Assam Tourism
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- Published: 2007-07-12
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Enjoy the Nature of Assam
| Type | State |
|---|---|
| State name | Assam |
| Native name | Assam |
| Other name | অসম |
| Capital | Dispur |
| Largest city | Guwahati |
| Abbreviation | IN-AS |
| Official languages | Assamese; Bengali (in the Barak Valley); Bodo (in Bodoland) |
| Legislature type | Unicameral |
| Legislature strength | 126 |
| Leader title 1 | Governor |
| Leader name 1 | J B Patnaik |
| Leader title 2 | Chief Minister |
| Leader name 2 | Tarun Gogoi |
| Established date | 15 August 1947 |
| Area total | 78550 |
| Area rank | 16th |
| Area magnitude | 10 |
| Population year | 2001 |
| Population total | 26,655,528 |
| Population rank | 14th |
| Population density | 340 |
| Hdi year | 2005 |
| Hdi | 0.534 |
| Hdi rank | 22th |
| Hdi category | medium |
| Literacy | 76.3 |
| Literacy rank | 9th |
| Districts | 27 |
| Website | assam.gov.in |
| Inset map marker | yes |
| Image seal | Assam logo.png |
| Footnotes | † Assam had a legislature since 1937 |
Assam (Assamese: অসম Ôxôm ) is a northeastern state of India with its capital at Dispur in the city of Guwahati. Located south of the eastern Himalayas, Assam comprises the Brahmaputra and the Barak river valleys along with the Karbi Anglong and the North Cachar Hills with an area of 30,285 square miles (78,438 km²). Assam is surrounded by six of the other Seven Sister States: Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura and Meghalaya.Popularly the Northeatern part of India is also called"The Unexplored Paradise" . These states are connected to the rest of India via a narrow strip in West Bengal called the Siliguri Corridor or "Chicken's Neck". Assam also shares international borders with Bhutan and Bangladesh; and cultures, peoples and climate with South-East Asia – important elements in India’s Look East policy.
Assam became a part of India after the British occupied the region following the First Anglo-Burmese War of 1824-1826. It is known for Assam tea, large and old petroleum resources, Assam silk and for its rich biodiversity. Assam has successfully conserved the one-horned Indian rhinoceros from near extinction, along with the tiger and numerous species of birds, and it provides one of the last wild habitats for the Asian elephant. It is becoming an increasingly popular destination for wildlife tourism, and Kaziranga and Manas are both World Heritage Sites. Assam was also known for its Sal tree forests and forest products, much depleted now. A land of high rainfall, Assam is endowed with lush greenery and the mighty river Brahmaputra, whose tributaries and oxbow lakes provide the region with a unique hydro-geomorphic and aesthetic environment.
On 27 February 2006, the Government of Assam started a process to change the name of the state to Asom or Axom, a controversial move that has been opposed by the people and political organizations.
Geomorphic studies conclude that the Brahmaputra, the life-line of Assam is an antecedent river, older than the Himalayas. The river with steep gorges and rapids in Arunachal Pradesh entering Assam, becomes a braided river (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, North Cachar and those in and close to Guwahati (also Khasi-Garo Hills) now eroded and dissected are originally parts of the South Indian Plateau system. A small quantity of iron ore is available in western districts.
With the “Tropical Monsoon Rainforest Climate”, 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 characterized by heavy monsoon downpours reducing summer temperatures and affecting foggy nights and mornings in winters. Thunderstorms known as Bordoicila are frequent during the afternoons. Spring (Mar-Apr) and Autumn (Sept-Oct) are usually pleasant with moderate rainfall and temperature.
Assam is one of the richest biodiversity zones in the world and consists of tropical rainforests, deciduous forests, riverine grasslands, bamboo orchards and numerous wetland ecosystems; Many are now protected as national parks and reserved forests. The Kaziranga, home of the rare Indian Rhinoceros, and Manas are two UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Assam. The state is the last refuge for numerous other endangered species such as the Golden Langur (Presbetis geei), White-winged Wood Duck or Deohanh (Cairina scutulata), Bengal Florican, Black-breasted Parrotbill, Pygmy Hog, Greater Adjutant and so on. Some other endangered species with significant population in Assam are the Tiger, Elephant, Hoolock Gibbon, Jerdon's Babbler and so on to name a few. Assam is also known for orchids.
The region is prone to natural disasters with annual floods and frequent mild earthquakes. Strong earthquakes are rare; three of which were recorded in 1869, 1897 (8.1 on the Richter scale); and in 1950 (8.6).
According to the Kalika Purana (c.17th–18th AD), written in Assam, the earliest ruler of Assam was Mahiranga followed by Hatak, Sambar, Ratna and Ghatak; Naraka removed this line of rulers and established his own Naraka dynasty. It mentions that the last of the Naraka-bhauma rulers, Narak, was slain by Krishna. Naraka's son Bhagadatta, mentioned in the Mahabharata, fought for the Kauravas in the battle of Kurukshetra with an army of kiratas, chinas and dwellers of the eastern coast. Later rulers of Kamarupa frequently drew their lineage from the Naraka rulers. However, there are lots of evidences to say that Mahayana Buddhism was prominent in ancient Assam. After Huen Shang's visit Mahayana Buddhism came to Assam. Relics of Tezpur, Malini Than, Kamakhya and Madan Kam Dev Temple are the evidences of Mahayana Buddhism.
At the turn of the 20th century, British India consisted of eight provinces that were administered either by a Governor or a Lieutenant-Governor. The Assam Province was one amongst those major eight provinces of British India. The following table lists their areas and populations (but does not include those of the dependent Native States):
During the partition of Bengal (1905–1911), a new province, Assam and East Bengal was created as a Lieutenant-Governorship. In 1911, East Bengal was reunited with Bengal, and the new provinces in the east became: Assam, Bengal, Bihar and Orissa. 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 neighboring Bangladesh and changing the demographics. The agitation ended after an accord between its leaders and the Union Government, which remained unimplemented, causing simmering discontent.
The post 1970s experienced the growth of armed separatist groups like United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA)
Despite the commercial success, tea laborers continued to be exploited, working and living under poor conditions. Fearful of greater government interference, the tea growers formed The Indian Tea Association in 1888 to lobby to retain the status quo. The organization was very successful in this, and even after India’s independence conditions of the laborers have improved very little.
Assam is divided into 27 administrative districts. More than half of these districts were carved out during 80s and 90s from original 1. Lakhimpur, 2. Jorhat, 3. Karbi Anglong, 4. Darrang, 5. Nagaon, 6. Kamrup, 7. Goalpara, 8. North Cachar and 9. Cachar districts, delineated by the British. Earlier, during 70s, Dibrugarh was separated out from original Lakhimpur district.
These districts are further sub-divided into 49 “Sub-divisions” or Mohkuma. The 'town-committee' or nagar-xomiti for small towns, 'municipal board' or pouro-xobha for medium towns and municipal corporation or pouro-nigom for the cities consist of the urban local bodies.
For the revenue purposes, the districts are divided into revenue circles and mouzas; 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.
The 1981 Census could not be held
in Assam. Total population for 1981
has been worked out by Interpolation.
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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, Sonitpur, Barpeta, Dhubri, Darang and Cachar. Assam's population was estimated at 28.67 million in 2006 and at 30.57 million by 2011, 34.18 million by 2021 and 35.60 million by 2026.
In 2001, the census recorded literacy in Assam at 63.3% with male literacy at 71.3% and female at 54.6%. Urbanisation rate was recorded at 12.9%.
Growth of population in Assam has experienced a very high trajectory since the mid-decades of the 20th century. Population grew steadily from 3.29 million in 1901 to 6.70 million in 1941, while it has increased unprecedentedly to 14.63 million in 1971 and 22.41 million in 1991 to reach the present level.
Assam has many ethnic groups and the People of India project has studied 115 of these. Out of which 79 (69%) identify themselves regionally, 22 (19%) locally, and 3 trans-nationally. The earliest settlers were Austroasiatic, followed by Tibeto-Burman, Indo-Aryan speakers, and Kradai speakers. Forty-five languages are spoken by different communities, including three major language families: Austroasiatic (5), Sino-Tibetan (24) and Indo-European (12). Three of the spoken languages do not fall in these families. There is a high degree of bilingualism.
Kamakhya, dedicated to Goddess Durga is the eastern-most pilgrimage of Hinduism.
Popular forms of God in Assam are Durga, Shiva, Krishna and Narayana, although several tribes practice devotion to local deities as well.
Brahmo Samaj: Assam is the home of Kalicharan Mech, a Bodo Hindu who stopped the British Christian missionaries, spread ahimsa and vegetarianism. He was deeply influenced by the Brahmo Samaj. He later became known as "Gurudev Kalicharan Brahmachari" or "Guru Brahma". His principles were established as the Brahma Dharma. Perhaps his teachings can be summarized by his given phrase, "Chandrama Surya Narayans Jyoti", meaning, "the light (jyoti) from the sun is capable from dispelling darkness and taking people to Brahma (Narayans)."
From the teachings of Guru Brahma, the "Bodo-Brahmas" (the Bodos of this sect) have boycotted alcohol and heavy dowry as well as meat-eating.
This sect is written by scholars to be Vedic and Upanishadic. As per Vedic rituals, the priests perform Horn Yajna, which was begun by Guru Brahma to organize the Bodos.
While the Bodo Christians today are laying stress on adopting a Roman script for the Bodo community, the Bodo-Brahmas prefer the traditional Bengali-Ahomi script.
As of 1991 only Tripura of the seven eastern states of India had a lower percentage of Christians than Assam. There were more Christians in Assam than in Mizoram even though Mizoram was the second most Christian state in India at the time.
Besides the Protestants there are also Catholics. There is a Roman Catholic Archdiocese in Shillong.
The first prophet of the Sikhs,Guru Nanak Dev had visited Kamrup (Assam) in the 1505 as recorded in the his first visit in Purantan Janam Sakhi (the historical papers related to the visits and daily recorded activities of the Guru). Guru Nanak had met Srimanta Sankardeva (the founder of the Mahapuruxiya Dharma) as the Guru travelled from Dhaka to Assam. But no sangat or historical shrine dedicated to him survives as to date.
Ninth Guru or prophet of Sikhs Guru Tegh Bahadur visited Assam in 1668. This place is also famous for the Sikh Gurdwara Thara Sahib or Gurdwara Damdama Sahib which was constructed in memory atop the hillock place of meditation of the Guru in Dhubri, Kamrup. The historical site and places of interest of the Gurdwara are many times referred to as Gurdwara Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur Sahib situated in Dhubri (Assam) by the banks of the Brahmaputra . The grateful Ahom King invited Guruji to the Kamakhya shrine, where he was honoured with great respect.
In the year 1820, few hundred Sikh soldiers went to Assam at the initiative of Maharaja Ranjit Singh to help Ahom rulers in a war. Their descendants are mostly concentrated in Lanka in Nagaon district of Assam. Sikhs have been living in Assam for approximately two hundred years.
Assamese culture is traditionally a hybrid one developed due to assimilation of ethno-cultural groups in the past. Therefore, both local elements or the local elements in Sanskritised forms are distinctly found. The major milestones in evolution of Assamese culture are:
*Assimilation in the Kamarupa Kingdom for almost 700 years (under the Varmans for 300 years, Salastambhas and Palas for each 200 years).
Traditionally Assamese was the language of the commons (of mixed origin – Austroasiatic, Tibeto-Burman, Magadhan Prakrit) in the ancient Kamarupa and in the medieval kingdoms of Kamatapur, Kachari, Chutiya, Borahi, Ahom and Koch. Traces of the language is found in many poems by Luipa, Sarahapa, etc. in Charyapada (c.7th–8th AD). Modern dialects Kamrupi, Goalpariya, etc. are the remnant 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 needed economic integration. Localised forms of the language still exist in Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh. The form used in the upper Assam was enriched by the advent of Tai-Shans in the 13th century.
Linguistically modern Assamese traces its roots to the version developed by the American Missionaries based on the local form in practice near Sibsagar (Xiwoxagor) district. Assamese (Oxomeeya) is a rich language due to its hybrid nature with its unique characteristics of pronunciation and softness. Assamese literature is one of the richest.
Bodo 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, Dibru, Dihong, D/Tista, Dikrai, etc.) reveal that it was the most important language in the ancient times. Bodo is presently spoken largely in the Lower Assam (Bodo Territorial Council area). 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 Mishing, Karbi, Dimasa, Rabha, Tiwa, etc. Rajbongshi also known as Kamatapuri/Goalpariya is also widely spoken by the people of western Assam. Nepali is also spoken in almost all parts of the state.
There are smaller groups of people speaking Tai-Phake, Tai-Aiton, Tai-Khamti, Tai-Khamyang etc., some of the Tai languages. The Tai-Ahom language (brought by Sukaphaa and his followers), which is no more a spoken language today is getting attentions for research after centuries long care and preservation by the Bailungs (traditional priests). There are also small groups of people speaking Manipuri, Khasi, Garo, Hmar, Kuki, Zeme Naga etc. in different parts.
Bengali is the official language in Barak Valley, although the widely spoken language is Sylheti, a dialect of Bengali. Bengali is also largely spoken in the western districts of Dhubri, Barpeta, and Goalpara.
Santali or Santhali is also spoken widely by the tribal population in the tea garden districts of Assam. these people who were initially brought as tea estate labourers by the British to Assam have now made it their home state.
Bishnupriya Manipuri language is also spoken by a small minority of people in Barak Valley.
There are several important traditional festivals in Assam. Bihu is the most important and common and celebrated all over Assam. Durga Puja is another festival celebrated with great enthusiasm.Muslims celebrate two Eids with much eagernes in all over Assam.
Bihu 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 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.
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:
At the same time musical tradition is also rich. Folk songs and music related to Bihu and other festivals dates back to time-immemorial. Borgeet, the popular Vaishnav songs are written and composed in 15th century. Assam has large numbers of traditional musical instruments including several types of drums, string instruments, flutes, cymbals, pipes, etc.
The indigenous folk music has substantially influenced the growth of a modern idiom, that finds expression in the music of such artists like Jyoti Prasad Agarwala, Bishnuprasad Rabha, Parvati Prasad Baruva, Bhupen Hazarika, Pratima Barua Pandey, Anima Choudhury, Luit Konwar Rudra Baruah, Jayanta Hazarika, Khagen Mahanta, Deepali Borthakur, "Ganashilpi" Dilip Sarma, Sudakshina Sarma among many others. Among the new generation, Zubeen Garg, Jitul Sonowal and Angaraag Mahanta have a great fan following.
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 Xorai and Bota made from bell metal and brass are found in every Assamese household. Hajo and Sarthebari (Xorthebaary) 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 work in lower Assam districts and wood craft, iron craft, jewellery, etc. in many places across the region.
Painting is an ancient tradition of Assam. Xuanzang (7th century AD) mentions that among the Kamarupa king Bhaskaravarma's gifts to Harshavardhana 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. The medieval Assamese literature also refers to chitrakars and patuas.
There are several renowned contemporary artists in Assam. The Guwahati Art College in Guwahati is a government institution for tertiary education. Moreover, there are several art-societies and non-government initiatives across the state and the Guwahati Artists Guild is a front-runner organisation based in Guwahati.
Assam’s agriculture yet to experience modernisation in real sense. With implications to food security, per capita food grain production has declined in past five decades. Productivity has increased marginally; but still lower comparing to highly productive regions. For instance, yield of rice (staple food of Assam) was just 1531 kg per hectare against India’s 1927 kg per hectare in 2000–01). On the other hand, after having strong domestic demand, 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.
The Assam Agriculture University is located at Jorhat, Assam. It is the only agricultural university for the Seven Sisters.
Although having a poor overall industrial performance, several other industries have nevertheless been started, including a chemical fertiliser plan at Namrup, petrochemical industries at Namrup and Bongaigaon, paper mills at Jagiroad, Panchgram and Jogighopa, sugar mills at Barua Bamun Gaon, Chargola, Kampur, cement plant at Bokajan & Badarpur, cosmetics plant (HLL) at Doom Dooma, etc. Moreover, there are other industries such as jute mill, textile and yarn mills, silk mill, etc. Unfortunately many of these industries are facing loss and closure due to lack of infrastructure and improper management practices.
* Gauhati University, Guwahati
Guwahati: One of the key urban centres of Assam and the biggest city in North-East India, this serves as the major gateway to the whole region. This is the primary hopping point for accessing Shillong, the hill station.
Majuli: The largest freshwater island in South Asia on the Brahmaputra River.
Kaziranga National Park: This is one of the few places covered as a World Heritage Site and the main habitat of the Great Indian One-horned Rhinoceros. Also check out Orang National Park and Nameri National Park.
Jatinga: The mystery of the bird suicides in Jatinga in the North Cachar Hills.
Tezpur: Small town steeped in history and culture. Check out Usha Pahar, Agnigarh, Mahabhairav Temple, etc...
Sivasagar: Seat of the Ahom Kingdom. Check out Rang Ghar, Talatal Ghar, Sivadol, Kareng Ghar of Garhgaon etc...
Hajo: Hajo is a small township situated to the northwest of Guwahati across the river Brahmaputra.Hajo is a remarkable example of communal harmony .This is an ancient pilgrimage centre for three religions Hinduism, Islam and Buddhism.
Dibru-Saikhowa National Park: Dibru-Saikhowa National Park is a beautiful National Park situated in Tinsukia district. There are few Eco lodges situated here to enjoy the beauty of this park.
Goalpara: Goalpara is also a major tourist spot in Assam.It has a numerous tourist spots and temples like Sri Surya Pahar,Tekreshwari Pahar,Paglartek in Pancharatna,Pir Babas Mazar in Joleshwar,Naranarayan Setu (Bridge) connecting northern Assam districts like Kokrajhar,Bongaigaon,Dhubri etc. to Goalpara,Guwahati and major part of Meghalaya.
Dibrugarh: Business hub in upper Assam. Serves as gateway to Nagaland.Naharkatiya is a place here which is famous for a Buddhist monastery. There are numerous temples, ruins of palaces, etc.
Language and literature
History
Tradition and Culture
Category:States and territories of India Category:Seven Sister States Category:Northeast India Category:States and territories established in 1947
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