken languages do not fall in these families. There is a high degree of
bilingualism
Multilingualism is the use of more than one language, either by an individual speaker or by a group of speakers. It is believed that multilingual speakers outnumber monolingual speakers in the world's population. More than half of all ...
.
Religions
![Basistha mandir](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/41/Basistha_mandir.JPG)
According to the
2011 census, 61.47% were
Hindus
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
, 34.22% were
Muslim
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
s.
Christian minorities (3.7%) are found among the Scheduled Tribe and Castes population. The Scheduled Tribe population in Assam is around 13%, of which Bodos account for 40%. Other religions followed include
Jainism
Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current time cycle bein ...
(0.1%),
Buddhism
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
(0.2%),
Sikhism
Sikhism (), also known as Sikhi ( pa, ਸਿੱਖੀ ', , from pa, ਸਿੱਖ, lit=disciple', 'seeker', or 'learner, translit=Sikh, label=none),''Sikhism'' (commonly known as ''Sikhī'') originated from the word ''Sikh'', which comes fro ...
(0.1%) and
Animism
Animism (from Latin: ' meaning ' breath, spirit, life') is the belief that objects, places, and creatures all possess a distinct spiritual essence. Potentially, animism perceives all things— animals, plants, rocks, rivers, weather syst ...
(amongst
Khamti,
Phake,
Aiton etc. communities). Many Hindus in Assam are followers of the
Ekasarana Dharma
Ekasarana Dharma (literally: ''Shelter-in-One religion'') is a neo-Vaishnavite monolithic religion propagated by Srimanta Sankardeva in the 15th-16th century in the Indian state of Assam. It reduced focus on vedic ritualism and focuses on ...
sect of
Hinduism
Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...
, which gave rise to
Namghar, designed to be simpler places of worship than traditional Hindu temples.
Out of 32 districts of Assam, 9 are Muslim majority according to the 2011 census of India. The districts are Dhubri, Goalpara, Barpeta, Morigaon, Nagaon, Karimganj, Hailakandi, Darrang and Bongaigaon.
Languages
Assamese and
Bodo Bodo may refer to:
Ethnicity
* Boro people, an ethno-linguistic group mainly from Northwest Assam, India
* Bodo-Kachari people, an umbrella group from Nepal, India and Bangladesh that includes the Bodo people
Culture and language
* Boro cu ...
are the official languages of the state, while
Bengali
Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to:
*something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia
* Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region
* Bengali language, the language they speak
** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
is official in the three districts of
Barak Valley
The Barak Valley is located in the southern region of the Indian state of Assam. The region is named after the Barak river. The Barak valley consists of three administrative districts of Assam - namely Cachar, Karimganj, and Hailakandi. The ...
,
where
Sylheti is most commonly spoken.
According to the language census of 2011 in Assam, out of a total population of around 31 million, Assamese is spoken by more than 22 million total speakers, with more than 15 million people speaking it as their
mother tongue
A first language, native tongue, native language, mother tongue or L1 is the first language or dialect that a person has been exposed to from birth or within the critical period. In some countries, the term ''native language'' or ''mother tong ...
and around 7 million as
L2 speakers
A person's second language, or L2, is a language that is not the native language (first language or L1) of the speaker, but is learned later. A second language may be a neighbouring language, another language of the speaker's home country, or a fo ...
.
Although the number of speakers is growing, the percentage of Assam's population who have it as a mother tongue has fallen slightly. Assamese serves as ''lingua franca'' of the region as it is spoken by over 71% of the population (including the one who have listed Assamese as their
2nd language,
while 48.38% of them speak it as their
mother tongue
A first language, native tongue, native language, mother tongue or L1 is the first language or dialect that a person has been exposed to from birth or within the critical period. In some countries, the term ''native language'' or ''mother tong ...
.
According to the 24th Edition of
Ethnologue: Languages of the World, Assamese is spoken by 15,327,990 persons as
mother tongue
A first language, native tongue, native language, mother tongue or L1 is the first language or dialect that a person has been exposed to from birth or within the critical period. In some countries, the term ''native language'' or ''mother tong ...
across the world as of 2021. However,
2016 Assam Legislative Assembly election
The Assam Legislative Assembly Election of 2016 was held in two phases, on 4 and 11 April 2016, to elect members of the 126 constituencies in Assam, a state in North-eastern India. The overall voter turnout was 84.72%, which set a new record for ...
results, have found that 10 million people speaks Assamese as their mother tongue in Assam, which is significantly fewer than the census result of 2011. Furthermore, the Assamese speakers constituted 48% of the State population according to the 2011 Census, and it is predicted that by 2021 Census (currently under way) will reveal the percentage to dip lower below 40%.
The various
Bengali
Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to:
*something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia
* Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region
* Bengali language, the language they speak
** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
dialects and closely related languages are spoken by around 9 million people in Assam, and the portion of the population that speaks these languages has grown slightly as per the census. However, the number of Bengali speakers is estimated to be more than the expected census results, as out of 35% Muslim population in Assam as per 2011 census, it is being reported that 30% or say 10 million of them speaks different dialects of
Bengali
Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to:
*something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia
* Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region
* Bengali language, the language they speak
** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
as their native language but during census enumeration, they (
Miya people) have reported their mother tongue as
Assamese. Assam also has a large number of Bengali Hindu population as according to government data, It is being reported that 7.5 million
Bengali Hindus
Bengali Hindus ( bn, বাঙ্গালী হিন্দু/বাঙালি হিন্দু, translit=Bāṅgālī Hindu/Bāṅāli Hindu) are an ethnoreligious population who make up the majority in the Indian states of West Benga ...
live in Assam, thus constituting 25% of the state population as per 2011 census report.
Bodo Bodo may refer to:
Ethnicity
* Boro people, an ethno-linguistic group mainly from Northwest Assam, India
* Bodo-Kachari people, an umbrella group from Nepal, India and Bangladesh that includes the Bodo people
Culture and language
* Boro cu ...
is the third most-spoken language followed by
Hindi
Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been ...
which comes under fourth position.
![Brahmaputra Valley image 2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/53/Brahmaputra_Valley_image_2.png)
The population of the Brahmaputra Valley is 27,580,977 according to the 2011 census report by the Assam government. Assamese is the official language of the Brahmaputra Valley and is spoken by 15 million people comprising 55.65% of the valley population. Bengali is spoken by 6.09 million people representing 22.1% of the valley, Hindi is spoken by 2.1 million comprising 7.61% of the region, Bodo is spoken by 1.41 million comprising 5.13% of the valley's population and 2.98 million people speak various indigenous tribal languages of Assam, such as
Santali,
Karbi,
Tiwa (Lalung)
Tiwa is an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the states of Assam and Meghalaya in northeastern India. They are also found in some areas of Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur and Nagaland. They are recognized as a Scheduled tribe within the State of Assa ...
,
Hmar
Hmar may refer to:
*Hmars or Hmar people
*Hmar language
Hmar language, also known by its endonym Khawsak Ṭawng, belongs to the Kukish branch of the Sino-Tibetan family of languages. The speakers of the language are also known as Hmar. Acc ...
,
Deori,
Rabha,
Mishing,
Koch
Koch may refer to:
People
* Koch (surname), people with this surname
* Koch dynasty, a dynasty in Assam and Bengal, north east India
* Koch family
* Koch people (or Koche), an ethnic group originally from the ancient Koch kingdom in north east I ...
,
Rajbangshi, Sadri,
Garo
Garo may refer to:
People and languages
* Garo people, a tribal people in India
** Garo language, the language spoken by the Garo tribe
Places
* Kingdom of Garo, a former kingdom in southern Ethiopia
* Garo, Colorado
* Garo Hills, part of the Ga ...
,
Dimasa, Gondi, Savara,
Gorkha
The Gurkhas or Gorkhas (), with endonym Gorkhali ), are soldiers native to the Indian Subcontinent, chiefly residing within Nepal and some parts of Northeast India.
The Gurkha units are composed of Nepalis and Indian Gorkhas and are recruit ...
, Halam, Ao and Motak.
Traditionally, Assamese was the language of the common folk in the ancient
Kamarupa kingdom
Kamarupa (; also called Pragjyotisha or Pragjyotisha-Kamarupa), an early state during the Classical period on the Indian subcontinent, was (along with Davaka) the first historical kingdom of Assam.
Though Kamarupa prevailed from 350 to 11 ...
and in the medieval kingdoms of
Dimasa Kachari,
Chutiya Kachari, Borahi Kachari,
Ahom and
Kamata Kamata can refer to:
Places
*Kamata, Tokyo, a neighborhood in Ōta, Tokyo, Japan
**Kamata High School, a school located in the Kamata neighborhood, Ōta, Tokyo, Japan
* Kamata Kingdom, a 13th-century kingdom in Assam, India
* Kamata, New Zealand ...
kingdoms. Traces of the language are found in many poems by Luipa, Sarahapa, and others, in
Charyapada
The Charyapada (IAST: Caryapāda, Assamese/Bengali: চর্যাপদ) is a collection of mystical poems, songs of realization in the Vajrayana tradition of Buddhism from the tantric tradition in Assam, Bengal, Bihar and Odisha.
It was w ...
(c. 7th–8th century CE). Modern dialects such as
Kamrupi and
Goalpariya are remnants of this language. Moreover, Assamese in its traditional form was used by the ethno-cultural groups in the region as lingua-franca, which spread during the stronger kingdoms and was required for economic integration. Localised forms of the language still exist in Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh.
Linguistically modern Assamese traces its roots to the version developed by the American Missionaries based on the local form used near
Sivasagar
Sivasagar (Pron: or ) ("the sea of Shiva"), is a city in and headquarters of the Sivasagar district, Assam. Sivasagar is situated about 360 kilometers (224 mi) northeast of Guwahati. It is well known for its Ahom palaces and monuments. S ...
(Xiwôxagôr) district. Assamese (''Ôxômiya'') is a rich language due to its hybrid nature and unique characteristics of pronunciation and softness. The presence of
Voiceless velar fricative
The voiceless velar fricative is a type of consonantal sound used in some spoken languages. It was part of the consonant inventory of Old English and can still be found in some dialects of English, most notably in Scottish English, e.g. in ''loc ...
in Assamese makes it a unique among other similar
Indo-Aryan languages
The Indo-Aryan languages (or sometimes Indic languages) are a branch of the Indo-Iranian languages in the Indo-European language family. As of the early 21st century, they have more than 800 million speakers, primarily concentrated in India, P ...
.
Bodo Bodo may refer to:
Ethnicity
* Boro people, an ethno-linguistic group mainly from Northwest Assam, India
* Bodo-Kachari people, an umbrella group from Nepal, India and Bangladesh that includes the Bodo people
Culture and language
* Boro cu ...
is an ancient language of Assam. Spatial distribution patterns of the ethno-cultural groups, cultural traits and the phenomenon of naming all the major rivers in the
North East Region with Bodo-Kachari words (e.g.
Dihing
Dihing or Burhi Dihing (Dihong = wide river ) is a large tributary, about long, of the Brahmaputra River in Upper Assam in northeastern India. The river originates at above sea level in the Eastern Himalayas (the Patkai Hills) in Arunachal Pra ...
, Dibru,
Dihong, D/
Tista
Tista, also called Tistedalselva or Tistakanalen, is a river in Halden municipality, in Østfold county, Norway. It is the main river in the Haldenvassdraget system and flows from Femsjøen lake to Iddefjorden fjord
In physical geography ...
, and Dikrai) reveal that it was more widely-spoken in ancient times. Bodo is now spoken largely in the Western Assam. It is official language of the
Bodoland
The Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR), informally Bodoland, is an autonomous region and a proposed state in Assam, Northeast India. It is made up of five districts on the north bank of the Brahmaputra river below the foothills of Bhutan and A ...
territorial region and co-official language of the state of Assam. It is also one of twenty-two languages listed in the Eighth Schedule of the
Constitution of India
The Constitution of India ( IAST: ) is the supreme law of India. The document lays down the framework that demarcates fundamental political code, structure, procedures, powers, and duties of government institutions and sets out fundamental ...
. After years of neglect, now Bodo language is getting attention and its literature is developing. Other native languages of Tibeto-Burman origin and related to Bodo-Kachari are
Deori,
Mising,
Karbi,
Rabha, and
Tiwa Tiwa and Tigua may refer to:
* Tiwa Puebloans, an ethnic group of New Mexico, US
* Tiwa (Lalung), an ethnic group of north-eastern India
* Tiwa language (India), a Sino-Tibetan language of India
* Tiwa languages, a group of Tanoan languages of the ...
.
There are approximately 590,000
Nepali
Nepali or Nepalese may refer to :
Concerning Nepal
* Anything of, from, or related to Nepal
* Nepali people, citizens of Nepal
* Nepali language, an Indo-Aryan language found in Nepal, the current official national language and a language spoken ...
speakers spread all over the state forming about 1.98% of Assam's total population according to 2011 census.
There are speakers of
Tai languages
The Tai or Zhuang–Tai languages ( th, ภาษาไท or , transliteration: or ) are a branch of the Kra–Dai language family. The Tai languages include the most widely spoken of the Tai–Kadai languages, including Standard Thai or S ...
in Assam. A total of six Tai languages were spoken in Assam. Two are now extinct.
[Morey, Stephen. 2005. ''The Tai languages of Assam: a grammar and texts''. Canberra: Pacific Linguistics.]
*
Tai Phake
*
Tai Aiton
*
Khamti
*
Khamyang (critically endangered)
*
Ahom (extinct)
*
Turung (extinct)
Government and politics
Assam has Governor
Jagdish Mukhi
Jagdish Mukhi is an Indian politician who is the Governor of Assam. He is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. Past positions have included Lieutenant Governor of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Minister of F ...
as the head of the state,
the
unicameral
Unicameralism (from ''uni''- "one" + Latin ''camera'' "chamber") is a type of legislature, which consists of one house or assembly, that legislates and votes as one.
Unicameral legislatures exist when there is no widely perceived need for multi ...
Assam Legislative Assembly
The Assam Legislative Assembly is the unicameral legislature of the Indian state of Assam. It is housed in Guwahati, the capital city of Assam, geographically situated in present Western Assam region. The Legislative Assembly comprises 126 Me ...
of 126 members, and a government led by the
Chief Minister of Assam
The chief minister of Assam, an Indian state, is the head of the Government of Assam. As per the Constitution of India, the governor is the state's '' de jure'' head, but '' de facto'' executive authority rests with the chief minister. Foll ...
. The state is divided into five regional
divisions.
On 19 May 2016,
BJP
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; ; ) is a political party in India, and one of the two major Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. Since 2014, it has been the ruling political party in India under Narendra Mo ...
under the leadership of
Sarbananda Sonowal
Sarbananda Sonowal ( Assamese: সৰ্বানন্দ সোণোৱাল / IPA: xɔɹbanɔndɔ xʊnʊwal; born 31 October 1962) is an Indian politician from Assam who is the current Cabinet Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways and ...
won the Assembly elections, thus forming the first BJP-led government in Assam.
Administrative districts
![Assam Districts](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/47/Assam_Districts.png)
The
34 administrative districts of Assam are delineated based on geographic features such as rivers, hills, and forests.
On 15 August 2015, five new districts were formed:
[Revenue Department, Government of Assam]
* Part of
Sonitpur
Sonitpur district ron: ˌsə(ʊ)nɪtˈpʊə or ˌʃə(ʊ)nɪtˈpʊəis an administrative district in the state of Assam in India. The district headquarters is located at Tezpur.
Etymology
The name of the is derived from a mythological story f ...
became the
Biswanath district
Biswanath (IPA: ˌbɪswəˈnɑːθ ˈtʃɑːrɪˌælɪ) is an administrative district in the state of Assam in India. It is one of newly created district in the year by 2015, declared by Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi on 15 August 2015. The dis ...
(9 in the nearby map)
* Part of
Sivasagar
Sivasagar (Pron: or ) ("the sea of Shiva"), is a city in and headquarters of the Sivasagar district, Assam. Sivasagar is situated about 360 kilometers (224 mi) northeast of Guwahati. It is well known for its Ahom palaces and monuments. S ...
became the
Charaideo district
Charaideo or Che-Rai-Doi (Literally: ''the shining city on the hills'' in Ahom language) is a town in Charaideo district, Assam, India and was also the first capital of the Ahom kingdom established by the first Ahom king Chao Lung Siu-Ka-Pha ...
(4)
* Part of
Nagaon
Nagaon (previously Nowgong; Assamese নগাঁও), is a town and a municipal board in Nagaon district in the Indian state of Assam. It is situated east of Guwahati.
History
This division was organised on the both banks of Kalang river ...
became the
Hojai district
Hojai District is a district in Assam, India. It was formed on 15 August 2015. The headquarters of the district is situated at Sankardev Nagar, which is about 8 km away from Hojai town. Hojai District was formed from three tehsils of Nag ...
(14)
* Part of
Dhubri
Dhubri (Pron: ˈdhubri) is an old town and headquarter of Dhubri district in Indian state of Assam. It is an old town on the bank of the Brahmaputra river, with historical significance. In 1883, the town was first constituted as a Municipal Bo ...
became the
South Salmara-Mankachar district
South Salmara Mankachar is an administrative district in the state of Assam in India. The district headquarter is located at Hatsingimari village which is situated at about 245 km from Guwahati. It was earlier a sub-division of the Dhubri D ...
(33)
* The
Karbi Anglong district
Karbi Anglong district is one of the 34 administrative districts of Assam in India. Diphu is the administrative headquarter of the district. The district is administered by Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council according to the Sixth Schedule of the C ...
was divided into East (11) and West (15) districts
On 27 June 2016, an island in the
Brahmaputra River
The Brahmaputra is a trans-boundary river which flows through Tibet, northeast India, and Bangladesh. It is also known as the Yarlung Tsangpo in Tibetan, the Siang/Dihang River in Arunachali, Luit in Assamese, and Jamuna River in Bangla. I ...
was removed from the
Jorhat district
Jorhat (pron: ˈʤɔ:(r)ˌhɑ:t) is an administrative district of the Indian state of Assam situated in the central part of the Brahmaputra Valley. The district is bounded by Majuli on north, Nagaland state on the south, Charaideo on the east and ...
and declared the
Majuli district
Majuli district is the largest river island in the world, situated on the Brahmaputra River in Northeastern Assam. It is also the first island district of the country. It is populated by Misings.
On June 27, 2016 an additional district was annou ...
, India's first district that is a river island.
On 12 January 2021
Bajali has been curves out from
Barpeta district and formally declared as a district. With the announcement made by Governor
Jagdish Mukhi
Jagdish Mukhi is an Indian politician who is the Governor of Assam. He is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. Past positions have included Lieutenant Governor of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Minister of F ...
, it has become the 34th district of Assam.
Subdivisions
The administrative districts are further subdivided into 54 "Subdivisions" or ''
Mahakuma {{Unreferenced, date=December 2015
Mahakuma ( bn, মহকুমা) is an administrative division of India denoting a sub-district.
Subdivisions of Bangladesh
Mahakuma was a term of administration under district containing some sub-district ...
''.
Every district is administered from a district headquarters with the office of the
Deputy Commissioner, District Magistrate, Office of the District Panchayat and usually with a
district court.
The
local governance
Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of public administration within a particular sovereign state. This particular usage of the word government refers specifically to a level of administration that is both geographically-l ...
system is organised under the ''jila-parishad'' (District Panchayat) for a district, ''
panchayat
The Panchayat raj is a political system, originating from the Indian subcontinent, found mainly in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Nepal. It is the oldest system of local government in the Indian subcontinent, and historical men ...
'' for group of or individual rural areas and under the urban local bodies for the towns and cities. There are now 2489 village panchayats covering 26247 villages in Assam.
The 'town-committee' or ''nagar-somiti'' for small towns, 'municipal board' or ''pouro-sobha'' for medium towns and
municipal corporation
A municipal corporation is the legal term for a local governing body, including (but not necessarily limited to) cities, counties, towns, townships, charter townships, villages, and boroughs. The term can also be used to describe municipally ...
or ''pouro-nigom'' for the cities consist of the urban local bodies.
For revenue purposes, the districts are divided into revenue circles and ''mouza''s; for the development projects, the districts are divided into 219 'development-blocks' and for law and order these are divided into 206 police stations or ''thana''.
Guwahati
Guwahati (, ; formerly rendered Gauhati, ) is the biggest city of the Indian state of Assam and also the largest metropolis in northeastern India. Dispur, the capital of Assam, is in the circuit city region located within Guwahati and is the ...
is the largest
metropolitan area
A metropolitan area or metro is a region that consists of a densely populated urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories sharing industries, commercial areas, transport network, infrastructures and housing. A metro area usually ...
and
urban conglomeration
A metropolitan area or metro is a region that consists of a densely populated urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories sharing industries, commercial areas, transport network, infrastructures and housing. A metro area usually com ...
administered under the highest form of
urban local body –
Guwahati Municipal Corporation in Assam. The Corporation administers an area of . All other urban centres are managed under
Municipal Boards.
A list of 9 oldest, classified and prominent, and constantly inhabited, recognised urban centres based on the earliest years of formation of the civic bodies, before the
Indian independence of 1947 is tabulated below:
Autonomous Council
The state has
three autonomous councils.
*Bodoland Autonomous Territorial Council
*Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council
*Dima Hasao Autonomous Council.
The state has further more 12 statutory autonomous council –
*
Tiwa(Lalung) Autonomous Council
The Tiwa Autonomous Council (Tiwashong) is one of the Autonomous regions of India for the welfare and protection of the Tiwa people in the Indian State of Assam. It was formed in 1995.
See also
* Tiwa (Lalung)
* Tiwa language (India)
* Matak ...
for ethnic
Tiwa people Tiwa and Tigua may refer to:
* Tiwa Puebloans, an ethnic group of New Mexico, US
* Tiwa (Lalung), an ethnic group of north-eastern India
* Tiwa language (India), a Sino-Tibetan language of India
* Tiwa languages, a group of Tanoan languages of the ...
(also known as Lalung people)
*
Rabha Hasong Autonomous Council
The Rabha Hasong Autonomous Council (RHAC) was constituted by the Government of Assam in 1995. It was constituted for development in the areas of economic, educational, socio-cultural and ethnic identity of Rabha people residing in the council ...
*
Moran Autonomous Council
Moran Autonomous Council is an autonomous council in the Indian state of Assam, for development and protection of ethnic Moran people. It was formed in 2020.
About
The Moran people are indigenous people living primarily in the Tinsukia distric ...
for Moran people
*Dudhnoi for ethnic
Rabha Kachari
*
Mising Autonomous Council
The Mising Autonomous Council (MAC), (sometimes Mishing), is an autonomous district council for the Mising people in Dhemaji District in the state of Assam in India, with its headquarters at Dhemaji. Its chairman is Paramananda Chayengia, w ...
for
Mising people
The Mising, sometimes called Miri, are an indigenous community inhabiting parts of the Indian states of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. They were also known as ''Miris'' in the past and still recognized as Miris in the Constitution of India. Mis ...
*
Matak Autonomous Council
Matak Autonomous Council is an Autonomous administrative divisions of India in the Indian state of Assam, for development and protection of ethnic Matak people. It was formed in 2020.
About
The Matak people are indigenous people living primarily ...
for Matak people
*
Kamatapur Autonomous Council
The Kamatapur Autonomous Council is an autonomous council in the Kamtapur region of the Indian state of Assam, for development and protection of ethnic Koch Rajbongshi people. It was formed in 2020. It includes the whole of the Undivided Goalp ...
for
Rajbongshi people
The Rajbanshi, also Rajbongshi and Koch-Rajbongshi, are peoples from Lower Assam, North Bengal, eastern Bihar, Terai region of eastern Nepal, and Bhutan who have in the past sought an association with the Koch dynasty. Today, they speak va ...
,
*
Bodo Kachari Welfare Autonomous Council
Bodo Kachari Welfare Autonomous Council, (BKWAC), is an autonomous council in the Indian state of Assam, for the development and protection of ethnic Bodo-Kachari people living in villages outside the Bodoland Territorial Region. It was formed in ...
for
Bodo-Kachari people living outside the
Bodoland Territorial Region
The Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR), informally Bodoland, is an autonomous region and a proposed state in Assam, Northeast India. It is made up of five districts on the north bank of the Brahmaputra river below the foothills of Bhutan and Ar ...
* Sonowal Kachari Autonomous Council, Dibrugarh,
* Thengal Kachari Autonomous Council,
* Titabar and Deori Autonomous Council,
* Lakhimpur for ethnic
Deori Kachari.
Social issues
Inter-state dispute
![Northeast india](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/90/Northeast_india.png)
According to Assam Government, Assam has border dispute with four states namely Mizoram, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh.
Assam-Mizoram dispute
Mizoram
Mizoram () is a state in Northeast India, with Aizawl as its seat of government and capital city. The name of the state is derived from "Mizo", the self-described name of the native inhabitants, and "Ram", which in the Mizo language means "lan ...
used to be a district of Assam as
Lushai hills
The Lushai (Pron: ˌlʊˈʃaɪ) Hills (or Mizo Hills) are a mountain range in Mizoram and Manipur, India. The range is part of the Patkai range system and its highest point is 2,157 m high Phawngpui, also known as 'Blue Mountain'.
Flora and fa ...
before being carved out as a separate union territory and later, becoming another state in 1987. Because of the history, the district's borders did not really matter for locals for a long time. Mizoram shares a border with the districts
Cachar
Cachar district is an administrative district in the state of Assam in India. After independence the undivided Cachar district was split into four districts in Assam: Dima Hasao district (formerly North Cachar Hills), Cachar district alongside ...
,
Hailakandi
Hailakandi (pron:ˈhaɪləˌkʌndi) is a town and the district headquarters of Hailakandi district in the Indian state of Assam. Hailakandi is located at .
Demography
According to the 2011 census, Hailakandi had a population of 33,637. Most ...
and
Karimganj
Karimganj is a city in the Karimganj District of the Indian state of Assam. It is the administrative headquarters of the district.
Karimganj city is located at . The area of Karimganj city is 16.09 km2. It has an average elevation of 13 ...
which comes under
Barak valley
The Barak Valley is located in the southern region of the Indian state of Assam. The region is named after the Barak river. The Barak valley consists of three administrative districts of Assam - namely Cachar, Karimganj, and Hailakandi. The ...
region of Assam.
Over time, the two states started having different perceptions about where the demarcation should be. While Mizoram wants it to be along an
Inner Line Permit
Inner Line Permit (ILP) is an official travel document issued by the concerned state government to allow inward travel of an Indian citizen into a protected area for a limited period. It is obligatory for Indian citizens from outside those state ...
notified in 1875 to protect tribals from outside influence, which Mizos feel is part of their historical homeland, Assam wants it to be demarcated according to district boundaries drawn up much later.
Assam-Meghalaya dispute
Meghalaya
Meghalaya (, or , meaning "abode of clouds"; from Sanskrit , "cloud" + , "abode") is a state in northeastern India. Meghalaya was formed on 21 January 1972 by carving out two districts from the state of Assam: (a) the United Khasi Hills and J ...
has identified close to a dozen areas on which it has a dispute with Assam about the state's borders. The chief ministers of the two states,
Himanta Biswa Sarma
Himanta Biswa Sarma (born 1 February 1969) is an Indian politician serving as the 15th and incumbent Chief Minister of Assam. A former member of the Indian National Congress political party. Sarma joined the Bharatiya Janata Party on 23 August ...
and Megahalya's
Conrad Sangma
Conrad Kongkal Sangma (born 27 January 1978) is an Indian politician who is the 12th and current Chief Minister of Meghalaya. He assumed presidency of the National People's Party in 2016 after the death of his father who was former Chief Min ...
, recently held the first-ever meeting on inter-state border dispute. Both the states have agreed to individually assess the claims for all 12 areas flagged by Meghalaya in the past. A second round of discussion between the two state CMs will be held next month of August.
On the question of the role the Union Government is playing in redressing the inter-State border dispute in the country, minister of state for home affairs
Nityanand Rai
Nityanand Rai (born Nityanand Rai Yadav on 1 January 1966) is an Indian politician and the current Minister of State for Home Affairs in the Government of India. He was elected in the 2014 and 2019 General Election from Ujiarpur as a candidat ...
said, “The approach of the Central Government has consistently been that inter-state disputes can be resolved only with the cooperation of the State Governments concerned and that the Central Government acts only as a facilitator for amicable settlement of the dispute in the spirit of mutual understanding.”
Assam-Nagaland dispute
The border dispute between the two states has been going on since the formation of Nagaland in 1963. The two states lay claim to Merapani, a small village next to the plains of Assam's Golaghat district. There have been reports of violent clashes in the region since the 1960s.
Assam-Arunachal Pradesh dispute
Assam shares an 804.10 km inter-state boundary with
Arunachal Pradesh
Arunachal Pradesh (, ) is a state in Northeastern India. It was formed from the erstwhile North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA) region, and became a state on 20 February 1987. It borders the states of Assam and Nagaland to the south. It shares ...
. The state of Arunachal Pradesh, created in 1987, claims some land that traditionally belonged to its residents has been given to Assam. A tripartite committee had recommended that certain territories be transferred from Assam to Arunachal. The two states have since been battling it out in the
Supreme court of India
The Supreme Court of India ( IAST: ) is the supreme judicial authority of India and is the highest court of the Republic of India under the constitution. It is the most senior constitutional court, has the final decision in all legal matters ...
over the issue. Some incidents of local violence have been reported from the borders.
Separate statehood demand within Assam
Bodoland
![Bodoland Territorial Area Districts](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6c/Bodoland_Territorial_Area_Districts.svg)
The agitation for the creation of a separate
Bodoland
The Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR), informally Bodoland, is an autonomous region and a proposed state in Assam, Northeast India. It is made up of five districts on the north bank of the Brahmaputra river below the foothills of Bhutan and A ...
state resulted in an agreement between the Indian Government, the Assam state government and the
Bodo Liberation Tigers Force
The Bodo Liberation Tigers Force ( abbreviated BLTF), also known as the Bodo Liberation Tigers (abbreviated BLT), was an armed militant group that operated in the Bodo dominated regions of Assam, India. The BLTF was founded on 18 June 1996 by ...
. According to the agreement made on 10 February 2003, the
Bodoland Territorial Council, an entity subordinate to the government of Assam, was created to govern four districts covering 3082
Bodo Kachari Bodo may refer to:
Ethnicity
* Boro people, an ethno-linguistic group mainly from Northwest Assam, India
* Bodo-Kachari people, an umbrella group from Nepal, India and Bangladesh that includes the Bodo people
Culture and language
* Boro cu ...
-majority villages in Assam. Elections to the council were held on 13 May 2003, and
Hagrama Mohilary
Hagrama Mohilary (born 1 March 1969) is an Indian politician who has served as the Chief Executive Member of the Bodoland Territorial Council. Mohilary was elected as the Chief of Executive Committee of the Bodoland Territorial Council which c ...
was sworn in as the chief of the 46-member council on 4 June. Demographic wise, the Indigenous Bodo tribe constitutes half of the region's population, along with the region have also significant large number of other ethnic minorities which includes: Assamese, Koch Rajbangshi, Garo, Rabha tribe, Adivasis, Nepalis, Tea tribes, Bengalis, Biharis, Marwaris and Muslims.
Karbi Anglong
Karbi Anglong
Karbi may refer to:
Places
* Karbi, Armenia
* Karbi Anglong Plateau, an extension of the Indian Plate in Assam, India
* Karbi Anglong district, a district of Assam, north-eastern India
Other uses
* Karbi people, an ethnic group of North-eas ...
is one of the 35
districts
A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions ...
of Assam. Karbi Anglong was previously known as Mikir Hills. It was part of the Excluded Areas and Partially Excluded Areas (the present North East India) in British India. The British Indian government had never included this area under their government's jurisdiction. Thereby, no government development work or activity were done, nor any tax levied from the hills including Karbi Anglong. The first memorandum for a
Karbi homeland was presented to Governor Reid on 28 October 1940 by
Semsonsing Ingti and Khorsing Terang at Mohongdijua. The Karbi leaders were then, a part of the All Party Hill Leaders' Conference (APHLC) which was formed on 6 July 1960. The movement again gained momentum when the Karbi Anglong District Council passed a resolution demanding a Separate State in 1981. Then again from 1986 through the leadership of Autonomous State Demand Committee (ASDC), demanded Autonomous statehood of Karbi Anglong and Dima Hasao under Article 244(A). In 2002, the Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council passed another resolution to press for the demand of statehood. Several other memoranda were submitted at different times by several organisations. The demand for a separate state turned violent on 31 July 2013 when student demonstrators set government buildings on fire. Following the incident, the elected leaders of Karbi Anglong jointly submitted a memorandum to the
Prime Minister of India
The prime minister of India (IAST: ) is the head of government of the Republic of India. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and their chosen Council of Ministers, despite the president of India being the nominal head of the ...
demanding a separate State. Demographic wise, more than half of the Karbi Anglong population is made up of Indigenous Karbi tribe with significant migrants from other parts of India.
Dimaraji
![Dimaraji map](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f5/Dimaraji_map.jpeg)
The
Dimasa people of northeast India have been demanding a separate state called
Dimaraji
The Dimasa people of northeast India have been demanding a separate state called Dimaraji or "''Dimaland''" for several decades. It would comprise the Dimasa-inhabited areas, namely Dima Hasao district, parts of Cachar district, parts of Nagaon d ...
or "Dimaland" for several decades. It would comprise the
Dimasa-
Kachari inhabited areas, namely
Dima Hasao district
Dima Hasao district (), earlier called North Cachar Hills district, is an administrative district in the state of Assam, India. As of 2011, it is the least populous district of Assam.
Dima Hasao district is one of the two autonomous hill distr ...
,
Cachar district
Cachar district is an administrative district in the state of Assam in India. After independence the undivided Cachar district was split into four districts in Assam: Dima Hasao district (formerly North Cachar Hills), Cachar district alongsid ...
, parts of
Barak Valley, Nagaon district,
Hojai district
Hojai District is a district in Assam, India. It was formed on 15 August 2015. The headquarters of the district is situated at Sankardev Nagar, which is about 8 km away from Hojai town. Hojai District was formed from three tehsils of Nag ...
and
Karbi Anglong district
Karbi Anglong district is one of the 34 administrative districts of Assam in India. Diphu is the administrative headquarter of the district. The district is administered by Karbi Anglong Autonomous Council according to the Sixth Schedule of the C ...
in Assam together with part of
Dimapur district
Dimapur District (Pron:/ˌdɪməˈpʊə/) is a district of Nagaland state in India. With an area of about , it is the smallest district in the state of Nagaland.
History Assam lease Dimapur to Nagaland
In 1918, Dimapur was leased to then Nag ...
in
Nagaland
Nagaland () is a landlocked state in the northeastern region of India. It is bordered by the Indian states of Arunachal Pradesh to the north, Assam to the west, Manipur to the south and the Sagaing Region of Myanmar to the east. Its capital cit ...
.
Barak state
Bengalis
Bengalis (singular Bengali bn, বাঙ্গালী/বাঙালি ), also rendered as Bangalee or the Bengali people, are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group originating from and culturally affiliated with the Bengal region of ...
first came into Assam's
Brahmaputra valley
The Brahmaputra Valley is a region situated between hill ranges of the eastern and northeastern Himalayan range in Eastern India.
The valley consists of the Western Brahmaputra Valley covering the regions of Goalpara and Kamrup; the Central ...
in 19th century A.D as per as various credible sources. The
Barak Valley
The Barak Valley is located in the southern region of the Indian state of Assam. The region is named after the Barak river. The Barak valley consists of three administrative districts of Assam - namely Cachar, Karimganj, and Hailakandi. The ...
of Assam comprising the present districts of
Cachar
Cachar district is an administrative district in the state of Assam in India. After independence the undivided Cachar district was split into four districts in Assam: Dima Hasao district (formerly North Cachar Hills), Cachar district alongside ...
,
Karimganj
Karimganj is a city in the Karimganj District of the Indian state of Assam. It is the administrative headquarters of the district.
Karimganj city is located at . The area of Karimganj city is 16.09 km2. It has an average elevation of 13 ...
and
Hailakandi
Hailakandi (pron:ˈhaɪləˌkʌndi) is a town and the district headquarters of Hailakandi district in the Indian state of Assam. Hailakandi is located at .
Demography
According to the 2011 census, Hailakandi had a population of 33,637. Most ...
is contiguous to
Sylhet
Sylhet ( bn, সিলেট) is a metropolitan city in northeastern Bangladesh. It is the administrative seat of the Sylhet Division. Located on the north bank of the Surma River at the eastern tip of Bengal, Sylhet has a subtropical climate ...
(Bengal plains), where the Bengali Hindus, according to historian J.B. Bhattacharjee, had settled well before the colonial period, influencing the culture of Dimasa Kacaharis.
Bhattacharjee describes that the Dimasa kings spoke Bengali and the inscriptions and coins written were in Bengali script.
Migrations to Cachar increased after the British annexation of the region.
The native
Bengali people
Bengalis (singular Bengali bn, বাঙ্গালী/বাঙালি ), also rendered as Bangalee or the Bengali people, are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group originating from and culturally affiliated with the Bengal region of S ...
of Assam demanded separate state for themselves within the Bengali majority areas of Assam particularly Bengali majority
Barak valley
The Barak Valley is located in the southern region of the Indian state of Assam. The region is named after the Barak river. The Barak valley consists of three administrative districts of Assam - namely Cachar, Karimganj, and Hailakandi. The ...
comprising three districts:
Cachar
Cachar district is an administrative district in the state of Assam in India. After independence the undivided Cachar district was split into four districts in Assam: Dima Hasao district (formerly North Cachar Hills), Cachar district alongside ...
,
Hailakandi
Hailakandi (pron:ˈhaɪləˌkʌndi) is a town and the district headquarters of Hailakandi district in the Indian state of Assam. Hailakandi is located at .
Demography
According to the 2011 census, Hailakandi had a population of 33,637. Most ...
,
Karimganj
Karimganj is a city in the Karimganj District of the Indian state of Assam. It is the administrative headquarters of the district.
Karimganj city is located at . The area of Karimganj city is 16.09 km2. It has an average elevation of 13 ...
along with
Dima Hasao
Dima Hasao district (), earlier called North Cachar Hills district, is an administrative district in the state of Assam, India. As of 2011, it is the least populous district of Assam.
Dima Hasao district is one of the two autonomous hill distr ...
and
Lumding
Lumding (Pron:/lʌmˈdɪŋ/) is a city with municipal board in Hojai district in the Indian state of Assam.
Etymology
The word 'Lumding' owes its roots to a couple of Dimasa words 'Lama' and 'Ding' connoting 'straight pathway'. The word ''L ...
was also demanded to meet the criteria for creating a separate state for themselves by carving out from Assam's Assamese majority
Brahmaputra valley
The Brahmaputra Valley is a region situated between hill ranges of the eastern and northeastern Himalayan range in Eastern India.
The valley consists of the Western Brahmaputra Valley covering the regions of Goalpara and Kamrup; the Central ...
post
NRC.
Silchar
Silchar is a city and the headquarters of the Cachar district of the state of Assam, India. It is located south east of Guwahati. It was founded by Captain Thomas Fisher in 1832 when he shifted the headquarters of Cachar to Janiganj in Silchar. ...
is the proposed capital of Barak state. Barak valley is the most neglected part of Assam in terms of its infrastructure development, tourism sector, educational institutions, hospitals, IT industries, G.D.P, H.D.I etc. which is still lagging behind in comparison to the Assam's mainland
Brahmaputra valley
The Brahmaputra Valley is a region situated between hill ranges of the eastern and northeastern Himalayan range in Eastern India.
The valley consists of the Western Brahmaputra Valley covering the regions of Goalpara and Kamrup; the Central ...
which have access to all of those facilities mentioned above. In fact, the southern Assam have an overall indigenous Bengali majority population particularly
Lumding
Lumding (Pron:/lʌmˈdɪŋ/) is a city with municipal board in Hojai district in the Indian state of Assam.
Etymology
The word 'Lumding' owes its roots to a couple of Dimasa words 'Lama' and 'Ding' connoting 'straight pathway'. The word ''L ...
have (95%) Bengali majority,
Barak Valley
The Barak Valley is located in the southern region of the Indian state of Assam. The region is named after the Barak river. The Barak valley consists of three administrative districts of Assam - namely Cachar, Karimganj, and Hailakandi. The ...
region have an overwhelming Bengali majority of about (80.3%), while
Dima Hasao
Dima Hasao district (), earlier called North Cachar Hills district, is an administrative district in the state of Assam, India. As of 2011, it is the least populous district of Assam.
Dima Hasao district is one of the two autonomous hill distr ...
have approximately (30.2%) significant Bengali plurality on certain pockets specially in the urban areas of the district.
Migration from Bangladesh
Assam has been a major site of migration since the
Partition of the subcontinent, with the first wave being composed largely of
Bengali Hindu
Bengali Hindus ( bn, বাঙ্গালী হিন্দু/বাঙালি হিন্দু, translit=Bāṅgālī Hindu/Bāṅāli Hindu) are an ethnoreligious population who make up the majority in the Indian states of West Ben ...
refugees
A refugee, conventionally speaking, is a displaced person who has crossed national borders and who cannot or is unwilling to return home due to well-founded fear of persecution. arriving during and shortly after the establishment of India and Pakistan (current day Bangladesh was originally part of Pakistan, known as
East Pakistan
East Pakistan was a Pakistani province established in 1955 by the One Unit Policy, renaming the province as such from East Bengal, which, in modern times, is split between India and Bangladesh. Its land borders were with India and Myanmar, wit ...
) in 1947–1951. Between the period of first patches (1946-1951), around 274,455 Bengali Hindu refugees have arrived from what is now called Bangladesh (former East Pakistan) in various locations of Assam as permanent settlers and again in second patches between (1952-1958) of the same decade, around 212,545 Bengali Hindus from Bangladesh took shelter in various parts of the state permanently. After the
1964 East Pakistan riots
The 1964 East Pakistan Riots refer to the massacre and ethnic cleansing of Bengali Hindus from East Pakistan in the wake of an alleged theft of what was believed to be the Prophet's hair from the Hazratbal shrine in Jammu and Kashmir in Indi ...
many Bengali Hindus have poured into Assam as refugees and the number of Hindu migrants in the state rose to 1,068,455 in 1968 (sharply after 4 years of the riot). The fourth patches numbering around 347,555 have just arrived after
Bangladesh liberation war
The Bangladesh Liberation War ( bn, মুক্তিযুদ্ধ, , also known as the Bangladesh War of Independence, or simply the Liberation War in Bangladesh) was a revolution and armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Bengali ...
of 1971 as refugees and most of them being Bengali speaking Hindus have decided to stay back in Assam permanently afterwards. Though the governments of India and Bangladesh made agreements for the repatriation of certain groups of refugees after the second and third waves, a large presence of refugees and other migrants and their descendants remained in the state. Nevertheless, still people of Bangladesh have been immigrating to Assam on regular basis. As per reports, about 635 of Bangladeshi people mostly Hindus, use to immigrate to Assam daily.
Besides migration caused by displacement, there is also a large and continual unregulated movement between Assam and neighboring regions of Bangladesh with an exceptionally porous border. The situation is called a risk to Assam's as well as India's security. The continual
illegal entry
Illegal entry is the act of foreign nationals arriving in or crossing the borders into a country in violation of its immigration law.
Human smuggling is the practice of aiding people in crossing international borders for financial gain, often i ...
of people into Assam, mostly from
Bangladesh
Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mo ...
, has caused economic upheaval and social and political unrest. During the
Assam Movement
The Assam Movement (also Anti-Foreigners Agitation) (1979–1985) was a popular uprising in Assam, India, that demanded the Government of India to detect, disenfranchise and deport illegal aliens. Led by All Assam Students Union (AASU) and A ...
(1979–1985), the
All Assam Students Union
All Assam Students' Union or AASU is a Assamese nationalist students' organisation in Assam, India. It is best known for leading the six-year Assam Movement against Bengalis of both Indian and Bangladeshi origin living in Assam. The leadership, ...
(AASU) and others demanded that government stop the influx of
immigrants and
deport
Deportation is the expulsion of a person or group of people from a place or country. The term ''expulsion'' is often used as a synonym for deportation, though expulsion is more often used in the context of international law, while deportatio ...
those who had already settled.
During this period, 855 people (the AASU says 860) died in various conflicts with migrants and police. The 1983 Illegal Migrants (Determination by Tribunal) Act, applied only to Assam, decreed that any person who entered the Assam after Bangladesh declared independence from Pakistan in 1971 and without authorisation or travel documents is to be considered a foreigner, with the decision on foreigner status to be carried out by designated tribunals. In 1985, the
Indian Government
The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, ...
and leaders of the agitation signed the
Assam accord
The Assam Accord was a Memorandum of Settlement (MoS) signed between representatives of the Government of India and the leaders of the Assam Movement. It was signed in the presence of the then-Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in New Delhi on 15 Au ...
to settle the conflict.
The 1991 census made the changing demographics of border districts more visible.
Since 2010, the Indian Government has undertaken the updating of the
National Register of Citizens for Assam
The National Register of Citizens for Assam is a registry (NRC) meant to be maintained by the Government of India for the state of Assam. It is expected to contain the names and certain relevant information for the identification of genuine I ...
, and in 2018 the 32.2 million residents of Assam were subject to a review of their citizenship. In August 2019, India released the names of the 2 million residents of Assam that had been determined to be non-citizens and whose names had therefore been struck off the Register of Citizens, depriving them of rights and making them subject to action, and potentially leaving some of them stateless, and the government has begun deporting non-citizens, while detaining 1,000 others that same year.
In January 2019, the Assam's peasant organisation
Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS) is a peasant organisation based in Assam. Formed by the RTI activist Akhil Gogoi in 2005, the organisation works on a diverse range of issues from Public Distribution System (PDS) thefts, non-implementation of Nat ...
(KMSS) claimed that there are around 20
lakh
A lakh (; abbreviated L; sometimes written lac) is a unit in the Indian numbering system equal to one hundred thousand (100,000; scientific notation: 105). In the Indian 2,2,3 convention of digit grouping, it is written as 1,00,000. For e ...
Hindu Bangladeshis in Assam who would become Indian citizens if the
Citizenship (Amendment) Bill is passed.
BJP
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; ; ) is a political party in India, and one of the two major Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. Since 2014, it has been the ruling political party in India under Narendra Mo ...
, however claimed that only eight lakh Hindu Bangladeshis will get citizenship. According to various sources, the total number of illegal Hindu Bangladeshis is hard to ascertain.
According to the
census data, the number of Hindu immigrants have been largely exaggerated.
In February 2020, the Assam Minority Development Board announced plans to segregate illegal Bangladeshi Muslim immigrants from the indigenous Muslims of the state, though some have expressed problems in identifying an indigenous Muslim person. According to the board, there are 1.4
crore
A crore (; abbreviated cr) denotes ten million (10,000,000 or 107 in scientific notation) and is equal to 100 lakh in the Indian numbering system. It is written as 1,00,00,000 with the local 2,2,3 style of digit group separators (one lakh is eq ...
Muslims in the state, of which 1 crore are of Bangladeshi origin. A report reveals that out of total 33 districts in Assam, Bangladeshis dominate almost 15 districts of Assam.
Floods
In the rainy season every year, the Brahmaputra and other rivers overflow their banks and flood adjacent land. Flood waters wash away property including houses and livestock. Damage to crops and fields harms the agricultural sector. Bridges, railway tracks, and roads are also damaged, harming transportation and communication, and in some years requiring food to be air-dropped to isolated towns. Some deaths are attributed to the floods.
Unemployment
Unemployment
Unemployment, according to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), is people above a specified age (usually 15) not being in paid employment or self-employment but currently available for work during the refe ...
is a chronic problem in Assam. It is variously blamed on poor
infrastructure
Infrastructure is the set of facilities and systems that serve a country, city, or other area, and encompasses the services and facilities necessary for its economy, households and firms to function. Infrastructure is composed of public and priv ...
, limited connectivity, and government policy; on a "poor work culture"; on failure to advertise vacancies; and on government hiring candidates from outside Assam.
In 2020 a series of
violent lynchings occurred in the region.
Education
File:Lakhiganj HSS.jpg, School girls in the classroom, Lakhiganj High School, Assam
File:Assam Cotton College.jpg, Cotton University, Guwahati
File:IITG acad complex.jpg, Academic complex of IIT Guwahati
The Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati (IIT Guwahati) is a public technical university established by the Government of India, located in Amingaon area, North Guwahati city, in the state of Assam in India. It is the sixth Indian Instit ...
File:NIT_Silchar_Guest_House.jpg, National Institute of Technology, Silchar
File:Jec frontview.jpg, Jorhat Engineering College
Jorhat Engineering College founded in 1960 by the Government of Assam, is a government engineering college in Assam, northeast India. The college, affiliated with Assam Science and Technology University, is accredited by the All India Council ...
of Assam Science and Technology University
Assam schools are run by the Indian government, government of Assam or by private organisations. Medium of instruction is mainly in Assamese, English or Bengali. Most of the schools follow the state's examination board which is called the
Secondary Education Board of Assam
The Board of Secondary Education, Assam commonly known as SEBA is the state education regulatory board under the jurisdiction of Ministry of Education, Government of Assam for conducting examinations and providing assurance for the quality of ...
. Almost all private schools follow the
Central Board for Secondary Education
The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) is a national level board of education in India for public and private schools, controlled and managed by the Government of India. Established in 1929 by a resolution of the government, the Board ...
(CBSE),
Indian Certificate of Secondary Education
The Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE) is an examination conducted by the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations, a private board designed to provide an examination in a course of general education, in accordance wi ...
(ICSE) and
Indian School Certificate
The Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE) is an examination conducted by the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations, a private board designed to provide an examination in a course of general education, in accordance wi ...
(ISC) syllabuses.
Assamese language is the main medium in educational institutions but
Bengali language
Bengali ( ), generally known by its endonym Bangla (, ), is an Indo-Aryan language native to the Bengal region of South Asia. It is the official, national, and most widely spoken language of Bangladesh and the second most widely spoken ...
is also taught as a major
Indian language. In Guwahati and Digboi, many Jr. basic schools and Jr. high schools are Nepali linguistic and all the teachers are
Nepali
Nepali or Nepalese may refer to :
Concerning Nepal
* Anything of, from, or related to Nepal
* Nepali people, citizens of Nepal
* Nepali language, an Indo-Aryan language found in Nepal, the current official national language and a language spoken ...
.
Nepali
Nepali or Nepalese may refer to :
Concerning Nepal
* Anything of, from, or related to Nepal
* Nepali people, citizens of Nepal
* Nepali language, an Indo-Aryan language found in Nepal, the current official national language and a language spoken ...
is included by Assam State Secondary Board,
Assam Higher Secondary Education Council
The Assam Higher Secondary Education Council (abbreviated as AHSEC) is a state education regulatory board under the jurisdiction of Ministry of Education, Government of Assam that is responsible to regulate, supervise and develop the system of ...
and
Gauhati University
Gauhati University, also known as GU, is a collegiate public state university located in Guwahati, Assam, India. It was established on 26 January 1948 under the provisions of an Act enacted by the Assam Legislative Assembly. It is the oldest ...
in their HSLC, higher secondary and graduation level respectively. In some junior basic and higher secondary schools and colleges, Nepali teachers and lecturers are appointed.
The capital, Dispur, contains institutions of higher education for students of the north-eastern region.
Cotton College
Cotton College was a Roman Catholic boarding school in Cotton, Staffordshire, United Kingdom. It was also known as ''Saint Wilfrid's College''.
The school buildings were centred on Cotton Hall, a country house used by religious communities fro ...
, Guwahati, dates back to the 19th century. Assam has several institutions for tertiary education and research.
Universities, colleges and institutions include:
Universities
*
Assam University
Assam University is a collegiate central public university located at Silchar, Assam, India. It was founded in the year 1994 by the provisions of an act enacted by the Parliament of India. The Governor of Assam is the Chief Rector and the ...
*
Assam Agricultural University,
Jorhat
Jorhat ( ) is one of the important cities and a growing urban centre in the state of Assam in India.
Etymology
Jorhat ("jor" means twin and "hat" means market) means two hats or mandis - "Masorhaat" and "Sowkihat" which existed on the opposite ...
*
Assam Don Bosco University,
*
Assam down town University
Assam Down Town University was established through the Assam Down Town University Act, 2010 in the state of Assam, India in 2010. The university is located in Panikhaiti, Guwahati, the capital of Assam. The campus is based out of a 42 acres ca ...
,
*
Assam Rajiv Gandhi University of Cooperative Management
Assam Rajiv Gandhi University of Cooperative Management (ARGUCOM) is a state university located in Sivasagar, Assam, India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country ...
, (ARGUCOM), Sivasagar
*
Assam Science and Technology University,
Guwahati
Guwahati (, ; formerly rendered Gauhati, ) is the biggest city of the Indian state of Assam and also the largest metropolis in northeastern India. Dispur, the capital of Assam, is in the circuit city region located within Guwahati and is the ...
*
Assam Women's University, Jorhat
*
Bodoland University
Bodoland University (BU), established in 2009, is a public state collegiate university located in Kokrajhar, Assam, India. It is the first university in the Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR) along with the Lower Assam region (except the capit ...
, Kokrajhar
*
Cotton University
Cotton University (formerly known as ''Cotton College'') is a public state university located in Guwahati, Assam, India. It was established in 2017 by the provisions of an Act from the Assam Legislative Assembly which merged Cotton College St ...
, Guwahati
*
Dibrugarh University
Dibrugarh University is a collegiate public state university in the Indian state of Assam. It is located at Dibrugarh, Assam, India. It was set up in 1965 under the provisions of the Dibrugarh University Act, 1965 enacted by the Assam Legislat ...
, Dibrugarh
*
Gauhati University
Gauhati University, also known as GU, is a collegiate public state university located in Guwahati, Assam, India. It was established on 26 January 1948 under the provisions of an Act enacted by the Assam Legislative Assembly. It is the oldest ...
,
Guwahati
Guwahati (, ; formerly rendered Gauhati, ) is the biggest city of the Indian state of Assam and also the largest metropolis in northeastern India. Dispur, the capital of Assam, is in the circuit city region located within Guwahati and is the ...
*
Kaziranga University
Kaziranga University (KU), officially established as The Assam Kaziranga University, is a private university located at Koraikhowa, on the outskirts of city Jorhat in Assam, India. It was established in 2012 through ''The Assam Kaziranga Univer ...
, Jorhat
*
Krishnaguru Adhyatmik Vishvavidyalaya
Krishnaguru Adhyatmik Visvavidyalaya or Krishnaguru Spiritual University is the sixth private university of Assam. The university is established by ''Krishnaguru Adhyatmik Visvavidyalaya Bill, 2017'' which was passed by the Government of Assam o ...
*
Krishna Kanta Handique State Open University
Krishna Kanta Handiqui State Open University is a state university in Guwahati, Assam, India. It was founded in 2006.
History
The university was established by the Assam Legislative Assembly by Act XXXVII of 2005 in 2005. The Act received the a ...
*
Kumar Bhaskar Varma Sanskrit and Ancient Studies University
Kumar Bhaskar Varma Sanskrit and Ancient Studies University (established 2011) is a state government university in Nalbari, Assam, India for studies in Sanskrit language and history of Kamarupa besides other general studies including art, humanit ...
*
Mahapurusha Srimanta Sankaradeva Viswavidyalaya
Mahapurusha Srimanta Sankaradeva Viswavidyalaya is a university established through ''The Mahapurusha Srimanta Sankaradeva Viswavidyalaya Act, 2013'' in the State of Assam, India in 2013. The university is located in Nagaon and is named after h ...
*
National Law University and Judicial Academy, Assam
National Law University and Judicial Academy, Assam (NLUJA or NLUJAA) is a National Law University located in Guwahati, Assam, India. It was established in 2009 through an Act passed by the State Legislature of Assam (Assam Act XXV of 2009 ...
*
Royal Global University
*
Srimanta Sankaradeva University of Health Sciences
Srimanta Sankaradeva University of Health Sciences, Guwahati, Assam, India is established in 2009 as per The Srimanta Sankaradeva University of Health Sciences Act, 2007. The Srimanta Sankaradeva University of Health Sciences is the only Health ...
*
Tezpur University
Tezpur University is a Central University located in Tezpur in the North-Eastern state of Assam, India, established by an act of Parliament, in 1994.
History
The establishment of Tezpur University is considered to be one of the outcomes of t ...
,
Tezpur
Tezpur () is a city and urban agglomeration in Sonitpur district, Assam state, India. Tezpur is located on the banks of the river Brahmaputra, northeast of Guwahati, and is the largest of the north bank cities with a population exceeding 10 ...
Medical colleges
*
Assam Medical College
Assam Medical College and Hospital (AMCH), formerly Berry White Medical School, is a public medical school and hospital in Dibrugarh, Assam, India. It was the first medical college in Assam and whole Northeastern India. It is the tertiary medi ...
,
Dibrugarh
Dibrugarh (pron: ˌdɪbru:ˈgɑ:) is an industrial city in Upper Assam with sprawling tea gardens. It is located 435 kms East from the state capital of Dispur. It serves as the headquarters of Dibrugarh district in the state of Assam i ...
*
Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed Medical College
Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed Medical College and Hospital (FAAMCH) is the fifth medical college of Assam based in Barpeta. The college has been named after former President of India Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed. The classes were formally inaugurated in August ...
,
Barpeta
Barpeta (Pron: bə(r)ˈpeɪtə / bə(r)ˈpi:tə ) is a town in Barpeta district of the state of Assam in India and is district headquarters. The city is located north west of Guwahati and is one of the major cities in Western Assam. It is als ...
*
Gauhati Medical College and Hospital
The Gauhati Medical College and Hospital, the second medical college to be established in Assam, is also a health care institution. It provides medical education at undergraduate, postgraduate and superspecialty levels.
History
Dr. John Ber ...
,
Guwahati
Guwahati (, ; formerly rendered Gauhati, ) is the biggest city of the Indian state of Assam and also the largest metropolis in northeastern India. Dispur, the capital of Assam, is in the circuit city region located within Guwahati and is the ...
*
Jorhat Medical College and Hospital
Jorhat Medical College & Hospital (JMCH) is a medical college cum hospital based in Jorhat, Assam, India. This is the fourth medical college of the state and it provides the healthcare needs of more than 1.2 million population of the entire Jo ...
,
Jorhat
Jorhat ( ) is one of the important cities and a growing urban centre in the state of Assam in India.
Etymology
Jorhat ("jor" means twin and "hat" means market) means two hats or mandis - "Masorhaat" and "Sowkihat" which existed on the opposite ...
*
Regional Dental College
In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and ...
,
Guwahati
Guwahati (, ; formerly rendered Gauhati, ) is the biggest city of the Indian state of Assam and also the largest metropolis in northeastern India. Dispur, the capital of Assam, is in the circuit city region located within Guwahati and is the ...
*
Silchar Medical College and Hospital,
Silchar
Silchar is a city and the headquarters of the Cachar district of the state of Assam, India. It is located south east of Guwahati. It was founded by Captain Thomas Fisher in 1832 when he shifted the headquarters of Cachar to Janiganj in Silchar. ...
*
Tezpur Medical College
Tezpur Medical College and Hospital (TMCH) is a medical college based in Tezpur, Assam, India established in 2013. This college is the 6th medical college of the State Government for the promotion of medical education in the state and counter ...
& Hospital,
Tezpur
Tezpur () is a city and urban agglomeration in Sonitpur district, Assam state, India. Tezpur is located on the banks of the river Brahmaputra, northeast of Guwahati, and is the largest of the north bank cities with a population exceeding 10 ...
Engineering and technological colleges
*
Indian Institute of Information Technology, Guwahati
Indian Institute of Information Technology Guwahati (IIIT G) is one of the Indian Institutes of Information Technology (IIIT) located in Guwahati in the state of Assam in India. It was set up by the MHRD, Government of India in public-private p ...
*
National Institute of Technology, Silchar,
*
Assam Engineering College
Assam Engineering College ( Assamese: অসম অভিযান্ত্ৰিক মহাবিদ্যালয়), established in 1955, is located in Guwahati. It is the first engineering college of Assam and is affiliated to Assam S ...
,
Guwahati
Guwahati (, ; formerly rendered Gauhati, ) is the biggest city of the Indian state of Assam and also the largest metropolis in northeastern India. Dispur, the capital of Assam, is in the circuit city region located within Guwahati and is the ...
*
Assam Science and Technology University
*
Bineswar Brahma Engineering College
Bineswar Brahma Engineering College was established in 2008 by Assam Government at Kokrajhar district, Assam. In 2006 Assam Government announced that an engineering college would be set up at Kokrajhar. The college is situated at a village called ...
,
Kokrajhar
Kokrajhar () is a town in the Bodoland Territorial Region, an autonomous territory in Assam, one of the North Eastern states of India.
Kokrajhar town is located along the bank of the river Gaurang. The North East Indian Railways divides the ci ...
*
Central Institute of Technology
Central Institute of Technology was a Technical and Further Education (TAFE) institution based in Perth, Western Australia until 2016 when it became a part of North Metropolitan TAFE. It was the equal oldest post-secondary educational instituti ...
,
Kokrajhar
Kokrajhar () is a town in the Bodoland Territorial Region, an autonomous territory in Assam, one of the North Eastern states of India.
Kokrajhar town is located along the bank of the river Gaurang. The North East Indian Railways divides the ci ...
*
,
Guwahati
Guwahati (, ; formerly rendered Gauhati, ) is the biggest city of the Indian state of Assam and also the largest metropolis in northeastern India. Dispur, the capital of Assam, is in the circuit city region located within Guwahati and is the ...
*
,
Tezpur
Tezpur () is a city and urban agglomeration in Sonitpur district, Assam state, India. Tezpur is located on the banks of the river Brahmaputra, northeast of Guwahati, and is the largest of the north bank cities with a population exceeding 10 ...
*
Indian Institute of Technology
The Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) are central government owned public technical institutes located across India. They are under the ownership of the Ministry of Education of the Government of India. They are governed by the Insti ...
in
Guwahati
Guwahati (, ; formerly rendered Gauhati, ) is the biggest city of the Indian state of Assam and also the largest metropolis in northeastern India. Dispur, the capital of Assam, is in the circuit city region located within Guwahati and is the ...
* Institute of Engineering and Technology,
Dibrugarh University
Dibrugarh University is a collegiate public state university in the Indian state of Assam. It is located at Dibrugarh, Assam, India. It was set up in 1965 under the provisions of the Dibrugarh University Act, 1965 enacted by the Assam Legislat ...
* Institute of Science and Technology,
Guwahati University
Gauhati University, also known as GU, is a Collegiate university, collegiate public state university located in Guwahati, Assam, India. It was established on 26 January 1948 under the provisions of an Act enacted by the Assam Legislative Assem ...
*
Jorhat Engineering College
Jorhat Engineering College founded in 1960 by the Government of Assam, is a government engineering college in Assam, northeast India. The college, affiliated with Assam Science and Technology University, is accredited by the All India Council ...
,
Jorhat
Jorhat ( ) is one of the important cities and a growing urban centre in the state of Assam in India.
Etymology
Jorhat ("jor" means twin and "hat" means market) means two hats or mandis - "Masorhaat" and "Sowkihat" which existed on the opposite ...
*
Jorhat Institute of Science & Technology,
Jorhat
Jorhat ( ) is one of the important cities and a growing urban centre in the state of Assam in India.
Etymology
Jorhat ("jor" means twin and "hat" means market) means two hats or mandis - "Masorhaat" and "Sowkihat" which existed on the opposite ...
*
NETES Institute of Technology & Science Mirza,
*
Barak Valley Engineering College
Barak Valley Engineering College (BVEC) is a state government engineering college located in Karimganj, Assam. It was established on 14 August 2017 by Assam Government at Karimganj district, Assam. It is affiliated to Assam Science and Techn ...
Nirala
Karimganj
Karimganj is a city in the Karimganj District of the Indian state of Assam. It is the administrative headquarters of the district.
Karimganj city is located at . The area of Karimganj city is 16.09 km2. It has an average elevation of 13 ...
*
Golaghat Engineering College
Golaghat Engineering College was established in 2018 by Assam Government at Golaghat district, Assam. On 31 March 2012, Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi laid the foundation stone of the Golaghat Engineering College in Golaghat district, which was pr ...
Golaghat
Golaghat ( ''Gʊlaɡʱat'' ) one of the largest subdivisions of the Indian state of Assam, later elevated to the position of a full–fledged district headquarter on 5 October 1987, is a city and a municipality and the seat of administrative ...
Research institutes present in the state include National Research Centre on Pig, (ICAR) in Guwahati,
Economy
![Assam historical pci](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/61/Assam_historical_pci.png)
Assam's economy is based on agriculture and oil. Assam produces more than half of India's tea. The Assam-Arakan basin holds about a quarter of the country's oil reserves, and produces about 12% of its total petroleum. According to the recent estimates,
Assam's per capita GDP is
₹6,157 at constant prices (1993–94) and
₹10,198 at current prices; almost 40% lower than that in India. According to the recent estimates,
per capita income in Assam has reached
₹6756 (1993–94 constant prices) in 2004–05, which is still much lower than India's.
Tea plantations
Macro-economy
The economy of Assam today represents a unique juxtaposition of backwardness amidst plenty. Despite its rich natural resources, and supplying of up to 25% of India's petroleum needs, Assam's growth rate has not kept pace with that of India; the difference has increased rapidly since the 1970s.
[UNDP 2004, pp. 22–23] The Indian economy grew at 6% per annum over the period of 1981 to 2000; the growth rate of Assam was only 3.3%. In the Sixth Plan period, Assam experienced a negative growth rate of 3.78% when India's was positive at 6%.
In the post-liberalised era (after 1991), the difference widened further.
According to recent analysis, Assam's economy is showing signs of improvement. In 2001–02, the economy grew (at 1993–94 constant prices) at 4.5%, falling to 3.4% in the next financial year.
During 2003–04 and 2004–05, the economy grew (at 1993–94 constant prices) at 5.5% and 5.3% respectively.
The advanced estimates placed the growth rate for 2005–06 at above 6%.
Assam's GDP in 2004 is estimated at $13 billion in current prices. Sectoral analysis again exhibits a dismal picture. The average annual growth rate of agriculture, which was 2.6% per annum over the 1980s, has fallen to 1.6% in the 1990s.
[UNDP 2004, pp. 24–25] The manufacturing sector showed some improvement in the 1990s with a growth rate of 3.4% per annum than 2.4% in the 1980s.
For the past five decades, the tertiary sector has registered the highest growth rates of the other sectors, which even has slowed down in the 1990s than in the 1980s.
Employment
Unemployment is one of the major problems in Assam. This problem can be attributed to overpopulation and a faulty education system. Every year, large numbers of students obtain higher academic degrees but because of non-availability of proportional vacancies, most of these students remain unemployed. A number of employers hire over-qualified or efficient, but under-certified, candidates, or candidates with narrowly defined qualifications. The problem is exacerbated by the growth in the number of technical institutes in Assam which increases the unemployed community of the State. Many job-seekers are eligible for jobs in sectors like railways and
Oil India
Oil India Limited (OIL) is a central public sector undertaking under the ownership of Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, Government of India. The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas oversees its operations, with its headquarters in ...
but do not get these jobs because of the appointment of candidates from outside of Assam to these posts. The reluctance on the part of the departments concerned to advertise vacancies in vernacular language has also made matters worse for local unemployed youths particularly for the job-seekers of Grade C and D vacancies.
Reduction of the unemployed has been threatened by
illegal immigration
Illegal immigration is the migration of people into a country in violation of the immigration laws of that country or the continued residence without the legal right to live in that country. Illegal immigration tends to be financially upwar ...
from Bangladesh. This has increased the workforce without a commensurate increase in jobs. Immigrants compete with local workers for jobs at lower wages, particularly in construction, domestics, Rickshaw-pullers, and vegetable sellers. The government has been identifying (via
NRC) and deporting illegal immigrants. Continued immigration is exceeding deportation.
Agriculture
![Paddy cultivation in Nagaon](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/81/Paddy_cultivation_in_Nagaon.jpg)
In Assam among all the productive sectors, agriculture makes the highest contribution to its domestic sectors, accounting for more than a third of Assam's income and employs 69% of workforce. Assam's biggest contribution to the world is
Assam tea
Assam tea is a black tea named after the region of its production, Assam, India. It is manufactured specifically from the plant ''Camellia sinensis'' var. ''assamica'' (Masters). The Assam tea plant is indigenous to Assam—initial efforts to plan ...
. It has its own variety, ''Camellia sinensis'' var. ''assamica''. The state produces rice,
rapeseed
Rapeseed (''Brassica napus ''subsp.'' napus''), also known as rape, or oilseed rape, is a bright-yellow flowering member of the family Brassicaceae (mustard or cabbage family), cultivated mainly for its oil-rich seed, which naturally contains a ...
,
mustard seed
Mustard seeds are the small round seeds of various mustard plants. The seeds are usually about in diameter and may be colored from yellowish white to black. They are an important spice in many regional foods and may come from one of three diff ...
,
jute
Jute is a long, soft, shiny bast fiber that can be spun into coarse, strong threads. It is produced from flowering plants in the genus ''Corchorus'', which is in the mallow family Malvaceae. The primary source of the fiber is '' Corchorus ol ...
, potato, sweet potato, banana,
papaya
The papaya (, ), papaw, () or pawpaw () is the plant species ''Carica papaya'', one of the 21 accepted species in the genus '' Carica'' of the family Caricaceae. It was first domesticated in Mesoamerica, within modern-day southern Mexico and ...
,
areca nut
''Areca'' is a genus of 51 species of palms in the family Arecaceae, found in humid tropical forests from the islands of the Philippines, Malaysia and India, across Southeast Asia to Melanesia. The generic name ''Areca'' is derived from a name ...
, sugarcane and
turmeric
Turmeric () is a flowering plant, ''Curcuma longa'' (), of the ginger family, Zingiberaceae, the rhizomes of which are used in cooking. The plant is a perennial, rhizomatous, herbaceous plant native to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast ...
.
Assam's agriculture is yet to experience modernisation in a real sense. With implications for food security, per capita food grain production has declined in the past five decades.
[UNDP 2004, p. 33] Productivity has increased marginally, but is still low compared to highly productive regions. For instance, the yield of rice (a staple food of Assam) was just 1531 kg per hectare against India's 1927 kg per hectare in 2000–01
(which itself is much lower than
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning the North Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via a land bridg ...
's 9283, US's 7279, South Korea's 6838, Japan's 6635 and China's 6131 kg per hectare in 2001). On the other hand, after having strong domestic demand, and with 1.5 million hectares of inland water bodies, numerous rivers and 165 varieties of fishes, fishing is still in its traditional form and production is not self-sufficient.
[UNDP 2004, p. 37]
Floods in Assam greatly affect the farmers and the families dependent on agriculture because of large-scale damage of agricultural fields and crops by flood water.
Every year, flooding from the Brahmaputra and other rivers deluges places in Assam. The water levels of the rivers rise because of rainfall resulting in the rivers overflowing their banks and engulfing nearby areas. Apart from houses and livestock being washed away by flood water, bridges, railway tracks and roads are also damaged by the calamity, which causes communication breakdown in many places. Fatalities are also caused by the natural disaster in many places of the state.
Industry
Handlooming and handicraft continue.
Assam's proximity to some neighbouring countries such as Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan, benefits its trade. The major
Border checkpoint
A border checkpoint is a location on an international border where travelers or goods are inspected and allowed (or denied) passage through. Authorization often is required to enter a country through its borders. Access-controlled borders ofte ...
s through which border trade flows to Bangladesh from Assam are : Sutarkandi (Karimganj), Dhubri, Mankachar (Dhubri) and Golokanj. To facilitate border trade with Bangladesh, Border Trade Centres have been developed at Sutarkandi and
Mankachar
Mankachar is a census town in South Salmara-Mankachar District in the Indian state of Assam. It is situated at the extreme south-westernmost end of North-East India
Geography
Mankachar is located at . It has an average elevation of . In the nor ...
. It has been proposed in the 11th five-year plan to set up two more Border Trade Center, one at
Ledo connecting China and other at
Darrang
Darrang () is an administrative district in the state of Assam in India. The district headquarters are located at Mangaldoi. The district occupies an area of 1585 km2.
History
No definitive records about Darrang are available for the pre-me ...
connecting Bhutan. There are several Land Custom Stations (LCS) in the state bordering Bangladesh and Bhutan to facilitate border trade.
The government of India has identified some thrust areas for industrial development of Assam:
Although, the region in the eastern periphery of India is landlocked and is linked to the mainland by the narrow
Siliguri Corridor
The Siliguri Corridor, also known as the Chicken's Neck, is a stretch of land around the city of Siliguri in West Bengal, India. at the narrowest section, this geo-political and geo-economical corridor connects the eight states of northeast I ...
(or the Chicken's Neck) improved transport infrastructure in all the three modes – rail, road and air – and developing urban infrastructure in the cities and towns of Assam are giving a boost to the entire industrial scene. The
Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport at Guwahati, with international flights to
Bangkok
Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populati ...
and
Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...
offered by
Druk Air of
Bhutan
Bhutan (; dz, འབྲུག་ཡུལ་, Druk Yul ), officially the Kingdom of Bhutan,), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is situated in the Eastern Himalayas, between China in the north and India in the south. A mountainou ...
, was the 12th busiest airport of India in 2012. The cities of Guwahati in the west and
Dibrugarh
Dibrugarh (pron: ˌdɪbru:ˈgɑ:) is an industrial city in Upper Assam with sprawling tea gardens. It is located 435 kms East from the state capital of Dispur. It serves as the headquarters of Dibrugarh district in the state of Assam i ...
in the east with good rail, road and air connectivity are the two important nerve centres of Assam, to be selected by Asian Development Bank for providing $200 million for improvement of urban infrastructure.
Assam is a producer of
crude oil
Petroleum, also known as crude oil, or simply oil, is a naturally occurring yellowish-black liquid mixture of mainly hydrocarbons, and is found in geological formations. The name ''petroleum'' covers both naturally occurring unprocessed crude ...
and it accounts for about 15% of India's crude output, exploited by the Assam Oil Company Ltd., and natural gas in India and is the second place in the world (after
Titusville in the United States) where petroleum was discovered. Asia's first successful mechanically drilled oil well was drilled in
Makum
Makum (IPA: mɑːkəm) is a town and a town area committee in Tinsukia district in the Indian state of Assam. It should not be mistaken for Makum Pathar (the place near Digboi where, crude oil was first struck in Asia). It is the meeting point o ...
way back in 1867. Most of the oilfields are located in the Eastern Assam region. Assam has four oil refineries in
Digboi (Asia's first and world's second refinery), Guwahati,
Bongaigaon
Bongaigaon () is a major city in the Indian state of Assam. Its urban area spans across Bongaigaon and Chirang district. The city also serves as the gateway of the North-East Frontier Railway Zone with its New Bongaigaon Junction railway st ...
and
Numaligarh
Numaligarh is a town in the Golaghat district of Assam, India. It is situated at a distance of 32 km from Golaghat town, 265 km from Guwahati, 51 km from Jorhat and 6 km from Morangi.
Tourism attractions
A few kilometers ...
and with a total capacity of 7 million metric tonnes (7.7 million
short ton
The short ton (symbol tn) is a measurement unit equal to . It is commonly used in the United States, where it is known simply as a ton,
although the term is ambiguous, the single word being variously used for short, long, and metric ton.
The var ...
s) per annum. Asia's first refinery was set up at Digboi and discoverer of Digboi oilfield was the Assam Railways & Trading Company Limited (AR&T Co. Ltd.), a registered company of London in 1881. One of the biggest public sector oil company of the country
Oil India Ltd.
Oil India Limited (OIL) is a central public sector undertaking under the ownership of Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, Government of India. The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas oversees its operations, with its headquarters in ...
has its plant and headquarters at
Duliajan
Duliajan is an industrial town of Dibrugarh district in the Indian state of Assam located in the upper north-east corner of India. The town is about 45 km east of Dibrugarh City. It is particularly known for its oil related industry, Oil In ...
.
There are several other industries, including a chemical
fertiliser
A fertilizer (American English) or fertiliser (British English; see spelling differences) is any material of natural or synthetic origin that is applied to soil or to plant tissues to supply plant nutrients. Fertilizers may be distinct from ...
plant at
Namrup
Namrup is a small town situated close to the foothills of the Patkai Hills in the extreme southeastern part of Assam, India. The river Dihing or Disang flows through it. Namrup is situated in amidst wet-paddy fields, indigenous Assamese villa ...
,
petrochemical
Petrochemicals (sometimes abbreviated as petchems) are the chemical products obtained from petroleum by refining. Some chemical compounds made from petroleum are also obtained from other fossil fuels, such as coal or natural gas, or renewabl ...
industries in Namrup and Bongaigaon, paper mills at
Jagiroad
Jagiroad is a place located in Mayong Sub-Division, in Morigaon district of Assam state, India. It includes a paper mill (NPM) and World's biggest dry fish market. It was earlier known as Nakhola, but in British Rule of India, due to frequent ...
,
Hindustan Paper Corporation Ltd. Township Area Panchgram and
Jogighopa
Jogighopa is a small town located on the northern bank of the Brahmaputra River in the Bongaigaon district in the state of Assam, India.
Within the city, there are the remains of the five rock cut caves which are assumed to be examples of Mlec ...
, sugar mills in Barua Bamun Gaon, Chargola, Kampur, cement plants in Bokajan and
Badarpur, and a cosmetics plant of
Hindustan Unilever
Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) is a consumer goods company headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra. It is a subsidiary of Unilever, a British company. Its products include foods, beverages, cleaning agents, personal care products, water puri ...
(HUL) at
Doom Dooma. Moreover, there are other industries such as jute mill, textile and yarn mills,
Assam silk
Assam silk denotes the three major types of indigenous wild silks produced in Assam—golden muga, white pat and warm eri silk. The Assam silk industry, now centered in Sualkuchi, is a labor-intensive industry.
History
Assam was well known f ...
, and silk mills. Many of these industries are facing losses and closure due to lack of infrastructure and improper management practices.
Tourism
Wildlife, cultural, and historical destinations have attracted visitors.
Culture
Assamese Culture is traditionally a
hybrid one developed due to assimilation of ethno-cultural groups of Austric, Dravidian, Tibeto-Burman and Tai origin in the past. Therefore, both local elements or the local elements in Sanskritised forms are distinctly found.
The major milestones in the evolution of Assamese culture are:
![Dakhinpat Temple](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fd/Dakhinpat_Temple.jpg)
* Assimilation in the Kamarupa Kingdom for almost 700 years (under the
Varmans for 300 years, Salastambhas and
Palas
A ''palas'' () is a German term for the imposing or prestigious building of a medieval '' Pfalz'' or castle that contained the great hall. Such buildings appeared during the Romanesque period (11th to 13th century) and, according to Thompson ...
for each 200 years).
* Establishment of the
Chutia kingdom
The Chutia Kingdom (also Sadiya) was a late medieval state that developed around Sadiya in present Assam and adjoining areas in Arunachal Pradesh."(T)he Chutiyas seem to have assumed political power in Sadiya and contiguous areas falling ...
in the 12th century in eastern Assam and assimilation for next 400 years.
* Establishment of the
Ahom kingdom in the 13th century CE and assimilation for next 600 years.
* Assimilation in the
Koch Kingdom
The Kamata Kingdom (pron: ˈkʌmətɑ) emerged in western Kamarupa probably when Sandhya, a ruler of Kamarupanagara, moved his capital west to Kamatapur sometime after 1257 CE. Since it originated in the old seat of the Kamarupa kingdom, a ...
(15th–16th century CE) of western Assam and Kachari Kingdom (12th–18th century CE) of central and southern Assam.
*
Vaishnava
Vaishnavism ( sa, वैष्णवसम्प्रदायः, Vaiṣṇavasampradāyaḥ) is one of the major Hindu denominations along with Shaivism, Shaktism, and Smartism. It is also called Vishnuism since it considers Vishnu as the ...
Movement led by
Srimanta Shankardeva
Srimanta Sankardev( শ্ৰীমন্ত শংকৰদেৱ )(; ; 1449–1568) was a 15th–16th century Assamese polymath; a saint-scholar, poet, playwright, dancer, actor, musician, artist social-religious reformer and a figure of im ...
(''Xongkordeu'') and its contribution and cultural changes. The Vaishanava Movement, the 15th century religio-cultural movement under the leadership of
Srimanta Sankardeva (Sonkordeu) and his disciples have provided another dimension to Assamese culture. A renewed Hinduisation in local forms took place, which was initially greatly supported by the Koch and later by the Ahom Kingdoms. The resultant social institutions such as ''
namghar'' and ''
sattra'' (the Vaishnav Monasteries) have become part of the Assamese way of life. The movement contributed greatly towards language, literature, and performing and fine arts.
![Celebrations 1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c6/Celebrations_1.jpg)
The modern culture has been influenced by events in the British and the post-British era. The language was standardised by American
Baptist
Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul c ...
Missionaries
A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...
such as
Nathan Brown,
Dr. Miles Bronson and local pundits such as
Hemchandra Barua
Hemchandra Barua ( as, হেমচন্দ্ৰ বৰুৱা; ''Hêmsôndrô Bôruwa''), also known as Hem Barua was a prominent writer, social reformer of Assamese of the 19th century. He hailed from Sibsagar District of Assam. His fa ...
with the form available in the
Sibsagar
Sivasagar (Pron: or ) ("the sea of Shiva"), is a city in and headquarters of the Sivasagar district, Assam. Sivasagar is situated about 360 kilometers (224 mi) northeast of Guwahati. It is well known for its Ahom palaces and monuments. Si ...
(''Sivasagar'') District (the ex-nerve centre of the Ahom Kingdom).
Increasing efforts of standardisation in the 20th century alienated the localised forms present in different areas and with the less-assimilated
ethno-cultural groups (many source-cultures). However, Assamese culture in its hybrid form and nature is one of the richest, still developing and in true sense is a '
cultural system' with sub-systems. Many source-cultures of the Assamese cultural-system are still surviving either as sub-systems or as sister entities, e.g. the;
Bodo Bodo may refer to:
Ethnicity
* Boro people, an ethno-linguistic group mainly from Northwest Assam, India
* Bodo-Kachari people, an umbrella group from Nepal, India and Bangladesh that includes the Bodo people
Culture and language
* Boro cu ...
or
Karbi or
Mishing. It is important to keep the broader system closer to its roots and at the same time focus on development of the sub-systems.
Some of the common and unique cultural traits in the region are peoples' respect towards
areca-nut and
betel
The betel (''Piper betle'') is a vine of the family Piperaceae, which includes pepper and kava. The betel plant is native to Southeast Asia. It is an evergreen, dioecious perennial, with glossy heart-shaped leaves and white catkins. Betel p ...
leaves, symbolic (
gamosa
The Gamosa or Gamusa is (from Assamese গা (ga) and মোচা (mosa) 'Body wipes or Towel') an article of significance for the indigenous people of Assam, India. It is generally a white rectangular piece of cloth with primarily a red bor ...
, arnai, etc.),
traditional silk garments (e.g.
mekhela chador, traditional dress of Assamese women) and towards forefathers and elderly. Moreover, great hospitality and bamboo culture are common.
Symbols
![Jaapi with Gamosa](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/46/Jaapi_with_Gamosa.jpg)
Symbolism is an ancient cultural practice in Assam and is still a very important part of the Assamese way of life. Various elements are used to represent beliefs, feelings, pride, identity, etc. ''Tamulpan'', ''
Xorai
The ''Xorai'' (), a manufactured bell metal product is one of the traditional symbols of Assam, which is considered as an article of great respect by the people of Assam. In simplistic terms it is an offering tray with a stand at the bottom which ...
'' and ''Gamosa'' are three important symbolic elements in Assamese culture. ''Tamulpan'' (the areca nut and betel leaves) or ''guapan'' (gua from ''kwa'') are considered along with the Gamosa (a typical woven cotton or silk cloth with embroidery) as the offers of devotion, respect and friendship. The Tamulpan-tradition is an ancient one and is being followed since time-immemorial with roots in the aboriginal Austric culture. ''
Xorai
The ''Xorai'' (), a manufactured bell metal product is one of the traditional symbols of Assam, which is considered as an article of great respect by the people of Assam. In simplistic terms it is an offering tray with a stand at the bottom which ...
'' is a traditionally manufactured bell-metal article of great respect and is used as a container-medium while performing respectful offers. Moreover, symbolically many ethno-cultural groups use specific clothes to portray respect and pride.
There were many other symbolic elements and designs, but are now only found in literature, art, sculpture, architecture, etc. or in use today for only religious purposes. The typical designs of ''Assamese-lion'', ''dragon'', and ''flying-lion'' were used for symbolising various purposes and occasions. The archaeological sites such as the Madan Kamdev (c. 9th–10th centuries CE) exhibits mass-scale use of lions, dragon-lions and many other figures of demons to show case power and prosperity. The Vaishnava monasteries and many other architectural sites of the late medieval period display the use of lions and dragons for symbolic effects.
Festivals and traditions
![Ali-ai-ligang](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ad/Ali-ai-ligang.jpg)
There are diversified important traditional festivals in Assam. Bihu is the most important and common and celebrated all over Assam. It is the Assamese new year celebrated in April of the Gregorian calendar.
Christmas
Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...
is observed with great merriment by
Christians
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
of various denominations, including
Catholics
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
and
Protestants
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...
, throughout Assam.
Durga Puja
Durga Puja ( bn, দুর্গা পূজা), also known as Durgotsava or Sharodotsava, is an annual Hindu festival originating in the Indian subcontinent which reveres and pays homage to the Hindu goddess Durga and is also celebrated ...
, a festival introduced and popularised by
Bengalis
Bengalis (singular Bengali bn, বাঙ্গালী/বাঙালি ), also rendered as Bangalee or the Bengali people, are an Indo-Aryan peoples, Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group originating from and culturally affiliated with the ...
, is widely celebrated across the state. Muslims celebrate two Eids (
Eid ul-Fitr and
Eid al-Adha
Eid al-Adha () is the second and the larger of the two main holidays celebrated in Islam (the other being Eid al-Fitr). It honours the willingness of Ibrahim (Abraham) to sacrifice his son Ismail (Ishmael) as an act of obedience to Allah's co ...
) with much eagerness all over Assam.
Bihu
Bihu is a set of three important Assamese festivals in the Indian state of Assam – 'Rongali' or 'Bohag Bihu' observed in April, 'Kongali' or 'Kati Bihu' observed in October, and 'Bhogali' or 'Magh Bihu' observed in January. The Rongali Bihu i ...
is a series of three prominent festivals. Primarily a non-religious festival celebrated to mark the seasons and the significant points of a cultivator's life over a yearly cycle. Three Bihus, ''rongali'' or ''bohag'', celebrated with the coming of spring and the beginning of the sowing season; ''kongali'' or ''kati'', the barren bihu when the fields are lush but the barns are empty; and the ''
bhogali'' or ''magh'', the thanksgiving when the crops have been harvested and the barns are full. Bihu songs and
Bihu dance
The Bihu dance is an indigenous folk dance from the Indian state of Assam related to the Bihu festival and an important part of Assamese culture. Performed in a group, the Bihu dancers are usually young men and women, and the dancing style is cha ...
are associated to ''rongali'' bihu. The day before the each bihu is known as 'uruka'. The first day of 'rongali bihu' is called 'Goru bihu' (the bihu of the cows), when the cows are taken to the nearby rivers or ponds to be bathed with special care. In recent times the form and nature of celebration has changed with the growth of urban centres.
Bwisagu is one of the popular seasonal festivals of the
Bodos. Bwisagu start of the new year or age. Baisagu is a Boro word which originated from the word "Baisa" which means year or age, and "Agu" that means starting or start.
Beshoma is a festival of Deshi people. It is a celebration of sowing crop. The Beshoma starts on the last day of Chaitra and goes on until the sixth of Baisakh. With varying locations it is also called ''Bishma'' or ''Chait-Boishne.''
Bushu Dima or simply Bushu is a major harvest festival of the
Dimasa people. This festival is celebrated during the end of January. Officially 27 January has been declared as the day of Bushu Dima festival. The Dimasa people celebrate their festival by playing musical instruments- khram (a type of drum), muri (a kind of huge long flute). The people dances to the different tunes called "murithai" and each dance has got its name, the prominent being the "Baidima" There are three types of Bushu celebrated among the Dimasas Jidap, Surem and Hangsou.
Chavang Kut is a post harvesting festival of the
Kuki people
The Kuki people are an ethnic group native to the Mizo Hills (formerly Lushai), a mountainous region in the southeastern part of Mizoram and Manipur in India. The Kuki constitute one of several hill tribes within India, Bangladesh, and Myanma ...
. The festival is celebrated on the first day of November every year. Hence, this particular day has been officially declared as a Restricted Holiday by the Assam government. In the past, the celebration was primarily important in the religio-cultural sense. The rhythmic movements of the dances in the festival were inspired by animals, agricultural techniques and showed their relationship with ecology. Today, the celebration witnesses the shifting of stages and is revamped to suit new contexts and interpretations. The traditional dances which form the core of the festival is now performed in out-of-village settings and are staged in a secular public sphere. In Assam, the Kukis mainly reside in the two autonomous districts of Dima Hasao and Karbi Anglong.
Moreover, there are other important traditional festivals being celebrated every year on different occasions at different places. Many of these are celebrated by different ethno-cultural groups (sub and sister cultures). Some of these are:
Other few yearly celebrations are Doul Utsav of Barpeta,
Brahmaputra Beach Festival, Guwahati,
Kaziranga Elephant Festival
The Kaziranga Elephant Festival is a yearly elephant festival held in the Kaziranga National Park of Assam for the conservation and protection of Asiatic elephant. The festival is jointly organised by the Forest Department and Tourism Department ...
, Kaziranga and
Dehing Patkai Festival, Lekhapani, Karbi Youth Festival of Diphu and International Jatinga Festival,
Jatinga
Jatinga (Pron: ʤʌˈtɪŋgə or ʤæˈtɪŋgə ), a village on a ridge, is located in Dima Hasao district, Assam, India. It is south of Guwahati The village is inhabited by about 2,500 Khasi-Pnar people and a few Assamese.
Jatinga, Assam h ...
can not be forgotten. Few yearly ''Mela's'' like
Jonbeel Mela
Jonbeel Mela (pron:ˈʤɒnˌbi:l ˈmeɪlə) (Tiwa: Chunbîl Melâ) is a three-day annual indigenous Tiwa Community fair held the weekend of Magh Bihu at a historic place known as Dayang Belguri at Joonbeel. It is 3 km from Jagiroad in Mori ...
, began in the 15th century by the Ahom Kings,
Ambubachi Mela
The Ambubachi Mela () is an annual Hindu mela (gathering) held at Kamakhya Temple in Guwahati, Assam. This yearly mela is celebrated during the monsoon season that happens to fall during the Assamese month '' Ahaar'', around the middle of Ju ...
, Guwahati etc.
Lachit Divas' is celebrated to promote the ideals of Lachit Borphukan – the legendary general of Assam's history. Sarbananda Sonowal, the chief minister of Assam took part in the Lachit Divas celebration at the statue of Lachit Borphukan at Brahmaputra riverfront on 24 November 2017.
He said, the first countrywide celebration of 'Lachit Divas' would take place in New Delhi followed by state capitals such as Hyderabad, Bangalore and Kolkata in a phased manner.
Music, dance, and drama
File:Sattriya by Dancer Meenakshi Medhi.JPG, Sattriya Dance
File:Bodo dance.jpg, Bodo dance Bagurumba
File:Tea Tribe Dance of Assam.jpg, Jhumair dance in Tea garden
File:Lukobadya nagara.jpg, Nagara
File:Dr. Bhupen Hazarika, Assam, India.jpg, Bhupen Hazarika
Bhupen Hazarika () (8 September 1926 – 5 November 2011) was an Indian playback singer, lyricist, musician, poet, actor, filmmaker and politician from Assam, widely known as ''Sudha Kontho'' (meaning cuckoo, literally "nectar-throated"). His ...
File:Bihu dance of Assam.jpg, Assamese youth performing Bihu Dance
File:Statue of Kalaguru, Rupkonwar and Natasurjya at Guwahati (Side view).JPG, Statue of Bishnu Prasad Rabha
Bishnu Prasad Rabha was an cultural figure from Assam, known for his contributions in the fields of music, dance, painting, literature as well as political activism. As an advocate of people's cultural movement, he drew heavily from different ...
, Jyoti Prasad Agarwala
Jyoti Prasad Agarwala (2 July 1903 – 17 January 1951) was a noted Indian playwright, songwriter, poet, writer and film maker from Assam. He was considered as Assamese cultural icon, deeply revered for his creative vision and output and is pop ...
and Phani Sarma
Phani Sarma (1910–1970) was an Indian theatre actor, playwright, film actor and director. Beginning as a stage actor, he appeared in the first film ever made in Assamese cinema, '' Joymati'', in 1935. Sarma was conferred with the title "Natasu ...
at District Library, Guwahati.
![Assamese mythological play](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5c/Assamese_mythological_play_%22Surjya_Mandirot_Surjyasta%22.jpg)
Performing arts include: ''
Ankia Naat
Ankia Naats ( as, অংকীয়া নাট) are a class of one act plays performed in Assam, India. The invention of the Ankia Naat is usually attributed to the medieval saint and social reformer Srimanta Sankardeva. These plays were writt ...
'' (''Onkeeya Naat''), a traditional Vaishnav dance-drama (''
Bhaona
Bhaona ( as, ভাওনা) is a traditional form of entertainment, with religious messages, prevalent is Assam, India. It is a creation of Mahapurusha Srimanta Sankardeva, written in the early sixteenth century. He created the form to conve ...
'') popular since the 15th century CE. It makes use of large masks of gods, goddesses, demons and animals and in between the plays a ''Sutradhar'' (''Xutrodhar'') continues to narrate the story.
Besides
Bihu dance
The Bihu dance is an indigenous folk dance from the Indian state of Assam related to the Bihu festival and an important part of Assamese culture. Performed in a group, the Bihu dancers are usually young men and women, and the dancing style is cha ...
and ''Huchory'' performed during the
Bohag Bihu
Bohag Bihu or Rongali Bihu ( as, ব’হাগ বিহু বা ৰঙালী বিহু) also called ''Xaat Bihu'' ( as, সাত বিহু) (seven Bihus) is a traditional ethnic festival celebrated in the Northeastern Indian sta ...
, dance forms of tribal minorities such as; ''Kushan nritra'' of Rajbongshi's, ''
Bagurumba
The Bagurumba () is a traditional dance of the indigenous Boro people living in the State of Assam and North East India. It is also called butterfly dance because it's personification of movements of butterflies and birds. In this occasion, onl ...
'' and ''Bordoicikhla'' dance of
Bodos, Mishing Bihu, ''Banjar Kekan'' performed during ''Chomangkan'' by
Karbis,
Jhumair
Jhumair or Jhumar is an Indian folk dance from the Indian states of Jharkhand, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Bihar and West Bengal. It is folk dance of Sadan, the Indo-Aryan ethnic groups of Chotanagpur. It is mainly performed during harvest season.
...
of
Tea-garden community are some of the major folk dances. ''
Sattriya
''Sattriya'' ( as, সত্ৰীয়া), or ''Sattriya Nritya'', is a major Indian classical dance. This dance was initially created as part of Bhaona which are performances of '' Ankiya Nat'', one-act plays, originally created by Sankar ...
'' (''Sotriya'') dance related to Vaishnav tradition is a classical form of dance. Moreover, there are several other age-old dance-forms such as Barpeta's ''Bhortal Nritya'',
Deodhani Nritya, ''
Ojapali
Ojapali is a traditional shamanistic type of indigenous folk dance from Assam in the northeastern region of India. Ojapali is believed to have evolved from Kathakata tradition and is performed in a group; it is believed to be one of the oldest ...
'', ''Beula Dance'', ''Ka Shad Inglong Kardom'', ''Nimso Kerung'', etc. The tradition of modern moving theatres is typical of Assam with immense popularity of many
Mobile theatre groups such as
Kohinoor, Sankardev, Abahan, Bhagyadevi, Hengul,
Brindabon, Itihas etc.
The indigenous folk music has influenced the growth of a modern idiom, that finds expression in the music of artists like
Jyoti Prasad Agarwala
Jyoti Prasad Agarwala (2 July 1903 – 17 January 1951) was a noted Indian playwright, songwriter, poet, writer and film maker from Assam. He was considered as Assamese cultural icon, deeply revered for his creative vision and output and is pop ...
,
Bishnuprasad Rabha
Bishnu Prasad Rabha was an cultural figure from Assam, known for his contributions in the fields of music, dance, painting, literature as well as political activism. As an advocate of people's cultural movement, he drew heavily from different ...
,
Parvati Prasad Baruwa
Parvati Prasad Baruva (1904–1964) was a noted poet, lyricist, and dramatist: an icon of Assamese literature and the culture of Assam. Known for his simple and sensitive use of the Assamese language, he is popularly known as the ''Geetikavi''; ...
,
Bhupen Hazarika
Bhupen Hazarika () (8 September 1926 – 5 November 2011) was an Indian playback singer, lyricist, musician, poet, actor, filmmaker and politician from Assam, widely known as ''Sudha Kontho'' (meaning cuckoo, literally "nectar-throated"). His ...
,
Pratima Barua Pandey
Pratima Barua Pandey (3 October 1934 – 27 December 2002) was an Indian folk singer from the royal family of Gauripur in Western Assam's Dhubri district. Barua Pandey, a national awardee, best known for her Goalpariya (Koch Rajbongsh ...
,
Anima Choudhury,
Luit Konwar Rudra Baruah,
Jayanta Hazarika
Jayanta Hazarika (20 September 1943 – 15 October 1977) was an Indian singer and composer associated with Assamese music. He wrote lyrics for a few songs and composed music for several movies. He was the younger brother of Bhupen Hazarika.
Pop ...
,
Khagen Mahanta
Khagen Mahanta was a singer and composer of folk and traditional music of Assam. Khagen Mahanta was a notable person in Assamese folk music and known as the "King of Bihu". His Bihu songs, Borgeet and other folk songs remain popular in Assam. T ...
,
Dipali Barthakur
Dipali Barthakur (30 January 1941 – 21 December 2018) was an Indian singer from Assam. Her songs were sung mainly in the Assamese language. She received the fourth-highest civilian award of India, the Padma Shri, in the year 1998.
Early life
...
, ''Ganashilpi'' Dilip Sarma, Sudakshina Sarma among many others. Among the new generation,
Zubeen Garg
Zubeen Garg (born Zubeen Borthakur; 18 November 1972) is an Indian singer, music director, composer, lyricist, music producer, actor, film director, film producer, script writer and philanthropist. He primarily works for and sings in the Assa ...
,
Jitul Sonowal
Jitul Sonowal ( as, জিতুল সোণোৱাল; born in Dibrugarh Assam) is an Indian singer, music director, composer, lyricist and entertainer in the field of Assamese modern song and music since 1988.
He filtered the Assamese so ...
,
Angaraag Mahanta
Angaraag Mahanta (born 24 November 1975), known by his stagename Papon, is an Indian playback singer, composer and record producer from Assam. Papon has also sung in many languages apart from Assamese like Hindi, Bengali, Tamil and Mar ...
and
Joi Barua
Joi Barua ( as, জয় বৰুৱা) is an Indian singer and music composer. Born in Digboi, Assam, he started his career by singing advertising jingles and later did playback singing for Hindi, Assamese and Telugu films. He is also the l ...
.
There is an award given in the honour of
Bishnu Prasad Rabha
Bishnu Prasad Rabha was an cultural figure from Assam, known for his contributions in the fields of music, dance, painting, literature as well as political activism. As an advocate of people's cultural movement, he drew heavily from different ...
for achievements in the cultural/music world of Assam by the state government.
Cuisine
![GHOST CHILLY CHICKEN](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e4/GHOST_CHILLY_CHICKEN.jpg)
Typically, an Assamese meal consists of many things such as ''
bhat
Bhat (also spelled as Bhatt or Butt) is a surname in the Indian subcontinent. Bhat and Bhatt are shortened rendition of Bhatta.
Etymology
The word "Bhat" ( sa, भट, ) means "teacher" in Sanskrit. While the original shortened rendition of "Bh ...
'' (
rice
Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima
''Oryza glaberrima'', commonly known as African rice, is one of the two domesticated rice species. It was first domesticated and grown i ...
) with ''dayl/ daly'' (
lentils
The lentil (''Lens culinaris'' or ''Lens esculenta'') is an edible legume. It is an annual plant known for its lens-shaped seeds. It is about tall, and the seeds grow in pods, usually with two seeds in each. As a food crop, the largest produ ...
), ''masor jool'' (
fish
Fish are aquatic, craniate, gill-bearing animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish as well as various extinct related groups. Approximately 95% of li ...
stew), ''mangxô'' (
meat
Meat is animal flesh that is eaten as food. Humans have hunted, farmed, and scavenged animals for meat since prehistoric times. The establishment of settlements in the Neolithic Revolution allowed the domestication of animals such as chic ...
stew
A stew is a combination of solid food ingredients that have been cooked in liquid and served in the resultant gravy. A stew needs to have raw ingredients added to the gravy. Ingredients in a stew can include any combination of vegetables and ...
) and stir fried
greens or
herbs
In general use, herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding vegetables and other plants consumed for macronutrients, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicinal ...
and
vegetables
Vegetables are parts of plants that are consumed by humans or other animals as food. The original meaning is still commonly used and is applied to plants collectively to refer to all edible plant matter, including the flowers, fruits, stems, ...
.
The two main characteristics of a traditional meal in Assam are ''
khar Khar may refer to:
Places
* Khar, Mumbai, a suburb of Mumbai, India
* Khar, Punjab, a town in the Punjab Province, Pakistan
* Khar, Bajaur, a town in the Bajaur Agency of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, Pakistan
* Khar, Nepal, a village ...
'' (an Alkali, named after its main ingredient) and ''tenga'' (Preparations bearing a characteristically
rich
Rich may refer to:
Common uses
* Rich, an entity possessing wealth
* Rich, an intense flavor, color, sound, texture, or feeling
** Rich (wine), a descriptor in wine tasting
Places United States
* Rich, Mississippi, an unincorporated commun ...
and
tangy flavour). ''Khorika'' is the smoked or fire grilled meat eaten with meals. Commonly consumed varieties of
meat
Meat is animal flesh that is eaten as food. Humans have hunted, farmed, and scavenged animals for meat since prehistoric times. The establishment of settlements in the Neolithic Revolution allowed the domestication of animals such as chic ...
include
Mutton
Lamb, hogget, and mutton, generically sheep meat, are the meat of domestic sheep, ''Ovis aries''. A sheep in its first year is a lamb and its meat is also lamb. The meat from sheep in their second year is hogget. Older sheep meat is mutton. Gen ...
,
fowl
Fowl are birds belonging to one of two biological orders, namely the gamefowl or landfowl (Galliformes) and the waterfowl (Anseriformes). Anatomical and molecular similarities suggest these two groups are close evolutionary relatives; together ...
,
duck
Duck is the common name for numerous species of waterfowl in the family Anatidae. Ducks are generally smaller and shorter-necked than swans and geese, which are members of the same family. Divided among several subfamilies, they are a form t ...
/
goose
A goose ( : geese) is a bird of any of several waterfowl species in the family Anatidae. This group comprises the genera ''Anser'' (the grey geese and white geese) and '' Branta'' (the black geese). Some other birds, mostly related to the ...
,
fish
Fish are aquatic, craniate, gill-bearing animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish as well as various extinct related groups. Approximately 95% of li ...
,
pigeon
Columbidae () is a bird family consisting of doves and pigeons. It is the only family in the order Columbiformes. These are stout-bodied birds with short necks and short slender bills that in some species feature fleshy ceres. They primarily ...
,
pork
Pork is the culinary name for the meat of the domestic pig (''Sus domesticus''). It is the most commonly consumed meat worldwide, with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BCE.
Pork is eaten both freshly cooked and preserved; ...
and
beef
Beef is the culinary name for meat from cattle (''Bos taurus'').
In prehistoric times, humankind hunted aurochs and later domesticated them. Since that time, numerous breeds of cattle have been bred specifically for the quality or quantit ...
(among
Muslim
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
and
Christian
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
indigenous Assamese ethnic groups).
Grasshoppers
Grasshoppers are a group of insects belonging to the suborder Caelifera. They are among what is possibly the most ancient living group of chewing herbivorous insects, dating back to the early Triassic around 250 million years ago.
Grasshop ...
,
locusts,
silkworms
The domestic silk moth (''Bombyx mori''), is an insect from the moth family Bombycidae. It is the closest relative of ''Bombyx mandarina'', the wild silk moth. The silkworm is the larva or caterpillar of a silk moth. It is an economically im ...
,
snails
A snail is, in loose terms, a shelled gastropod. The name is most often applied to land snails, terrestrial pulmonate gastropod molluscs. However, the common name ''snail'' is also used for most of the members of the molluscan class Gastro ...
,
eels
Eels are ray-finned fish belonging to the order Anguilliformes (), which consists of eight suborders, 19 families, 111 genera, and about 800 species. Eels undergo considerable development from the early larval stage to the eventual adult stage ...
, wild
fowl
Fowl are birds belonging to one of two biological orders, namely the gamefowl or landfowl (Galliformes) and the waterfowl (Anseriformes). Anatomical and molecular similarities suggest these two groups are close evolutionary relatives; together ...
,
squab
In culinary terminology, squab is an immature domestic pigeon, typically under four weeks old, or its meat. The meat is widely described as tasting like dark chicken. The term is probably of Scandinavian origin; the Swedish word ''skvabb'' mean ...
and other birds,
venison
Venison originally meant the meat of a game animal but now refers primarily to the meat of antlered ungulates such as elk or deer (or antelope in South Africa). Venison can be used to refer to any part of the animal, so long as it is edible, ...
are also eaten, albeit in moderation.
''Khorisa'' (fermented
bamboo shoots
Bamboo shoots or bamboo sprouts are the edible shoots (new bamboo culms that come out of the ground) of many bamboo species including ''Bambusa vulgaris'' and ''Phyllostachys edulis''. They are used as vegetables in numerous Asian dishes and b ...
) are used at times to flavour curries while they can also be preserved and made into pickles. ''Koldil'' (
banana flower
A banana is an elongated, edible fruit – botanically a berry – produced by several kinds of large herbaceous flowering plants in the genus ''Musa''. In some countries, bananas used for cooking may be called "plantains", distinguis ...
) and
squash
Squash may refer to:
Sports
* Squash (sport), the high-speed racquet sport also known as squash racquets
* Squash (professional wrestling), an extremely one-sided match in professional wrestling
* Squash tennis, a game similar to squash but pla ...
are also used in popular culinary preparations.
A variety of different rice cultivars are grown and consumed in different ways, viz., roasted, ground, boiled or just soaked.
Fish curries made of
free range
Free range denotes a method of farming husbandry where the animals, for at least part of the day, can roam freely outdoors, rather than being confined in an enclosure for 24 hours each day.
On many farms, the outdoors ranging area is fenced, ...
wild
Wild, wild, wilds or wild may refer to:
Common meanings
* Wild animal
* Wilderness, a wild natural environment
* Wildness, the quality of being wild or untamed
Art, media and entertainment Film and television
* ''Wild'' (2014 film), a 2014 A ...
fish
Fish are aquatic, craniate, gill-bearing animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish as well as various extinct related groups. Approximately 95% of li ...
as well as ''Bôralí'', ''rôu'', ''illish'', or ''sitôl'' are the most popular.
Another favourite combination is ''
luchi
Luchi ( bn, লুচি) or Lusi ( as, লুচি) is a deep-fried flatbread, made of Maida flour, originating from the Bengal region. Luchi is especially popular in the Indian states of Assam, Odisha, West Bengal and Tripura and in the ...
'' (fried flatbread), a curry which can be vegetarian or non-vegetarian.
Many indigenous Assamese communities households still continue to brew their traditional alcoholic
beverages
A drink or beverage is a liquid intended for human consumption. In addition to their basic function of satisfying thirst, drinks play important roles in human culture. Common types of drinks include plain drinking water, milk, juice, smoothies ...
; examples include: Laupani, Xaaj, Paniyo, Jou, Joumai, Hor, Apang, etc. Such beverages are served during traditional festivities. Declining them is considered socially offensive.
The food is often served in
bell metal dishes and platters like ''Kanhi'', ''Maihang'' and so on.
Literature
![Sankaradeva](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8e/Sankaradeva.jpg)
Assamese literature dates back to the composition of
Charyapada
The Charyapada (IAST: Caryapāda, Assamese/Bengali: চর্যাপদ) is a collection of mystical poems, songs of realization in the Vajrayana tradition of Buddhism from the tantric tradition in Assam, Bengal, Bihar and Odisha.
It was w ...
, and later on works like
Saptakanda Ramayana ''Saptakanda Ramayana'' (Assamese: সপ্তকাণ্ড ৰামায়ণ) is the 14th-15th century Assamese version of the ''Ramayana'' attributed to the famous assamese poet Madhava Kandali. It is considered to be the second translati ...
by
Madhava Kandali
Kaviraja Madhava Kandali ( as, মাধৱ কন্দলি) (circa. 14th century) was an Indian poet from the state of Assam. He is one of the renowned poets pertaining to the Pre- Shankara era. His Saptakanda Ramayana is considered the earl ...
, which is the first translation of the
Ramayana
The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th ...
into an
Indo-Aryan language
The Indo-Aryan languages (or sometimes Indic languages) are a branch of the Indo-Iranian languages in the Indo-European language family. As of the early 21st century, they have more than 800 million speakers, primarily concentrated in India, Pa ...
, contributed to Assamese literature.
Sankardev
Srimanta Sankardev( শ্ৰীমন্ত শংকৰদেৱ )(; ; 1449–1568) was a 15th–16th century Assamese polymath; a saint-scholar, poet, playwright, dancer, actor, musician, artist social-religious reformer and a figure of im ...
a's
Borgeet
Borgeets ( as, বৰগীত, lit=songs celestial, translit=Borgeet) are a collection of lyrical songs that are set to specific ragas but not necessarily to any tala. These songs, composed by Srimanta Sankardeva and Madhavdeva in the 15th ...
,
Ankia Naat
Ankia Naats ( as, অংকীয়া নাট) are a class of one act plays performed in Assam, India. The invention of the Ankia Naat is usually attributed to the medieval saint and social reformer Srimanta Sankardeva. These plays were writt ...
,
Bhaona
Bhaona ( as, ভাওনা) is a traditional form of entertainment, with religious messages, prevalent is Assam, India. It is a creation of Mahapurusha Srimanta Sankardeva, written in the early sixteenth century. He created the form to conve ...
and
Satra
Satra Corporation was a US trading and metal processing company. It is primarily known in the United Kingdom for its Satra Motors Limited subsidiary, which was the official importer and distributor of Soviet Union cars and motorcycles in that co ...
tradition backed the 15th-16th century Assamese literature. Written during the Reign of
Ahoms, the
Buranjis are notable literary works which are prominently historical manuscripts. Most literary works are written in Assamese although other local language such as
Bodo Bodo may refer to:
Ethnicity
* Boro people, an ethno-linguistic group mainly from Northwest Assam, India
* Bodo-Kachari people, an umbrella group from Nepal, India and Bangladesh that includes the Bodo people
Culture and language
* Boro cu ...
and
Dimasa are also represented. In the 19th and 20th century, Assamese and other literature was modernised by authors including
Lakshminath Bezbaroa
'
Lakshminath Bezbarua (, 14 October 1864), was an Assamese poet, novelist and playwright of modern Assamese literature. He was one of the literary stalwarts of the Jonaki Era, the age of romanticism in Assamese literature when through his e ...
,
Birinchi Kumar Barua
Birinchi Kumar Barua (16 October 1908 in Puranigudam, Nagaon, Assam, India – 30 March 1964) was a folklorist, scholar, novelist, playwright, historian, linguist, educationist, administrator and eminent 20th century littérateur of Assam, with ...
,
Hem Barua
Hem Barua (Assamese: হেম বৰুৱা) was a prominent Assamese poet and politician from Assam.
Early life
Born on 22 April 1915, at Tezpur, Hem Barua obtained his M.A. degree from Calcutta University in 1938 and joined the J.B. Co ...
,
Dr. Mamoni Raisom Goswami,
Bhabendra Nath Saikia
Bhabendra Nath Saikia (20 February 1932 – 13 August 2003) was a novelist, short-story writer, Editor and a Film director from Assam, India. Dr. Saikia received his doctorate in physics from the University of London. He began his career as a ...
,
Birendra Kumar Bhattacharya
Birendra Kumar Bhattacharya (14 October 1924 – 6 August 1997) was an Indian writer. He was one of the pioneers of modern Assamese literature. He was the first ever Assamese writer to receive the Jnanpith Award, which was awarded to him in t ...
,
Hiren Bhattacharyya
Hiren Bhattacharyya (28 July 1932 – 4 July 2012), popularly known as Hiruda, was an Indian poet and lyricist best for his works in the Assamese literature. He had innumerable works published in Assamese and achieved many prizes and accolade ...
,
Homen Borgohain
Homen Borgohain (7 December 1932 – 12 May 2021) was an Assamese author and journalist. He was awarded the 1978 Sahitya Akademi Award in Assamese language for his novel ''Pita Putra''. He was also the President of Assam Sahitya Sabha from 20 ...
,
Bhabananda Deka
Prof Bhabananda Deka (19 August 1929 – 4 December 2006) was a pioneer Assam economist and author who conducted novel research on the economy of the far eastern part of India. He was also a leading Indian-Assamese litterateur of the famed 'Awah ...
,
Rebati Mohan Dutta Choudhury,
Mahim Bora,
Lil Bahadur Chettri
Lil Bahadur Chettri () is an Indian writer in the Nepali language from Assam, India. He is a recipient of Sahitya Academy Award for his book ''Brahmaputrako Chheu Chhau''. His other book ''Basain'' is a story of poor villagers who undergo suffe ...
,
Syed Abdul Malik,
Surendranath Medhi,
Hiren Gohain
Hiren Gohain (born 1939) is a scholar, writer, literary critic, and social scientist from the Indian state of Assam.
Academic life
Gohain studied in Cotton College, and did his graduation from Presidency College, Calcutta and then moved to ...
etc.
Fine arts
The archaic
Mauryan
The Maurya Empire, or the Mauryan Empire, was a geographically extensive Iron Age historical power in the Indian subcontinent based in Magadha, having been founded by Chandragupta Maurya in 322 BCE, and existing in loose-knit fashion until ...
Stupas
A stupa ( sa, स्तूप, lit=heap, ) is a mound-like or hemispherical structure containing relics (such as ''śarīra'' – typically the remains of Buddhist monks or nuns) that is used as a place of meditation.
In Buddhism, circumamb ...
discovered in and around
Goalpara district
Goalpara district is an administrative district of the Indian state of Assam.
History
It was a princely state ruled by the Koch kings and the then ruler of the undivided kingdom. Today the erstwhile Goalpara district is divided into Kokrajha ...
are the earliest examples (c. 300 BCE to c. 100 CE) of ancient art and architectural works. The remains discovered in Daparvatiya (''Doporboteeya'') archaeological site with a beautiful doorframe in Tezpur are identified as the best examples of artwork in ancient Assam with influence of
Sarnath
Sarnath (Hindustani pronunciation: aːɾnaːtʰ also referred to as Sarangnath, Isipatana, Rishipattana, Migadaya, or Mrigadava) is a place located northeast of Varanasi, near the confluence of the Ganges and the Varuna rivers in Uttar Pr ...
School of Art of the late
Gupta
Gupta () is a common surname or last name of Indian origin. It is based on the Sanskrit word गोप्तृ ''goptṛ'', which means 'guardian' or 'protector'. According to historian R. C. Majumdar, the surname ''Gupta'' was adopted by se ...
period.
Painting is an ancient tradition of Assam.
Xuanzang
Xuanzang (, ; 602–664), born Chen Hui / Chen Yi (), also known as Hiuen Tsang, was a 7th-century Chinese Buddhist monk, scholar, traveler, and translator. He is known for the epoch-making contributions to Chinese Buddhism, the travelogue of ...
(7th century CE) mentions that among the Kamarupa king Bhaskaravarma's gifts to
Harshavardhana
Harshavardhana (IAST Harṣa-vardhana; c. 590–647 CE) was a Pushyabhuti emperor who ruled northern India from 606 to 647 CE. He was the son of Prabhakaravardhana who had defeated the Alchon Huna invaders, and the younger brother of Rajya ...
there were paintings and painted objects, some of which were on Assamese silk. Many of the manuscripts such as
Hastividyarnava (A Treatise on Elephants), the ''Chitra Bhagawata'' and in the Gita Govinda from the Middle Ages bear excellent examples of traditional paintings.
Traditional crafts
Assam has a rich tradition of
crafts
A craft or trade is a pastime or an occupation that requires particular skills and knowledge of skilled work. In a historical sense, particularly the Middle Ages and earlier, the term is usually applied to people occupied in small scale prod ...
,
Cane
Cane or caning may refer to:
*Walking stick or walking cane, a device used primarily to aid walking
*Assistive cane, a walking stick used as a mobility aid for better balance
*White cane, a mobility or safety device used by many people who are b ...
and bamboo craft, bell metal and
brass
Brass is an alloy of copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn), in proportions which can be varied to achieve different mechanical, electrical, and chemical properties. It is a substitutional alloy: atoms of the two constituents may replace each other with ...
craft, silk and cotton
weaving
Weaving is a method of textile production in which two distinct sets of yarns or threads are interlaced at right angles to form a fabric or cloth. Other methods are knitting, crocheting, felting, and braiding or plaiting. The longitudinal th ...
, toy and
mask
A mask is an object normally worn on the face, typically for protection, disguise, performance, or entertainment and often they have been employed for rituals and rights. Masks have been used since antiquity for both ceremonial and practic ...
making,
pottery
Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other ceramic materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. Major types include earthenware, stoneware and por ...
and
terracotta
Terracotta, terra cotta, or terra-cotta (; ; ), in its material sense as an earthenware substrate, is a clay-based ceramic glaze, unglazed or glazed ceramic where the pottery firing, fired body is porous.
In applied art, craft, construction, a ...
work, wood craft,
jewellery
Jewellery ( UK) or jewelry (U.S.) consists of decorative items worn for personal adornment, such as brooches, rings, necklaces, earrings, pendants, bracelets, and cufflinks. Jewellery may be attached to the body or the clothes. From a wester ...
making, and musical instruments making have remained as major traditions.
Cane and bamboo craft provide the most commonly used utilities in daily life, ranging from household utilities, weaving accessories, fishing accessories, furniture, musical instruments, construction materials, etc. Utilities and symbolic articles such as ''Sorai'' and ''Bota'' made from bell metal and brass are found in every Assamese household.
Hajo
Hajo is a historic town set in the hills northwest of Guwahati, Assam, India. It is a meeting point of Buddhists, Hindus and Muslims due to the various pilgrimage sites on the different hills of Hajo. To the Hindus, the Manikut Parbat of Hajo ...
and
Sarthebari
Sarthebari (IPA:ˌsɑ:θəˈbɑ:rɪ) is a town and a town area committee in Bajali district in the Indian state of Assam. Sarthebari is home to the bell metal industry, the second largest handicraft of assam after bamboo craft. The nearby villag ...
(''Sorthebaary'') are the most important centres of traditional bell-metal and brass crafts. Assam is the home of several types of silks, the most prestigious are: Muga – the natural golden silk, Pat – a creamy-bright-silver coloured silk and Eri – a variety used for manufacturing warm clothes for winter. Apart from
Sualkuchi (''Xualkuchi''), the centre for the traditional silk industry, in almost every parts of the Brahmaputra Valley, rural households produce silk and silk garments with excellent embroidery designs. Moreover, various ethno-cultural groups in Assam make different types of cotton garments with unique embroidery designs and wonderful colour combinations.
Moreover, Assam possesses unique crafts of toy and mask making mostly concentrated in the Vaishnav Monasteries, pottery and
terracotta
Terracotta, terra cotta, or terra-cotta (; ; ), in its material sense as an earthenware substrate, is a clay-based ceramic glaze, unglazed or glazed ceramic where the pottery firing, fired body is porous.
In applied art, craft, construction, a ...
work in western Assam districts and wood craft, iron craft, jewellery, etc. in many places across the region.
File:Lil Bahadur Chettri.jpg, Lil Bahadur Chettri
Lil Bahadur Chettri () is an Indian writer in the Nepali language from Assam, India. He is a recipient of Sahitya Academy Award for his book ''Brahmaputrako Chheu Chhau''. His other book ''Basain'' is a story of poor villagers who undergo suffe ...
File:Citra Bhagavata illustration 1.jpg, Citra Bhagavata illustration
File:Art hastividyarnava 2.jpg, A folio from the Hastividyarnava manuscript
File:Citra Bhagavata illustration 2.jpg,
File:Assam Xorai.png, Bell metal made sorai and sophura are important parts of culture
File:Assam Knahor Knahi.jpg, Assam Kahor ( Bell metal) Kahi
Media
Print media include Assamese dailies ''
Amar Asom
The ''Amar Asom'' ( Assamese: আমাৰ অসম) is an Assamese daily newspaper published by G. L. Publications Ltd. After the exit of Homen Borgohain as the Editor-in-chief, this newspaper tries to maintain its stand by siding with peopl ...
'', ''
Asomiya Khabar
''Asomiya Khabar'' ( Assamese: অসমীয়া খবৰ) (or ''Oxomiya Khobor'') is an Assamese daily newspaper published simultaneously from Guwahati
Guwahati (, ; formerly rendered Gauhati, ) is the biggest city of the Indian sta ...
'', ''
Asomiya Pratidin'', ''
Dainik Agradoot'', ''
Dainik Janambhumi
''Dainik Janambhumi'' ( as, দৈনিক জনমভূমি) is an Indian Assamese-language daily newspaper. This newspaper is published by Janambhumi Group of Publications from Nehru Park, Tulshi Narayan Sharma Path, Jorhat. The newspaper ...
'', ''
Dainik Asam'', ''
Gana Adhikar'', ''
Janasadharan
''Janasadharan'' ( as, জনসাধাৰণ) is an Indian Assamese language daily newspaper. It began publication in 2003. the chief editor of this daily was Dr. Sivanath Barman, a retired physics professor and an Assamese scholar. The head ...
'' and ''
Niyomiya Barta''. ''Asom Bani'', ''Sadin'' and ''Janambhumi'' are Assamese weekly newspapers. The English dailies of Assam include ''
The Assam Tribune
''The Assam Tribune'' is an Indian English daily newspaper published from Guwahati and Dibrugarh, Assam. With over 700,000 copies of current circulation and a readership of over 3 million, it is the highest circulated English daily in northeast ...
'', ''
The Sentinel'', ''
The Telegraph
''The Telegraph'', ''Daily Telegraph'', ''Sunday Telegraph'' and other variant names are popular names for newspapers. Newspapers with these titles include:
Australia
* ''The Telegraph'' (Adelaide), a newspaper in Adelaide, South Australia, publ ...
'', ''
The Times of India
''The Times of India'', also known by its abbreviation ''TOI'', is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by The Times Group. It is the third-largest newspaper in India by circulation and largest ...
'', ''
The North East Times
''The North East Times'' is CA-certified widely circulated English daily newspaper in the entire North Eastern region of India. RNI , Reg. No.51137/1991 , Name: THE NORTH EAST TIMES , Link: http://rni.nic.in/registerdtitle_search/registeredt ...
'', ''Eastern Chronicle'' and ''The Hills Times''. ''
Thekar
Thekar is a Karbi daily newspaper published from Diphu, Assam. It is the highest circulated Karbi daily in North East India. As of 2008, it was one of the only two Karbi-language dailies in Karbi Anglong district, The Thekar has wide reach among ...
'', in the Karbi language has the largest circulation of any daily from Karbi Anglong district. ''Bodosa'' has the highest circulation of any Bodo daily from BTR. ''
Dainik Jugasankha'' is a Bengali daily with editions from Dibrugarh, Guwahati, Silchar and Kolkata. ''Dainik Samayik Prasanga'', ''Dainik Prantojyoti'', ''Dainik Janakantha'' and ''Nababarta Prasanga'' are other prominent Bengali dailies published in the Barak Valley towns of Karimganj and Silchar. Hindi dailies include ''Purvanchal Prahari'', ''Pratah Khabar'' and ''Dainik Purvoday''.
Broadcasting stations of
All India Radio
All or ALL may refer to:
Language
* All, an indefinite pronoun in English
* All, one of the English determiners
* Allar language (ISO 639-3 code)
* Allative case (abbreviated ALL)
Music
* All (band), an American punk rock band
* ''All'' (All ...
have been established in 22 cities across the state. Local news and music are the main priority for those stations. Assam has three public service broadcasting service stations of state-owned
Doordarshan
Doordarshan (abbreviated as DD; Hindi: , ) is an Indian public service broadcaster founded by the Government of India, owned by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and one of Prasar Bharati's two divisions. One of India's largest bro ...
at Dibrugarh, Guwahati and Silchar. The Guwahati-based satellite news channels include
Assam Talks
Assam Talks is an Indian Assamese-language news channel based in Guwahati. It is owned by Rockland Media and Communication Pvt Ltd.
Programs
* ''Prime Daily''
* ''Record Kebol Record''
* ''Suparbhat''
* ''Supoti Returns''
* ''Rapid Fire Brea ...
,
DY 365
DY365 is a 24-hour Assamese language, Assamese satellite news channel of Assam, India. The channel broadcasts national and international news, current affairs and various shows. It was launched on 30 October 2008. DY365 is a unit of Brahmaput ...
,
News Live,
News18 Assam-North East
News18 Assam North East is a 24-hour satellite channel of Assam, based in Guwahati, Assam. The channel focuses Assam and other North Eastern states of India, and tagged as News 18 Assam North East. This channel is owned by Network 18 group. ...
,
North East Live
North East Live is a 24-hour satellite news channel of Assam, India broadcasting in English and Hindi, mainly focusing on the North-East India. Northeast Live is the first satellite English news channel covering the eight states of the Northea ...
,
Prag News
Prag News also known as Prag is a 24×7 Assamese news channel. It is the oldest local news channel of Assam owned by A M Television Pvt. Ltd., based in Guwahati. It was launched on 4 March 2001 as a cable-based television channel. The channel co ...
and
Pratidin Time
Pratidin Time is a 24-hour Assamese news channel. The programs of the channel include various infotainment, sports, entertainment, lifestyle, showbiz, fashion, and education.
History
Pratidin Time, is a 24-hour Assamese satellite news channel ...
.
With the internet users, social media based news sites have become popular. Notable among them are North East Today, G Plus, Northeast Now, Time8 etc.
See also
*
*
Outline of Assam – comprehensive topic guide listing articles about Assam.
*
List of people from Assam
This is a list of notable people from Assam, India.
Administrators, diplomats and justices
Academicians and scholars
Performing arts
Actors and models
Film directors
Musicians
Activists
* Kiran Bala Bora, freedom fighter and social ac ...
*
2022 Silchar Floods
Notes
References
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
* Singh, K. S (ed) (2003) ''People of India: Assam Vol XV Parts I and II'', Anthropological Survey of India, Seagull Books, Calcutta
*
*
*
*
Further reading
* Online books and material
*
An account of Assam(1800) by J.P. Wade
*
An account of the kingdom of Heerumba(1819) by Friend of India
*
A statistical account of Assam(1879) by WW Hunter
*
Assam Attitude to Federalism(1984)by Girin Phukon
*
A Glimpse of Assam(1884) by Susan Ward
*
A history of Assam(1906) by Edward Gait
*
Physical and political geography of the province of Assam(1896) by Assam Secretariat Printing Office
*
Outline Grammar of the Kachári (Bārā) Language as Spoken in District Darrang, Assam1884) by Sidney Endle
*
An outline grammar of the Deori Chutiya language spoken in upper Assam1895) by William Barclay Brown
*
Travels and adventures in the province of Assam, during a residence of fourteen years(1855) by John Butler
* Language and literature
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External links
* Government
*
Official siteof the
Government of Assam
The Government of Assam is the subnational government of Assam, a state of India. It consists of the Governor appointed by the President of India as the head of the state, currently Jagdish Mukhi. The head of government is the Chief Minister, ...
*
Official Tourism site of Assam* General information
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{{Authority control
Northeast India
States and union territories of India
States and territories established in 1947
Tourism in Northeast India
English-speaking countries and territories