Guwahati

Guwahati derives its name from the Assamese word "Guwa" (Assamese: গুৱা) derived from the Sanskrit word Guvāka (Devanagari: गुवाक), meaning areca nut and its plant and "Hati" (Assamese: হাটী) meaning rows, the rows of areca nut trees.

Naraka, also known as Narakāsura, and Bhaumāsura was an asura king, the legendary progenitor of all three dynasties of Pragjyotisha-Kamarupa, and the founding ruler of the legendary Bhauma dynasty of Pragjyotisha. Though the myths about Naraka are first mentioned in the Mahabharata, later texts embellish them. According to later post-Vedic texts such as the Brahma Purana and Vishnu Purana, he was the son of Bhudevi, fathered by the Varaha incarnation of Vishnu. He is claimed as one who established Pragjyotisha. The pious Naraka became evil due to his association with an asura named Banasura of Śoṇitapura, and hence the suffix 'asura' (demon) was added to his name. He was slain by Krishna and Satyabhama, who was the incarnate of Bhudevi. …

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. To the south-west of the city lies Dipor Bil, a permanent freshwater lake with no prominent inflows apart from monsoon run-off from the hills to the south of the lake. The lake drains into the Brahmaputra, 5 km (3.1 mi) to the north, and acts as a natural stormwater reservoir for the city. There are also multiple hills within the city limits. Guwahati's 'urban form' radiates from a central core with growth corridors radiating and extending towards the south, east, and west. …

Pandu, located on the banks of the Brahmaputra at the western part of the city, is an ancient urban area that acted as the chief military base for the Ahoms against external invasions. Due to extensive fortification ('Gorh') surrounding Pandu, it acts as a natural river harbor and is formally called Gar-Pandu. Pandu port falls under Dhubri-Sadiya National Waterway-2 and is an important terminal and transit point for goods and cargo as well as passenger and tourist vessels. Construction of both low-level and high-level jetty of fixed terminal, capable of handling container vessels, has been completed and has further enhanced revenue generation for the city. The manufacturing sector in Guwahati contributes a substantial share to the economy of the city. Petroleum manufacturing is an important economic activity in the city. …

Guwahati is served by the Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport, in Borjhar, about 20 kilometres (12 mi) west from the heart of the city. Both T1 and newly constructed Architectural Award winning T2 The city of Guwahati and the northeastern region falls under the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) Zone of the Indian Railways, the headquarters of which is in Maligaon, near Nilachal Hills, in the northwest of the city. The Guwahati railway station, located in Paltan Bazaar area of Guwahati, is the busiest railway station in the city. It lies along the Barauni-Guwahati Line and Guwahati–Lumding section, categorised as an A-1 railway station under Lumding railway division. …

Guwahati is one of the fastest-growing cities in India. Guwahati has a population of 962,334 as per the 2011 census. Population of Guwahati in 2021 is estimated to be 11 lakhs (approx). It is estimated that Guwahati metro will house 2.8 million residents by 2025. The percentage of the child population (0-14) in Guwahati was 9.40% in 2011. The average literacy rate was stated to be 91.47% with male literacy at 94.24% and female literacy at 88.50%. The sex ratio was recorded to be 933 females per 1,000 males and child sex ratio to be 940 girls per 1,000 boys. According to the 2011 census, there were around 962,334 people living in Guwahati city, of which around 57.80% spoke Assamese, 20.40% Bengali, 12.29% Hindi, 1.92% Nepali, 1.69% Boro, 0.91% Manipuri and 0.90% Bhojpuri as their first language.