Our three-day trip to Tripura started on the
first week of December last year. We enjoyed exploring the capital city and
went on to visit Udaipur, Melaghar, Kasba and Akhaura as well.
Tripura, one of the Northeastern States of
India, shares its border with Assam in the north-east, with Mizoram in the east
and is surrounded by Bangladesh on its south, west and north. Greenery and
water bodies are found in abundance in many regions of the State.
Our first destination was Tripureswari
Temple, situated near Udaipur, about 55 kilometres from Agartala. Commonly
known as Matabari, this temple is one of the 51 Shakti Peeths of Hindu
mythology. It is believed that Sati’s right leg fell there when Lord Shiva in
remorse, performed the celestial dance of destruction, carrying the remains of
his wife’s self-immolated body. The temple stands on a small hillock and the
beautiful lake, Kalyan Sagar, lies behind it.
Next, we went to Neermahal, the lone water
palace of the North-east, situated in Melaghar. This spectacular monument is in
the middle of the vast Rudrasagar Lake. After buying our tickets, we proceeded
towards the beautiful palace on a motor-boat. The palace is divided into two
parts. The main area has two sections, consisting of several rooms and
balconies for the king and queen separately. On our journey back on the
motor-boat, we spotted some migratory birds.
At Melaghar, we visited the Pagli Mashi
temple to get a glimpse of an old woman who is thronged by people to seek her
blessings.
We then made our way through Bishalgarh
towards the Kali Temple of Kasba. This temple stands on a hillock and the lake
Kamalasagar in front, adds to its beauty.
We then headed to Akhaura, about two
kilometers away from Agartala. It is the Indo-Bangladesh border where the flag
lowering ceremony takes place between the two countries. We clicked pictures at
the international border and returned thereafter.
The next day, our first destination was the
magnificent white Ujjayanta Palace, the main attraction of the capital city.
Popularly known as ‘Rajbari’, this former royal abode of the ruling Manikya
dynasty stands on a lakefront and is now the Tripura State Museum.
Located near the Ujjayanta Palace is the
Jagannath temple, also known as Sri Chaitanya Gaudiya Math. After offering
prayers, we visited Venuvan Vihar, a Buddhist shrine, located at Kunjaban.
The Heritage Park is another tourist
attraction of the city, situated at Kunjaban. The park is designed as mini Tripura,
showcasing the undulating landscape with tiny railway stations, and replicas of
Tripura’s landmarks. Several water bodies are beautifully presented in
miniature form.
The Chaturdas Devata Temple at Old Agartala
was the last destination of our trip. This temple is unique as it looks like a
stupa and as the name implies, there are 14 deities that are worshipped.
As we moved through the streets of the city,
we caught sight of the construction work going on for the long flyover that
would be the first in Tripura, which would cover a distance of more than two
kilometres. We also went through many Chowmuhanis, which meant crossroads in
the local language.
While exploring the attractions of Tripura,
we relished the delicious cuisine that included fish curries of the famous hilsa
and pavda. Our trip ended well and we brought with us wonderful memories
captured in pictures.
[Published in ‘The Assam Tribune’ on 5
January 2018]
