India's Secret Second Time Zone: Assam's Bagan Time

India spans ~29° of longitude but runs on a single clock, IST (UTC+5:30), set near Mirzapur.

Assam's tea estates quietly keep 'Bagan Time' — one hour ahead of IST — a colonial-era habit still alive.

The sun rises nearly two hours earlier in Arunachal than in Gujarat, wasting daylight in the Northeast.

CSIR-NPL has formally proposed a second zone, IST-II (UTC+6:30), for the Northeast to save power.

Govt has rejected dual zones citing safety and rail-confusion risks — so the debate stays unresolved.