AIZAWL

town and capital of Mizoram state, northeastern India. It is situated on a ridge at an elevation of about 2,950 feet (900 m) and is the most populous town in the state. In the 1970s Aizawl was the scene of an armed attack on the government treasury and other offices by members of the Mizo National Front. Aluminum utensils, handloomed textiles, and furniture are manufactured in the town. Electricity is generated by a diesel-power station, and there is an airport nearby. The surrounding region is a part of the Assam-Myanmar (Burma) geologic province, with north-south-aligned, steeply inclined hill ranges. The rapid Dhaleswari (Tiwang), Tuivawl, and Sonai (Tuirail) rivers and their tributaries crisscross the region. Timber and bamboo are collected from the dense hillside forests. The soil cover is generally thin except in the river valleys, where rice, corn (maize), beans, tobacco, cotton, pumpkins, oilseeds, and peanuts (groundnuts) are grown. Poultry raising, hunting, fishing, and animal husbandry supplement agriculture. Handweaving, blacksmithing, carpentry, basketmaking, and hat making are the main cottage industries. The Mizo Hills tribes of the region are mostly emigrants from Myanmar, and most have become Christians. The Border Roads Organization has built many paved roads in the area. Pop. (1991 prelim.) 154,343.