Agartala

Agartala /əɡərtəˈlɑː/ is the capital as well as the largest city of the Indian state of Tripura and also is the second largest city in North-east India after Guwahati, both in municipal area and population. The city is the seat of the Government of Tripura. Agartala is one of the fastest developing cities of India.

Agartala is a component of two words, namely "Agar", a kind of oily valuable perfume tree, + suffix "tala", a store house. The city is governed by the Agartala Municipal Corporation. Agartala lies on the bank of the Haora River and is located 2 km from the Bangladesh Border. Agartala is India's third international internet gateway after the ones in Mumbai and Chennai.

The overall area of the Agartala Municipal Corporation was 76.504 Square Km and the population was 438,408 after the completion of the restructuring of the Agartala Municipal Corporation in 2013. The percentage of literacy according to 2011 census was 93.88, higher than the national literacy rate. As per Municipal Census of 2015, the population of Agartala is 522,613.

History

Perched on the banks of River Haora, the capital city of Tripura-Agartala- entices sightseers with its past splendor. The name Agartala derives from the words 'Agar' and 'tala', a reference to the density of Agarwood trees in the region. The Agar tree was historically referenced in the story of the great king Raghu who tied up his Elephant's feet to an Agar tree on the banks of River Lauhitya. One of the earliest kings of Agartala was Patardan B.C. 1900 it was the time long before the Manikya Dynasties. Chitrarath, Drikpati, Dharmapha, Loknath Jivandharan were the important king during the time of B.C. in Agartala.

From the mythological, epigraphic and archaeological evidences excavated by the historians, it is clear that the glory of Tripura is a long-flourishing one. With early references in epic texts like the Mahabharata, the legacy and historical importance of this quaint city can be easily gauged. In the past, Tripura served as the capital to several noted Hindu kingdoms. Although a clear chronology of the rulers is not available, records reveal that the land has been ruled by as many as 179 Hindu rulers, starting from mythological King Druhya to the last king of Tripura, Kirit Bikram Kishore Manikya. Apart from the great Hindu rule, Tripura also witnessed the glorious rule of the Mughals. However, with the rise of British power in India, the state came under the governance of English in 1808. Much later the ancient capital of the then Princely State 'Swadhin Tripura' was at Rangamati (Udaipur, South Tripura) by the bank of the river Gomati. In 1760 it was shifted by the Maharaja Krishna Chandra Manikya Bahadur (r.1829–1849) of Manikya Dynasty to present old Agartala by the bank of the river Haora/Saidra and was named 'Haveli'. Due to frequent invasion of the Kuki's and also to keep easy communication with the British Bengal, the Maharaja Krishna Chandra Manikya started the process of shifting the capital from Old Haveli to New Haveli (present Agartala) in 1849. During the British Raj, Agartala was the capital of the erstwhile 'Hill Tippera' state, it became a municipality in 1874–75, and in 1901 had the population of 9,513. The princely state always remained as cake piece to the British and many other invaders, such happened when the Arakhan soldiers did really attacked in the old capital of the state following which the king of Tripura responded them in a tricky way by defeating the entire troop. With the waves of Indian Independence, the people of Tripura started Ganamukti Parishad movement to include the state as the kingdom of India. The then queen of Tripura Maharani Kanchanprava Devi signed the agreement on 15 October 1949 permitting the government to merge the province with independent India. On 1 July 1963, Tripura became a centrally administered Union Territory and attained the status of full-fledged state on 21 January 1972. Agartala was named as the capital of Tripura. The Agartala Municipality was established during the reign of Maharaja Bir Chandra Manikya (1862–1896) within an area of 3 square miles (8 km2) having a population of only 875 by a royal proclamation in the last part of 1871. Mr. A.W.S. Power, the first British political agent for Tipperah was also appointed as the Chairman of the Agartala Municipality in 1872 who held office from 1872–73. The municipality located at the crossing of Latitude N 23 –50' and Longitude E 91-17' covering 3 km2. Area during that period.

Maharaja Bir Bikram Kishore Manikya Bahadur is called the founder of the planned city of Agartala. He had gone for a tour in the United Kingdom and after returning to his kingdom he decided that he would make Agartala a mini UK that was During the 1940s when the town area was re-organised in a planned manner with new roads and a market building making a good comfort for the people.

The population of Agartala was 367,822 in 2004 after the municipal expansion (189,327 in the 2001 census).

From 1901 to 1971 the city remained in a negligible development progress with only an 8 km2 or area but from 1981 Agartala started to expand and increase its connectivity in various fields along with its city area with 58.84 km2, greater Agartala is planned as of 2011 with an additional of 92 km2. Agartala had a different type of history from the earlier times of the epic days as it was a princely state and was connected with Bangladesh once upon a time. Though the East India Company has not arrived in this princely capital of the state but they always remained in a certain in capturing and ruling. The East India Company had set their base of North East India in the Assam province with Shillong as their capital.

The Nobel laureate Indian (Bengali) poet Rabindranath Tagore or Robindronath Thakur visited the city more than once and also built a house that still exists. The historical book Rajmala contains all incidents and the historal stories of Agartala .

Geography and climate

Agartala is situated in a plain along the Haora River, though the city also extends to the low-lying hills on its northern parts.

Agartala has a monsoon influenced humid subtropical climate with large amounts of rain almost all year. The city experiences long, hot and wet summers, lasting from April to October. Average temperatures are around 28 °C (82 °F), fluctuating with rainfall. There is a short, mild winter from mid-November to early March, with mostly dry conditions and average temperatures around 18 °C (64 °F). The best time to visit is from September to February. Summers are quite long and is extremely hot with a scorching sun and warm day. As mentioned rain is very common in the zone with(subscription required) and the city sometime remains or can be found flooded in the rainy season. The river Haora flows through the city and remains flooded with water during the time of monsoon.

Localities in the city

Agartala city consists of many Paras, which means "locality" in Bengali. Each collections of neighbourhood or para is usually a municipal ward or division also.

Neighborhoods and localities

Neighborhoods of the city include; Banamalipur as one of the important areas in the state, mainly comprising localities and also an important business centre, it is a party of the main urban Agartala which falls under Agartala post office following with pin as 799001, Dhaleswaris a locality in the state close to Banamalipur, it is under the East police station and Dhaleshwar post office, pin is under this region 799007.

Pratapgar, Math Chowmuhani, Kashari Patti, Ker Chowmuhani are some important places in the city. One of the famous and largest banayan tree is located in ker Chowmuhani.Under that tree lies the famous Shiv-Kali temple of Ker Chowmuhani.This is one of the most peaceful temple in Agartala. In local language "Chowmuhani" is an intersection of three or four roads, i.e., a place where couple of roads are linked up crossed a particular point, in pure Bengali Chowmuhani is called "more".

Kaman Chowmuhani is the most important place and a part of the heart of the city. The name Kaman Chowmuhani derived from the Bengali word Kaman meaning "Tank" in Bengali. It so happened when the king of Tripura defeated the Arakhan soldiers in a battle and forfeited their tank and later it was set up in this place by which its name is derived. The place along with its object is a unique icon of Agartala.

Krishnanagar is one of the most densely populated parts of the city. It constitutes the most visited temples of Agartala like Jagannnatha temple, Laxminarayana temple, Durgabari temple and Alpkhbaba temple. Most popular restaurants of the city like Momos n More, Chathainog, Abba Cafe, Samba and Tandoori Hut are located here. This place is very popular among the youngsters and very common place for hanging out. Radha Nagar has a prominent bus stand and it connects buses and other vehicles to the northern part of the state. Shibnagar is another locality which connects the city to Maharaja Bir Bikram College, the oldest college of the state where as Ramnagar is the most dense locality in Tripura. The rectangular Gridiron network of Ramnagar dated from the rules of the Rajas, one of the earliest planned neighbourhood in the city. There are 12 division in this area lots of clubs are present here which conducts Durga puja. Joynagaris a locality in Agartala, It has 6 lanes. There are 4 clubs conduction Durga puja. The closest landmark of Joynager is Battala market one of the important business hub in the State.

Abhoynagar and Arundhutinagar are two residential areas in the city and is densely populated where as the other one (Arundhutinagar) is located 5 km away from the city centre, the railway station of the capital city is located in here.

Gol Bazar is the most important business hub as well as the biggest market in the state of Tripura. Products are exported to many Indian cities from this zone. The market was Established by the king of Tripura before India's independence.

Gurkha Basti is one of the biggest slum areas in the city, a recent campaign has been launched by the State Government to make the city slum free and hence excavation of the people is on the way and they are provided land somewhere in the city. Coming to Kunjaban is a census town in west Tripura district, which mainly includes government buildings and localities. The secretariat and the seat of the state government is located in this area. New Capital Complex is located in Kunjaban, it is a planned and a modern area in the city, secretariat and the State Assembly along with the new Governor House is located here.

College Tilla consists of the historic Maharaja Bir Bikram College which was set up by Maharaja Bir Bikram Kishore Manikya in 1947. It is surrounded by some localities and quarter complexes of many government employees. MBB Club, Indranagar, Bholagiri and Bhati Abhoynagar are some residential places in the city. 79 Tilla is another important part of Agartala with major offices such as the BSNL Office, Electric office, Geological Survey office and Quarters, and the AG Quarters.It is located 2.5 km approx from the heart of the city.

GB Bazar is another important market of this state which is located 2 km approx from the heart of the city. The Agartala Government Medical College is located in here.

Amtali, Badhar Ghat, College Tilla, Jagaharimura, Lake Chowmuhani, Advisor Chowmuhani, Ganaraj Chowmuhani, Durjoynagar, Bardowali are some important places in the city.

Battala is the commercial point of the city, it is often called Bottala in Bengali. Very good of electrical products also known as the electronics market of Agartala. Products are imported from abroad and also the cheapest variety of cloths and accessories are found, besides Battala also has a strong point of food market and it is the 2nd biggest market of Tripura after Gol Bazar.

Melarmath is one of the most important parts of the city and also the Business hub centre of the city of Agartala; the City Center is located in that zone also other important landmarks can be found. Melarmath Kali Bari temple is one of the famous temples in Agartala.

Khayerpur and Chandrapur are located on the National Highway 44.

These areas are subdivided into residential blocks, such as Banamalipur which is divided into North Banamalipur, Madhya Banamlipur, South Banamalipur, etc.

From 2004 the Agartala Municipal Council has been further extended, taking 16 Grams of Dukli R. D. Block, seven Grams of Mohanpur R. D. Block and two Grams of Jirania R. D. Block with area of 43 km2. and 178,495 population in addition to the 16 km2 and population of 200,000 in 2001 census.

City administration

The Agartala city is managed by the Agartala Municipal Corporation, AMC, which divides the city into wards. Each ward has an elected ward representative or municipal councillor. For postal administration the city is divided into postal zones. Municipal wards and their locations are as of below in table.

Ward No. Para / Locality Municipal Zone 1 Barjala North 2 Chandinamura-Lichubagan North 3 Kunjaban North 4 Chanmari North 5 Indranagar North 6 Nandannagar North 7 Abhoynagar North 8 Radhanagar North 9 Ranjitnagar Central 10 Rajnagar Central 11 Paschim Jaynagar Central 12 Ramnagar Central 13 Paschim Krishnanagar Central 14 Krishnanagar Central 15 Dimsagar-Banamalipur Central 16 Dhaleswar East 17 Kashipur-Khayerpur East 18 Shibnagar East 19 Paschim Shibnagar East 20 Town Pratapgarh Central 21 Shantipara Central 22 Melarmath Central 23 Bardowali South 24 Bhattapukur-Badarghat South 25 Arundhutinagar South 26 Dakkhin Badarghat South 27 Siddhi Ashram South 28 Rajlaxminagar South 29 Arundhutinagar South 30 Paschim Pratapgarh South 31 Purba Pratapgarh South 32 Jogendranagar East 33 Uttar Jogendranagar East 34 Aralia East 35 Purba Jogendranagar East

Culture

Agartala has got a mixed type of religion and is similar as compared to the other states of India. Hinduism is the dominant religion and there are many temples across the city. The Durga Puja season is generally the busiest time of the year and one can then experience the richness of Indian cultural extravaganza. Agartala is also known for its tribal festivals like Kharchi, and Garia Puja.

Temples

Some prominent temples are:

• Lakshmi Narayan Temple, the Palace Compound.
• Jagannath Temple.
• Ram Thakur's Ashram in Banamalipur.
• Durga Bari Temple in the Palace Compound
• Pagla Debata Temple, Agartala Old Motorstand
• Motorstand Shani Mandir.
• Satsanga Bihar, Krishnanagar
• Ker Chowmuhani Shiv-Kali temple.
• Kalibari Temple in the Palace Compound
• Iskcon Temple (Hare Krishna Temple)-SRI SRI RADHA GOVINDA MANDIR
• Baba Loknath Temple, Laxmi Narayan Bari Road
• Umamaheshwar Temple(Shibbari), Central Road
• Ramkrishna Mission, Math Chowmani (Near Dhaleswar), Gandhi Ghat & Amtali
• Bharat Sevashram Sangha
• Bhavatarani Temple, Melarmath
• Pagli masi Temple, Melaghar
• Universal Prayer Hall is at the Ramakrishna Mission Dhaleswar Complex in Agartala.

Mosques

• Gedu Miyar Masjid
• Jame Masjid, Bhati Abhoynagar (West)

Monasteries

• Benuban Bihar, Kunjaban

Churches

• Agartala Baptist Church, Arundhutinagar, the oldest church in Agartala
• Agartala City Baptist Church, Supari Bagan
• Khakotor Baptist Church, Abhoynagar
• Capital Baptist Church, Gurkha Basti
• Capital Baptist Church, Nandannagar
• Palace Baptist Church, Palace Compound
• Aguli Baptist Church, Bidhurkarta Chowmuhani
• Noyung Baptist Church, Haradhan Sangha
• St. Joseph's Catholic Church, Durjoynagar
• Don Bosco Catholic Church, Nandannagar
• Catholic Church, Mariamnagar, the first Christian community in Tripura
• Presbyterian Church, Shyamali Bazaar

Connectivity

Airport

Agartala is connected by air, via Agartala Airport which connects it to other cities in India. There are direct flight connections to Kolkata, Imphal, Delhi, Silchar, Aizwal, Guwahati, Bangalore, Chennai, Ahmedabad and Mumbai. Agartala airport is the Second busiest airport in north east India after Guwahati. The airport is located in Singerbhil 12.5 km (6.7 nautical miles) northwest from the heart of the city of Agartala. The major airlines are Air India, IndiGo and SpiceJet.

Planning is going on to upgrade the Airport building with better facilities & modern equipments along with more apron, expansion of runway better CAT and navigation system

Roads

National Highway 44 connects Agartala to Assam and the rest of India by road, also known as the lifeline of Tripura. The highways (NH44, NH 44A) connects Agartala with Silchar (317 km), Guwahati (599 km), Shillong (499 km), Dharmanagar (200 km) and Aizawl (443 km). A bus service connects it to Dhaka (150 km).

• National Highway 44 (India) – Connected to Tripura to Shillong & Mizoram(NH 44A)
• National Highway 44A (India) – Connected to Tripura to Mizoram

Agartala is well connected by road to other parts of Tripura state. National Highway 44 has been extended to the south, thus improving the road connectivity between Agartala and south Tripura. Buses, Jeeps, Trekkers and SUVs are the most popular public carriers, and cars and vans are usually used for private hire. The Highway generally passes through hilly terrains, while travelling from the city towards the North one can experience the lavishing and lush green Baramura Hill Range Atharamura Hills and the Longtharai Hills and while moving towards the South Debatamura Hills can be seen.

The main mode of public transportation within the city consists of a network of cycle rickshaws, auto rickshaws and buses.

Railways

Agartala has been connected to other cities in India since June 2008 through Agartala Railway Station. The foundation stone for the 119 km Kumarghat-Agartala railway project was laid in 1996 by former prime minister H D Deve Gowda.

Agartala is the second capital city (after Guwahati, Assam) in the northeast which is connected to the country's railway network. The railway station is located approximately 5.5 km (2.96 nautical miles) from the heart of the city and a lot of modes of transportation are available to reach the city from the station. The lines connect from Lumding with a meter gauge track to Agartala and is almost in its way for a connection towards the extreme end point of the state to sabroom. There were total 14 stations in Tripura with Churaibari being the last one in the North. New stations in South are under construction. Total length of track in this state is approximately 153 km following which the territory of Assam starts.

Expansion of the station and laying more tracks is under way, which will increase the traffic and passenger capacity, and set up a completely new broadgauge track for faster trains and more comfortable journey.

Broad-gauge conversion work in the Lumding-Silchar segment was completed in March 2015. Gauge conversion work till Agartala is completed by the end of March 2016 & trains between Agartala & Silchar started. During the laying of rail lines from Kumarghat to Agartala, provisions were kept for swiftly converting it to broad gauge. Presently local trains between Agartala to Dharmanagar and Silchar is functional Also express train connecting Agartala to Delhi,Kolkata,Guwahati and Dibrugarh has started.

A rail link between Agartala and Akhaura in Bangladesh was approved by the Government of India in September 2011. IRCON is constructing this 15 km long track that will directly connect northeast India to Chittagong international sea port. The construction would begin in 2015.

Communications

Radio stations

• AIR

Television

Doordarshan (DD) has a television station in Agartala. Akash Tripura is one of the first television channels in Agartala. It is a full-time Agartala-based news channel. Other full-time based channels are Headlines Tripura, News Vanguard, Awaaz, Amar Tripura.

There are other cable channels such as - Hallabol, T.TV, Sristi Tripura, Sristi music, sristi Bangla, sristi cinema, CITI, News all India, Tripura pratidin etc. etc. which are not 24 hours channel and are run by Siti & Sristi Cable networks.

Newspapers

Bengali-language media is dominant in the city. Major news publications are:

• Dainik Sambad (Bengali)
• Syandhan Patrika (Bengali)
• Tripura Darpan (Bengali)
• Tripura Times (English)
• Ajker Fariad (Bengali)
• Bartaman (Bengali)
• Daily Desher Katha (Bengali)
• Sakalbela (Bengali)
• Aajkaal (Bengali)'
• Tripura Samay
• Dainik Ganadoot(Bengali)
• Pratibadi Kalam(Bengali)
• Sandho Tripura(Bengali)
• Agartala News(Bengali/ English)

Tourism

Places of interest

• College Tilla – Maharaja Bir Bikram College, Tripura University buildings, football ground, international cricket stadium, picturesque lush landscapes and serene natural lakes. It is also a National Bird Sanctuary

• Ujjayanta Palace – Palace of the Tripura kings, was converted to state legislative assembly & now into a museum, situated in the area of Palace Compound is one of the eye catching attraction in the state. Its a former royal palace in Agartala, the capital of the Indian state of Tripura, and also served as the meeting place of the Tripura Legislative Assembly until 2011. The area has decoded from the ruling landmark of the kings to the citizens. Ujjayanta Palace is a tourist attraction of Agartala, and tours are conducted by the Tripura Tourism Department. The name Ujjayanta Palace was given by the famous poet Rabindranath Tagore, the famous poet visited the state of Tripura quite a certain amount of times, he had a different heart for this kingdom and loved it a lot. Maharaja Bir Bikram was the last king of Tripura who ruled the state and was also the last king who stayed in his house in the palace.
• Jagannath temple — Hindu temple of Vaishnava school of thought. It has now been transformed into a museum named Ujjayanta Museum and it was inaugurated by Dr. Hamid Ansari, The Vice-President of India
• Umamaheswar temple — Hindu temple of Shaiva and Shakti(durga).
• Venuban Buddha Vihar - Distance of around 2 km inside the city of Agartala from the City centre is located the Venuban Vihar where a Buddha shrine houses a metal idol of Lord Buddha. The idol was primitively created in Burma and was later transported to Venuban Vihar for instalment into this shrine. The function of Buddha Poornima is yearly celebrated with full colour and fervor. The solemnisations are followed by a large fair.
• Krishna Mandir
• Puratan Agartala (Old Agartala)
• Malancha Niwas- Kabiguru Rabindranath Tagore, the first Asian Nobel Laurete had stayed here during his visit to Tripura.
• Rose Valley Amusement Park, Amtali
• Agartala City Centre – The main hub point in the city, located in Paradise Chowmuhuni carries a lot of attraction in the capital
• Agartala Secretariat – Located approx 3 km from the heart of the city is indeed a splendid to watch the biggest Government building in Northeast India.
• St. Francis Xavier Cathedral, Agartala

Parks

• Rabindra Kanan
• Children's Park
• Nehru Park
• Kishans park
• Rose valley park
• Heritage Park

Museums

• Tripura State Museum is located at the Ujjayanta Palace.
• Science Museum, located in Sukanta Academy
• Haveli Museum, located in Kashipur