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By BUGLE | July 2026 | Last updated: July 2026 Look at a map of India and you'll spot it immediately once you know where to look: a narrow waist of land in West Bengal, barely 20 kilometers wide at its tightest point, through which every road, railway line, and pipeline connecting mainland India to its eight Northeastern states must pass. Indian strategists call it the "Chicken's Neck." It's one of the most consequential pieces of geography in South Asia — and, as it turns out, one of several places on Earth where an accident of history left a country's territorial unity balanced on a startlingly thin strip of land. What's in this guide What the Chicken's Neck actually is · Why it exists — a 1947 accident · What makes it a live strategic concern in 2026 · How India is responding · Other strange chokepoints around the world · Why geography like this matters more than it should What the Chicken's Neck actually is Officially the Siliguri Cor...

By BUGLE | July 2026 | Last updated: July 2026 "Seven Sisters" is one of the most-used nicknames in Indian geography, and one of the most commonly misunderstood outside the country — people arrive expecting one homogenous region and find eight states (yes, eight) with different languages, religions, cuisines, and histories that in some cases have almost nothing in common beyond geographic proximity. Here's what the term actually means, which states it covers, why one important neighbor is pointedly left out of it, and a quick primer on each state for anyone planning a trip or just trying to keep the map straight. What's in this guide Where the name comes from · The seven states, one by one · The "eighth sister" who isn't really a sister · The Chicken's Neck — why geography made this region what it is · Best time to visit · Quick reference Where the name comes from "Land of the Seven Sisters" was coined in 1972 by Jyoti Prasad Saik...