Goalpara

Goalpara is an old riverine town of western Assam on the bank of the Brahmaputra. The name is widely explained as coming from “Gwaltippika”—a “village of milkmen (guwali),” with “para” meaning village in local usage.

Historically, the region formed part of the broader Koch-era political landscape of lower Assam before expanding British authority reached the area in the late 18th century. A key administrative moment came in 1822, when the original Goalpara district was created by East India Company official David Scott, and linked for administration with the North-East Rangpur set-up of that time.

As British administration in Assam evolved, Goalpara was later reorganised; government accounts note that Goalpara was annexed to Assam in 1874 and the district headquarters was established at Dhubri.

In post-Independence Assam, the large “erstwhile Goalpara” area was repeatedly divided to form new districts. Officially, Dhubri and Kokrajhar were split off on 1 July 1983, and Bongaigaon was created on 29 September 1989. These changes shaped modern Goalpara into its present-day district centred on the historic town.