Arunachal Pradesh Information

Arunachal Pradesh means “land of the dawn-lit” mountains in Sanskrit.  Arunachal Pradesh is covered by the Himalayas.  The Parts of Lohit, changlang and Tirap are covered by the pakkai hills.  Kangto, Nyegi Kangsang, the main Gorichen peak and the Eastern Gorichen peak are some of the highest peaks in this region of the Himalayas.We can find semi-evergreen forests at the lowest elevations.  Most area of this state consists of Eastern Himalayan broad leaf forests.  Towards the northern border with china, the increasing elevation comes a mixture of eastern and North Eastern Himalayan sub-alpine conifer forests, followed by eastern Himalayan alpine shrub and meadows.  There is just rock and ice on the highest peaks.

The history of Arunachal Pradesh is rich in myths and legends.  The land is mentioned in the literature of Kalika purana and Mahabharata.  This place is the Prabhu Mountains of Puranas.  It was here that the sage Parashuram atoned for his sins and the sage vyasa meditated.  It was the land where king Bhismaka founded his kingdom and Lord Krishna married his consort Rukmani.

The history record of Arunachal Pradesh is available only from the sixteenth century onwards.  Its modern history begins with the imposition of the British rule in Assam in 1826.  Before 1862, Arunachal was popularly called the North Eastern frontier Agency and was constitutionally a part of Assam.  The ministry of external Affairs administrated it until 1965 and subsequently the ministry of Home Affair, through the Governor of Assam.  It was constituted as a union Territory in 1972 and renamed Arunachal Pradesh.  It became the 24th state of the Indian union on 20th February in 1987.

Arunachal Pradesh General Information

Capital
The capital of Arunachal Pradesh is Itanagar.
Districts
There are 16 districts in this state.
Official language
The languages spoken by this people are English.
State Bird
Great Hornbill is this state bird.
State Animal
The animal of this state is Gayal.
State flower
Foxtail orchid is this state’s flower.           

This state has a great cultural background and its people celebrate numerous festivals round the year together with their own set of rituals, music and numerous sub tribes living in the villages across the state.  Different tribal groups have their own set of beliefs and notions about the religion.  The people of Arunachal Pradesh form three cultural groups and each group practices its own religion.  The first group of the people are usually Buddhists.  While the second group people are practised Donyi Poloism or Worship of the Sun and Moon Gods.  Christianity and Hinduism the third group practices Christianity and Hinduism.

The people of Arunachal Pradesh make beautiful masks and periodically stage pantomimes and masked dances.  They specialize in carving semi-religious motifs on wood and make exquisite carpets, painted wooden vessels and silver articles.  They are expert workers in cane and bamboo and weave articles that they commonly use in their daily lives like shawls, jackets, shoulder bags and coats.  Specific tribes have crafts exclusive to their area of expertise.