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Sample Copy. Not For Distribution. 1 NORTH-EAST AT A GLANCE Total Area 2,62,179 sq. kms ( 7.9 % of total land area of India) Total Population 455,87,982 (2011 census) ( 3.77 % of total population of India) Density (per sq. km) 148 (National Figure: 324) Geographical Location Situated between longitude 89.46’E to 97.30’E latitude 21.57’ N to 29.30’ N. States in Northeast (8) Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura, Sikkim Major Cities & Towns Guwahati, Jorhat, Dibrugarh, Gangtok, Shillong, Imphal, Agartala, Kohima, Dimapur, Aizawl, Itanagar Northeast has open borders with China in the North, Myanmar in the East, Bangladesh in the South West and Bhutan to the North West Sex Ratio 936 females to 1000 males ( National figure: 933 females to 1000 males) Literacy rate (2006-2007) 69% (National Figure: 67.6%) Per capita GSDP (2004-05) Rest. 18,032 (National figure: Rs. 25,944) Growth in per capita GSDP (1990-91 to 2004- 4.4 % 05) Growth in per capita income (1990-91 to 2004- 2.5 % 05) No. of Districts 86 No. of Towns (as per 2001 Census) 245 No. of Villages (as per 2001 Census) 42134 Birth Rate (2006) 19.5 (National Figure: 23.1) Death Rate (2006) 6 (National Figure: 7.4) Infant Mortality Rate (2007) 48 (National Figure: 55) Railway Density per 1000 sq. km 10.9 (National Figure: 21.3) Road Density per1000 sq., km 395 (National Figure: 839) Major plantation Tea Major crop Rice Major minerals Coal, Petroleum & Natural Gas Major religions Hinduism, Islam, Christianity, Buddhism Languages spoken English, Hindi, Assamese, Khasi, Nagames, Jaintia, Garo, Mizo, Bengali, Nepali, Bhutia (Sikkimese),Lepcha, Manipuri, Bhutia (Tibetan), Lepcha, Limboo, Local dialects Sample Copy. Not For Distribution. 2 ABOUT NORTH-EAST INDIA: Northeast India (officially North Eastern Region, NER) is the easternmost region of India representing both a geographic and political administrative division of the country. It comprises with major small states which are brightest states in whole over India, eight states – Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura. The Siliguri Corridor in West Bengal, with a width of 21 to 40 kilometers (13 to 25 mi), connects the North Eastern Region with East India. The region shares an international border of 5,182 kilometers (3,220 mi) (about 99 percent of its total geographical boundary) with the neighboring countries – 1,395 kilometers (867 mi) with Tibet Autonomous Region, China in the north, 1,640 kilometers (1,020 mi) with Myanmar in the east, 1,596 kilometers (992 mi) with Bangladesh in the south-west, 97 kilometers (60 mi) with Nepal in the west and 455 kilometers (283 mi) with Bhutan in the north-west. It comprises an area of 262,230 square kilometers (101,250 sq. mi), almost 8 percent of that of India, and is one of the largest salient (panhandle) in the world. The states of North Eastern Region are officially recognized under the North Eastern Council (NEC), constituted in 1971 as the acting agency for the development of the north eastern states. Long after induction of NEC, Sikkim formed part of the North Eastern Region as the eighth state in 2002. India's Look-East connectivity projects connect Northeast India to China and ASEAN. HISTORY: The earliest settlers may have been Austro-Asiatic speakers from Southeast Asia, followed by Tibeto-Burmese from China and by 500 B.C. Indo-Aryans speakers from Gangetic Plains. Archaeological researchers believe that early settlers of Northeast India had domesticated several important plants. Writers believe that the 100 BC writings of Chinese explorer, Zhang Qian indicate an early trade route via Northeast India. The Periplus of the Erythraean Sea mention a people called Sesatai in the region, who produced malabathron, so prized in the old world. In the early historical period, Kamarupa straddled most of present-day Northeast India, besides Bhutan and Sylhet in Bangladesh. Xuanzang, a travelling Chinese Buddhist monk, visited Kamarupa in the 7th century. He described the people as "short in stature and black- looking", whose speech differed a little from mid-India and who were of simple but violent disposition. He wrote that the people in Kamarupa knew of Sichuan, which lay to the kingdom's east beyond a treacherous mountain. For many of the tribal peoples, their primary identification is with sub tribes and villages, which have distinct dialects and cultures. The northeastern states were established during the British Raj of the 19th and early 20th centuries, when they became relatively isolated from traditional trading partners such as Bhutan and Myanmar. Many of the peoples in present-day Mizoram, Meghalaya and Nagaland converted to Christianity under the influence of British (Welsh) missionaries. Formation: In the early 19th century, both the Ahom and the Manipur kingdoms fell to a Burmese invasion. The ensuing First Anglo-Burmese War resulted in the entire region coming under British control. In the colonial period (1826–1947), North East India was made a part of Bengal Province from 1839 to 1873, when Assam became its own province. Sample Copy. Not For Distribution. 3 State Historic Name Capital(s) Statehood Arunachal North-East Frontier Agency Itanagar 1987 (earlier a Union Territory Pradesh of India, constituted in 1971) Assam Pragjyotisha, Kamarupa Shillong (till 1947 1969), Dispur Manipur Kangleipak Imphal 1971 (earlier a Union Territory of India, constituted in 1956) Meghalaya Khasi hills, Jaintia hills and Shillong 1971 Garo hills Mizoram Lushai hills Aizawl 1987 (earlier a Union Territory of India, constituted in 1971) Nagaland Naga hills Kohima 1963 Sikkim Sukhim Gangtok 1975 Tripura Tipperah Agartala 1971 (earlier a Union Territory of India, constituted in 1956) N-E RELATED WAR: World War II (Battle of Kohima and Battle of Imphal): In 1944, the Japanese planned a daring attack on India. Traveling through Burma, its forces were stopped at Kohima and Imphal by British and Indian troops. This marked the furthest western expansion of the Japanese Empire; its defeat in this area presaged Allied victory. Sino-Indian War (1962): Arunachal Pradesh, a state in the Northeastern tip of India, is claimed by China as South Tibet Sino-Indian relations degraded, resulting in the Sino-Indian War of 1962. The cause of the escalation into war is still disputed by both Chinese and Indian sources. During the war in 1962, the PRC (China) captured much of the NEFA (North-East Frontier Agency) created by India in 1954. But on 21 November 1962, China declared a unilateral ceasefire, and withdrew its troops 20 kilometers (12 mi) behind the McMahon Line. It returned Indian prisoners of war in 1963. GEOGRAPHY: The Northeast region can be physiographical categorized into the Eastern Himalaya, the Patkai and the Brahmaputra and the Barak valley plains. Northeast India (at the confluence of Indo-Malayan, Indo-Chinese, and Indian biogeographically realms) has a predominantly humid sub-tropical climate with hot, humid summers, severe monsoons, and mild winters. Reserves of petroleum and natural gas in the region are estimated to constitute a fifth of India's total potential. The region is covered by the mighty Brahmaputra-Barak river systems and their tributaries. Geographically, apart from the Brahmaputra, Barak and Imphal valleys and some flat lands in between the hills of Meghalaya and Tripura, the remaining two-thirds of the area is hilly terrain interspersed with valleys and plains; the altitude varies from almost sea-level to over 7,000 meters (23,000 ft.) above sea level. Highest peaks: Kanchenjunga, the third highest mountain peak in the world rising to an altitude of 8,586 m (28,169 ft.), lays in-between the state Sikkim and adjacent country Nepal. Sample Copy. Not For Distribution. 4 Peak State Range/Region Height Height (m) (ft.) Kangchen junga (shared Sikkim Eastern Himalaya 8,586 28,169 with Nepal) Kangto (shared with Tibet) Arunachal Eastern Himalaya 7,090 23,261 Pradesh Mount Saramati (Shared Nagaland Naga Hills 3,841 12,602 with Myanmar) Mount Iso (also known as Manipur Senapati District 2,994 9,823 Tenipu) Phawngpui (Blue Mountain) Mizoram Saiha District 2,165 7,103 Shillong Peak Meghalaya Khasi Hills 1,965 6,447 Unnamed peak near Laike Assam Dima Hasao 1,960 6,430 District Betalongchhip Tripura Jampui Hills 930 3,051 River Basin: Brahmaputra River basin is the one of the most important river basin for the whole North East region. Tributaries of the Brahmaputra River in Northeast India: Beki River Bhogdoi River Dhansiri River Dibang River Dihing River Kameng River Kolong Kopili River Lohit River Manas River Sankosh River Subansiri River Teesta River Climate: Northeast India has a subtropical climate that is influenced by its relief and influences from the southwest and northeast monsoons. Since monsoon winds originating from the Bay of Bengal move northeast. Cherrapunji, located on the Meghalaya plateau is one of the rainiest places in the world with an annual precipitation of 11,777 mm (463.7 in). Temperatures are moderate in the Brahmaputra and Barak valley river plains which decreases with altitude in the hilly areas. At the highest altitudes, there is permanent snow cover Temperature: In the Brahmaputra and Barak valley river plains, mean winter temperatures vary between 16 to 17 °C (61 to 63 °F) while mean summer temperatures are around 28 °C (82 °F). The highest summer temperatures occur in the West Tripura plain with Agartala, the capital of Tripura having meant maximum summer temperatures ranging between 33 to 35 °C (91 to 95 °F) in April. Rainfall: The southwest monsoon is responsible for bringing 90% of the annual rainfall to the region. April to late October is the months where most of the rainfall in Northeast India occurs with June and July being the rainiest months.