Five Days among the Tipperans - As we bid goodbye (Agartala)

After a breakfast of kochuri-sabji (here, and in most of the Eastern parts of the country, Kochuri is a puri ,deep-fried leavened flatbread made of fine wheat flour or maida, with a thin filling of daal - pulses-, paste of peas etc.) and chai we made our onward journey to the capital city of Agartala.

Agartala is only an hour's drive from Kasba. 

Ramakrishna Math, Viveknagar 

Enroute, we made a stop-over at Ramakrishna Math and Mission at Viveknagar. It has a huge campus which houses besides the main temple, a residential CBSE affiliated school for boys(presently around 847 students), a hospital, an ITI, hostels, guest-houses etc.

Next we visited the Ujjayanta Palace. This white palace is clearly the chief attraction in Agartala. The former royal residence of the Tripura Royalty - the Manikya dynasty, the palace has now been converted into the State Museum. It is a two storied building with rooms giving glimpses of all the main places of interest in Tripura and the first floor has snap-shots of the all the North Eastern states. Besides the places we had been to in Tripura, there are a few other tourist spots such as Pilak and Boxnagar which house relics related to Budhdhism. The museum also informs about the culture, flora & fauna, languages, ethnicities of Tripura. Tripura is a mix of Tribal and Bengali sensibilities- locals are at ease in Kok-Boruk or Bengali! 

The palace was constructed by Maharaja Radha Kishore Manikya. The architecture is heavily influence by Mughal, Roman and British styles.

It is highly recommended, that if short on time, or may be while on business trips, if one chances upon visiting Agartala, do visit this museum to get a flavour of all that Tripura has on display.

The other institutions which the Tipperans are proud of are the Sukanta Academy, a science museum, said to be built at the place where earlier stood the Barman's residence ( Famed Bollywood music directors SD Burman and RD Burman), Maharaja Bir Bikram College, the Chief Minister's residence - all of which are enroute the city center where stands the State Museum.

Lunch was at a local restaurant. One can ask for the pickled Hilsa fish for a taste of the local cuisine.

Malancha Niwas, Agartala

The "Bard of Bengal", Rabindranath Tagore shared a close friendship with the Manikya kings, especially Maharaja Birendra Kishore Manikya, who was his contemporary.

The Malancha Niwas was the guest house which Maharaja Birendra Kishore provided Tagore with - it also has a round balcony which is said to have been the Gurudev's favourite.

We made a short stop at the state emporium Purbasha. Famous products of the state are handicrafts made of bamboo, cane and wood. The handloom has distinct of Tribal, Manipuri and Bengali designs. The colourful bedspread Lysingphee is a famous and popular buy here!

Akhaura Beating Retreat

The day ended at the Indo-Bangla border check post at Akhaura. 

The evening march past is only a fifteen minutes affair. We reached Akhaura around 4 in the evening - in ample time for the ceremony. 

The BSF jawans were quite welcoming and wanted the general public to witness their march-routine.

Quite a crowd gathers for viewing the Beating retreat, so it is advisable to be on time.

With a receipt as a proof for our check, we were allowed into the waiting area. As we sat, we could see goods-vehicles cross the border, Bangladeshis and Indians crossing to the other side on foot upon verification of passport and other documents.

Visiting Hours:

1. Summer (April – November) : Ceremony starts at 5pm.
2. Winter (December – March) : Ceremony starts at 4.30pm.

If in Agartala, do visit this place, which is on the way to the Airport. The air here is of friendly cooperation - quite in contrast with the Retreat ceremony at Wagah with our westerly neighbour!

That brought us to the close of Tripura trip - where we had a varied flavour of places to visit- ranging from un-dated Bas reliefs, hill-stations, adventure trips down rivers and also a darshan of a Shakti Peeth!

The Tripura Travel or Five Days among the Tipperans - Days 1 and 2

The North Eastern part of India being not so easily accessible from the rest of India, it is not every other day that one manages to plan for a trip that side.

This Christmas, we decided to make a short trip to one of the NE states - Tripura.

Kailashahar Kali Bari 

About a six hour road trip from Agartala airport, through the hills of Atharamura and Baramura enveloped by tropical forests of banana trees, Areca Nut (Supari) plants, tall bamboo plants, brought us to the town of Kailashahar in the Northern Tripura district. 

Right behind the Unakoti Tourist Lodge (Tripura Tourism) stood the double fences of barbed wire. To stand so close to the international Border, unmanned, rural folk walking by with a melancholic tale to tell of their inability to go across to their relatives or friends across the border, moves the heart.

Kailashahar is a quiet town. We visited the local Kailashahar Kali Temple, which houses a tiny , only about 3 feet tall, idol.

Unokoti

Early next morning we set about the Unokoti Hills. Unokoti in Bengali means one less than a crore. This is a Shaivite place of pilgrimage and the biggest bas reliefs in India. The number in the name, obviously, being an exaggeration, this place is an impressive collection of huge forms of Shiva, Ganesha, Mother Goddesses and other structures dated back tot he 7th to 9th centuries. The hilly terrain , covered with lush greenery is a pleasantly challenging hike. Take your time to soak in the environment. Try to take a view from all possible angles of this breathtaking place! It seems surreal to witness the perfection of the gigantic statues and their intricate designs.

Moving on, we traveled onward to Jampui Hills - the highest hill range in Tripura. These range on an average around 1000 m above sea level. The road was over hills - sometimes covered with forest and at others with tea-gardens. At places Tipperan children stood waving at our vehicle.

It was a drive of about three hours. It being the Christmas weekend, the Eden Tourist Lodge at Jampui was occupied choc-a-block. The natives of Jampui Hills are a mix of Tipperans and Mizos. 

Sunrise, Jampui Hills

The vegetation in the valley is dense, mostly orange trees (though now the orange cultivation has dwindled), rubber plantation and other lush flaura. The sunset was picturesque.

However, what stole the show was the sunrise next morn! Over a sea of mist on the valley, the diamond ring appeared filling the landscape with radiance.

The journey on this day, scheduled to be the longest, we started off quite early.

Enroute, we stopped over at the Baramura Eco Park for a short visit and later on lunch at the Hornbill Cafeteria.

Chaturdosh Devta Temple, Agartala

The Eco Park, as many such others dotted all over Tripura, essentially works upon their natural splendour of verdant topography. Beautifully designed with huts, bridges - a botanical park where one can spend sometime photographing the greenery.

Continuing towards Udaipur in South Tripura district, the erstwhile capital of the Manikya rulers, we went via the outskirts of Agartala and visited the Chaturdash (fourteen) Devta Temple. The uniqueness of the deities here are that their idols are only that of their head. The famous Kharchi Puja is an annual festival in the month of July-Aug during which all the 14 idols are brought out of their temples and ceremoniously worshipped.