The Basics
Arunachal Pradesh at a Glance
Arunachal Pradesh sits in the eastern Himalaya, India's easternmost and largest north-eastern state. Its name means "land of the dawn-lit mountains," and it is home to dozens of tribes.
- Itanagar Capital & largest town
- 20 Feb 1987 Became India's 24th state — a Union Territory (renamed from NEFA) since 1972
- 83,743 km² Area — the largest of the North-East states
- ~28 districts One of India's fastest-changing district maps (the map shows 25)
- English Official language — there are around 26 major tribes and 100+ dialects
- 60 seats Legislative Assembly (most reserved for tribes); 2 Lok Sabha seats
- Borders China to the north (along the McMahon Line, which China disputes), Bhutan & Myanmar; Assam & Nagaland within India
- ~79% forest Among the highest forest cover of any state — an Eastern Himalaya biodiversity hotspot
- Donyi-Polo The sun-and-moon faith — the major indigenous religion, alongside Christianity, Hinduism & Buddhism
- State symbols Animal: mithun (gayal) · Bird: great hornbill · Flower: foxtail orchid
People
Population & Society
Census 2011 is the last full count. Arunachal is India's least densely peopled state — a vast, forested land shared by dozens of tribes. Figures below are Census 2011.
- 13.84 lakh Population, 2011 (1,383,727) — among India's least populous states
- 26.0% Decadal growth, 2001–2011
- 17 /km² Population density — the lowest of any Indian state
- 938 Sex ratio — females per 1,000 males, 2011
- 65.4% Literacy rate, 2011
- ~26 tribes India's most diverse tribal mosaic — the Nyishi are the largest, then the Adi
- ~69% Scheduled Tribes — Nyishi, Adi, Galo, Apatani, Tagin, Monpa, Mishmi, Wancho & many more
- Many faiths Christianity (~30%), Hinduism (~29%), indigenous Donyi-Polo & others (~26%), and Buddhism (~12%) — Census 2011
Economy
Forests, Rivers & Hydropower
Arunachal is a small, forested economy that leans on the Centre — but it has India's largest untapped hydropower, and a per-person income above the national average.
- ₹0.48 L cr GSDP 2025-26 (budget estimate) — a small economy
- ₹2.80 lakh Per-capita GSDP, 2023-24 — above the national average
- ~53% Outstanding liabilities as % of GSDP — among the highest of any state
- ~87% of the state's revenue comes from central transfers
Hydropower & forests
- ~50,000 MW The largest hydropower potential of any Indian state — about a third of the national total, on the Siang and its rivers
- ~1% tapped Most of that potential is still undeveloped; large dam projects remain contested
- ~79% forest Among the highest forest cover in India — the second-largest forest area of any state
- Biodiversity Part of the Eastern Himalaya hotspot — rich in orchids, hornbills & wildlife
- Above-average income: with a small population and large central funding, Arunachal's per-person income runs above the national average — unusual among the smaller states.
- Figures here are the latest Arunachal Budget estimates (via PRS) and MoSPI. The India GDP page compares all states at FY2024-25.
Agriculture
Kiwi, Rice & the Apatani Fields
Farming ranges from hill jhum to the famous wet-rice terraces of the Apatani. Arunachal is India's leading kiwi grower, with a basket of cardamom, oranges and apples.
- Kiwi India's largest kiwi producer — over half the national crop, much of it organic
- Apatani fields The Ziro valley's wet-rice-and-fish system, farmed by hand for generations — on UNESCO's tentative list
- Rice The staple, grown both as jhum (shifting) and wet-rice
- Cardamom & ginger Large cardamom and the GI-tagged Adi Kekir ginger
- Oranges & apple The GI-tagged Arunachal (Wakro) mandarin, plus temperate apple
- Tribal GI crafts Idu Mishmi, Apatani, Monpa & Tangsa textiles, Wancho wood craft & yak churpi
- Apong The traditional rice beer of the Tani tribes
Administrative
The Districts of Arunachal
Arunachal has around 28 districts — one of India's fastest-growing district maps, redrawn many times. The interactive map shows 25, from the open dataset. Select a district to highlight it on the map above.
The map and this list share the same data. Clicking a district highlights it on the interactive map in the hero; soon each will open its own page.
What Makes Arunachal Unique
Strengths, Nature & Heritage
Arunachal's riches are its mountains, forests and rivers — the largest hydropower potential in India, a park with four big cats, and the great monastery of Tawang.
Nature & wildlife
- Namdapha The only protected area on Earth with four big cats — tiger, leopard, snow leopard & clouded leopard
- Pakke A tiger reserve famed for hornbill conservation, with its own hornbill festival
- Eaglenest A birding paradise — the Bugun liocichla, new to science, was found here in 2006
- Hydropower India's largest hydropower potential, on the Siang and its tributaries
- Forests Among the highest forest cover of any state — an Eastern Himalaya hotspot
- Mithun The state animal — a semi-wild bovine central to tribal life and feasts
Heritage & faith
- Tawang Monastery India's largest Buddhist monastery, founded around 1680
- Parshuram Kund A major Hindu pilgrimage on the Lohit, for the Makar Sankranti dip
- Ancient ruins Malinithan and Bhismaknagar in the foothills
Culture & Traditions
Tribes, Festivals & Music
With some 26 tribes, Arunachal's calendar is full of festivals — and Ziro hosts one of India's best-loved music gatherings.
- Tribal festivals Nyokum (Nyishi), Solung (Adi), Mopin (Galo), Dree (Apatani), Losar (Monpa) & Reh (Idu Mishmi)
- Sangken The Theravada Buddhist water festival of the Khamti & Singpho
- Ziro Festival India's famous outdoor indie-music festival, in the Ziro valley since 2012
- Donyi-Polo The sun-and-moon faith of the Tani tribes
- Food Rice-based and lightly spiced — thukpa, momos, smoked meat, bamboo shoot & apong
- Crafts Idu Mishmi & Apatani weaving, Monpa masks, thangka & carpets, and cane & bamboo work
Places to Visit
Monasteries, Passes & Valleys
From the monastery and high passes of Tawang to the Apatani valley of Ziro and the easternmost forests of Namdapha, Arunachal is for the adventurous traveller.
- Tawang The great monastery, the Sela Pass & the lakes of the high Himalaya
- Ziro The Apatani valley — rice terraces & the music festival
- Namdapha The easternmost national park, with four big cats
- Mechuka A remote, scenic Himalayan valley near the border
- Pasighat Arunachal's oldest town (1911), the gateway to the Siang
- Parshuram Kund The Lohit pilgrimage site, busiest at Makar Sankranti
- Dong The village often called the first place in India to see the sunrise
- Bomdila & Dirang A monastery town and a hot-springs valley on the road to Tawang
- Madhuri Lake The high Sangetsar lake near Tawang
Air, Rail & Road
Reaching the Frontier
Connecting a vast, mountainous frontier is Arunachal's great task — and recent years have brought its first greenfield airport, a rail link, and a landmark Himalayan tunnel.
- Donyi Polo Airport The state's first greenfield airport, at Itanagar (Hollongi), opened in 2022
- More airports Tezu, Pasighat & Ziro handle regional flights
- Naharlagun The main railhead near Itanagar, linked by rail since 2014
- Sela Tunnel Opened in 2024 — all-weather access to Tawang across the ~13,700 ft Sela Pass
- Highways The Trans-Arunachal Highway is the spine; a long Frontier Highway is under construction near the border
- Assam bridges The Bhupen Hazarika & Bogibeel bridges (in Assam) ease access to the state
People & the Frontier
People of Arunachal
Arunachal's story runs from a Dalai Lama born near Tawang to the leaders who built the modern state.
- 6th Dalai Lama Tsangyang Gyatso was born near Tawang, at Urgelling, in 1683
- Daying Ering The Adi leader and early Member of Parliament; a wildlife sanctuary bears his name
- Gegong Apang The state's longest-serving Chief Minister
- Dorjee Khandu A Chief Minister who died in a 2011 helicopter crash
- Pema Khandu The current Chief Minister
- Kiren Rijiju A Union Minister and the state's best-known national figure
Through the Ages
A Short History of Arunachal
From the old tribal and Buddhist heritage of the eastern Himalaya to a frontier territory and a state of its own, a few of the milestones that shaped Arunachal.
| When | Milestone |
|---|---|
| Early times | Tani peoples (Adi, Nyishi, Apatani, Galo…) and, in the west, the Buddhist Monpa & Sherdukpen |
| 1680–81 | Tawang Monastery is founded |
| 1683 | The 6th Dalai Lama is born near Tawang, at Urgelling |
| 1914 | The McMahon Line is drawn at the Simla Convention; India treats it as the boundary, China disputes it |
| 1954 | The North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA) is constituted |
| 1962 | In the Sino-Indian War, Chinese forces advance into NEFA and then withdraw after the November ceasefire |
| 21 January 1972 | NEFA is renamed Arunachal Pradesh and made a Union Territory |
| 20 February 1987 | Arunachal Pradesh becomes India's 24th state |
| 2022 | Itanagar's Donyi Polo Airport opens — the state's first greenfield airport |
| 2024 | The Sela Tunnel opens, easing the route to Tawang |