The Duars as a Significant Region in Ahom-Bhutanese Political Relations: A Historical Study with Special Reference to the Koriapar Duar

:“Duars,” literally meaning “doors or gateways,” is a geographically descriptive term that held great importance as a region of political activity, trade route, revenue generation, and as a vital geographical corridor between Assam and Bhutan. The area below Bhutan hills, a part of India extending an average of 30 kilometres in breadth and 350 kilometres in length across West Bengal and Assam came to be known as the Duars. Geographically the Assam Duars lay between the River Barnadi in the east and Manas in the west. The Ahoms realised the importance of the Duars in terms of its Poltical strategy, economic potential and Geographical significance. Koriapar Duar was one such important Duar that held strategic and political significance in the frontier Duar region between the Ahoms and Bhutanese.This study aims to examine the strategic importance of the Duars region during the Ahom period, with a particular focus on its role in political affairs.