The Northeast almanac
A yearbook for the region: the land, the people, the economy, and the numbers behind all eight states.
India's North-East is eight states joined to the rest of the country by a 22-km sliver of land at Siliguri — the 'Chicken's Neck'. Together they cover about 262,000 sq km (roughly 8% of India) and hold around 45 million people (2011 Census), among the most ethnically and linguistically diverse populations on earth. The region shares more than 5,300 km of international border with China, Bhutan, Myanmar, Bangladesh and Nepal, which is why it sits at the centre of India's Act East policy.
The eight states, side by side
Population and literacy are from the 2011 Census, India's latest complete count.
| State | Capital | Statehood | Area | Population | Literacy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assam | Dispur | 26 Jan 1950 | 78,438 km² | 3.12 crore | 72.2% |
| Meghalaya | Shillong | 21 Jan 1972 | 22,429 km² | 29.7 lakh | 74.4% |
| Arunachal Pradesh | Itanagar | 20 Feb 1987 | 83,743 km² | 13.8 lakh | 65.4% |
| Nagaland | Kohima | 1 Dec 1963 | 16,579 km² | 19.8 lakh | 79.6% |
| Manipur | Imphal | 21 Jan 1972 | 22,327 km² | 28.6 lakh | 76.9% |
| Mizoram | Aizawl | 20 Feb 1987 | 21,081 km² | 10.97 lakh | 91.3% |
| Tripura | Agartala | 21 Jan 1972 | 10,486 km² | 36.7 lakh | 87.2% |
| Sikkim | Gangtok | 16 May 1975 | 7,096 km² | 6.1 lakh | 81.4% |
The people
More than 220 tribes and sub-tribes live here, speaking languages from the Tibeto-Burman, Austroasiatic and Indo-Aryan families. Christianity is the majority faith in Nagaland, Mizoram and Meghalaya; Hinduism in Assam, Tripura and Manipur's valley; Buddhism in the hills of Arunachal and Sikkim; and indigenous faiths like Donyi-Polo endure. Literacy is high across the region — Mizoram and Tripura are among India's most literate states.
The economy
Agriculture, tea, oil and gas, bamboo, horticulture and handloom are the traditional mainstays; tourism, IT and, now, electronics manufacturing are the growth stories. Assam alone produces more than half of India's tea and has been an oil province for over a century. The Union government routes at least 10% of most ministries' budgets to the region and runs dedicated schemes through the Ministry of DoNER and the North Eastern Council.