Saturday, 19th of May, 2012

Passage to the North East:

Embarking on a journey of India’s remote eight states of the North east ias a tumultuous but rewarding one. Though the Partition in 1947 was greatly responsible for the region’s separation from India, recent years have seen a deep interest in its tourist potential. The infinite variety of its geographic setting, its topography, its varied flora and fauna and avian life, the history of its people abd the variety of its ethnic communities and their rich heritage of ancient traditions and lifestyles, its festivals and crafts make it it a holiday wonderland that’s just begging to be discovered afresh. Discovering the North East states, including the partially opened up Sikkim, in the Eastern Himalayas, is a challenge- yet a romantic adventure in the best traditions of travel and discovery.
Connected by an infinite chain of pearly threads, intricate as a spider’s web, the North Eastern states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura offer visitors a rare feast. The raw natural beauty, rare orchids and butterflies, brightly painted monasteries, challenging rivers, intricately woven tribal shawls, indigenous sports each one has its own special message to the traveler as he passes from one state to another – mesmerized by its dazzling variety and compelling appeal.
Spread over an approximate expanse of 2,65,000 sq km, the region’s ecology and the lives of the people here have been shaped by the major rivers of the region, the Brahmaputra and the Barak, the serried ranges of its ancient mountains ans the thick tracts of impenetrable jungle and of course, those months of incessant rain. The population here remains pre-dominantly tribal.
For centuries, the passes and valleys of the North Eastern region where the great crossroad of the movement of people, commerce and culture that linked India overland to east and southeast Asia. This great ethno-cultural frontier is a rich complex transition point of racial, religious and linguistic streams.
It is a unique bio-geographic frontier- the meeting point of Indic, Sinic, and Malayasian-Burmese strains which have created a fabulous treasure house of faunal, floral and avian bio-diversity.
On the eastern border of Assam, north of the Brahmaputra lie the rich lands of Arunachal Pradesh and its vast network of ancient rivers and streams. It can be sccessed from Tezpur and Dibrugarh in Assam. With its lush tea gardens and oil fields, Assam lies flush in the Brahmaputra valley, from the narrow strip of North Bengal. Nowgong is an excellent entry point for Nagaland (on to Kohima via Dimapur), but so is Jorhat. Manipur can be accessed from Dimapur while the hill station of Shillong is a convenient base for exploring Meghalaya. Sikkim can be accessed through the Teesta gorge from Siliguri in West Bengal’s Dooars corridor which is integrally linked to the Greater North East.
The North East’s amazing diversity makes it a holiday-destination for all seasons. But because of the torrential monsoon it’s best to avoid the period between June-September. October to March are the finest months to explore this diversity at leaisure. During peak winter we may have problems crossing the Sela Pass to Tawang, so opt to travel there around mid September-November and March-April. For accommodation, there are plenty of hotels in the big towns to choose from, but one will also find forest rest houses in most places.

Available Eco Products (For holidays email us at admin@ecotourismsociety.in):
1. Daily evening cruises at Brahmaputra River:2. Eco Camps at Nameri National Park, Kaziranga National Park & Dibru Saikhowa National Park.

3. Exclusive eco packages at Cherrapunjee Resort: