India’s northeast is the land of Blue Mountains, Green Valleys and winding Rivers. Nestled in the Eastern Himalayas this region is abundant in Natural Beauty, Wild life, Flora & Fauna and its Colorful people. The colorful tribal people who still retain their pristine touch mostly inhabit its hilly terrain.

Northeast India was one political entity named Assam before the rest of the states were carved out of it. The entire North-East of India has been a pot of amalgamation of different cultures and ethnic groups coming and settling here. At first when India became independent Assam was the only state comprising the whole of the north east. Subsequently, a number of other north eastern states were carved out of Assam.

Arunachal Pradesh

Arunachal Pradesh, the “Land of the Dawn-lit Mountains”, is situated in the North-Eastern corner of India bordering on China, Tibet, Burma and Bhutan and lying between 26.28N to 29.30N latitude and 91.31 to 97.30 longitude. According to 1991 census, it has a total area of 83,743 sq. km. and a population of 8,64,558.

The population of Arunachal Pradesh is predominantly tribal. There are about 20 major tribes which are divided into a number of sub-tribes. The prominent tribes which occupy the state are Adi, Nishi, Apatani, Tagin, Mishmi, Khamti, Nocte, Wancho, Tangsa, Singpho, Monpa, Sherdu-kpen, and Aka. There are also a number of minor tribes with their own divisions. The various religions practiced in the state are Doni Polo, Buddhism, Hinduism and Christianity.

Recorded history of Arunachal Pradesh can be traced to the period when Ahom Kings began to rule Assam in the 16th century. The British took possessions of Assam in 1838. British government had brought Arunachal Pradesh also under its administrative control. Originally known as North East Frontier Agency (NEFA), it was placed under the administration of the Union Government in 1948. It was declared a Union Territory under the name of Arunachal Pradesh. On 15th August 1975, an elected legislative assembly was constituted and the first council of Ministers assumed office. The first general election to the Assembly was held in February 1978. Arunachal Pradesh became a full fledged state on 20th February 1987.

The State of Arunachal Pradesh consists of thirteen districts: Changlang, Dibang Valley, Lohit, Tirap, East Kameng, West Kameng, Upper Siang, East Siang, West Siang, Upper Subansiri, Lower Subansiri, Papum Pare and Tawang.

Though the first of the Arunachalis were baptized as early as 1963, because of the anti-christian policy of the Central Government, Christian missionaries were prevented from entering Arunachal Paradesh and those who adopted Christianity were persecuted.

Assam

Assam or the valley of the Brahmaputra is an alluvial plain about 450 miles in length with an average breadth of 50 miles. Located in the northeastern corner of India and stretching over an area of 78,438 sq. km, it has a unique geographical structure and socio-cultural milieu. The mighty Brahmaputra, its perennial tributaries, ever-green forests, fertile soil and numerous mineral resources are unparalleled in the country.

An ideal meeting ground for diverse races, Assam gave shelter to streams of human waves carrying with them distinct cultures and trends of civilization. Austro-Asiatics, Negritos, Dravidians, Alpiines, Indo-Mongoloids, Tibeto-Burmese and Aryans penetrated into Assam through different routes and contributed in their own way towards the unique fusion of a new community which came to be known in later history as the Assamese. Assam, however, remained predominantly a land of the Tibeto-Burmese. The vast section of the people of Assam belong either to this stock or owe their origin to fusion of this stock with other racial groups.

The state of Assam is situated between 240N and 280N latitudes and 90E-96E longitudes. It is bounded by Arunachal Pradesh and Bhutan in the North, Nagaland and Manipur in the East, Meghalaya in the South and West Bengal in the West. Assam comprises of 23 districts- Barpeta, Bongaigaon, Cachar, Darrang, Dhemaji, Dhubri, Dibrugarh, Goalpara, Golaghat, Hailakandi, Jorhat, Kamrup, Karbi Anglong, Karimganj, Kokrajhar, Lakhimpur, Morigaon, Nagaon, North Cachar Hills, Nalbari, Sibsagar, Sonitpur and Tinsukia. It has a total population of 22,414,322.

Today, there are six Dioceses in Assam- Dibrugarh, Tezpur, Silchar, Diphu and Guwahati and Bongaigaon. The Salesians of Don Bosco of the Province of Dimapur work in the Dioceses of Dibrugarh and Tezpur. The civil districts which fall within the limits of the Province are Dibrugarh, Golaghat, Jorhat, Lakhimpur, Sibsagar and Tinsukia.

Manipur

Described by Lord Irwin as the “Switzerland of India” and by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru as the “Jewel of India” the state of Manipur is a picturesque land studded with rows of rolling hills and yawning valleys. Situated between 230 47’N and 250 41 ‘N latitudes and 930 6’E and 940 48’E longitudes, Manipur is bounded by Nagaland in the North, Burma in the East, Mizoram and the Chin Hills of Burma in the South and the Cachar district of Assam in the West.

Of the total area of 22,327 sq.km, the Imphal Plain covers 1,800 sq.km, while the hills cover the entire remaining part-about 9/10th of the state. Manipur has a total population of 1837,149, of which 1.32 million live in rural settlements. Besides the Meiteis who inhabit the Imphal Plain and form bulk of the population, around 30 separate tribal groups inhabit the hills.

Manipur has a varied and proud history from the earliest times. It came under British rule as a princely state in 1891. The Manipur Constitution Act, 1947, established a democratic form of government with the Maharaja as the Executive Head and a legislature constituted by election on adult franchise. The Legislature was dissolved on the integration of the state with the Dominion of India in October, 1949. Then it was governed as if it were a Chief Commissioner’s Province and from 26th January 1950 as a State under the Indian Constitution. In 1950-1952 an advisory form of popular government was introduced and in 1957 this was replaced by a Territorial Council. In 1963, a legislative assembly was established. The status of the Administrator was raised from that of Chief Commissioner to that of a Lieutenant Governor in December 1969. Manipur became a full-fledged state on 21st January 1972.

Today, the state of Manipur consists of the nine districts of Senapati, Tamenglong, Churachandpur, Chandel, Thoubal, Bishanpur, Central Imphal, West Imphal and Ukhrul.

Nagaland

Nagaland is a picturesque land, endowed with an enchanting landscape of green hills, valleys and rivers. This land of exotic charm is bounded by the states of Arunachal Pradesh in the North, Manipur in the South, Assam in the West and Myanmar in the East. The state of Nagaland lies between 2506’N and 2704’N latitudes, and 93020”E and 95015’E longitudes.

Nagaland remained untouched for many turbulent centuries, during which the Nagas were engaged in fierce head-hunting expeditions in their hill-top villages. The state of Nagaland comprising of the former Naga Hills district of Assam and the former Tuensang Frontier division of the North East Frontier Agency were made a Centrally Administered Area in 1957, administered by the President through the governor of Assam. In January 1961 the Government of India conferred the status of a State on Nagaland. The state of Nagaland was formally inaugurated on 1st of December 1963 as the sixteenth state of the Indian Union.

Each village of Nagaland is an epitome of the ancient Greek city states with its own definitive population, area and administration. No wonder Nagaland is sometimes described as a conglomeration of ‘Village Republics”. Village-level institutions form the backbone of Nagaland. By 1980, the Village Development Boards (VDB) were given administrative and local mandate.

The population of Nagaland is entirely tribal. The sixteen odd tribes and sub-tribes that inhabit this colourful State have their own distinctive dialects, customs and traditional dresses. The prominent tribes are Angami, Ao, Sema, Lotha , Rengma, Chakhesang, Sangtam, Konyak, Phom, Chang, Yimchunger, Khiamungan, Zeliang, Kuki and Pochury.

The state of Nagaland has an area of 16579 sq.km. and a total population of 12,09,546. The state is divided into the eight districts of Kohima, Wokha, Mon, Phek, Zunheboto, Mokokchung, Tuensang and Dimapur.