Assam

Contents: 1. Unparalleled. 2. Heritage Island. 3. Ethnic Eden. 4. Bihu and beyond. 5. Epical environs. 6. Indiapendence. 7. Alien alert. 8. Riding the Rhino. 9. Instant Khaarma. 10. Voodoo Village. 11. Multi market. 12. Bio Brio. 13. God\'s son. 14. Indigorh. 15. Golden grass. 16. Treasure tomes. 17. Asset advantage. 18. Divinitea. 19. Oil Onset. 20. Woven wonders. 21. Rural revolution. 22. Celluloid Odyssey. 23. Gypsy genius. 24. Voltage voice. 25. Amazing art. 26. Travel theatre. 27. Chic clique. 28. Sports. 29. Power play.

"Assam - its Assamese version Asom means unparalleled - is heavenly; Kamakhya, the Mother Goddess of procreation, couldn\'t have settled for anything less. And it\'s not only because the temple dedicated to her on Nilachal Hill is considered a premier Hindu Pilgrimage. Nor because her influence elevated Kamarupa, literally meaning desire-driven beauty, as the most happening, occult-heavy part of ancient Assam.

Assam isn\'t just a part of India\'s enigmatic orient; it is a microcosm of the country. There isn\'t a single sub-continental community--from a village (Kampur) of localized Sikhs to Tamils in the vicinity of Guwahati\'s Balaji Temple and Afghans -- that hasn\'t settled down across the 78,438 sq km area the state occupies. No wonder, Assam has four official languages -- Assamese, Bengali, Bodo and English -- and publishes school textbooks in 14, almost equal to the number of primary tongues recognized by the Constitution of India.

Numerous indigenous and settler communities adorn Assam\'s demographic mosaic. As per the 2001 census report, they number 2.66 crore--1.37 crore males to 1.28 crore females -- across 25 plains and two hill districts. The bulk of the people inhabit the two valleys -- Brahmaputra and Barak -- sandwiching the hills."