GUWAHATI

Guwahati, formerly called Gauhati city, lies in the western part of

Assam in the northeastern India. It lies along the Brahmaputra river
and is picturesquely situated with an amphitheatre of wooded hills to
the south. Guwahati was the capital of the Hindu kingdom of
Kamrupa (under the name of Pragjyotisa) about 400 BC. In the 17th
century the town repeatedly changed hands between the Muslims
and the Ahoms (Tai-speaking people who migrated from Yunnan
province, China, and ruled much of Assam from the 13th century
BC) until it became the seat of the Ahom governor of Lower Assam
in 1681; in 1786 the Ahom king made it his capital. The Myanmar
(Burmese) held Guwahati from 1816 until 1826, when it became the
British capital of Assam. The capital was moved 67 miles (108 km)
south to Shillong in 1874.
Guwahati is an important river port and Assam’s principal
commercial centre. It has an oil refinery and a state farm, and its
industries include tea processing, milling of agricultural products,
and soap manufacturing. Gauhati University (founded 1948), Earle
Law College, the state high court, the state museum, several
scientific museums, and a Zoological Garden are located there.
Several Hindu pilgrimage centres and temple ruins are nearby.
Guwahati is served by an airport and a rail line.
 DEMOGRAPHY

Guwahati is a major city in eastern India. It is the largest city in the

north east region of India. The city's population grew from just two
hundred thousand in 1971 to five hundred thousand in 1991 and in
the census of 2005 it was found to be 818,809. By 2001, it is
estimated that Guwahati will boast more than a million residents. In
2001, males constituted 55% and females at 45% of Guwahati's
population. It was found that 10% of the population under six years
of age. Along with the steep rise in population, Guwahati has also
experienced expansion and growth during the past few decades.
According to a survey done by UK media outlet, Guwahati is among
the hundred fastest growing cities of the world and the fifth fastest
growing Indian city. Guwahati has an average literacy of 78% with
male literacy of 81% and female literacy at 74%.
The city is situated between the southern bank of the Brahmaputra
river and the foothills of shillong plateau. Guwahati is a major
commercial and educational center of north-east India and is home
to world class institutions like IIT Guwahati. The city is a major
center for cultural activities and sports in north-east region and for
the administrative and the political activities of assam.
 GEOGRAPHY

Guwahati's 'urban form' is somewhat like a starfish. With a core in

the central areas, the city has tentacles extending in the form of
growth corridors towards south, east and west. In the past few
decades, southern Guwahati areas such as Ganeshguri, Beltola,
Panjabari, Jatia, Kahilipara etc. began forming a southern sub-center
surrounding the capital complex at Dispur, principally depending on
the GS Road corridor. the area which is near about 5 km from
Dispur i.e. panjabari area is really very beautiful. It is place of full
natural beauty and climatic condition are somehow similar to
Meghalaya. Shankardev Kalakhetra is one of popular tourist spot in
this area.
The core area consists of the old city with Pan Bazaar, Fansi Bazaar
and Uzan Bazaar, each one facilitating unique urban activities.
While Paltan Bazaar is the hub for transportation and hotels, Pan
Bazaar is centered around educational, administrative, cultural
activities, offices and restaurants. Fansi Bazaar is the hub for retail
and wholesale commercial activities, and Ujan Bazaar mainly
contains administrative, retail and residential areas. With these
bustling areas, the city core is a busy and lively part of the Guwahati.
Ulubari, Lachit Nagar, Chandmari and Zoo Road (R.G. Baruah
Road), which have a mix of retail-commercial and residential areas,
can be considered an additional part of the core.
Among the city corridors, the most important is the corridor formed
along the Guwahati-Shillong(G.S) road towards the south (almost
15 km from the city-center). The GS Road corridor is an important
commercial area with retail, wholesale and offices developed along
the main road, and it is also a densely-built residential area in the
inner parts.

The capital complex of Assam at Dispur is situated in this corridor.

This corridor has facilitated the growth of a southern
city sub-center at Ganeshguri, along with other residential areas to
the south developed during the past few decades.
The corridor extending towards the west (around 30 km from the
city-center) contains a rail-road linking not only Guwahati but also
other parts of the North Eastern Region east of Guwahati to western
Assam and the rest of India. The corridor links residential and
historically important areas such as Nilachal Hill (Kamakhya),
Pandu and Maligaon (headquarters of Northeast Frontier Railways)
before it separates into two - one towards North-Guwahati
continuing west towards LGB international airport via the University
of Guwahati(Jalukbari). There are also many river ports/jetties along
this corridor.
The third major corridor extends towards the east (around 15 km
from the city-center) linking Noonmati(Guwahati Oil Refinery - IOC
Ltd.) and Narengi, and has facilitated residential growth along it.
Highway NH-37, which encircles the city's southern parts and links
the southern corridor in Nomile to the western corridor in Jalukbari
is currently supporting rapid development. Similarly, the VIP Road
linking Zoo Road with the eastern corridor and recently completed
Hengerabari-Narengi Road are also supporting massive residential
development to the east.
In brief, the major components of Guwahati's urban structure are:
• The core or the 'city center' with Pan Bazaar, Paltan Bazaar,
Fansi Bazaar and Uzan bazaar.
• The extended core with Chandmari, Zoo Road and Ulubari
 • The north-southeast Guwahati-Shillong (GS) Road Corridor

• The southern sub-center of Ganeshguri

• The western corridor towards Kamakhya, Jalukbari and LGBI
Airport and
• The eastern corridor towards Noonmati and Narengi

But the city is having notable changes in its morphology with rapid
expansion. The Khanapara road is being converted into 4 lanes and it
will be extended up to a place called Changsari in near future.
Various projects are undertaken on the outskirts like the water park
in Rani, which has brought those far flung areas under city reach by
continuous visit by tourists. Also, two five star hotels are on the
verge of being set up, arising hopes that by a decade or so, the city
will be twice its size now.

ECONOMY

As a river port, Guwahati has traditionally been an important

administrative and trading center. Separate income estimates for the
city are not yet available as city-level income estimation is not a
traditional practice in India, and is not practiced in a systematic and
continual manner. However, by looking at the agglomeration of
activities and employment patterns it can be easily understandable
that the city contributes a lion's share of the state's income.
The major economic activities of the city are trade and commerce,
transportation and services. Guwahati is the most important trade
hub in the North Eastern Region. It is a major wholesale distribution
center, a marketing hub, and also a retail hub of the region. The
'Guwahati Tea Auction center' is one of the largest in the world. As
in other cities, 'mall culture' is now invading Guwahati.
Manufacturing is also an important activity, although it is not
comparable to those of India's rapidly growing industrial cities. The
most important manufacturing industry in the city is the petroleum
refinery of IOCL at Noonmati, which is known as Guwahati
Refinery. The city contains the headquarters or regional offices of
several manufacturing and business establishments, e.g.Numaligarh
Refinery Limited (NRL). Guwahati is also important for printing and
publishing, as well as businesses related to electronic and print
media. During the past two decades, businesses such as real estate
development, finance, etc. have also intensified. Retail and Real
Estate have also emerged as big players. Recent times have seen
large scale retail chains such as Vishal MegaMart, Big Bazaar,
Pantaloons, Salasar Mega Store, Wills Lifestyle , Levi Strauss & Co.
had opened their outlets in Guwahati. Guwahati is home to the
Guwahati Stock Exchange (GSE).
Tourism and recreation, education, research, cultural activities, etc.
are also slowly increasing and contributing to city's economy. lot of
illegal immigrants from bangladesh also live here thus affecting the
demography.
There is a fair amount of ethnic and religious diversity in Guwahati,
but the city has been plagued by terrorism and insurgency in recent
years. Several bombings were carried out in 2008 and 2009,
claiming a total of at least 96 lives and wounding around 600 others.
 CULTURE
There are at least three races in Assam: the Australoids (the
first race that occupied this region), the Caucasoids (who
came from the west to settle in the valley formed by the
Ganges and the Brahmaputra), and the Mongoloids (who
came to the Northeast in a series of migrations from
Southeast Asia). This regular migration of different races
created two distinct ethnic groups in the state, the non-tribals
or plains people who generally live in the plains, and the
tribals who have mainly live in the hills. However, there is a
substantial tribal population in the plains too.
The major handicrafts of the state include making furniture
from cane and bamboo, handloom weaving, jewelry making,
sitalpati (or mat making), brass and bell-metal products,
pottery, woodwork, and kuhila koth (or fiber weaving).
People of Assam use a vast range of hand-woven fabrics with
intricate designs. Local silk occupies a prominent place in the
Assamese society. Traditional garments (Churia for men and
Mekhela-Chador for women) are used for social and religious
events. With growing impact of western culture, traditional
attires have given way to western clothes and majority of the
people can be seen in these clothes only.

The daughter of King Banasura, Usha, was the first lasya

(classic) dancer of the earth, according to Abhinaya Darpan, a
Sanskrit treatise written in the second century AD. King Bana
ruled Sonitpur (now Tezpur) around the time of Mahabharata.
Bhomoraguri Hill near Tezpur is said to be the Natakasailya
where Usha first practiced the lasya dance. Usha is also a
household name in Assam because of her love affair with Lord
Krishna’s grandson Anirudha.

FESTIVALS

Rongali or Bohag Bihu is the main festival of Assam. It derives

its name from the Sanskrit Vishuvam when day and night are
rendered equal through the vernal equinox. People welcome
the spring season and pray for a bountiful and rich harvest.
This festival is celebrated in the month of Bohag (mid-April),
the first month of the Assamese calendar. The exact date in
the English calendar varies, but the festival normally starts
from the 13th day of the month of April. Other Bihus are
Bhugali Bihu (also Magh Bihu) and Kangali Bihu (also Kati
Bihu).

A company that is operating very differently and in a

customized manner in Guwahati is the Numaligarh Refinery
SUBMITTED BY: Pallavi Gogoi
SEC- G
PGP-12
REG No.- PGP20102228