Rebuilding a lost gate: Tripura looks to restore a forgotten royal landmark

A colonial-era landmark

Ninety-six years ago, a custom-made concrete gate modelled on Hyderabad’s Charminar was erected on Central Road, the main thoroughfare leading to the Ujjayanta Palace — the seat of the Manikya dynasty that ruled the erstwhile princely state of Tripura.

The last reigning king, Maharaja Bir Bikram Kishore Manikya Bahadur, was coronated in 1927. A year and a half later, in August 1929, he held his first Raj Darbar. Sir Francis Stanley Jackson, then Governor of the Bengal province, attended as the special guest.

Although Tripura was autonomously ruled by the Manikya kings, it remained a British protectorate. The Governor’s presence. Therefore, had diplomatic significance, and the royal court was eager to present Tripura in its best light.

At the time, the area surrounding the palace complex — which includes the Ujjayanta Palace, several Thakurbaris (residences of princes), Durgabari Temple, Chandra Mahal, Lal Mahal and other royal structures — was still developing. It was only in later years that Maharaja Bir Bikram, inspired by his travels to Italy and other European countries, designed Agartala as a planned city.

Contractor Srinibas Saha agreed to construct an impressive gateway for Sir Jackson’s visit. The result was a spectacular white structure — 30 feet high and 25 feet wide, with four Charminar-style minars and a concrete bridge over the Akhaura Canal, then a major route for transporting goods from East Bengal to the Maharajganj Bazar, the state’s central market.

The British Governor praised the engineering feat in his address to the Maharaja.

The demolition of 1981

By 1981, the political tides had shifted. Tripura’s first Communist government believed the kings hadn’t done enough for educating the masses, and a massive movement was necessitated for public education. Led by Chief Minister Nripen Chakraborty, the government ordered the demolition of the Jackson Gate. It cited the gate’s narrowness and the need to widen the road as the primary reason for demolition.

However, many saw deeper motivations. Veteran journalist Rabin Sengupta, in his book Puratoni, wrote that ideological and conservation-related issues were at play.

“… A pile of rubble and a resultant traffic crisis has emerged from the ruins of this cultural and architectural work that was demolished by the supposed ruling power, partially due to the pangs of time, lack of the mindset conservation and partially due to the anti-monarchical philosophy of the ruling class…,” he wrote.

Why experts believe reconstruction matters

Historians and conservationists have largely welcomed the decision to rebuild the Jackson Gate, emphasising the importance of safeguarding structures that are part of local history and culture.

Professor Dr. Satyadeo Podder, historian and former vice chancellor of Maharaja Bir Bikram University, told indianexpress.com that no elected government should dismantle heritage structures that carry historical value and public sentiment.

“Historical monuments represent the time and culture of any place. It is a piece of heritage. Any building which represents the social, cultural and timeline significance represents the people’s labour, art, culture, economic resources and architecture of its period… Any government which is elected for five years with the people’s mandate should not have the right to dismantle such important pieces of history,” he said.

The Jackson Gate area along Central Road in Agartala. (Express Photo by Debraj Deb)

On the reconstruction initiative, he said: “Even if heritage buildings are destroyed, it is the moral responsibility of the government to rebuild replicas and reclaim the history. Rebuilding Jackson Gate will help restore some of the lost glory associated with it.”

Local historian and author Jyotirmoy Das said that many royal-era structures in Tripura have deteriorated due to neglect or lack of awareness, including Umakanta Hall at Umakanta Academy, where Rabindranath Tagore was once felicitated, and buildings within Maharani Tulsibati Girls’ Higher Secondary School, the erstwhile Victoria Memorial Hospital (now IGM Hospital), and the old columned Maharajganj Bazaar.

“Much of Agartala’s architecture was influenced by Italian designs after Maharaja Bir Bikram’s European tour. Most of these structures are not there now; many were destroyed or defaced over time,” Das said. “The demolition of Jackson Gate by government initiative certainly damaged the cultural, architectural and historical heritage of Agartala and the state.”

A gate as a symbol

For Tripura, rebuilding the Jackson Gate is about more than restoring an old structure. It is about revisiting a point in the state’s history when diplomacy, monarchy, and colonial presence converged.

And for the residents who watched it disappear four decades ago, the return of the gate may feel like the return of a memory long overdue.