Geographical Location of Arunachal Pradesh

Arunachal Pradesh, the land of rising sun covers a geographical area of 83,743 sq km. Situated between the 26º30´ North latitudes and 91º30´ East longitudes; Arunachal Pradesh shares a long international border with Bhutan to the west (160 km), China to the north and 39 north-east (1,030 km) and Myanmar to the east (1440 km).

Physiography of Arunachal Peradesh

The land stretches from snowcapped mountains in the north to the plains of the Brahmaputra valley to the south. Arunachal Pradesh is the largest state among the eight North Eastern states of India. It is a land of lush green forests, deep river valleys and beautiful plateaus.

The land is mostly mountainous with Himalayan ranges running north-south. The mountain ranges of Arunachal Pradesh cover about 85% of the total area of the state. The configuration of the land surface is extremely varied with an elevation of about 175 meters in the south to more than 5,000 meters in the north. From the Brahmaputra valley in the south, the land gradually rises towards the north and finally penetrates it into the high mountain ranges of the Eastern Himalayas. From physiographic angle, the whole region may be divided into three parts, viz, the Outer Himalayas (upto an elevation of about 1,200 meters), the Lesser Himalayas(1,200 meters to 3000 meters), and the greater Himalayas (above 3000 meters) which rises above the snowline on the northern border of the region.

These mountain ranges divide the state into five river valleys namely the Kameng, the Subansiri, the Siang, the Lohit and the Tirap. All these rivers are fed by the snow from the Himalayas and countless rivers and rivulets. Other important rivers of Arunachal Pradesh are Nyamjang Chu, Tawang Chu, Papum, Pare, Siyom, Simang, Sisar, Dibang etc. The mightiest of these rivers is Siang, called Tsang Po in Tibet which becomes Brahmaputra after it is joined by Lohit and Dibang. The rivers in Arunachal Pradesh have got deep rooted relations- emotional and physical with the tribes of Arunachal Pradesh. These rivers are great wealth of the people. They offer scope for generating hydro-electric power, fishing, adventure sports and eco-tourism.

The State has a total area of nearly 83,743 sq. Km. A predominantly mountainous terrain;it constitutes  the  southern  slopes  of  the  Eastern Himalayas.   It   straddles   international   borders from Bhutan in the east along the south of the Tibetan  plateau  to  the  tri-junction  wherein  it shares  territory  with  China,  taking  a  syntaxial bend    along    the    Irrawaddy-Salween    divide. Running  southwards  along  the  Patkai  range  it borders  present  Tuensang  district  of  Nagaland. The  Brahmaputra  valley  skirts  it  south.  Many traversable  passes  dissect  Arunachal  across  its eastern  and  western  frontiers,  consequently  at the  crossroads  of  population  movements  from both the north and its east. This is evident from the  shared  cultural  and  religious  affiliations  of the ethnic communities living on its margins

 

The total length of international border is about 1628 kms. It has inter-state borders with Nagaland in the east and south-west and Assam in the south.

 

Arunachal Pradesh is characterized by rugged and undulating terrain and is vivisected by innumerable rivers and streams which originates in the higher Himalayas and the Arakan ranges. They flow down from the tributaries of the Brahmaputra. The major rivers are Kameng, Subansiri, Siang, Siyom, Dibang, Lohit, Noa-Dihing and Tirap. Owing to rapid changes in topographic and altitutional aspect, the climatic conditions tend to change within short distances.

Three major climatic zones are recognized on the basis of broad generalization : • The hot and humid sub-tropical area of foot hills • The cooler and micro-thermal region of lesser Himalayas • The cold Himadri type in the upper region of the state