Assam

Home of the Brahmaputra
Assam......the rich, green land of rolling plains and dense forests is the gateway to the north eastern part of India. The mighty Brahmaputra river that has its origins in Tibet charts its majestic course through this state. This mystic land of eternal blue hills and beautiful rivers is renowned for its tea, rich flora and fauna, the world famous one horned rhinoceros and other rare species of wildlife on the verge of extinction. Barring Africa, there is perhaps no part of the world where such a variety of wildlife exists.

Situated between 90-96 degree East Longitute and 24-28 degree North Latitude, Assam is bordered in the North and East by the Kingdom of Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh. Along the south lies Nagaland, Manipur and Mizoram. Meghalaya lies to her South-West, Bengal and Bangladesh to her West.

The stunning grandeur of its dense tracts of tropical forests, nterspersed with emerald patchwork quilts of paddy and lush tea gardens, showcase the life- giving largesse of the mighty River Brahmaputra that dominates the world of this land and its people.'Son of Brahma', the great river that wends its way from the Mansarovar Lake in the higher reaches of the Tibetan plateau (as the Tsangpo) through Arunachal (as the Siang) and on to the plains of Assam, the second largest state in the North East.

The alluvial plains of the Assam valley (100 km at its widest) enjoy an abundance of natural riches. The state is the large st producer of timber and tea in the country and it has the oldest oil refinery in India.

Its rich bio-diversity supports an immense range of rare and endangered creatures such as the one- horned rhinoceros, the golden langur, the Gangetic dolphin and the clouded leopard.

Flanked by Bhutan and arunachal Pradesh in the north and the east, its southern periphery is bordered by Nagaland, Manipur and Mizoram. Meghalaya lies in the southwest and it shares its western border with West Bengal and Bangladesh. For six hundred years, the Ahoms ruled Assam, from their state capital of Charaideo near present-day Sibsagar, before the arrival of the British. The Ahoms were conquerors belonging to the Shan tribe of Burma, through the Patkai Range, who settled in the brahmaputra valley and having consolidated their hold over the entire valley, after defeating the Kacharis in 1540 AD, successfully repulsed a series
of invasions by the Mughals and the Bengal Sultans.

In protecting the land from invasions the Ahoms established an environment for cultural pursuits that were free of any outside influence. King Rudra Singha is said to have opened up a trade route between Assam and Tibet and also encouraged Bengali musicians to stay at his court.

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