Golaghat

Golaghat ('ɡoʊlɑːɡhɑːt Gʊlaɡɦat 'ɡʊlaɡɦat) one of the largest subdivisions of the Indian state of Assam, later elevated to the position of a full–fledged district headquarter on 5 October 1987, is a city and a municipality and the seat of administrative operations of Golaghat district, besides being a twin city to Jorhat which is about 55 km away. It is one of the oldest urban areas in Assam that recently featured on the Smart Cities nominations list, along with Guwahati and four other prominent urban areas of the state; although losing out to Guwahati at the final stage. The Dhansiri, one of the tributaries of the Brahmaputra, passes through Golaghat and is the primary water source for its citizens. One of the earliest tea urban centres in Assam that has been the headquarters of the oldest subdivision for over years since 1839, the local government body, Golaghat Municipal Board (GMB), was set up in 1920, becoming a long-established civic body of the state, formed before independent India. It is a historical body of years of age in continuous operation dating as far back as the early 1920s. Golaghat has the inceptive post/mail service and telegraphic communication systems in Assam going back to 1876. The oldest social – literature/rhetorical congresses of Assam – the Golaghat Sahitya Sabha of Asam Sahitya Sabha, also began here in 1918. The Golaghat Amateur Theatre Society (GATS), one of the premier theater societies of the state, was set up here in 1895 to uplift the dramatic and cultural activities in the region, particularly Golaghat. The Golaghat Bar Association (GBA), founded in 1891, is one of the oldest legal societies in Assam, especially in the Upper – Assam division. Golaghat has a number of heritage buildings and sites – the Golaghat British Cemetery, constructed in 1876, the Bezbaruah Higher Secondary School, set up in the late 19th century in the year 1886 by the educationalist Dinanath Bezbarua, the Baptist Church founded by the American missionaries in 1898, the Christian High (Mission) School built by the American Women Foreign Mission Society in 1919, Assam's first department store – Doss & Co.