It is located in the northeastern part of the country and has an area of 30,285 square miles (78,438 square kilometers). It is bounded to the north by the kingdom of Bhutan and the state of Arunachal Pradesh; to the east by the states of Nagaland and Manipur; to the south by the states of Mizoram and Tripura; and to the west by the state of Meghalaya, Bangladesh, and the state of West Bengal.

Assam has a single-chamber legislative assembly with 126 members. The state sends 21 members to the Indian national parliament: 7 to the Rajya Sabha (Upper House) and 14 to the Lok Sabha (Lower House). Local government is based on 23 administrative districts.

Guwahati is the Capital of the state. The Brahmaputra River valley is the dominant physical feature of Assam. The river enters Assam near Sadiya in the extreme northeast and runs westward across the length of Assam for nearly 450 miles before turning south to enter the plains of Bangladesh. The river valley, rarely more than 50 miles wide, is studded with numerous low, isolated hills and ridges that abruptly rise from the plain. The valley, surrounded on all sides, except the west, by mountains and is intersected by many streams and rivulets that flow from the neighboring hills to empty into the Brahmaputra.

The average temperature is moderate, about 84 degrees F (29 degress C) in the hottest month of August. The average valley temperature in January is 61 degrees F (16 degrees C). In this season, the climate of the valley is marked by heavy fogs and a little rain. Assam does not have the normal Indian hot, dry season. Some rain occurs from March onwards, but the real force of the monsoon winds is faced from June onward. Rainfall in Assam ranks among the highest in the world; its annual rainfall varies from 70 inches in the west to 120 inches per year in the east. Large concentrated during the months from June to September, it often results in widespread destructive floods. Much of the state is covered with dense tropical forests of bamboo and, at higher elevations, evergreens. Common animals of Assam include the elephant, tiger, leopard, rhinoceros, and bear.