Overview:

Golaghat district in Assam is situated on the southern bank of the Brahmaputra river and surrounded by the river Brahmaputra to the north, the state of Nagaland to the south, Jorhat district to the east and Karbi Anglong and Nagaon district to the west. Dhansiri is the principal river, which originates from Laisang peak of Nagaland. It streams through a distance of 352 km from south to north before joining the Brahmaputra. Its catchment area is 1220 km². Doyang, Nambor, Doigrung and Kalioni are the four rivulets of the Dhansiri. The river Kakodonga marks the border between Golaghat and Jorhat districts.

Best Time to Visit:

→ Mid October to Mid April 

How to reach:

By Road: Golaghat town is well connected through NH37 and NH39. A plenty of private and government buses running from Guwahati, Tezpur, Jorhat and major cities of Assam to Golaghat town. The NH 37 enters the region through the Golaghat Nagaon border at Bagori and then passes through many significant places like Kohora, Kaziranga National Park, Bokakhat, Numaligarh town, Kamargaon, and Dergaon, before entering the Jorhat District.

By Train: The major railway stations situated in the district of Golaghat are Furkating and Sarupathar. There are several trains plying between Guwahati, Furkating and Sarupathar. The District Head Quarter Golaghat town also have a railway station and a train service also operates from Guwahati to Dibrugarh via Golaghat Town.

By Air: The Golaghat district does not have its own airport but the nearest one to it is the Rowraih Airport in Jorhat which is 55Km from the Golaghat Town. One can also take a flight to the Dimapur Airport and then travel to Golaghat by road. There are major airlines that operate in these routes that are connected to many major cities of the country.

Weather: The climate is tropical with a hot and humid weather prevailing most of the summer and monsoon months. Total average annual rainfall is 1300 mm. Maximum precipitation occurs in June and July. Maximum temperature is 38.0 °C in June and minimum temperature is 8.0 °C in December.

Natural Tourism:

Kaziranga National park, a UNESCO World Heritage site is probably one of the richest and most pictorial wildlife habitats of southern Asia. Abode to the one horned Rhinoceros, it is located in the flood plains on both sides of the Brahmaputra. The park is divided into four ranges - Burapahar range, Bagori range, Kohora range, Agoratoli range. A memorable way of exploring Kaziranga is on elephant - back. As the gentle creatures tread through the tall grass, one's senses become keenly aware of the quiet and the vastness of the horizon fringed with blue mountains The other alternative is to take the Jeep safari which is also highly recommended as it offers the added benefit of covering a vast expanse in a relatively short span of time. Passing through the denser forests there is a possibility of catching some ‘wild’ action. Although finding a tiger or a rhinoceros roaming amid the tall grass and reed marshes of Kaziranga is possibly unsurpassed for the thrill, one is likely to encounter elephants, Indian Bison, swamp deer, sambhar, hog deer, leopards, sloth bear, hog badgers. Infact the park is known to be the is home to the Big Five namely the one horned Rhinocereous, Indian Elephant, Wild Water Buffalo, Royal Bengal Tiger and Swamp Deer.

History:

Inscription on rocks of Nagajari Khanikar village of Sarupathar, remnants of fortifications, brick structures, monuments, temples, tanks, etc. are evidence of a 9th-century kingdom in the Doyang-Dhansiri valley. The Ahoms were the rulers of the Doyang-Dhansiri valley in the 16th century. Earlier, this part was ruled by the Kacharis. The Kacharis were pushed back towards west of the Karbi Hills. The Ahom King appointed a ruler entitled 'Morongi-Khowa Gohain', an administrative post with the Rank of a Governor/Minister of the Ahom administration. Under Morongi-Khowa Gohain, large number of people from different parts of Ahom kingdom were settled in erstwhile Kachari Kingdom. An interesting aspect of such settlement was that a large number of people from different castes/communities were mixed up together so that there was remote chance of rebellion in such newly acquired territory. Most of the Morongi-Khowa Gohains were appointed from the Burhagohain families although there were few exceptions.

Later, when the British took control of Assam, the Doyang-Dhansiri valley was incorporated under the newly formed Golaghat subdivision of the Sibsagar district in 1846. Golaghat district played an active part in the freedom struggle of India. Kushal Konwar, Kamala Miri, Dwariki Das, Biju Vaishnav, Sankar Chandra Barua, Shri Tara Prasad Barooah, Rajendra Nath Barua, Gaurilal Jain, Ganga Ram Bormedhi and Dwarikanath Goswami are eminent freedom fighters of the region.

Golaghat was raised to the position of a district of Assam on 15 August 1987, when it was split from Sibsagar district.

Did you know?

Aideu Handique: Aideu Nilambar Handique was the first film actress of Assamese cinema and born on 1920 in Pani Dihingiya, Golaghat, Assam to Nilambar Handique and Malakhi Handique. She acted in the film Joymoti in 1935 directed by Jyoti Prasad Agarwala.