Lakhimpur District is one of the administrative districts of Assam. Its headquarters is situated at North Lakhimpur. This district is bounded on the north by Siang and Papum Pare District of Arunachal Pradesh and on the east by Dhemaji District and Subansiri River. Majuli sub-division of Jorhat District is on the southern side and Gahpur sub division of Sonitpur District is covering the west side. Lakhimpur District is a zero industrial district where agriculture and its allied activities is the prime source of economy and livelihood. This district of Assam is considered as the gateway to several districts of Arunachal Pradesh including Itanagar. Lakhimpur district is one of the few districts where the golden thread fabric that is `muga silk` is grown prominently. Muga Silk Sarees are famous in this district and in India.
History of Lakhimpur District
According to the history of Lakhimpur District, the name Lakhimpur is believed to have originated from the word "Goddess Lakshmi", the goddess of prosperity. The word "pur" means "full". Lakhimpur therefore means full of paddy or the place where paddies are grown abundantly. As per the views of some historians say that the name originated from Lakhsmi Devi, the mother of Bhuyan Raja who was the descendent of King Arimatta. This district was notified as Lakhimpur District through a proclamation on July 1839. On 2nd October 1971, the district was reorganized with two sub divisions namely Dhemaji District and North Lakhimpur. Later it was again reorganized in the year 1980 with two subdivisions - Dhakuakhana and North Lakhimpur leaving Dhemaji as a separate district. Lakhimpur District was earlier regarded as "Koliapani" because there was practically no road communication till the year 1950. From 1957, the state transport buses started plying from Lakhimpur. From 1963, the North East Frontier Railway started train services from this district.
Geography of Lakhimpur District
Lakhimpur District is located on the northeastern corner of Assam. Lakhimpur district lies between 26 degree 48 minutes and 27 degrees 53 minutes northern latitude and 93 degree 42 minutes and 94 degree 20 minutes east longitude approximately. Tropical forests and several river systems characterize geography of Lakhimpur District. The soil of the district is alluvial and fertile. The forests of Lakhimpur District are mainly tropical rain forest. The important reserved forests of the district are Ranga Reserve, Kakoi Reserve, Dulung Reserve and Pava Reserve. Huge varieties of tree species are found in the forests of this region. Brahmaputra River touches all along the southern and south-eastern boundary of Lakhimpur district. Subansiri River, Ranganadi River and Dikrong River are other rivers flowing through the district. The climate of this district is excellent. Lakhimpur District covers an area of 2277 sq km out of which 2257 sq km is rural and 20 sq km is urban. The economy of this district is mainly dependent upon agriculture and paddy.
Demography of Lakhimpur District
According to the Population Census in 2011, Lakhimpur district had a population of 1,040,644. Out of which the male and female were 529,484 and 511,160 respectively. The population of Lakhimpur District constituted 3.34 percent of total population of Assam. The population density of Lakhimpur district is 457 people per sq. km. Lakhimpur district administers 2,277 square kilometres of areas. The average literacy rate of Lakhimpur in 2011 was 78.39 percent. The male and female literacy rate were 84.66 percent and 71.91 percent respectively. The total literates in Lakhimpur District were 697,526 of which male and female were 383,026 and 314,500 respectively.
Tourism in Lakhimpur District
The city of Lakhimpur, which is located in Upper Assam, has many naturally beautiful tourist places. Tourism in North Lakhimpur though hasn`t been flourished, but one always gets mesmerized by the untouched scenic beauty of the place. Some of the places to visit are Moitry Ashram, which is an ashram with Gandhian philosophy and maintained all by women. Apart from that, the tea gardens and fish farms in Saijuli are worth viewing for their scenic view. One can always sight a picture of a tea garden folk plucking tea leaves from the tea gardens. In and around North Lakhimpur, one can visit Narayanpur. One can also visit Majuli, which is the largest river island and the state of Arunachal Pradesh to get the view of the Eastern Himalayas and their beauty.
There is also the Bordoibam Bilmukh Wildlife Sanctuary and Pobha Sanctuary in Lakhimpur district which is worth viewing. The Lakhimpur shares this sanctuary with neighboring Dhemaji district. Lakhimpur district is located at a distance of 380 kilometers from Guwahati. One can reach Lakhimpur by several modes like air, water and road. Lakhimpur District has easy access to almost all the major places of Assam. Lilabari is the airport located around 5 kms away form the district headquarters. Further, numerous tourist and state transport vehicles are operating daily to all the major towns of Assam like Guwahati, Tezpur, Nagaon District, Dibrugarh, Tinsukia District, Sibsagar, Jorhat etc. Arunachal Express is operating between Lakhimpur and Guwahati. The railway station is situated in Nakari, located approximately 2 kilometres from the town.