TOPIC

ASSAM
MAP OF ASSAM
FEATURES
ASSAM MEANS “PEERLESS” IN ANCIENT
AHOM LANGUAGE.
Has an area of 78,438 sq km (30,285 sq mi).
The most important river in the state is the
Brahmaputra
The state of Assam has a humid, subtropical
climate, with extremely heavy rainfall that
ranges from about 1,800 to nearly 2,500 mm
(about 70 to nearly 100 in) per year.
The average temperatures in January range
from 10° to 23° C (50° to 73° F); in July average
temperatures range from 26° to 32° C (79° to 90°
F).
Much of the state is covered with dense
tropical forests of bamboo and, at higher
elevations, evergreens.
Common animals of Assam include the
elephant, tiger, leopard, rhinoceros, and bear.
GLIMPSE OF THE BRAHMAPUTRA
THE FAMOUS ONE HORNED RHINO
The population of Assam was 22,400,000 at the
1991 census, giving it an average density of 340
persons per sq km (881 persons per sq mi). By 2001
it had grown to 26.6 million.
The state capital is Dispur.
The Assamese have many different origins,
although the majority originally migrated from the
region that is now Myanmar.
Their language, which is called Assamese, is
closely related to Bengali.
The majority of the population is Hindu, with a large
minority of Muslims; there are also Buddhists and
Christians.
Assam Agricultural University (founded in 1969) in
Jorhāt, Dibrugarh University (1965) in Dibrugarh, and
Gauhati University (1948) in Gauhati are all located in
Assam.
ECONOMY
Assam's economy is rural and agricultural.
Tea is cultivated in the hilly regions, and the state
provides much of the tea grown in India.
Assam is the largest exporter of tea in India
The valley of the Brahmaputra River is important for
rice, the major food product of Assam.
Other agricultural products are jute, sugarcane,
cotton, oranges, and potatoes.
The cultivation of silkworms is common in many
areas.
Assam silk is famous all over India.

Lumber is valuable to the economy of Assam, and

the extraction of crude oil is gaining in
importance.

The primary industries of Assam are textile

manufacturing, cement production, and oil
refining.
GOVERNMENT
Assam has a single-chamber legislative assembly
with 126 members.

The state sends 21 members to the Indian national

parliament: 7 to the Rajya Sabha (Upper House)
and 14 to the Lok Sabha (Lower House). Local
government is based on 23 administrative districts.
HISTORY
The Kingdom of Assam was founded in the 13th
century by the Ahoms, an Asian people from
Myanmar.
Rule over Assam was contested until 1826, when
the British took control.
When India and Pakistan became independent in
1947, Assam was divided between the two
countries, most of Assam going to India.
The northern border of Assam has been insecure
since 1959, when the Chinese invaded the region.

During the late 1960s instability in the state

increased as several native groups demanded
greater political influence or independence from
Assam.

Partly as a result, the states of Meghalaya and

Mizoram were formed in India from Assam in the
early 1970s.