Tripura

Population: 3 million
Capital: Agartala
Area: 10,400 sq km
Literacy Rate: 59%

The small state of xe "Tripura" Tripura is almost completely surrounded by Bangladesh. It became a state in 1972. Neermahal Palace, located 53km from Agartala, is in the center of a lake. You can get to Agartala by bus from Silchar in Assam. This is the least visited of all the states. One reason is that there are several active insurgent groups, which could cause potential problems.

Agartala
Pop: 177,000 Area Code: 0381

The capital of Tripura is a nice town, but there is not much to see or do. xe "Agartala" Agartala is just 2km from the border of Bangladesh and you can get a visa at the Bangladesh Embassy here.
In Agartala, there is the 19th century Jagannath Temple and the Ujjayant Palace, which was built by Maharaja Bikram Singh.

Information
The town is designed in a grid. HGB Road is the main shopping area, and is where the post office and the Bank of India are located. The airport is 12km north of town.

Tripura Tourism (225-930), in the Ujjayanta Palace, has useful information. They can arrange tours of Agartala and Tripura for a minimum of 10 people.

There is a Bangladesh Tourist Office at the embassy.

You can change money at the State Bank of India on HGB Rd.

Bangladesh Embassy
The embassy (224-807) is 1½ km north of town, off Airport Rd. To get here ask for the Circuit House. You need two photos. Times for applying for a visa are Mon to Fri 10 am to noon. You then pick up the visa the next day between 3 and 4.30 pm. You can pay extra and get the visa the same day. Visa prices are different depending on the country you are from. The cost is around $30.

What to See
Ujjayanta Palace covers an area of almost a square km. The state legislative assembly now uses the palace and it is not usually open for visits. Sometimes they give entry passes between 3 and 4 pm from Mon to Sat. In the temple complex are the Jagannath Temple and Ummaneswar Temple, which are both open to the public.

The State Museum, near the circle on HGB Rd, has interesting old exhibits. Open daily except Sun 10 am to 5 pm; free. The Buddha Vihar on Airport Rd has Burmese statues of the Buddha (7 to 11 am and 5 to 7 pm).

The Caturdasa Devata Temple, 8km from town, is dedicated to 14 gods. It is built in the Bengali Bankura style. The Kharchi Puja in July is a big festival.

Where to Stay
There is a 10% hotel tax added onto the price of a room.

Agartala Rest House, Motor Stand Rd, has really basic rooms with common bath for Rs 75.
Hotel Ambar, off HGB Rd, has rooms with bath for Rs 135/225.
Hotel Minakshi (223-430), Hawkers’ Corner Rd, has basic rooms with bath for Rs 110/150 and deluxe rooms with hot water and TV for Rs 175/225. It is a good value.
Deep (227-482), LNB Rd, is a popular friendly place with clean rooms with bath for Rs 200/300. Some rooms don’t have windows.
Brideway, JB Rd, on the west side of the palace, has clean rooms for Rs 150/200 and A/C rooms for Rs 450/550.
Hotel Rajdhani (223-387), BK Rd, has clean comfortable rooms with bath for Rs 300/400 and Rs 450/600 with A/C.
Royal Guest House (225-652), Royal Compound, has good comfortable rooms with bath for Rs 300/450 and Rs 450/550 with A/C.

Where to Eat
Hotel Indu, HGB Rd, has cheap meals.
Abhishek Restaurant, LNB Rd, is a good middle-priced place.
Hotel Gujrat is a good place with thalis for Rs 25.
Royal Guest House has a good restaurant.

Travel
Air There are Indian Airlines flights to Calcutta (daily) and Guwahati (3 weekly). A taxi to the airport, 12km north, is Rs 150 and an auto-rickshaw is Rs 75. A bus departs from the beginning of Airport Rd to the airport. Indian Airlines office (225-570), VIP Rd, off BK Rd.
Sagar Travels (222-013), LB Bari Rd, east of the palace, can book airlines tickets. 

Train The closest railway station is in Kumarghat, 140km north and 7½ hours by bus. There is a railway booking office in the TRTC bus stand (Mon to Sat 8 am to 2 pm and Sun 8 am to noon).

Bus and Jeep There are three bus stands in town. From the TRTC State bus stand on Hospital Rd buses go to Silchar (12 hr), and Guwahati (25 hr, 4 pm) via Shillong (22 hr). There are buses to Udaipur (2 hr, every 30 min), Unakoti and Melaghar (2 hr, every 30 min).

From the Batala bus stand private buses depart to Guwahati (25 hr) via Shillong. Travel Agencies are usually found on LN Bari Rd. Green Valley Travels is well established.

From the Batala bus stand shared jeeps go to Melaghar (for Neermahal) and to Udaipur. A seat is Rs 18 in a front seat and Rs 14 in a back.
Bangladesh The border crossing for Bangladesh is 2km west. Open daily 8 am to 5 pm. From Bangladesh it is 5km to the Akahura railway station, from where there are trains to Dhaka (3 hr) and Sylhet. A bus to Dhaka takes 4 hours.

Unakoti
Unakoti, 180km north of Agartala, is a pilgrimage center that has big images carved into the hill. There are nice waterfalls there. In Kailasahar, 10km away, there is a Forest Department rest house, which can be reserved in advance with the Chief Conservator of Forest on Airport Rd in Agartala. Two buses go daily from Agartala to Kailasahar (7½ hr).

South Tripura

Udaipur
Udaipur, 55km south of Agartala, has the Jagannath Dighi Tank, the ruined Jagannath Temple, an old palace and temples dedicated to Lord Vishnu. The Tripura Sundari Temple, 4km from Udaipur, is built in the traditional Bengali style. It is one of the most important Shakti-piths in India.

There are shared buses and jeeps from the Battala bus stand in Agartala to Udaipur (2 hr, every 30-min). At the Matabari Pantha Niwas there are dorm beds.

Sipahijala Forest Sanctuary
This 18 sq km Forest Sanctuary, 32km south of Agartala, has monkeys, different kinds of deer and a small zoo. Admission is Rs 4 and an elephant ride is Rs 20.

Neermahal
The Neermahal Water Palace, which is located on Rudrasagar Lake, has bridges, pavilions and towers. It is in a beautiful location, 55km south of Agartala. Many migrating birds visit Rudrasagar Lake in the winter. You can ride a boat on the lake for Rs 10 per person or Rs 60 to Rs 100 for the entire boat. The palace is open daily 9 am to 4 pm; admission Rs 4.

Sagarmahal Tourist Lodge has rooms with bath for Rs 150 and dorm beds for Rs 60. It can be reserved at the tourist office in Agartala. Some rooms have good views of the palace.

The lake is one km from the town of Melaghar, to where regular buses and shared jeeps from Agartala (2 hr, Rs 20) and Udaipur (30 min) come.

Copyright ©2001 John Howley and Spiritual Guides