Bhutan is a small, landlocked country in the eastern Himalayas, bordered by China’s Tibet Autonomous Region to the north and by India to the south, east, and west. Its territory rises from subtropical foothills near the Indian plains to some of the highest unclimbed peaks on Earth, producing one of the steepest elevation gradients found in any country. Deep river valleys, extensive forest cover, and alpine environments define a landscape shaped almost entirely by Himalayan geology and monsoon climate.
This physical setting places Bhutan in a distinct geographic role: it forms a transition zone between the high Tibetan Plateau and the low plains of South Asia. Water, sediment, and climate systems all move through this transition, linking the mountains to the lowlands below.
The sections that follow examine Bhutan’s Himalayan mountain systems, geological and tectonic setting, river systems and watersheds, climate patterns, ecosystems and biodiversity, population distribution, settlements, agriculture, hydropower, mineral resources, economy, transportation, environmental challenges, natural hazards, cultural landscapes, and its broader geographic significance within the eastern Himalayas.
Geographical Location and Regional Setting
Bhutan sits within the eastern Himalayas, in South Asia, sharing a northern border with the Tibet Autonomous Region of China and southern, eastern, and western borders with India. To the west and southwest, Bhutan borders the Indian states of Sikkim and West Bengal; to the south, Assam; and to the east, Arunachal Pradesh. This positioning places Bhutan directly between the Tibetan Plateau and the Brahmaputra River basin, within the broader eastern Himalayan mountain system.
Bhutan’s landlocked status means all trade and transport routes depend on overland connections, primarily through India. This location has direct consequences for climate, since moist air from the Bay of Bengal moves northward and rises against the Himalayan wall, producing heavy monsoon rainfall in the south and drier conditions in the high north. Elevation, in turn, governs river systems, biodiversity, settlement patterns, and agriculture: rivers descend steeply from glaciated peaks toward the Brahmaputra plains, ecosystems shift from subtropical to alpine within short horizontal distances, and settlements cluster in the relatively few valleys with usable land.
Geographically, Bhutan moves through three broad zones from south to north: subtropical foothills bordering India, temperate mountain valleys in the center, and high alpine terrain approaching the Tibetan Plateau. Each zone supports different forms of agriculture, transportation, and settlement, and each connects to the country’s regional trade relationships with neighboring Indian states and, indirectly, with Tibet.
Area, Shape, and Geographic Extent
Bhutan covers approximately 38,394 square kilometers, according to the World Bank and commonly cited government references. The country is elongated in an east-west direction and comparatively narrow from north to south, with a mountainous interior that dominates the majority of its land area.
Southern Bhutan consists of foothills bordering the Indian plains. Central Bhutan holds the country’s principal valleys, including those associated with Thimphu, Paro, and Punakha. Northern Bhutan rises into high Himalayan terrain along the Tibetan frontier. These three zones differ sharply in elevation, climate, and land use, and the contrast between them is one of the defining features of Bhutan’s geography.
Because of this rugged terrain, straight-line distance and actual travel distance in Bhutan often differ substantially. A short distance on a map may require winding mountain roads that climb and descend thousands of meters. Habitable land is concentrated in lower-elevation river valleys, where flatter terrain, accessible water, and workable soil support both settlement and agriculture. Outside these valleys, steep slopes and high elevations limit permanent habitation.
Major Mountain Systems and Landforms
Mountains dominate nearly all of Bhutan’s landscape, placing the country firmly within the eastern Himalayan mountain system.
High Himalayan Mountains
Northern Bhutan consists of high Himalayan terrain, including permanently snow-covered peaks, glaciers, snowfields, alpine valleys, and high mountain passes. Glacial landforms, such as moraines and cirques, are common at these elevations, and high-altitude plateaus appear in some areas near the Tibetan frontier.
Gangkhar Puensum is generally identified as the highest mountain associated with Bhutan, with an elevation most commonly cited at approximately 7,570 meters (24,836 feet). Some sources list slightly different figures due to variations in surveying methods and reference datasets, but this range represents the widely accepted authoritative estimate. Gangkhar Puensum remains one of the highest unclimbed mountains in the world, partly due to Bhutanese restrictions on mountaineering above certain elevations for cultural and religious reasons.
This high mountain zone is geographically significant well beyond its elevation. Glaciers and snowfields here feed the seasonal meltwater that sustains river systems downstream, and the zone’s isolation supports distinct alpine biodiversity found nowhere else in the country.
Inner Himalayas and Central Mountain Valleys
South of the high Himalayas, Bhutan’s central mountain ranges contain the country’s most significant valleys, including those associated with Thimphu, Paro, Punakha, Wangdue Phodrang, Trongsa, and Bumthang. Rivers have cut through these mountains over long geological periods, carving valleys that offer some of the only relatively level, cultivable land in the country.
These central valleys form the backbone of Bhutanese settlement, agriculture, and urban development. Because flat land is scarce elsewhere, most major towns, administrative centers, and farmland concentrate in this middle elevation zone, where mountain passes and ridgelines connect one valley to the next.
Southern Foothills and Duars
Southern Bhutan transitions into lower-elevation foothills known regionally as the Duars, which border the Indian plains. This zone features subtropical vegetation, river terraces, alluvial fans, and dense forests that differ markedly from the terrain further north.
The Duars support agricultural land and function as wildlife corridors connecting Bhutanese forests with adjoining habitats in India. The physical contrast between these low, warm foothills and the high, cold mountains of northern Bhutan is stark, illustrating the country’s extraordinary vertical range within a relatively compact land area.
Geological and Tectonic Setting
Bhutan lies within the actively deforming Himalayan mountain belt, formed by the ongoing collision of the Indian Plate with the Eurasian Plate. This collision, which began roughly 50 million years ago and continues today, has produced crustal shortening, folding, and thrust faulting across the region, driving continuous uplift.
Erosion and river incision work against this uplift, cutting deep valleys and steep slopes, while landslides frequently redistribute material downslope, particularly during monsoon rains. Major Himalayan structures, including the Main Central Thrust, run through the broader mountain belt and mark zones where large blocks of crust have been thrust over one another during mountain building.
Because Bhutan sits within this active tectonic zone, the country experiences earthquakes. Steep terrain amplifies the consequences of seismic activity, since ground shaking readily triggers landslides and slope failures on already unstable mountainsides. This geological structure also underlies Bhutan’s mineral resources and its river valleys, and it directly shapes the steep gradients that give the country substantial hydropower potential.
Rivers, Drainage Basins, and Water Resources
Bhutan’s rivers rank among its most important geographic features. Major rivers include the Drangme Chhu, Punatsang Chhu, Wang Chhu, Amo Chhu, Kuri Chhu, and Mangde Chhu. Nearly all of these rivers flow southward from the Himalayas, ultimately draining into the Brahmaputra basin and the plains of India.
River flow depends on a combination of sources: winter snowmelt, glacier melt at higher elevations, monsoon rainfall during summer months, and groundwater discharge from mountain springs. This combination produces strong seasonal variation in river discharge, with flows peaking during the monsoon and dropping in the dry winter months. Bhutan’s rivers have cut deep gorges through the mountains, while depositing alluvial material in the valleys that support agriculture.
The steep gradient of these rivers, dropping rapidly from high mountains to lower valleys over short distances, gives Bhutan substantial hydropower potential, since a large volume of water descends a significant elevation change within the country’s borders.
High-altitude glacial lakes present a distinct hazard. Glacial lake outburst floods, known as GLOFs, occur when a glacial lake breaches its natural moraine dam, releasing a sudden, destructive flow of water downstream. These events are a recognized hazard in Bhutan’s high mountain terrain, particularly as glacial lakes have expanded in size in recent decades.
Bhutan’s watersheds supply water for agriculture, drinking water, hydropower generation, and downstream communities. Because several of Bhutan’s rivers eventually cross into India as part of the wider Brahmaputra system, the country’s water resources are connected to broader regional hydrology.
Climate and Weather Patterns
Bhutan’s climate varies strongly with elevation, latitude, and exposure to the southwest monsoon. Southern Bhutan experiences a subtropical climate with high humidity and heavy monsoon rainfall. Middle elevations, including many of the central valleys, have warm temperate to cool temperate conditions. Northern Bhutan, at the highest elevations, experiences alpine and nival conditions, with permanent snow and ice at the highest peaks.
The southwest monsoon brings the majority of the country’s annual rainfall between roughly June and September, while winters are comparatively dry, with seasonal snowfall common at higher elevations. Because the Himalayas rise so steeply, orographic effects, where moist air is forced upward and cools, produce major differences in rainfall over very short horizontal distances. A valley on the windward side of a ridge may receive substantially more rain than a valley just a few kilometers away on the leeward side.
Regional climatic differences are pronounced across the country. Southern foothills receive the heaviest monsoon rainfall, while western, central, and eastern valleys each show distinct temperature and precipitation patterns shaped by local topography. Northern high mountains remain cold year-round, with snow accumulation persisting for much of the year. South-facing slopes, more directly exposed to monsoon winds, generally receive more rainfall than slopes facing away from the monsoon flow.
Elevation remains the single most important control on temperature, vegetation zones, agricultural potential, and where people can settle.
Natural Environment and Biodiversity
Bhutan’s enormous elevation range, from roughly 200 meters in the southern foothills to over 7,000 meters in the north, creates an unusually wide array of ecological zones within a relatively small geographic area. Subtropical and broadleaf forests dominate the south, giving way to temperate forests in the middle elevations, coniferous forests at higher elevations, and alpine meadows and scrub near the tree line. Above this, glacial environments take over, alongside river ecosystems and wetlands found throughout the country’s valleys.
This range of habitats supports a wide variety of wildlife. Bengal tigers and Asian elephants inhabit suitable lowland and southern habitats, while snow leopards and blue sheep occupy the high alpine zone. Red pandas, takin, Himalayan black bears, golden langurs, Himalayan musk deer, Himalayan monal, and clouded leopards occupy various forested and mid-elevation habitats across the country.
Bhutan functions as an important wildlife corridor, linking protected landscapes across the eastern Himalayas with adjoining habitats in India. Its protected area network includes Jigme Dorji National Park, Royal Manas National Park, Jigme Singye Wangchuck National Park, Wangchuck Centennial National Park, Phibsoo Wildlife Sanctuary, and Sakteng Wildlife Sanctuary. These protected areas conserve forest cover, safeguard watersheds, and maintain habitat connectivity across Bhutan’s varied elevation zones.
Population and Demographic Geography
Bhutan’s population is small relative to its land area, with the National Statistics Bureau of Bhutan reporting a population of approximately 727,145 at the time of the 2017 census, while more recent estimates from international agencies place the population at roughly 780,000 to 790,000 as of the early 2020s. Population distribution is uneven, shaped heavily by terrain: steep mountains, protected forest areas, and high elevations constrain where people can settle, concentrating population in valleys with usable land.
Population density is notably higher in valley settlements than across the country’s mountainous interior as a whole. Concentrations of population appear around Thimphu, Phuentsholing, Paro, Punakha, Samdrup Jongkhar, and Gelephu, areas that combine river valley land, agricultural potential, road access, and administrative or trade functions. Rural-to-urban migration has contributed to gradual urbanization in recent decades, with Thimphu absorbing much of this movement.
Settlement patterns closely track the availability of river valley land, agricultural potential, road connections, administrative centers, and access to border trade routes with India.
Major Cities and Urban Geography
Bhutan’s principal towns are concentrated in valleys and along key transportation corridors. Thimphu, the capital and largest urban center, sits within a Himalayan valley along the Wang Chhu river. Its location constrains urban growth, since developable land is limited by steep valley walls, and expansion has placed increasing pressure on transportation networks, slope stability, water supply, and drainage infrastructure.
Phuentsholing, located on Bhutan’s southern border, functions as a key commercial gateway connecting Bhutan with the Indian plains and serves as an important entry point for trade and goods movement. Paro, home to Bhutan’s only international airport, occupies a valley whose relatively level terrain, by Bhutanese standards, made it suitable for aviation infrastructure.
Other significant towns include Punakha and Wangdue Phodrang in central Bhutan, Samdrup Jongkhar and Gelephu along the southern border, and Trongsa and Jakar (in the Bumthang valley) in the central highlands. Each of these towns occupies a valley or lower-elevation site that provides relatively accessible terrain compared to the surrounding mountains.
Languages, Cultural Geography, and Human Landscapes
Bhutan’s linguistic geography reflects its mountainous terrain and historical patterns of settlement and migration. Dzongkha, the national language, is spoken widely in western Bhutan, while Tshangla (also called Sharchopkha) is prevalent in the east. Nepali is spoken in parts of southern Bhutan, and Bumthangkha is associated with the central Bumthang region, alongside a number of other regional languages found across the country’s valleys.
Isolated mountain valleys, historically limited by difficult terrain, contributed to the persistence of distinct regional languages, while trade and religious connections across passes and valleys have also shaped linguistic patterns over time.
Bhutan’s human landscapes reflect adaptation to mountain terrain and climate. Villages often occupy terraced hillsides, with fields carved into slopes to allow cultivation on otherwise steep land. Dzongs, fortress-monasteries built at strategic valley locations, and smaller monasteries appear throughout the country, often positioned to command river valleys or mountain passes. Traditional houses are built using local materials and construction methods suited to the climate and available resources of each region, while high-altitude communities practice yak herding in the alpine pastures of the north. Together, these features reflect a built environment shaped directly by terrain, climate, agriculture, and long-standing religious institutions.
Administrative and Political Geography
Bhutan is currently organized into 20 dzongkhags, or districts, which are further subdivided into gewogs, the country’s smallest administrative units, and thromdes, which are municipal areas covering urban centers such as Thimphu. Thimphu serves as the national administrative center, housing the principal institutions of Bhutan’s government.
This administrative structure reflects Bhutan’s terrain, with dzongkhag boundaries generally following natural features such as river valleys and mountain ranges. Bhutan’s current governmental arrangement operates under a constitutional monarchy, a framework distinct from the country’s earlier systems of governance discussed in the historical geography that follows.
Historical Geography
Bhutan’s historical development is closely tied to its mountain geography. Early settlements in Bhutan’s valleys developed around accessible river terraces and trade routes connecting Tibet with the plains of South Asia. Buddhist institutions took root in the region over many centuries, with Tibetan Buddhist traditions becoming deeply established across Bhutanese valleys and giving rise to major monastic centers.
A significant turning point came with Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal, who unified Bhutan in the seventeenth century and established a dual system of religious and civil administration. During this period, dzongs were constructed at strategic points across the country, often controlling valley entrances or mountain passes, serving simultaneously as religious centers, administrative seats, and defensive structures. Punakha, Thimphu, Paro, Trongsa, and Bumthang all developed as important centers during this era, each tied to valley locations with agricultural land and access to trade or pilgrimage routes.
In 1907, Bhutan established a hereditary monarchy under Ugyen Wangchuck, its first king. Through the twentieth century, Bhutan gradually developed modern infrastructure, including roads connecting previously isolated valleys, along with expanded education and administrative systems. Phuentsholing grew as a key link to India during this period of modernization. In recent decades, urbanization and economic transformation have accelerated, particularly around Thimphu, while mountain passes, river valleys, and historic dzongs continue to shape the country’s settlement pattern.
Agriculture and Rural Landscapes
Agriculture in Bhutan is shaped directly by elevation, which creates distinct farming zones across the country. Rice remains a primary crop in lower valleys, where warmer temperatures and available water support paddy cultivation. Maize grows in many middle-elevation areas, while wheat, barley, and buckwheat are cultivated at higher elevations, where cooler temperatures limit other crop options. Potatoes are a significant crop in higher valleys, and citrus fruits and cardamom are grown in the warmer, more humid conditions of southern Bhutan. Apples are cultivated in select temperate zones. Livestock, dairy production, and yak herding round out Bhutan’s agricultural base, with yak herding concentrated in high-altitude pastures in the north.
Terracing allows cultivation on Bhutan’s steep valley slopes, while irrigation systems draw on mountain rivers and springs to support crops in areas with limited natural rainfall during certain seasons. Mountain soils, though often thin, support cultivation where terracing and careful management are applied.
Bhutanese agriculture faces significant challenges, including a limited supply of arable land, steep slopes prone to erosion, and landslide risk during heavy rains. Changing rainfall patterns, water availability, and periodic conflicts with wildlife moving through agricultural areas add further pressure. Rural-to-urban migration, as younger residents move toward Thimphu and other towns, has also reshaped rural communities over recent decades.
Natural Resources and Mineral Geography
Bhutan’s most significant natural resource, from a geographic and economic standpoint, is hydropower potential, generated by the country’s steep river gradients. Beyond hydropower, Bhutan holds geological deposits of limestone, dolomite, gypsum, coal, slate, marble, and quartzite, along with various construction materials.
These mineral resources are directly tied to Bhutan’s Himalayan geology, formed through the same tectonic processes responsible for the country’s mountain building. Limestone and dolomite deposits, found primarily in southern Bhutan, have particular relevance to the country’s industrial activity, supporting cement and related manufacturing.
It is important to distinguish between known geological deposits, estimated resource potential, and quantities that have actually been extracted or commercially developed. Many of Bhutan’s mineral resources remain characterized primarily as geological potential rather than large-scale proven, actively mined reserves.
Economy and Economic Geography
Bhutan’s economy reflects its geographic setting, with hydropower, agriculture, forestry, construction, and tourism forming central pillars, alongside smaller manufacturing, mining, and services sectors. Hydropower stands out as particularly significant, owing to the steep elevation drop of Bhutan’s rivers, which makes electricity generation and export, primarily to India, an important part of the national economy.
Economic activity varies considerably by region. Thimphu and its surrounding area concentrate government, services, and urban commercial activity. Southern border towns such as Phuentsholing serve as centers for trade with India. Central agricultural valleys sustain farming-based livelihoods, while eastern rural regions and high-altitude northern areas generally have more limited economic infrastructure, shaped by remoteness and difficult terrain.
Bhutan’s landlocked position means that transportation links through India remain essential to its economy, affecting the movement of goods, energy exports, and access to international markets.
Transportation and Regional Connectivity
Bhutan’s mountainous terrain creates substantial transportation challenges. Roads must navigate steep slopes, numerous river crossings, and terrain prone to landslides, particularly during the monsoon season. Bridges span the country’s many rivers and gorges, while mountain passes connect valleys that would otherwise remain isolated from one another.
Major road connections include the route linking Thimphu and Phuentsholing, which serves as a key corridor between the capital and the Indian border, along with the East-West Highway, which links central and eastern valleys and dzongkhags across the country. These roads form the backbone of domestic connectivity, though steep slopes, seasonal landslides, and monsoon rainfall regularly disrupt travel.
Paro International Airport, situated in the Paro valley, serves as Bhutan’s principal gateway for international air travel, given the constraints that mountainous terrain places on other forms of long-distance transportation. Regional connectivity with India remains central to Bhutan’s transportation network, while the northern border with the Tibetan region of China remains far more limited in terms of formal transportation infrastructure.
Energy Geography
Hydropower forms the core of Bhutan’s energy geography, made possible by the steep gradient of the country’s Himalayan rivers, which allows a large volume of water to descend a significant elevation change within a relatively short distance. This combination of high river flow and steep drop provides unusually favorable natural conditions for hydropower generation.
Several hydropower projects operate across the country, drawing on rivers such as the Wang Chhu and Mangde Chhu, with electricity generated both for domestic use and for export to India, which forms a significant part of Bhutan’s economic relationship with its southern neighbor. Beyond hydropower, solar energy and biomass contribute smaller shares of the country’s overall energy mix.
Transmission corridors carry electricity from mountain-based generation sites to both domestic consumers and cross-border markets in India. Rural electrification has expanded in recent decades, though geographic remoteness and difficult terrain continue to affect energy access in some parts of the country, particularly in remote eastern and northern regions.
Tourism and Geographical Heritage
Bhutan’s landscape holds substantial natural, historical, and cultural significance from a geographical standpoint. The Himalayan highlands surrounding Gangkhar Puensum represent one of the country’s most striking physical features, characterized by permanent snow, glaciers, and extreme elevation. Jigme Dorji National Park protects a wide range of high-altitude and forest ecosystems, while the Phobjikha Valley, a glacial valley in central Bhutan, is notable for its distinct U-shaped glacial landform and its importance as seasonal habitat for black-necked cranes.
The Punakha Valley holds historical significance as a center of early Bhutanese governance, situated at the confluence of two rivers. The Paro Valley combines historical, religious, and geographic importance, while the Bumthang region in central Bhutan contains some of the country’s oldest religious sites, set within a landscape of temperate valleys. The Chomolhari (Jomolhari) region, near the border with Tibet, represents another significant high-mountain landscape, closely tied to Bhutan’s alpine and glacial geography. Royal Manas National Park, in southern Bhutan, protects lowland forest ecosystems that connect with adjoining protected areas in India.
Each of these landscapes reflects the interaction of geological processes, ecological systems, and centuries of cultural development shaped directly by Bhutan’s terrain.
Natural Hazards and Environmental Challenges
Bhutan faces a range of significant natural hazards tied directly to its geography. Earthquakes occur as a result of the country’s position within the active Himalayan tectonic belt, and the resulting ground shaking frequently triggers landslides on Bhutan’s steep slopes. Flash floods and cloudbursts, sudden and intense bursts of rainfall, occur particularly during the monsoon season, when heavy precipitation can overwhelm narrow valley drainage systems.
Glacial lake outburst floods represent a distinct high-mountain hazard, occurring when glacial lakes, some of which have expanded as glaciers retreat, breach their natural dams and release sudden flows of water and debris downstream. Avalanches occur in the high mountain zone, while forest fires present a recurring risk, particularly during the dry winter and early spring months. River erosion also affects valley settlements and agricultural land over time.
Bhutan’s vulnerability to these hazards stems directly from its geographic characteristics: active tectonics, steep slopes, heavy monsoon rainfall, extensive glacial terrain, high relief, and narrow valleys with limited flat land. Earthquakes and landslides are closely linked, since seismic shaking destabilizes slopes that may already be under stress from rainfall or human land use. It is important to distinguish between the natural hazard itself and the human vulnerability it creates, since exposure and vulnerability depend heavily on where and how communities are located relative to these hazards.
Water Stress, Land Degradation, and Climate Change
Bhutan’s high-mountain and monsoon-driven environment faces a number of interconnected environmental pressures. Glacier retreat has been observed across parts of the Bhutanese Himalayas in recent decades, alongside changes in seasonal snowpack. These changes have contributed to the expansion of some glacial lakes, increasing the potential for future glacial lake outburst floods.
Variability in river flow, driven by shifts in snowmelt timing and monsoon rainfall patterns, affects water availability for agriculture, hydropower, and downstream communities. Landslide risk and soil erosion remain ongoing concerns on Bhutan’s steep slopes, compounded in places by forest fires and habitat fragmentation, which can also increase human-wildlife interactions as animal ranges shift.
Scientific research, including assessments by institutions such as the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development, has documented warming trends and changing precipitation patterns across the Himalayan region, while future projections point to continued glacier retreat and shifts in monsoon behavior. These observed trends and projected changes carry implications for both high-altitude ecosystems, such as alpine meadows and glacial environments, and downstream water resources relied upon by agricultural and urban communities throughout Bhutan and the wider Brahmaputra basin.
Bhutan’s Regional Geographic Importance
Bhutan occupies a distinct and significant position within South Asia and the eastern Himalayas, situated between the Tibetan Plateau to the north and the Indian plains and Brahmaputra basin to the south. This location places Bhutan directly within the eastern Himalayan mountain system and within regional South Asian transportation and trade networks centered on India.
Geographically, Bhutan plays an important role in sustaining Himalayan biodiversity, given its extensive forest cover and protected area network, which connects habitats across the eastern Himalayas. Its watersheds contribute meaningfully to downstream water systems that support agriculture, drinking water, and hydropower generation well beyond Bhutan’s borders. Forest conservation across Bhutan’s mountain slopes helps stabilize watersheds and maintain habitat connectivity, linking high-altitude ecosystems with the lowland forests and agricultural plains of neighboring regions.
Bhutan’s rivers, mountains, forests, and protected areas together form a geographic bridge between the high-altitude Himalayan environment and the densely settled plains of South Asia, underscoring the country’s broader regional importance within one of the world’s most significant mountain systems.
Key Geographic Facts
|
Geographic Fact |
Information |
|---|---|
|
Official name |
Kingdom of Bhutan |
|
Region |
South Asia |
|
Capital |
Thimphu |
|
Total area |
Approximately 38,394 square kilometers |
|
Landlocked status |
Landlocked |
|
Geographic coordinates |
Approximately 27°30′N, 90°30′E |
|
Highest point |
Gangkhar Puensum (approximately 7,570 meters / 24,836 feet) |
|
Major mountain system |
Eastern Himalayas |
|
Major rivers |
Drangme Chhu, Punatsang Chhu, Wang Chhu, Amo Chhu, Kuri Chhu, Mangde Chhu |
|
Major drainage basin |
Brahmaputra basin |
|
Climate |
Subtropical to alpine, strongly influenced by the South Asian monsoon |
|
Major natural hazards |
Earthquakes, landslides, flash floods, glacial lake outburst floods, avalanches, forest fires |
|
Population |
Approximately 780,000–790,000 (early 2020s estimates; 727,145 at the 2017 census) |
|
Largest urban center |
Thimphu |
|
Major cities and towns |
Thimphu, Phuentsholing, Paro, Punakha, Wangdue Phodrang, Samdrup Jongkhar, Gelephu, Trongsa, Jakar |
|
Major languages |
Dzongkha, Tshangla (Sharchopkha), Nepali, Bumthangkha |
|
Major agricultural products |
Rice, maize, wheat, barley, buckwheat, potatoes, citrus, cardamom, apples, livestock and dairy |
|
Major natural resources |
Hydropower potential, limestone, dolomite, gypsum, coal, slate, marble, quartzite |
|
Major energy source |
Hydropower |
|
Major transportation corridors |
Thimphu–Phuentsholing route, East-West Highway |
|
Major airport |
Paro International Airport |
|
Currency |
Bhutanese ngultrum |
|
Administrative divisions |
20 dzongkhags, subdivided into gewogs and thromdes |