Geographical Profile of Tripura

The state is situated between 22o7' and 24o2' North latitudes and 91o0' and 92o0' East longitudes with the Tropic of Cancer passing through it.The State has three distinct physiographic zones i) hill ranges ii) undulating plateau land and iii) low-lying alluvial land.'Five major hill ranges traverse the State in roughly north-south direction and continue southward into Chittagong Hill Tract. Narrow valleys separate these ranges generally 20 km wide. The easternmost range is Jampui, being successively followed to the West by Unokoti-Sakhantlang, Longthorai, Atharamura-Kalajhari and Baramura-Deotamura. The highest peak lies at Bethliangchhip (Thaidawar, Shib-rangkhung), 975.36 m above the sea level.

The climate of Tripura exhibits a strong seasonal rhythm. The state is characterised by a warm and humid tropical climate with five distinct seasons, namely, spring, summer, monsoon, autumn and winter.Spring starts from late mid-February & continues till midMarch. Winter returns if there is rain a fresh in mid-February. Summer season starts from middle of March and reaches its peak in April - May. Pre-monsoon rain is always experienced after Jhum harvesting in the hills in March-April. Occasionally there is hardly any gap between pre-monsoon and monsoon rain. The recorded maximum temperature is 35.60°c. The monsoon generally breaks in the later part of May or first week of June and lasts till September. Winter sets in from November and is severe in the month of January when minimum temperature recorded is 4ºc in January 1995.

Humidity is generally high throughout the year. In the summer season the relative humidity is varied from 50 percent to 74 percent whereas in the rainy season it is over 85 percent.

A more sensitive element of climate is the variation in rainfall. It varies not only from place to place or from year to year, but also between seasons. Annual rainfall ranges from 1922 mm to 2855 mm. The rainfall generally increases from Southwest to Northeast.

There is a big gap in the rainfall content in southern and central part around Amarpur, which is surrounded by 1500 mm. Isohyets. The northeastern part of the state around Dharmanagar gets maximum rainfall. Most of the rain comes during the months April June and July to September. This period is generally referred to as the kharif season and this is the major agricultural season of the state.

The State of Tripura is well endowed with surface water resources. As many as 10 (ten) major rivers in the state is reported to generate an annual flow of 793 million cubic meter of water. All rivers are rain-fed and ephemeral in nature. All major rivers originate from hill ranges they are generally ephemeral in nature and their flow is directly related to the rainfall.

Tripura's ethnic mosaic is as colourful as the state's landscape : Kerala on the turbulent Arabian seashores may be 'God's own country' but Tripura is the veritale 'Daughter of Mother Nature'. The grace and grandeur of Tripura's lush green landscape is heightened by its rich human resource reflected in the ethnic , linguistic and cultural diversity of the population.

Traditional home to the indigenous tribals over the past millennium, Tripura had beckoned and welcomed the settlement of non-tribals down the annals of history . As attested by the enumeration of the first imperial census conducted in 1872 Tripura had a non-tribal population of 30% which grew substantially in the succeeding decadal censuses. In accordance with the returns of 2011 census indigenous tribals comprising altogether 19 communities constitute 31.05% of the state's population while 69.95% are non-tribals including a fair sprinkling of Manipuris . Amongst the tribals Tripuri or 'Debbarman' community form the vast majority of around fifty percent while the non-tribal population comprising by and large the Bengalis and a minuscule number of Meithei and Vishnupriya Manipuris belong to various castes and sub-castes.

Fringe tribal communities-in the context of Tripura, to be precise-like the Bhils , Santhals , Mundas and Oraons who had settled in the state from the early decades of twentieth century as tea-garden labourers grace Tripura's ethnic mosaic. While 'Kokborok' has emerged as Tripura's lingua franca among the tribals, fringe communities continue to speak their own languages. The Chakmas and Mog tribals who settled down in Tripura over the last two centuries as part of migrations from the Chittagong hill-tracts of Bangladesh continue to lead a vibrant existence with their distinctive language and culture. Tripura's traditional diversity of life is also reflected in the exalted realm of religion as followers of all major faiths, Hinduism, Islam, Christianity and Buddhism flourish here in a state of perfectly peaceful co-existence.

While Hinduism continues to be the religious faith of majority population, Islam, Christianity and Buddhism thrive on the state's ethos of religious tolerance and cultural harmony. The visit of His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama in February this year evoked a keen and respectful interest not only in the traditionally Buddhist communities of Chakmas and Mogs but in the cross-section of the populace. Needless to put on record, this demographic diversity makes Tripura an India in miniature.