ASSAM

Assam is a state in northeastern India known for its wildlife, archeological sites and tea plantations. In the west, Guwahati, Assam’s largest city, features silk bazaars and the hilltop Kamakhya Temple. Umananda Temple sits on Peacock Island in the Brahmaputra river. The state capital, Dispur, is a suburb of Guwahati. The ancient pilgrimage site of Hajo and Madan Kamdev, the ruins of a temple complex, lie nearby.

Assam is known for Assam tea and Assam silk. The state was the first site for oil drilling in Asia. Assam is home to the one-horned Indian rhinoceros, along with the wild water buffalo, pygmy hog, tiger and various species of Asiatic birds, and provides one of the last wild habitats for the Asian elephant.

Top places to visit:

1. Kaziranga National Park

Kaziranga National Park is a protected area in the northeast Indian state of Assam. Spread across the floodplains of the Brahmaputra River, its forests, wetlands and grasslands are home to tigers, elephants and the world’s largest population of Indian one-horned rhinoceroses. Ganges River dolphins swim in the park’s waters. It’s visited by many rare migratory birds, and gray pelicans roost near Kaziranga village.

2. Majuli

Majuli is a river island in the Brahmaputra River, Assam and in 2016 it became the first island to be made a district in India. It had an area of 880 square kilometres at the beginning of the 20th century, but having lost significantly to erosion it covers 553 square kilometres as at 2014.

3. Guwahati

Guwahati is a sprawling city beside the Brahmaputra River in the northeast Indian state of Assam. It’s known for holy sites like the hilltop Kamakhya Temple, featuring shrines to the Hindu deities Shiva and Vishnu. To the east, 18th-century Navagraha Temple is an astronomical center with planetary shrines. Umananda Temple, dedicated to Shiva and covered with engravings, stands on Peacock Island in the river.

4. Manas National Park

Manas National Park ' is a national park, UNESCO Natural World Heritage site, a Project Tiger reserve, an elephant reserve and a biosphere reserve in Assam, India. Located in the Himalayan foothills, it is contiguous with the Royal Manas National Park in Bhutan.

5. Dibrugarh

Dibrugarh is an industrial city surrounded by sprawling tea estates in Assam, northeast India. It sits on the Brahmaputra River, and is home to the Radha Krishna Mandir, a Hindu temple constructed of marble. Hitendranath Barua Science and Culture Park features life-size animal sculptures and an open-air stage. Northeast of the city, Dibru Saikhowa National Park is an island reserve that attracts many migratory birds.