East India (Eastern India) consists of the
states of West Bengal
, Bihar,
Jharkhand, and Orissa . It shares many
cultural and linguistic
characteristics with Bangladesh, India's
neighbour which formed part of this region before
Partition.
Choose State
The Indo-Aryan
languages, especially Oriya remains
virtually unchanged for the last thousand
years. Bengali and Assamese
are the other languages spoken in this region.
Many of the
adivasis (indigenous tribal
people) of East India belong to the
Munda branch of the Austro-Asiatic
language family. Major representatives of this group include
the Munda, Santal, and
Ho peoples.
Durga and
Jagannath are particularly popular
deities in this region, and Puri (a major Hindu pilgrimage centre) and
Bhubaneswar (the city of
temples) in Orissa
are two important religious towns. The Sun
Temple at Konarak is a one-of-its-kind temple in India. Puri and Gopalpur On Sea have some excellent
beaches.
The Sunderbans and the
Kaziranga are unique
ecosystems and world heritage
sites, supporting a large variety of plants and
animals, including the endangered rhinoceros.
The climate of East India is
tropical with hot and humid
summers in many areas (temperatures touching
40 deg. celsius) and cold
winters (temperatures touch sub-zero
in hill stations). East India receives the maximum
rainfall in India, with Cherrapunji,
the place which receives the highest rainfall in India
situated in this region. Even in the hill stations, it is
always advisable to carry an umbrella in any season as the
clouds come pouring down anytime.
|
