AGARTALA CITY GUIDE
The
tiny state of Tripura is the second smallest in the country. Tripura’s identity
was established by a 14th century Indo-Mongolian tribal chieftain
named Manikya who adopted Hinduism. The British conquered it in 1808, it became
a self-ruling princely state, entered the Indian union in 1956 and was granted
statehood in 1972. The main language spoken is Bengali and handloom weaving is
the primary industry. More than half of Tripura is forested, which should
naturally invite nature loving tourists, but unfortunately it harbours many
terrorist groups who periodically battle with the authorities demanding
separate homelands.
Present day Agartala, the capital of Tripura, was set-up in 1850 by Maharaja
Radha Krishna Kishore Manikya Bahadur. Although Tripura is open to tourists, it
is best to check with local
authorities about the prevailing security
situation.
The
main monument in Agartala is the UJJAYANTA
PALACE, built in 1901, sporting a
mixed Mughal-European style. Sprawling over 800 acres, this huge complex is now the state
legislative assembly. It also has formal gardens and man-made lakes. It is not
usually open to the public but if you go to the main gate between 3 and 4 pm,
you may get an entry pass.
Situated on the palace grounds and open to all are two temples—UMMANESHWAR
TEMPLE and JAGGANATH TEMPLE—both
of which are orange in colour.
There is a Buddhist temple, VENUBAN VIHAR,
about 1 km north on Airport Road. An unusual
GEDU MIAN MOSQUE which is decorated with broken crockery pieces may
also be visited.
The STATE MUSEUM is on HGB road and
its display includes ethnographical and archeological exhibits. It is open from
Mon-Sat, 10am-5pm; entry is free. The TRIBAL
MUSEUM, located behind the tourist office, is devoted to the
memorabilia of Tripura’s 19 tribal groups.
OLD AGARTALA is 5km away to the east. It has the
TEMPLE OF FOURTEEN DEITIES where devotees throng in July for the Karchi
Puja. It can be reached by autos , buses and jeeps