Lunglei (Pron: /ˈlooŋgˌleɪ/) is a town, situated in the south-central part of

Mizoram Mizoram () is a state in Northeast India, with Aizawl as its seat of government and capital city. The name of the state is derived from "Mizo", the self-described name of the native inhabitants, and "Ram", which in the Mizo language means "lan ...

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

, northeastern India. Lunglei, literally meaning 'bridge of rock' got its name from a bridge like rock found in the riverine area around Nghasih - a small tributary of Tlawng the longest river in

. It is the largest town after the capital,

Aizawl Aizawl (; Mizo: ) is the capital of the state of Mizoram in India. Aizawl was officially established on 25 February 1890. With a population of 293,416, it is the largest city in the state. It is also the centre of administration containing all ...

, located 165 km (102 miles) south of

History

Lunglei was the Capital of South Lushai Hill Districts for 10 years from 1888, as was

for the North Hill Districts. The two were united in 1898. Lunglei is the second-largest town in

and was an important town until the partition of India as it had direct access to Chittagong, a big city in

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

which made Lunglei the commercial and education centre. As of 1912, there were only 2 shops in Lunglei 1922 which increased to 4 shopes in 1922. The first Jeepable road to Lunglei was made only in the 1950s. on 1 March 1966, the MNF declared unilateral Mizo Independence and attacked

Assam Rifles The Assam Rifles (AR) is a central paramilitary force responsible for border security, counter-insurgency, and maintaining law and order in Northeast India. It guards the Indo-Myanmar border. The Assam rifles is the oldest paramilitary force ...

post at Lunglei, captured the SDO and seized Rs 18 Lakhs from the Govt Treasury.

Geography

Lunglei is located at . It has an average elevation of 1222 metres (4009 feet).

Demographics

Lunglei is one of the prominent districts of Mizoram. Encompassing a total area of , the district of Lunglei has a population of 137,155. The district of Lunglei is from Aizawl, the capital of Mizoram and is easily accessible by well maintained roads. The district is bounded on the north by Mamit and Aizawl districts, on the west by Bangladesh, on the south by Lawngtlai district, on the southeast by Saiha district, on the east by Myanmar and on the northeast by Champhai district. As of the

2011 Census of India The 2011 Census of India or the 15th Indian Census was conducted in two phases, house listing and population enumeration. The House listing phase began on 1 April 2010 and involved the collection of information about all buildings. Information ...

, Lunglei had a population of 57,011. Males constitute 52% of the population and females 48%. Lunglei has an average literacy rate of 84%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 84%, and female literacy is 83%. In Lunglei, 14% of the population is under 6 years of age.

Administration

The district of Lunglei has been further divided into major sub divisions of Hnahthial SDO (S), Lunglei SDO (S) and Tlabung SDO (S) and 4 R.D. Blocks, Bunghmun, Hnahthial, Lunglei and Lungsen. The district has 7 assembly constituencies. These are South Tuipui, Lunglei North, Lunglei East, Lunglei West, Lunglei South, Thorang and West Tuipui for the administrative convenience of the district officials. Lunglei town is the administrative headquarters of the district.

Education

The Major Educational Institutions of Higher Learning in Lunglei are: * Lunglei Government College, Lunglei * J.Buana College, Lunglei * Kapthangi College Lunglei. Electric Veng * Higher and Technical Institute of Mizoram * Mizoram Polytechnic offering Engineering diploma courses. * Lunglei Nursing College * Christian Hospital Serkawn Nursing College * Mizoram Engineering College *District Institute of Education and Training (DIET)

Tourism

Some of the notable tourist spots of the district of Lunglei are: * Zobawk Sports Academy * Kawmzawl Park * Khawnglung Wildlife Sanctuary * Saikuti Hall where most of the

concerts A concert is a live music performance in front of an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, choir, or band. Concerts are held in a wide variet ...

and celebrations are held. A unique

museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make thes ...

has also been established in the hall where local

painters Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...

demonstrate their skill and exhibit their works. * Thuamluaia Mual - is the second football stadium with Artificial turf in Mizoram. For those tourists who want to add a bit of adventure in their sojourn to Mizoram, Lunglei offers them with a plethora of picnic spots to explore their inherent sporting skills and sportsman spirit. Lunglei district offers the tourists to enjoy natural splendor coupled with the rich cultural traditions of the region.

Media

Newspapers

*Hnamdamna *Zochhiar *Lunglei Times *Daifim *Ralvengtu *Vulmawi *Lunglei Tribune *MAKEDONIA (Sunday) *Daily Post *Zunzam

Cable Networks

*LDF Cable Network *J.B. Cable Network

Transport

The closest route to Lunglei in the 1890s was through Tlabung, a town about 35 kilometers from Lunglei where Karnaphuli River connects to Chittagong, a distance of about 90 kilometers. In the 1940s, a trip from Lunglei to Shillong or Kolkata passed through Chittagong rather than

. A Helicopter service by

Pawan Hans Pawan Hans Limited is a central public sector undertaking based at Noida in Delhi NCR, India. It is under the ownership of Ministry of Civil Aviation, Government of India. It has cumulatively flown more than 1 million hours and has had ...

has been started between

and Lunglei. The distance between Lunglei and

is less than , and the cities are connected by regular service of buses and jeeps. There are also plans to construct a small airport at Kawmzawl, about from Lunglei.

Neighbourhoods

* AOC * Bazar Veng * Chanmari-I * Chanmari-II * Chanmari-III * College Veng * Electric Veng * Farm Veng * Falkawn * Hauruang * Hrangchalkawn * Kikawn * Luangmual * Lunglawn * Lungpuizawl * Melte * Pukpui * Rahsiveng * Ramthar Veng * Ramzotlang * Salem Veng * Sazaikawn * Serkawn * Sethlun * Theiriat * Vanhne * Venghlun * Venglai * Zobawk North * Zobawk South * Zohnuai * Zotlang

Economy

Lunglei has 9.97% of the forest land within its total area. Most of the indigenous local inhabitants of the district of Lunglei depend on agriculture and earn their livelihood from growing crops. The cash crops of

coffee Coffee is a drink prepared from roasted coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content. It is the most popular hot drink in the world. Seeds of ...

and

rubber Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds. Thailand, Malaysia, an ...

help the district to earn its revenue. The farmers of the district mostly practice the traditional method of

shifting cultivation Shifting cultivation is an agricultural system in which plots of land are cultivated temporarily, then abandoned while post-disturbance fallow vegetation is allowed to freely grow while the cultivator moves on to another plot. The period of cu ...

, which is popularly referred to as

jhum The traditional shifting cultivation farming technique of indigenous communities and Bengalis in the Chittagong Hill Tracts in Bangladesh and nearby regions in Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, and Nagaland in India is known as jhum cultivation. Tec ...

Rice Rice is the seed of the grass species '' Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima'' (African rice). The name wild rice is usually used for species of the genera '' Zizania'' and '' Porteresia'', both wild and domesticat ...

is the principal crop in the agricultural economy. Cottage industries produce handloomed

cloth Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not the ...

, furniture, agricultural equipment, woven textiles, and

bamboo Bamboos are a diverse group of evergreen perennial flowering plants making up the subfamily Bambusoideae of the grass family Poaceae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family. The origin of the word "bamboo" is uncertain, ...

and

cane Cane or caning may refer to: *Walking stick or walking cane, a device used primarily to aid walking * Assistive cane, a walking stick used as a mobility aid for better balance *White cane, a mobility or safety device used by many people who are ...

work. Lunglei is also the Church Headquarters of Baptist Church of Mizoram.

References

External links

{{Mizoram Cities and towns in Lunglei district