Tripura - A Brief Profile

The Location

Tripura is located in the southwest North Eastern Region. The State is connected with Guwahati, by National Highway (NH-44) – the distance between Guwahati and Agartala being about 587 km.

The distance of Agartala from Siliguri (which is considered the entry point to the North East) is about 1065 km. Agartala is now connected by Railway Line and the same is being extended upto Sabroom, the southern-most part of Tripura. The State Capital, Agartala is also well-connected by Air to Kolkata, Delhi, Mumbai, Guwahati and other North Eastern cities. Agartala Airport is the second busiest Airport in the North East, after Guwahati.

A significant aspect of Tripura’s location is that the State has about 856 Km long international border with Bangladesh, which is about 84% of the total perimeter of the State. Most of the important cities of Bangladesh (including Dhaka) are within 150 km distance of the town in Tripura. The direct distance between Agartala (Tripura) and Kolkata (through Bangladesh) is only about 350 Km.

The Land
Tripura is among the smaller State in the North Eastern Region, with a total area of about 10486.00 Sq. Km. only, out of which about 60% area is hilly and forested. The cultivated area is about 27% only. The State gets fairly high annual rainfall of about 210 cm, well spread over the year.

The People
The State has a total population of about 36.7 lakhs (2011 census), which is the 2nd highest in the North Eastern Region, after Assam. The average density of population is also fairly high, at 350 persons per sq. km, particularly considering the fact that 60% of the area being forested and hilly is sparsely populated. The literacy rate in the State over 80%, which is much higher than the national average and 2nd highest in the North Eastern Region, after Mizoram. The State has a good social infrastructure in terms of educational and health institutions. The main languages spoken in the State are Bangla, Hindi and English.

The Economy
The State has good agro-climatic conditions, suitable for a large variety of Agro/ Horti. crops. Further, industrial development has also picked up over the past few years. In fact, during the last decade, the State has recorded impressive growth rates.

The Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) growth rate was 10.50% during 1999-2000 to 2007-08. The Secondary sector share in Gross State Domestic Product has risen from 14.12% to 22.59% during 1999-2000 to 2007-08. The per capita income of the State rose from Rs.14,119 in 1999-2000 to Rs. 28,806 in 2007-2008.