AGARTALA, Aug 6 (TIWN):In a major development of tourism in the small Northeastern state like Tripura, recently the Union Railways Minister, Suresh Prabhu flagged off broad-gauge rail services between Agartala, - New Delhi. Agartala now became the third state capital in the Northeast to be connected by a direct train with the national capital after Guwahati and Itanagar. Four Northeastern state capitals – Shillong, Kohima, Imphal and Aizwal – are however yet to come on the railway map.

Over the years, tourists did not show any interest to visit NE States like Tripura due to lack of proper rail connectivity so far.They had to rely only upon flights but now  tourists can easily travel to Tripura and other places of interest in the region by train also.

The northeast has its own natural beauty that attracts more tourist always  and has high possibility for the tourism industry. The region has tremendous potential to become a tourism hub. Rich biodiversity and diverse cultures in the northeastern states provide huge potential for the tourism industry. The region offers almost all kind of tourism activities like trekking, mountaineering, Buddhist circuit tours, jungle safaris, cultural tours, hiking, rafting, cave tours. It is also famous for its ethnic cultural diversity.

Tripura, one of the smallest states in the country acceded to the Indian Union in 1949. Almost 60 per cent of the total area is under hills and forests. The state is endowed with variety of tourist attractions including monuments, wild-life sanctuaries, forests, water bodies, ancient palaces, temples and Buddhist religious sites.

The handloom and handicraft products of the state are also widely acclaimed. “Ujjayanta Palace, Jampui Hills, Sepahijala Wildlife Sanctuary, Pilak, Unakoti, Neermahal, Tripura Sundari Temple are some of the important tourist attractions of the state.