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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

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.

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.

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. Southern areas are the first to receive the monsoon (May or June) with the Brahmaputra valley and the mountainous north receiving later (later May or June). In the hilly parts of Mizoram, the closer proximity to the Bay of Bengal causes it to experience early monsoons with June being the wettest season.

High risk seismic zone: The North Eastern Region of India is a mega-earthquake prone zone caused by active fault planes beneath formed by the convergence of three tectonic plates viz. India Plate, Eurasian Plate and Burma Plate. Historically the region has suffered from two great earthquakes (M > 8.0) – 1897 Assam earthquake and 1950 Assam-Tibet earthquake – and about 20 large earthquakes (8.0 > M > 7.0) since 1897. The 1950 Assam-Tibet earthquake is still the largest earthquake in India. WILDLIFE, FOREST, ENVIRONMENT AND BIO-DIVERSITY OF NORTH-EAST INDIA:

✓ 51 forest types are found in the region, broadly classified into six major types — tropical moist deciduous forests, tropical semi evergreen forests, tropical wet evergreen forests, subtropical forests, temperate forests and alpine forests. ✓ Out of the nine important vegetation types of India, six are found in the North Eastern Region. ✓ These forests harbor 8,000 out of 15,000 species of flowering plants. In floral species richness, the highest diversity is reported from the states of Arunachal Pradesh (5000 species) and Sikkim (4500 species) amongst the North Eastern states. ✓ According to the Indian Red Data Book, published by the Botanical Survey of India, 10 percent of the flowering plants in the country are endangered. Of the 1500 endangered floral species, 800 are reported from Northeast India. ✓ Most of the North Eastern states have more than 60% of their area under forest cover, a minimum suggested coverage for the hill states in the country in order to protect from erosion. ✓ Northeast India is a part of Indo-Burma hotspot. This hotspot is the second largest in the word, next only to the Mediterranean Basin, with an area 2,206,000 square kilometers (852,000 sq. mi) among the 25 identified.

WWF has identified the following priority Eco regions in North-East India: ✓ Brahmaputra Valley Semi Evergreen Forests ✓ Eastern Himalayan Broadleaved Forests ✓ Eastern Himalayan Sub-alpine Coniferous Forests ✓ India–Myanmar Pine Forests

National Parks:

National park Location State Area Importance (km2) Namdapha National Changlang Arunachal 1,985 Largest protected area

Park district Pradesh in Eastern Himalaya

Manas National Park Barpeta district Assam 950 UNESCO World Heritage Site Kaziranga National Golaghat and Assam 882 UNESCO World Heritage

Park Nagaon district Site s Khangchendzonga North Sikkim Sikkim 850 UNESCO Mixed World

National Park district Heritage Site and highest altitude wildlife protected area in India Mouling National Upper Arunachal 483

Park Siang, West Pradesh Siang and East Siang districts Dibru-Saikhowa Dibrugarh and Assam 350

National Park Tinsukia distri cts Balphakram South Garo Meghalaya 220

National Park Hills district

Intangki National Peren district Nagaland 202

Park Nameri National Sonitpur Assam 200

Park district Murlen National Champhai Mizoram 100

Park district

Orang National Park Darrang and S Assam 79 onitpur Phawngpui National Lawngtlai Mizoram 50

Park district Nokrek National West Garo Meghalaya 48

Park Hills district

Sirohi National Park Ukhrul district Manipur 41 Keibul Lamjao Bishnupur Manipur 40 World's only

National Park district floating National park Bison (Rajbari) South Tripura Tripura 32

National Park district Clouded Leopard Sepahijala Tripura 5

National Park district

DEMOGRAPHICS: State Population Males Females Sex Literacy % Rural Density Ratio Population (/km²) Arunachal 1,383,727 713,912 669,815 938 65.38 870,087 17 Pradesh Assam 31,205,576 15,939,443 15,266,133 958 72.19 23,216,288 397 Manipur 2,570,390 1,290,171 1,280,219 992 79.21 1,590,820 122 Meghalaya 2,966,889 1,491,832 1,475,057 989 74.43 1,864,711 132 Mizoram 1,097,206 555,339 541,867 976 91.33 447,567 52 Nagaland 1,978,502 1,024,649 953,853 931 79.55 1,647,249 119 Sikkim 610,577 323,070 287,507 890 81.42 480,981 86 Tripura 3,673,917 1,874,376 1,799,541 960 87.22 2,653,453 350

Largest cities by population (CENSUS 2011):

Rank City State Population Rank City State Population

1 Guwahati Assam 1,260,419 9 Jorhat Assam 153,249

2 Agartala Tripura 522,613 10 Nagaon Assam 147,137

3 Imphal Manipur 414,288 11 Tinsukia Assam 125,637

4 Dimapur Nagaland 379,769 12 Dhubri Assam 109,234

5 Shillong Meghalaya 354,325 13 Tezpur Assam 100,477

6 Aizawl Mizoram 291,822 14 Kohima Nagaland 100,000

7 Silchar Assam 228,985 15 Gangtok Sikkim 98,658

8 Dibrugarh Assam 154,019 16 Itanagar Arunachal 95,650 Pradesh

Official languages:

State Official Languages Arunachal Pradesh Hindi, English Assam Assamese, Bengali (in the Barak Valley), Bodo (in Bodoland)

Manipur Meiteilon Meghalaya Khasi, Garo, English Mizoram Mizo, English

Nagaland English Sikkim Nepali, English Tripura Bengali, Kokborok

Etymology of state names:

Name of state Origin Literal meaning

Arunachal Sanskrit Land of the rising sun Pradesh

Assam Sanskrit Asama ("unequalled", "peerless", etc.)

Manipur Sanskrit Land abundant with jewels, adopted in the 18th century

Meghalaya Sanskrit Abode of the clouds, coined by Shiba P. Chatterjee Mizoram Mizo Land of the Mizo people

language

Nagaland English Land of the Naga people Sikkim Limbu New House – Derived from the word "Sukhim", "Su" meaning

Language new and "Khim" meaning house

Tripura Kokborok Sanskrit version of native names: Tripra, Tuipura, Twipra, Tippera etc.

Religious population (CENSUS 2011):

State Hinduism Islam Christianity Buddhism Jainism Sikhism Arunachal Pradesh 401,876 27,045 418,732 162,815 771 3,287

Assam 19,180,759 10,679,345 1,165,867 54,993 25,949 20,672 Manipur 1,181,876 239,836 1,179,043 7,084 1,692 1,527 Meghalaya 342,078 130,399 2,213,027 9,864 627 3,045 Mizoram 30,136 14,832 956,331 93,411 376 286 Nagaland 173,054 48,963 1,739,651 6,759 2,655 1,890 Sikkim 352,662 9,867 60,522 167,216 314 1,868 Tripura 3,063,903 316,042 159,882 125,385 860 1,070

CONSTITUTIONAL PROVISIONS: A. Part IX - The Panchayets: File Description Article 243M Part not to apply to Certain Areas Article 243ZC Part not to apply to Certain Areas B. Part X – The Scheduled and Tribal Areas File Description Article 244 Administration of Scheduled Areas and Tribal Areas

Article Formation of an autonomous State comprising certain tribal areas in Assam and 244A creation of local Legislature or Council of Ministers or both therefore C. Part XXI – Temporary, Transitional and Special Provisions File Description Article 371A Special provision with respect to the State of Nagaland Article 371B Special provision with respect to the State of Assam Article 371C Special provision with respect to the State of Manipur Article 371F Special provisions with respect to the State of Sikkim Article 371G Special provision with respect to the State of Mizoram Article 371H Special provision with respect to the State of Arunachal Pradesh D. Sixth Schedule File Description Articles 244(2) and Provisions as to the Administration of Tribal Areas in the States of Assam, 275(1) Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram

ADMINISTRATION CONTROLS: International borders management: ✓ McMahon Line and manned by Indo-Tibetan Border Police and Special Frontier Force with China along Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh ✓ India-Bangladesh border and crossings manned by Border Security Force along Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram ✓ India–Myanmar barrier, crossings and Look-East connectivity manned by Assam Rifles and Indian Army along Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur and Mizoram ✓ India-Bhutan borders manned by Sashastra Seema Bal along Sikkim, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh

✓ India-Nepal border manned by Sashastra Seema Bal along Sikkim

Pan-states development authorities: ✓ Ministry for Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) ✓ North Eastern Council

Development and connectivity projects: ✓ NE road, rail, air services, water, power and tourism projects ✓ Look-East connectivity projects with ASEAN and SAARC