Agartala, September 23 (TIWN): Work for retrofitting of Neermahal is well in progress, Minister for Tourism Ratan Bhowmik said here today.

Asked about latest progress in retrofitting  in retrofitting work continuig at the erstwhile leisurely water abode of Tripura's Manikya monarchs,  the minister today said that work progress was found to be beyond target in a recent assessment. He said that the project for repairing and making Neermahal earthquake resistant is expected to be completed within the estimated target of May, 2015.
Tourism minister Bhowmik today further said that a 7 Km ring-road is being constructed around Lake Rudrasagar, the water body encircling the water palace. The road would add to the existing communication infrastructure in the area, adding to facilities to attract tourists at Neermahal.
Neermahal was built by Maharaj Bir Bikram Manikya Bahadur in 1930. Located at Melagarh, some 53 km away from Agartala, it is the second of its type in the country after Jalmahal in Rajasthan.
Tripura earlier retrofitted the Ujjayanta Palace at Agartala as a part of its continued effory to conserve historical monuments of the state.
The state is reported to be under Seismic zone V according to the reports of Geological Survey of India and is known to have high earthquake possibilities.