Tripura's popular archaeological site, Pilak, which is over 1000-year-old, is all set to woo more travellers as the state government has initiated steps to develop it as a historical tourism circuit with two other places. TK Das, the Director of the state tourism department told PTI that it is a famous tourist spot in Tripura’s South District which is visited by people from different parts of the country. ''We have created an archaeological tourist circuit, including Chhabimura and Udaipur in the Gomati district and Pilak in the South Tripura district. There is a package tour connecting the three sites,'' he said.
Executive engineer of the state Tourism department, Uttam Pal, said, the state government has plans to develop the site for Buddhist tourists of South-East Asia and other places.
The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) had taken over the site since 1999.
Pal said, "Since Pilak is declared an Archaeological site, no permanent structure can be built within 150 metres of it, but many facilities have been created for tourists outside the restricted zone. The footfall of visitors is remarkably good. The state government has built a tourist Bungalow at Jolaibari, near the site.''
Where is Pilak located?
The place, nestled in Jolaibari, about 100 km from Agartala, formed part of a chain of Hindu-Buddhist sites on the tri-junction of East Bengal (now Bangladesh), Tripura, and Arakkan (Myanmar) region.
Nearly 200 people visit Pilak every day.
The tourism circuit starts from Agartala and links Pilak with Udaipur, a temple town in the northeastern state where Tripureswari Kali temple, one of the 51 Shaktipiths is situated.
Bhubaneswari Kali temple, which is featured in Rabindranath Tagore’s novel 'Rajarshi' is also located at Udaipur.
It also covers Chhabimura, famous for its panels of rock carvings on the steep mountain wall on the bank of river Gomati.
Why one should visit Pilak?
Stone engravings of Hindu Gods carved on stone in the Buddhist style, figurines of Shiva, Surya, Baishnabi, Mahishasurmardini, and Buddha statues can be found in Shyam Sundar Tilla, Deb Bari, Thakurani Tilla, Balir Pathar, and Basudeb Bari at the Pilak site spread over three sq km in the uplands and green valleys of Belonia subdivision.
Research by the late Ratna Das, who had authored a book on Pilak, suggests that the place had emerged as a major Hindu-Buddhist site in the eighth century.
Several rock-cut images and terracotta plaques lie scattered in the area and the Archaeological Survey of India is the custodian of the site.
What are the Tripura government's plans for the site?
The Tripura government received over Rs 1,600 crore in funds for developing the tourism sector for the next five years, state Tourism Minister Sushanta Chowdhury said in April.
In 2022-23, the northeastern state received nearly 3 lakh tourists of whom more than 35,000 were foreigners.
Did you know that former India skipper Sourav Ganguly was recently roped in as the brand ambassador for Tripura Tourism?
The step was taken to give a boost to the state's unexplored tourist destinations.
(With PTI inputs)
