Tura (IPA: ˈtʊərə) is a municipality in the
West Garo Hills district
West Garo Hills is an administrative district in Garo Hills of the state of Meghalaya in India. Tura town is the administrative headquarters of the district. The district occupies an area of 3714 km². In 2011 its population was 643,291. As ...
of the
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
n state of
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 ...
. One of the largest towns in Meghalaya, Tura is located in the foothills of the Tura range of the Garo Hills. Before Britishers came to Garo Hills, Tura was known as Dura and Britishers corrupted the name Dura to Tura as it was easier for them to pronounce the name. The climate in Tura is moderate throughout the year and has many interesting and unexplored areas. The native god
Durama was believed to reside in the hills.
It is 220 kilometres from the nearest city
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 ...
and is also the district headquarter of the
West Garo Hills district
West Garo Hills is an administrative district in Garo Hills of the state of Meghalaya in India. Tura town is the administrative headquarters of the district. The district occupies an area of 3714 km². In 2011 its population was 643,291. As ...
. It is filled with small rivulets and green valleys all around. The principal languages are
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 ...
and
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
. The city has four colleges and multiple secondary schools. In 1973, the town was made the seat of the
Roman Catholic Diocese of Tura
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Tura ( la, Dioecesis Turana) is a diocese located in the city of Tura in the Ecclesiastical province of Shillong in India.
History
* March 1, 1973: Established as Diocese of Tura from the Metropolitan Archdiocese ...
.
The capital city of
Shillong
Shillong () is a hill station and the capital of Meghalaya, a state in northeastern India, which means "The Abode of Clouds". It is the headquarters of the East Khasi Hills district. Shillong is the 330th most populous city in India with a ...
is 323 kilometres away and can be accessed via buses or the shuttle helicopter service. The border 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 mos ...
Dalu, is situated at a proximity of 50 km.
Tura is a cultural and administrative centre of the
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 ...
tribe. To visit popular tourist destinations such as
Balpakram
Balpakram is located in South Garo Hills district in Meghalaya, India.
Balpakram is famous for its forest covered canyon-cum-gorge, which is now part of a National Park. The park also includes the Balpakram plateau and adjacent forests. The area ...
,
Nokrek and
Siju Cave Chitmang Peak, one needs to pass through this town.
There are many water falls and lot of streams in Tura. Some of the water falls are Rongbangdare, Pelgadare, Gandrak Falls etc. Some of the streams are Rangolwari, Nokmawari, Ganol, and Dachima.
Geography and climate
Tura is located at . It has an average elevation of 349 metres (1145 feet). Its climate is a
Humid Subtropical
A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...
climate (
Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...
: Cwa).
Demographics
The population of Tura city is 74,858 according to census 2011. The indigenous
Garo people
The Garo is a Tibeto-Burman ethnic tribal group from the Indian subcontinent, living mostly in the Indian states of Meghalaya, Assam, Tripura, and Nagaland, and in neighbouring areas of Bangladesh, including Madhupur, Mymensingh, Haluaghat, ...
form the majority of Tura's population, which also includes
Hajong people
The Hajong people are an ethnic group from Northeast India and northern parts of Bangladesh. The majority of the Hajongs are settled in India and are predominantly rice-farmers. They are said to have brought wet-field cultivation to Garo Hills, ...
,
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 ...
,
Nepalis
Nepalis (English: Nepalese ; ne, नेपाली) are the citizens of Nepal under the provisions of Nepali nationality law. The country is home to people of many different national origins who are the descendants of immigrants from India, ...
,
Koches,
Rabhas,
Bodos
Boro (बर'/बड़ो ), also called Bodo, is the largest ethnolinguistic group in the Assam state of India. They are a part of the greater Bodo-Kachari family of ethnolinguistic groups and are spread across northeastern India. They are ...
, and other indigenous tribal ethnic groups along with immigrant
Muslims
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
Biharis
The Biharis () is a demonym given to the inhabitants of the Indian state of Bihar. Bihari people can be separated into three main Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic groups, Bhojpuris, Maithils and Magadhis. They are also further divided into a v ...
. The population of Garo people in the Tura city is 54,750 which makes up 73% of the city population.
As of the
2011 Census of India
The 2011 Census of India or the 15th Indian Census was conducted in two phases, house listing and population enumeration. The House listing phase began on 1 April 2010 and involved the collection of information about all buildings. Information ...
,
Tura had a population of 58,391. Males constitute 51% of the population and females 49%. Tura has an average literacy rate of 70%, higher than the national average of 56%: male literacy is 70%, and female literacy is 67%. In Tura, 14% of the population is under 6 years of age.
Language
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 ...
is Spoken by 54,575 people,
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 ...
by 12,113,
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 ...
by 3,563,
Nepali by 1,609 and 11,911 people speaks other languages.
Connectivity
Tura is situated in the western part of Meghalaya which is quite close to the National Border of Bangladesh. The main mode of transport is by road, as there are no railways or any scheduled flights from nearby
Baljek Airport. From Guwahati, it is 220 km, through the
National Highway 217(Old NH 51). Day time Sumo and overnight bus services are available from Guwahati. There is a 3-days-a-week helicopter service available from Guwahati and Shillong, run by
Pawan Hans
Pawan Hans Limited is a central public sector undertaking based at Noida in Delhi NCR, India. It is under the ownership of Ministry of Civil Aviation, Government of India. It has cumulatively flown more than 1 million hours and has had ...
.
Society
Main Residents of Tura are the Garo tribe (Native People). Christianity is the main religion, Almost 100% of the Garos are Christians. There are different Christian denominations like Baptist, Catholic, Seventh Day Adventist, Church of Jesus Christ (COJC), Christian Revival Church (CRC) etc. The Garos have a matrilineal society.
Apart from the Garos, Tura also hosts a variety of other tribes like
Hajongs,
Koches,
Rabhas,
Bodos
Boro (बर'/बड़ो ), also called Bodo, is the largest ethnolinguistic group in the Assam state of India. They are a part of the greater Bodo-Kachari family of ethnolinguistic groups and are spread across northeastern India. They are ...
and other indigenous Assamese communities who are Hindu by religion. There are also a considerable number of immigrant Bengali, Bihari and Nepali speaking community etc as well.
Transport
By Air nearest airport is Guwahati Airport (GAU), Bus, Hire Cab. Although Tura has its own airport named Baljek airport situated approx. 30 km from the town but it's not yet functioning. It was inaugurated by then President of India Smt. Pratibha Patil during her visit to the town.
Education
Colleges and Universities
* College of Home Science (under
Central Agricultural University
Central Agricultural University is an agricultural university at Lamphelpat, Imphal in the Indian state of Manipur.
The Central Agricultural University was established by an act of Parliament, the Central Agricultural University Act 1992 (No.4 ...
, Imphal)
* College of Teacher Education
*
Don Bosco College, Tura
* Durama College
* Harding Theological College
* ICFAI University Meghalaya, Tura
* Martin Luther University, Tura Campus
*
North-Eastern Hill University
North-Eastern Hill University (NEHU) is a Central University established on 19 July 1973 by an Act of the Indian Parliament. The university is in the suburb of Shillong, the state capital of Meghalaya, India. The university has two campuses: S ...
, Tura Campus.
* Tura College of Information Technology
* Tura Govt. College
*
Tura Law College
Tura Law College is an Indian undergraduate law college affiliated to the North Eastern Hill University. The college is situated in Tura, in the State of Meghalaya. This college has gained the approval of Bar Council of India (BCI), New Delhi. I ...
* Tura Polytechnic.
* Tura United Christian Academy.
Other institutes
* National Skill Training Institute for Women
* Tura Industrial Training Institute
Food Craft Institute, Tura under NCHMCT, Noida.
Food and drinks
There are many varieties of food available, the common one is the traditional Garo food. Traditional Garo food includes boiled rice, different preparations of pork, beef, chicken and dry fish. Some of the delicacies of Garo Food are Na·kam Bitchi (it is dry fish curry made with chillies and soda), Gal•da Matchu (Roselle leaves boiled with beef), Wak Gominda (it is Pumpkin cooked with Pork, chillies and soda) Wak Pura (it is pork cooked with crushed rice or rice flour), Khappa (meat fried with soda and boiled with fresh garden spices) Ta'a wakgran (Yam with smoked Pork, chillies and soda), Brenga (Meat cooked inside the bamboo), We'tepa (Meat/Fish/vegetables cooked wrapped in banana leaves), Chambil Wak Pura (Pomelo cooked with Pork and crushed rice), Ta'a wak Haldi rasin (Pork cooked with yam, turmeric powder, chillies and onions), Kalai do'o (Black lentils cooked with Chicken), Me'a nakam (Bamboo shoot with dry fish), Me'a wak Pura (Bamboo Shoot with pork and rice flour) etc. The common delicacies are rice cakes called sakkin (made with locally grown sticky rice and sesame seed) and pitta (made with crushed sticky rice and jaggery), Jakkep (made with sticky rice flour and sesame seeds). There are many variety of locally made drinks. Minil bitchi or Mi bitchi (Rice Beer) (made of fermented sticky rice or normal rice) is one of the most common drink. In fact, there are various indigenous delicacies.
Media and communications
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 ...
has a local station in Tura which transmits various programs of mass interest. Recently, daily local newspapers viz., The Tura Times, Janera and Salantini Ku·rang has been disseminating the information to the whole region of Garo Hills and also to parts of Assam (esp. two districts Kamrup and Goalpara) where the areas are populated with Garo People.
Notable people
PA Sangma
References
{{Meghalaya
Cities and towns in West Garo Hills district