Among the city’s many other institutions of higher learning are the Gauhati Commerce College, College of Veterinary Science under AAU, Government Ayurvedic College, Arya Vidyapeeth College, B. Borooah College, Handique Girls College (they all have both Arts and Science streams), Assam Engineering Institute (engineering diploma courses), Pandu College, LCB College, West Guwahati Commerce College, K.C. Das Commerce College , J.B. Law College, Dispur College, Icon Commerce College, NEF Law College and Pragjyotish College.The Guwahati campus of TISS was also established here in 2010. Guwahati has branches of professional courses like the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI) and Institute of Cost and Works Accountants of India (ICWAI). Apart from those, Assam Institute of Management, North Eastern Regional Institute of Management (NERIM), Royal Group of Institutions, Asian Institute of Management and Technology, Darwin School of Business, Girijananda Chowdhury Institute of Management and Technology, Azara, NETES Institute of Technology and Science Mirza, Institute of Strategic Business Management (ISBM), Guwahati Institute of Technoloy (GIT), NEF College of Management & Technology, Hindustan College and GEA National College are notable institutes of higher education. The city has Don Bosco University, the first state-approved private university in Assam and North East India at Azara, outskirts of the city . The Kamrup College of Vocational Training provides education and training on vocational and professional management courses. It is home to many good schools like Asom Jatiya Vidyalaya, South Point School, DPS Guwahati, Don Bosco School, Holy Child School, Maharshi Vidya Mandir, Royal Global School and Miles Bronson Residential School.
The major economic activities are trade and commerce, transportation and services. Guwahati is the most important trade hub in the North Eastern Region. It is a major wholesale distribution center, a marketing hub, and also a retail hub of the region. The Guwahati Tea Auction Centre is one of the largest in the world. As in other cities, ‘mall culture’ is now invading Guwahati. Manufacturing is an important activity, although it is not comparable to those of India’s rapidly growing industrial cities. The most important manufacturing industry in the city is the petroleum refinery of IOCL at Noonmati, which is known as Guwahati Refinery. The city contains the headquarters or regional offices of several manufacturing and business establishments, e.g., Numaligarh Refinery Limited (NRL). Bamunimaidam and Kalapahar are two major industrial estate of Guwahati. Guwahati is important for printing and publishing, as well as businesses related to electronic and print media. During the past two decades, businesses such as real estate development, finance, etc. have intensified. Retail and real estate have emerged as big players. Recent times have seen large scale retail chains such as Big Bazaar, Westside, Pantaloons, Salasar Mega Store, Hidesign, Wills Lifestyle, Levi Strauss & Co. had opened outlets in Guwahati. Guwahati is home to the Guwahati Stock Exchange (GSE). For the promotion of trade and industry of Assam there is a trade centre named Maniram Dewan Trade Centre at the Betkuchi area of the city.
Guwahati is serviced by the Guwahati Airport at Borjhar, about 20 km west of the center of the city. Air connectivity have improved considerably in the last couple of years with all major domestic airlines flying into Guwahati. Helicopter services are operated from Guwahati to Shillong (30 min), Tura (50 min), Naharlagun (Itanagar), Tawang (75 min) by Pawan Hans, a helicopter service provider. The Helicopter services have been scrapped after the death of the chief minister of Arunachal Pradesh. Guwahati airport averages about 95-100 arrivals and departures a day. Guwahati is serviced with direct flights to Delhi, Jaipur, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Chennai, Ahmedabad and other major cities in India by different airlines. Druk Air connects Guwahati internationally airport to Bangkok and Paro twice a week. A modernization plan is underway at Guwahati airport right now and once it is completed, the AAI plans to make Guwahati a hub of air connectivity. Northeast Shuttles(P) Ltd. has started daily flights in their 18 seater Dornier 228 and 9 seater Cessna 208 aircraft from Guwahati airport connecting Silchar, Imphal, Aizawl, Dimapur.
The Ambari excavations trace the city to the 6th century AD. It was known as Pragjyotishpura and Durjoya in different periods and was the capital under the Varman Dynasty and the Pala dynasties of the Kamarupa kingdom. Descriptions by Xuanzang (Hiuen Tsang) reveal that during the greatest Varman king Bhaskar Varman (7th century AD), the city stretched for about 30 li (15 km) and was probably the principal base for his strong naval force (30,000 war-boats, with officers who were knowledgeable of the sea-routes from the Indian Ocean to China – Xuanzang). The city remained as the capital of Assam till the 10th-11th century AD under the rulers of the Pala dynasty. Excavations in Ambari and the brick walls and houses excavated during construction of the present Cotton College’s auditorium suggest that it was a city of great size with economic and strategic importance until the 9th-11th century AD.
The city provides competitive residential and working environments with beautiful landscapes, pleasant climate, modern shopping areas, modern apartments and bungalows, and considerably good social infrastructure. Yet infrastructure in the city still requires extensive attention, which can increase and revolutionize the city’s reputation, investment environment, and overall growth pattern. Major investments in infrastructure are being planned in the city, covering many aspects of the utilities and transportation infrastructures, with financial assistance from the Asian Development Bank (ADB). Guwahati is to also receive substantial city development funds from JNNURM (Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission) – the Government of India’s recently conceived commission for urban development, and a development plan for the city has been recently finalized.
The century-old Cotton College is one of the most reputed colleges in eastern India and possesses great scholastic and cultural value. The Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati is the sixth member of the high-profile world’s renowned IITs in India. Since its establishment in 1994, IIT Guwahati has proven itself as an excellent institution for research and education. The Assam Engineering College and the Gauhati Medical College and Hospital which include Regional Dental College and Regional College of Nursing are the two important institutions for science and technology and medical education. National Law University and Judicial Academy, Assam which is one of the fourteen National Law Universities of India was established in the year 2010 and is a torchbearer in the field of legal education in North East India.
Guwahati falls under the Northeast Frontier Railway zone of the Indian Railways. Guwahati Junction which is the major station of Guwahati is the headquarters of the zone. Two other stations are Kamakhya and New Guwahati (for freight services) located towards west and east from Guwahati respectively. Few trains depart from Kamakhya station also. Guwahati is well connected by express trains to major cities like New Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore, Chandigarh, Mumbai, Jaipur, Trivandrum, Ranchi, Patna, Puri, Jammu etc. Major trains serving Guwahati are Guwahati Rajdhani Express, Poorvottar Sampark Kranti Express, Saraighat Express, North-East Express, Guwahati Bangalore Express, Guwahati Egmore Express, Guwahati Ernakulam Express, Kamrup Express, Kanchanjunga Express, Guwahati-Jorhat Jan Shatabdi Express etc.
The popular Assamese daily newspapers published from the city are Dainik Agradoot, Asomiya Pratidin, Asomiya Khobor, Amar Asom, Dainik Janambhumi, Janasadharan, Niyamiya Barta and Gana Adhikar. English dailies are The Assam Tribune, The Sentinel, Seven Sisters Post and The Telegraph. Doordarshan Kendra Guwahati provides composite satellite television services to north east region. The Guwahati based 24 hour regional news channels include NE TV, News Live, DY 365, Frontier TV, Prime News, News Time Assam, News Network and Prag. In FM Radio, apart from All India Radio, Radio Oolala 91.9 FM, Radio Gup-Shup 94.3 FM, Red FM 93.5 and BIG FM 92.7 are other FM stations of the city. Telecom services are BSNL, Aircel, Airtel, Vodafone, Reliance Mobile, Idea Cellular, S Tel etc.
Pan Bazaar: (Pron: p?n b??z?:) A lively part of the city center on the southern bank of the Brahmaputra. Cotton College, Digholy Pukhury (Dighalipukhuri), The State Museum, RBI, District Court (Kamrup District), etc. are all major landmarks. Moreover, the area also possesses many libraries, major government offices, and a shopping district. Restaurants and bookshops in the area provide a unique environment. It also contains a major wholesale market for drugs and pharmaceutical products, and a hub for printing and publication. Close to Digholy Pukhury, there are many stores with traditional arts and crafts from Assam and other parts of the NER. Kachari Ghat, next to the district court is an important local river port. Moreover it is also renowned for sports market.
The core area consists of the old city with Pan Bazaar, Paltan Bazaar, Fancy Bazaar and Uzan Bazaar, each one facilitating unique urban activities. While Paltan Bazaar is the hub for transportation and hotels, Pan Bazaar is centered around education, administrative, cultural activities, offices and restaurants. Fansi Bazaar is the hub for retail and wholesale commercial activities, and Uzan Bazaar mainly contains administrative, retail and residential areas. With these bustling areas, the city core is a busy and lively part of the Guwahati. Ulubari, Lachit Nagar, Chandmari and Zoo Road (R.G. Baruah Road), which have a mix of retail-commercial and residential areas, can be considered an additional part of the core.
Paltan Bazaar: (Pron: ‘p?lt?n b??z?:) In the central part of the city-center is the hub for transportation and hotels. With Guwahati railway station, the regional bus stand (ASTC), numerous hotels, restaurants and offices and stops of numerous private regional bus service providers, this area is the busiest and most congested. There are many small shops selling traditional garments from parts of the NER. After the start of operations at ISBT for Intra and Inter state bus service, bus services from paltan bazar has been prohibited by authorities to ease traffic congestion in the area. Now the ASTC Bus stand and various private bus operators only run shuttle services from Paltan Bazar to ISBT.
The Mughals tried to invade Assam 17 times and each time they were defeated by the Ahoms led by the great Ahom general Bir Lachit Borphukan. The Battle of Saraighat fought close to Guwahati in 1671 is the most well-known of all those battles; the Mughals were overrun due to the strong leadership and hard work of Lachit Borphukan. Brahmaputra and was an ancient boat yard probably used by the Ahoms in medieval times. Moreover, there are many tanks, temples, ramparts, etc. in the city. The most important archaeological site is the Ambari excavation site close to Dighalipukhuri.
The city is between the banks of the Brahmaputra river and the foothills of the Shillong plateau, with LGB International Airport to the west and the town of Narengi to the east. It is gradually being expanded as North Guwahati to the northern bank of the Brahmaputra.The famous heritage Madan Kamdev is situated 30 km away from Guwahati.This heritage is same as khajuraho. The Guwahati Municipal Corporation, the city’s local government, administers an area of 216 km², while the Guwahati Metropolitan Development Authority, the planning and development administers an area of 340 km².
The corridor extending towards the west (around 30 km from the city-center) contains a railroad linking Guwahati and other parts of the North Eastern Region east of Guwahati to rest of western Assam and India. The corridor links residential and historically important areas such as Nilachal Hill (Kamakhya), Pandu, and Maligaon (headquarters of Northeast Frontier Railways) before it separates into two: one towards North Guwahati and the other continuing west towards Guwahati Airport via the University of Gauhati (Jalukbari). There are many river ports/jetties along this corridor.
Guwahati, formerly Pragjyotishpura meaning “city of eastern light,”, “city of eastern astrology”, and Durjaya meaning “impregnable” were the capitals of the ancient state of Kamarupa under Varman’s and Pala’s respectively. Many ancient Hindu temples are in the city, Kamakhya, Umananda, Navagraha, Sukreswar, Basistha, Lankeshwar, Doul Govinda, Dirgheshwari, Ugro Tara, Rudreswar etc. are but a few so also known as the “The City of Temples.” Dispur, the capital of the Indian state of Assam is in the city and is the seat of the Government of Assam.
Guwahati War Cemetery: A World War II war cemetery, maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission This is the one cemetery among the nine cemeteries in India which has war graves of Japanese soldiers. The cemetery has 521 graves, including 316 known and 18 unknown graves of soldiers from the United Kingdom, 136 known and seven unknown Indian soldiers, four from Canada, four from South Africa, one from New Zealand, two graves of soldiers whose nationality is unknown, 11 graves of Japanese soldiers and 24 graves of Chinese Army soldiers.
The city is having notable changes in its morphology with rapid expansion. The Khanapara road is being converted into four lanes and it will be extended up to a Changsari in the near future. Projects are undertaken on the outskirts like the water park in Rani, which has brought those far-flung areas under city reach by visit by tourists. The road towards Airport from Jalukbari is also being converted into a four-lane road. Two five star hotels are on the verge of being set up, raising hopes that by a decade or so, the city will be twice its size now.
During medieval times between the 12th and 15th centuries AD, after the destruction of the Kamata kingdom, the city lost its earlier glory and became mainly a strategic outpost of the Koch Hajo and Ahom kingdom. When the western part of the Koch Kingdom (Koch Bihar) fell to the Mughals, the eastern half (Koch Hajo) eventually became a protectorate of Ahom. Although the border between the powers (Ahoms and Mughals) fluctuated between the Kartoya river (now in North Bengal) to the Manas and Barnadi rivers, Guwahati remained an important outpost.
The gross domestic product of Guwahati metro was estimated at $1 billion in 2010. As a river port, Guwahati has traditionally been an important administrative and trading center. Separate income estimates are not yet available as city-level income estimation is not a traditional practice in India, and is not practiced in a systematic and continual manner. However, by looking at the agglomeration of activities and employment patterns it can be easily understandable that the city contributes a lion’s share of the state’s income.
The most important corridor is along the Guwahati-Shillong (GS) Road towards the south (almost 15 km from the city-center). The GS Road is an important commercial area with retail, wholesale and offices developed along the main road; it is a densely built residential area in the inner parts. The capital complex of Assam at Dispur is 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.