Agartala

Beautifully tucked in the north eastern region of India, Agartala is the clean and green capital city of Tripura. A mini storehouse of rich cultural diversity, Agartala is located in the western part of Tripura across the Haroa River. The cultural diversity of the city is due to its physical proximity with the Indo Bangladesh border. Agartala is the capital as well as the largest city of Tripura, and also is the second largest city in the North East after Guwahati (in Assam), both in area and population.

Once a part of a Hindu Kingdom, Agartala was taken over by the Mughals in the year 1733. The British took over the Mughal reign in the year 1808, and in 1956 when Tripura became a Union Territory, it became a princely state. In 1972, when Tripura gained statehood, Agratala became the state capital.

Attractions

One of the popular attractions of Agartala is the Ujjayanta Palace. The palace was constructed 10 km away from Agartala; however, the earthquake of 1897 destroyed it. It was thus rebuilt in the heart of Agartala city. Built in the Indo-Saracenic architectural style, the palace holds two temples in its premises, namely Jagannath and Umamaheswar. In the premises of the palace, several Hindu temples were built in dedication to Lakshmi Narayan, Uma-Maheshwari, Kali and Jagannath.

Another popular attraction here is the Tripura Government State Museum. Housing a large collection of artifacts that portray the dying art and culture of the state, the Museum has four galleries showcasing various categories like archaeology, painting, Indian sculpture and tribal culture.
Jampui Hill famous for its charming landscape and bracing climate is another famous attraction in Agartala. What attracts tourists to this Hill are its amazing climatic condition, green forests, beautiful orange garden, view of rising and setting sun. The temperature variation in the region is nominal in all season, and is ideal for the purpose of tourism.

Unakoti is another famous touristic site to visit in Agartala. The word ‘Unakoti’ means ‘one lesser than a crore’. It is believed that there are that many numbers of carvings present here. According to legends, Lord Shiva stayed at this location for just one night, when he was making a journey to Kashi, along with other gods and goddesses; a total of one crore in numbers. When the night got over, no one else other than Shiva woke up. As a result of which, he got angry and cursed the others to become stone figures. Thus, there are one crore minus one number of stone sculptures present here.

Best time to Visit Agartala
The best time to visit Agartala is between October and April. One might experience mild rain towards the extremes of this period.

How to reach Agartala
By Air - Agartala is well connected with Guwahati, Silchar, Udaipur, Melaghar and Unakoti. The Airport is 12 km to the north and leads on to Agartala via the Ujjyanta Palace.

By Rail - The nearest railhead is at Kumarghat.

By Road - India tourist permit vehicles for the local transportations and also for the intercity drives are available here.