Local Information

About Guwahati :

Guwahati is the largest city in the Indian state of Assam and also the largest metropolis in northeastern India. A major riverine port city along with hills, and one of the fastest growing cities in India, Guwahati is situated on the south bank of the Brahmaputra. It is called the ‘Gateway to North East India‘. The Brahmaputra river flows to the north of the metropolis. The city is bordered on the south by the foothills of the Shillong plateau and to the east by the Amchang Wildlife Sanctuary. The Bharalu river, a tributary of the Brahmaputra, flows right through the heart of the city.

The modern Guwahati was known as Pragjyotishpura. i.e. the eastern city of astronomy during the epic and puranaic period. The KalikaPurana, a work of 10th century A.D. says “Formerly Brahma stayed here and created stars. In the book “A History of Assam” mentions ‘Prag’ means former or eastern and ‘Jyotish’ means a star, astrology shining and therefore Pragjyotishpur may means ‘the city of Eastern Astrology”. On the other hand, according to B.K. Kakati, Pragjyotisha or Pragjyotishpura was on an extensive hill and there the city of Pragjyotisha was connected with the topographical feature of the area rather than any religious cult.

Among the city corridors, the most important is the corridor formed along the Guwahati-Shillong (GS) Road towards the south (almost 15 km [9.3 mi] from the city-center). The GS Road corridor is an important commercial area with retail, wholesale and commercial offices developed along the main road; it is also a densely built residential area in the inner parts. The capital complex of Assam at Dispur is situated in this corridor. This corridor has facilitated the growth of a southern city sub-center at Ganeshguri, along with other residential areas to the south developed during the past few decades.