Neermahal Palace – Tripura (Seven Sister State – 4)
Neermahal Palace is located between Rudrasagar Lake in the Northeastern State of Tripura. It is an iconic building which is also known as Water palace. This palace is the summer abode of king Bir Bikram Kishore. The King and his descendants belonged to the Debbarman family of the Manikya Dynasty. Great Indian poet and Nobel laureate Sri Rabindra Nath Tagore, named this palace in the year 1930.
Architecture – The entire palace is white in color and is a mix of Hindu and Islamic architectural patterns. From afar, it looks like the entire structure is floating on the water. The British company Martin and Burns foresaw the construction of this palace. There is a similar palace in Udaipur. This is the same company that built the palace in Rajasthan too. However, unlike the palace in Rajasthan that is now a luxury hotel; Neermahal has almost turned into a ruin.
It took almost 10 years to build the palace. The lake palace has two major parts – The Andar (Inside) Mahal is located towards the west and the eastern side has an open theater. There are various (about 24) big halls, rooms and lush green gardens. Most of the residential rooms are in these halls. Besides, the living quarters, there are meeting rooms, rooms for chess playing, the kings room to address people etc. The theater was once used for performances, dance, dramas etc.
Current Information – Neermahal used to be majestic and fairy tale like when it was built. With time, the lake has started to shrink. Human encroachment and plantations has also resulted in the water levels being depleted. The water used to be very clean and rich in flora and fauna. The fishermen always caught variety of fishes in this area. However, due to human waste being dumped, the water is now murky and fisheries have been reduced. Global warming has caused the rainfall in Tripura to reduce too.
The Rudrasagar lake is home to many migratory birds during winter season. During July/August (during Manasa Puja) , a grand boat race is held in which the boats can race into the palace
How to Reach – The nearest city is Melaghar (2 kilometers from Neermahal). One can reach this palace by speedboat or rowboats. Neermahal is located about 50 kilometers from Agartala. One can also take buses or share taxis from Agartala
Stay – The place has many tourist lodges that can be booked. Most of the places have lake view rooms which are very beautiful.
Location: Melaghar, Tripura 799115, India
