Assam - In the North Eastern part of India, is a mixing urn where culture, heritage, tradition, lifestyle, faith and belief of her Aryan & Non-Aryan, numerous tribes & sub-tribes, Mongoloids & Australoids, drawn from various hives at different points of time have gone into form the Assamese culture - a fascinating and exotic recipe of delightful flavor.

Assam is a home to several wildlife sanctuaries which are a home to endangered and rare species and orchids.North East is a hub of wide variety of flora and fauna.

Orchids are abundantly found in Assam; a variety - Khopo phul(Fox tailed orchid), Bhatou Phul or Vanda coerulea etc. Assam has several attractive destinations; majority of these are National Parks, Wildlife and Bird Sanctuaries.

Thursday, December 16, 2010

Elephant Twins were born in Orang National Park

Alka, an elephant in the Orang National Park, which attract thousands of tourists inside the sanctuary wildlife for several years has created a kind of history when she gave birth to twins in the sanctuary last night, 15-12-2010 and both the newborn calves are female.

Orang National Park

The Orang National Park, located on the north bank of the river Brahmaputra in Sonitpur and Darrang district of Assam, India, has an area of 78.81 square kilometers (30.43 square miles). It was established as a sanctuary in 1985 and declared a national park April 13, 1999. Also known as mini Kaziranga National Park (IUCN website) in the two parks have similar landscape consists of marshes, streams and meadows and are inhabited by the Great Indian rhinoceros horns.

The park is rich in flora and fauna, including a large horned Indian rhinos, miniature pigs, elephants, wild buffaloes and tigers. It is the power of rhinos in the north bank of the river Brahmaputra.




Saturday, September 11, 2010

Kamakhya Temple

Kamakhya Temple is one amongst the holiest shrines throughout India. Perched on Nilanchal Hill in Kamrup district of Assam, Kamakhya Mandir is easily accessible at a stretch of 8 kms from Guwahati. The temple commemorates Hindu Goddess Sati in her aspect of Kamakhya Devi. Goddess Kamakhya is also known as Sodashi in the local region.

Kamakhya Temple is regarded as one of the 51 Shakti Peethas. As per the legends, during the time of self-sacrifice, the genital organ (yoni) of Sati fell at this spot. Kamakhya Mandir is a natural cave with a spring. In order to reach the temple, one has to take a flight of steps that goes down into a dark and strange shrine. There is no concrete form of goddess inside the temple.


In the shrine, Kamakhya Devi, in the form of genital organ (yoni), presides as a big crevice in the bedrock. The Goddess is covered naturally by a rivulet of water gushing upward from an underground spring. The crevice is usually covered with sari, flowers and vermilion powder (Sindoor). The temple had been an ancient sacrificial site and till date, sacrifices are offered here. Every morning, group of devotees come to sacrifice goats.

The temple is very much ancient in its origin, yet it was restructured in 1665, when it was attacked by the Muslim invaders. The effort of this reconstruction was made by King Nar Narayan of Cooch, Bihar. The spire of this temple is shaped like a beehive. Besides Kamakhya Devi, there are images of Ganesha, Chamundeswari and various dancing sculptures. In the temple, an image of the King and related inscriptions are visible.


Essentially, the Goddess 'Kamakhya' is believed to be the granter of desires. In traditional terms, Assam is known as 'Kamarupa Desa', a place that is associated with Tantric practices and worship of Shakti. In Kalika Purana (an ancient scripture), Kamakhya is referred as the goddess who fulfills all desires, the bride of Lord Shiva and the benefactor of salvation.


During the occasion of Navratri (Sep-Oct), a three day festival attracts thousands of pilgrims. This festival is known as Ambuvaci (Ameti), which is unique with its own significance. For the duration of this fertility festival, the Goddess is said to undergo her menstrual period. At this point of time, the temple is closed for three days and before closing, white sheets are draped inside the temple.


When the temple is opened after three days, the sheets are found red in color. On the fourth day, great festivity is observed. Devotees from far and near, come to visit this temple at this juncture of the festival. The red sheets are torn into pieces and distributed amongst the devotees. Kamakhya Temple is a prominent pilgrimage site that attracts thousands of visitors throughout the year.

Monday, August 16, 2010

Deepor Beel

Dipor bil, also spelled Deepor Beel (bil or Beel means "lake" in the local Assamese language), is located southwest of the city of Guwahati Kamrup district of Assam in India. This is a permanent freshwater lake, into a river Brahmaputra old channel, south of the main River. It is also known as a wetland under the Ramsar Convention, which entered the lake in November 2002 as a Ramsar site for conservation measures on the basis of society's biological and ecological significance.

Its natural resources for subsistence of fourteen indigenous villages (1,200 families) located in its
premises. Freshwater fish are a vital protein and income for these communities, the health of these individuals reported being directly dependent on the health of this wetland ecosystem. It lies 13 km south-west of Guwahati on National Highway (NH 31) on the ring-Jalukbari Khanapara in addition to its northwest border. PWD road at the northern edge of Garbhanga Rani and forest reserves in the south. The Interstate 37 near Beel east and north-east and Engineering College Road to the north. Small roads and writings found in the vicinity of Beel. The Beel is about 5 km from Guwahati Airport (GNB International Airport, Borjar). Broad gauge railway line runs along the lake.

Ava fauna

The Beel is a natural habitat for many varieties of birds. 219 species of birds, including more
than 70 migratory species have been reported in the region of Beel. The largest congregations of waterfowl can be seen, especially in winter, with a reported number of 19,000 registered waterfowl in one day. Some endangered species such as Spot Image Pelican (Pelecanus philippensis), Lesser Adjutant Stork (Leptoptilos javanicus), Baer Pochard (Aythya baeri), Pallas Sea Eagle (Haliaeetus leucogaster), Greater Adjutant Stork (Leptoptilos dubius). Spot-billed pelican in Beel and lakes in India

Among the large number of migratory water fowl, the Siberian crane (Grus leucogeranus) regularly migrates to this habitat during its annual journey. This is in addition to the large congregation of residential water birds seen in the lake.

Considering the richness of the bird varieties found in the beel, the Birdlife International has declared Deepor Beel as an Important Bird Area (IBA) with high priority for conservation

Aqua Fauna

Surveys have revealed 20 amphibian, 12 lizards, 18 snakes and 6 turtle and tortoise species in the beel. Over 50 commercially viable species of fish, belonging to 19 families have been identified, which supplies stock to other nearby wetlands and rivers.

Fauna

Wild Asian Elephants (Elephas maximus), Leopard, Jungle Cat and the protected Barking Deer, Chinese Porcupine and Sambar are found in the beel. Herds of elephants are reported in the beel.

Other world heritage site kaziranga National Park, Assam

Saturday, March 20, 2010

Rangia

Rangia (also spelt Rangiya) (Assamese:ৰিঙয়া) is a town and a municipal board in Kamrup district (rural) in the Indian state of Assam. It is the regional divisional headquarters of the North East Frontier Railway. It's situated just 52 kilometers away from the state headquarter Guwahati.

The word Rangia come from two Assamese word ran and dia, which together means 'to give fight'. Rangia (Rangiya) is part of Mangaldoi (Lok Sabha constituency)

Place around Rangia:
  • Loch (9.5km)
  • Bāihāta (18.3km)
  • Dhamdhama (27.4km)
  • Nalbāri (28.4km)
  • Nāokāta (28.8km)
  • Chāngsāri (29.4km)
  • Maroa (29.4km)
  • Tāmulpur (31.7km)
  • Pathārughāt (32km)
  • Dumnichauki (32.7km)
  • Hājo (35.8km)
  • Khoirābāri (37.3km)
  • Barjhar (37.9km)
  • Nalbāri (44.3km)
  • Kurua (44.9km)

Streams near Rangia:
  • Nona Nadī (17.1km)
  • Puthimari Nadī (25.8km)
  • Pāglādiya Nad (27.3km) Cross into Bhutan
  • Nanai Nadī (30.2km)
  • Bar Nadī (30.2km)

Rail/Road station:
  • Ghagra (13.7km)
  • Tangla (47.5km)
  • Pānikhāiti (51.8km)

Airport close to Rangia
Guwahati International Airport, Gauhati, India (55.4km)




Friday, January 29, 2010

The Assam State Zoo-cum-Botanical Garden

The Assam Sate Zoo is located at around 5 kilometers from Guwahati Railway Station in the city of Guwahati in the land of rich culture, Assam. It is also called The Assam State Zoo-cum-Botanical Garden. Spread over an area of 130 hectares, while the botanical garden covers an area of around 82 hectares.

Among the chief attraction of the city of Guwahati, State Zoo-cum-Botanical Garden of Assam is one of them and it attracts huge number of visitors from both national and international. The Assam State Zoo-cum-Botanical Garden had approximated an average of 5 lakh visitors in a year. It is evident that the zoo is one of the most frequented tourists destinations in Guwahati in the state of Assam.

Established in the year 1982, this botanical garden has gathered a various varieties of rare species of Orchids from the northeastern state of India and were place in the Orchid house of this beautiful botanical garden of Assam State Zoo. The garden is beautifully decorated with trees of various types that abound in plenty. The garden has planted palm, conifers, broad-leafed plants,fox-tailed Orchids, variety of herbs and shrubs.

A FLORAL TREASURE
* Native species : 345
* Exotic species : 280
* Orchid species : 40
* Bamboo species : 10
* Palm species : 12


The zoo is supervised by the office of the divisional forest officer. The zoo has a huge collection of reptiles, mammals and aves.

THE HIGHLIGHTS
* Animal Exhibits
* Museum
* Reptile House
* Botanical Garden
* Herbarium Collection
* Natural Forest


ANIMAL EXHIBITS : A SUMMARY
* About 600 animals, birds and reptiles
* Around 84 species
* Many rare and endangered species
* Several indigenous species endemic to North-East India

OTHER ATTRACTIONS
* Animal adoption
* Animal tales
* Energy high
* Jogger’s trail
* Jumbo Ride
* Towering Heights



Monday, January 11, 2010

Happy Bhogali Bihu

Wish you all a very happy Bhogali Bihu